Everyday Systems

Cassie

What you describe as 'binges' sounds to me like hunger, pure & simple. There are foods that in my experience leave you more satisfied & less hungry--proteins & fats, usually but also (at least that's how it works for me) things like oats or nuts/seeds. There are other foods (like the choices you're ...

Cassie

thanks for posting this. Lovely!

Cassie

My worry about this kind of thing would be--how relaxed can one be while eating with someone else while counting bites? I can imagine doing this when eating alone. But I mostly eat with others, mainly my family, and sometimes when I go out with friends. I suppose for me the whole point of NoS when i...

Cassie

I agree with the others, sadly it takes a lot of time--months and months--to truly be comfortable in having established a habit. What's more, there is the added difficulty (well at least for me!) that sometimes once a habit feels established & some of the weight is coming off, that's exactly when th...

Cassie

Oolala, thanks so very much for your wonderful post. I was particularly helped by your thinking about S days / S events. I too am realising that too many exceptions--more S days-- and too many (supposed) 'S events' is a mistake. It's exactly the area where I fail time & time again & then need to ret...

Cassie

Ugh, December has only recently started (only the 6th today) and already I've had far too many evenings out / including a bit of overeating & not properly following NoS principles.... really disappointed with myself after I was doing so well. This week in particular has been pretty bad, what with th...

Cassie

Have no idea what this is?

Cassie

Hi all, I have a quick question about the upcoming December craziness, what with Christmas, New Year etc. It's not so much the actual days of the holidays which I can handle (they're clear S days). It's more: what do you do with the whole month before? My diary is already much fuller compared to oth...

Cassie

I agree completely with eschano: the idea that there is any diet out there that 'works well' is a complete illusion. Nothing 'works well' on its own: it's what we put into a diet, any diet, what we do with it , that makes it work better or less well. Taking that into account, NoS compared to all oth...

Cassie

I have gone through ups & downs. I always come back to NoS (after a few years since I first discovered it) as I find it by far the most sane, healthy (for mental health as well as physical health) way of being around food. That doesn't mean it's easy. As with anything, it takes getting used to and a...

Cassie

Yes, they're excellent, it's really a pity that they're so few & far between. Wish there were more!

Cassie

Ramekins are tiny!

Cassie

What a good idea :D I'm in. For me, my holiday goal is to set myself challenges / particular small goals for each day, running up to just after New Year, and to just follow that. I've been doing that--working on creating my small goals for 21 days at a time--and it works well for me. So I'll start b...

Cassie

I'm sure you'll know it if you put on weight. Even though I'm one of those people who find it useful to weigh myself each day, I think in your situation it's probably much wider to give the scales a break--say, for a month--and see how you do with really giving NoS a good go.

Cassie

It's also possible that you'll lose the weight earlier... each person loses weight at a very individual rythm. For me, sadly, 10 kilos (=20 lbs) would take more than a year probably if I strictly followed NoS with no modifications. Even much more than a year actually. But for other people who lose w...

Cassie

I think your fear (or actually putting on weight if you 'let yourself loose' on S Days) is legitimate: legitimate not in terms though of NoS, but in terms of giving information on the way you feel about your body & your eating: slightly out of control it seems to me, with a fear that you can't trust...

Cassie

To be honest, I think it's the spirit of NoS that one could keep in mind, ie more or less an average plate of food per meal, rather than the literal application of it, ie whether the soup & other food should be one plate. I suppose the danger would be if one were to eat a massive big soup bowl of so...

Cassie

Sadly I'm in the same boat--losing an putting on the same 2/3/4 kilos (particularly since I became pregnant & had my son 5 years ago). Basically after that i haven't really lost a serious amount of weight. I yo-yo continuously with just a few kilos. All in all, I too want to lose about 10-15 kilos (...

Cassie

Personally I wouldn't include muffins, pancakes, french toast and the likes on N days, but that's just me & I've learnt this over the years. I might sometimes have something like that for breakfast on a weekend, as a treat with my son. But not on N Days as I consider this sort of food sugary. But ea...

Cassie

Hi Alice, Welcome to NoS then :) . Could you tell us a bit more about yourself so that we can help more? because I too was wondering about what hasn't been working with the diet you've been on so far, that made you do some more online research & come across NoS? It would be useful I think to have th...

Cassie

All very true. What I find particularly interesting in your post, and I suppose it's linked to the overall value of NoS for me, which is why I keep returning to it, is the fact that it took you over a year of successful NoS to realise what works best for you in terms of dessert (eg after meals / lea...

Cassie

Happy Scale sounds really useful, thanks for suggesting it.

Cassie

Excellent article: such a great idea! My problems with weight have ALWAYS (over the years) been in the area of maintenance. Well to be true, in recent years also in the area of losing momentum with weight loss. But maintenance is always the area where things go chaotic for me, so reading this really...

