CD - Australian Fitness Network

AUTHOR’S BIO
SPECIAL FEATURE
RELEASE RESISTANCE TO EXERCISE WITH
EMOTIONAL FREEDOM
TECHNIQUES (EFT)
Maggie Adkins
First things fi rst – what is EFT, and how
does it work? EFT stands for Emotional
Freedom Techniques and involves
focusing on a negative belief, trauma
or event and then stimulating release
points on the body by gentle tapping.
It is often called ‘acupuncture without
the needles.’ By tapping on the body’s
energy system, balance is restored and
negative emotions are released.
Joan’s story may be surprising to
some, but it is quite common. EFT does
not involve drugs of any kind, can be
learned by young and old alike and
often works when nothing else does.
52 NETWORK WINTER 2010 www.fitnessnetwork.com.au
Maggie is one of only 29 EFT Masters in the world. She conducts all levels of EFT training throughout Australia and
organises EFT Extravaganza, Australia’s most comprehensive EFT conference. Maggie is passionate about discovering
what empowers her and then sharing it with others. For more information visit www.maggieadkins.com.au or email
earthwomandreaming@bigpond.com
�‘I wanted to exercise. I knew I should exercise. But I
just couldn’t make myself do it. This had gone on for
months when I met Maggie Adkins. After chatting for
only ten minutes or so, Maggie assured me that EFT could help
release what was holding me back from making the life choices
I wanted to make. I was sceptical to say the least, but decided to
make an appointment with her.
I was amazed when, after only one telephone session with Maggie,
I was motivated and excited to get to the gym. My resistance melted
as Maggie guided me through several issues with EFT.
One major issue was that I felt like a failure because I could not
keep an exercise program going for more than three months at
a time. Maggie helped me see that I had unrealistic ideas about
What also separates EFT from many
other techniques is that people are
taught how to do this technique for
themselves in the moment, when it is
needed. They do not have to repeatedly
go to a therapist in order to fi nd relief.
When Joan came to me about her
resistance to exercise, it was easy to
determine that she had unrealistic
goals for herself. We fi rst talked about
her belief that she had to be perfect.
As we determined the life situations
that created this need for perfection, it
became easy to use EFT to release the
past and shift into more appropriate
myself and my body. Until our session, I had no idea of how very
hard I had been on myself. My super critical voice sabotaged
just about everything good I wanted to do for myself. Once we
uncovered what Maggie called my ‘false beliefs’ about why I had
to be so perfect, it was easy for EFT to help me get back on track. I
can’t tell you what a diff erence this has made for me in every area
of my life.
I now have the motivation to exercise both at home and the gym
because I am not comparing myself to others and always coming
up as a failure. In the past, wanting perfection made it impossible
for me to keep going – it was all just too hard. I now enjoy the
actual exercise as well as how much better I feel and look.’
Joan, Sydney
goals for her. Joan, like many others,
was responding to someone else’s idea
of how she had to look and be rather
than her own. When we released the
need for approval from others and she
created her own approval of herself, it
seemed like her whole world shifted.
While Joan had her own specifi c
challenges regarding physical activity,
there can be many reasons for
resistance to exercise. One of the most
common is what I call the ‘Why bother’
syndrome. If a client has previously
attempted an exercise regime which
has not achieved the desired results,