Cassie

Hi everyone, Just wondering if there's anyone else who lives in London & who might be interested in forming a loose NoS support group, mainly based on regular online support but also perhaps sometimes in person? I find that NoS is great (& even though I've not been on the forums for a while, I have ...

Cassie

Really Wosnes?! So basically what you're saying is that in your neighbour's case, with slightly more calories she's actually losing more weight? That's fascinating. I think it's probably because if the calories are too low then metabolism slows down (or something like that, correct me somebody if I'...

Cassie

Whew! Hadn't realised there were so many responses to this thread :). Thanks so much for taking the time to respond. I do agree with those who say that 1400-1600 calories (on average) per day is probably not great in terms of hunger etc. However, I know from experience- well, taking into account tha...

Cassie

Thanks Stacy for your support & kind words regarding my PHD :D. Helps a lot to hear positive things, particularly since a) I've been feeling disappointed with my eating/exercise habits (all these back & forths are TIRING to say the least) and b) I haven't had any luck so far with my job hunting... Y...

Cassie

Hi, I'm writing here to get support really as I've been feeling really bad over the last month. An update on how I've been doing: had a perfectly green HabitCal for June & July & most of August, just with vanilla NoS. Then my downfall started: a) trip to greece to visit family. Things ALWAYS go hayw...

Cassie

Wosnes, thanks for that. Can I ask: do you have rules about how many S events per week? And if you don't use them, do you then bank them? It somehow feels to me that if I don't have a very clear number / rule in my mind of what's allowed, things tend to go a bit haywire. In order to promote weight l...

Cassie

OK returning to this thread & bumping it up because I've started to get a few too many reds on my HabitCal in the last couple of weeks! This is not just random. I'm still on holiday abroad (visiting family) & we've already been here more than 2 weeks, & have 10 more days. Holidays always, always com...

Cassie

Wosnes, you're absolutely right, it's obvious that the obesity 'epidemic' is not just due to poor eating choices but also to normal activities in everyday life not involving movement. Everyday life, after all, has changed hugely hugely hugely in the last century and it's bound to have made a huge im...

Cassie

Common sense tells me it's a combination of both as exercise is crucial for good health etc, BUT bottom line, if calories eaten are more than calories burnt then no amount of exercise will help... Maybe I'm simplifying the issue too much though? Just judging from my own experience & from my common s...

Cassie

Thanks for this Kwidener. Makes sense. For the moment I'm just trying to get my head around how I want to do things. I'm not sure I actually should have floating S events (I might or I might not) as it feels slightly too confusing for me. If I do though I'll record in the way you suggest!

Cassie

HI, just a quick question. Following my other thread (see in the general NoS discussion) about making mods in order to push myself into weight loss, I'm trying to figure out how the mods I've decided on will work. Mainly I wonder how my 2 'S' events (floating S events during the week) can be recorde...

Cassie

All these suggestions are very helpful, thanks so much. As for the exercise, yes I haven't been entirely successful. THe reason is that my schedule is a bit all over the place at the moment so it hasn't been the best time to organise things regarding exercise. I think there's a lot (A LOT) of room f...

Cassie

HI everyone, thought I'd ask the wise people here on NoS for some advice. Basically I've been happily chugging along on NoS for the last 3 months or so, without any red days whatsoever (hurray!) I've also tried adding 15 mins exercise a day for the last month but that hasn't been entirely successful...

Cassie

Its hard at first. What's really surprising (at least it surprised me) is how quickly your body adjusts going longer stretches between meals. It took me less than 2 weeks to feel completely ok with longer between mealtimes, my usual times are around 8.00 am for breakfast, 1.00 pm lunch & 8.00 or 8.3...

Cassie

Clarinetgal : thanks for the suggestion. I'm actually a beginner to be honest in exercise (I've exercised in a limited way on & off through the years but never really managed to increase my fitness levels significantly to consider myself 'intermediate', since I have the tendency to give up quickly)...

Cassie

Sounds very sensible, KCCC, the way you've decided to do it. I generally think that some (mild / flexible) rules for children work very well, eg limiting sweets to sometimes a week. And the reciprocating thing also sounds like a very good idea, teaches other things too apart from healthy eating

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Cassie

Sounds to me that these options mentioned by the others (discussing pros & cons / reaching a compromise etc) are good ideas. I'm sure that since you have a good relationship with your child, you'll find a way to create some rules together that work well :) . The main thing is to find a balance betwe...

Cassie

Well after your thoughts (thanks for taking the time to write them down) I've ditched the idea of using margarine & have kept on using butter. However, I've stopped having toast & butter & marmalade that often, & I now mostly have oatmeal for breakfast or muesli with yoghurt (both of which I love an...

Cassie

I definitely agree that it's not a good idea to push something like this on to somebody, however much of a weight problem they have & however much they discuss their weight problem. I feel in my heart that NoS is not so much a diet. Rather it's a structure of sensible, moderate eating that helps wit...

Cassie

I love the idea of using a pedometer especially since recently I've been walking more & more. Last year I did buy one but it just logged on steps almost with every movement I made (e.g. when I was lying on the sofa & just moving around, changing position). Do you think I was just using it incorrectl...

Cassie

I read this article & was astounded by the amount of food these people eat!!!

Good question by KCCC: if these are their snacks, I can't even begin to imagine what their meals look like!!

Cassie

I'm sure this thread must have been done many many times... but it's nice to show appreciation so thought I'd show mine. So, after more than a year on NoS I finally got round to reading Reinhard's NoS book. If I'm honest, the reason I bought it was just as a (belated) 'thank you' to Reinhard. I didn...

Cassie

Hi Cantab No, I haven't lost 1 pound in one year. I actually had quite the rollercoaster year! Did NoS for 2-3 months, got frustrated at very slow weight loss, went on an Atkins-type diet, lost about 8 kilos, which I promptly put back on (well almost all of it) once i re-introduced carbs in my diet....

Cassie

BrightAngel, one thing I always wonder about calorie counting: how do you account for cooked foods / whole meals? For example, an apple is easy: it's so & so calories. However if (like we did today for dinner) your meal consists of a) potato salad b) cucumber salad and c) cheese pie how would you go...

Cassie

I'm pretty sure (just following my common sense) that what's certainly unhealthy is yo-yo dieting. Losing weight (for overweight people) IF done correctly i.e. if done slowly, if weight loss is maintained, if exercise is added....is surely good. But certainly if it's a choice between maintenance of ...

Cassie

More like 7 or 8 hours for me between lunch & dinner & I hardly feel deprived

Cassie

I'm in too this month. My goals are: --a pure 'green' month, focusing on N days still --14 mins a day any exercise (greens on HabitCal of that too) 1 July: Green 2 July: Green 3 July: Green (was saturday but exchanged this day with monday. Not sure this was a good idea though. Won't be exchanging ag...

Cassie

You know you're eating diet food when...the 'butter' or 'cheese' smells & tastes like rubber.

Cassie

Well exactly, it's great to focus on what you've established well- your N days- and use that as a firm basis to go forward. I'm sure you'll be fine with just a few tweaks here & there on S days.

Cassie

Interesting to read about Greece, as I'm Greek. Its true that generally greeks tend to: -eat meals at home, around the table -have lunch as the main meal of the day -have a much lighter dinner -have an almost non-existent or anyway, very small, breakfast (not sure if this is good or bad) -use olive ...

Cassie

Today in the morning I weighed myself (even if it's not yet 1st July) & I was disappointed: after 1 month perfect compliance on vanilla NoS, I still managed to put on 1 kilo (which is about 2 pounds)... :cry: But what feels good is that I have a very clear idea of how this last month went, where my ...

Cassie

Thanks for the input. What feels really helpful is that I know very well, having done vanilla NoS with no slip ups where my problem areas are &, even more basically, what I've been doing in the last month. In the past (for example this last spring when I was on & off NoS with no consistency) I would...

Cassie

I'm very disappointed today... after one month of absolute compliance on vanilla NoS (after months of difficulties & ups & downs) I weighed myself & I've actually PUT ON 1 kilo in this month, and maybe even a bit more :cry: . I know I'm a difficult case: years & years of yo-yo dieting have left thei...

Cassie

This is very interesting but also very disheartening, in a way. Although of course it makes so much sense... Here's some anecdotal evidence: Last year, after 2-3 months on NoS, I lost quite a bit of weight (from July 2009 until November 2009) on an Atkins style diet. I also did a lot of exercise dur...

Cassie

BrightAngel, just wanted to say I really appreciate your attitude, it's always so well balanced & leaves possibilities for different things working for different people. Many thanks for offering your thoughts, I always read them with interest

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Cassie

Well yes, sadly, lots of people rely on anecdotes to prove this or that point. Anecdotes mean nothing at all, rather, they obscure the picture of whatever it is someone is trying to prove.

Reinhard: sorry about the loss of your friend...

Cassie

Julia, everyone has given you really good advice so not much to add really :) . Just one thing: GIVE IT TIME. I think from your post that perhaps you're very eager & enthusiastic for NoS to work & to work quickly. The problem with NoS- which is actually though why it works so well- is that it relies...

Cassie

Good luck, first of all :). Many of us (maybe all of us, actually) have been where you are, starting & failing & then picking up & starting fresh. So don't beat yourself over that, what's done is done, today is a new day. However, I agree with the others. What you mention ' make healthier choices' &...

Cassie

Yes, I agree that it's unreasonable to expect calories to be THAT exact. It's a rough estimate which, in the long run, should be good enough for most people. I really don't believe putting on weight has to do with those 50-100 or whatever calories that someone is 'off' from their daily goal. It's a ...

Cassie

RJ Lupin, think of it this way. You've had a long period where everything was ok, you did well, and then you had a setback. That's life, it really, really does happen to all of us. I was inspired when I saw some of the testimonials of those who have done NoS for a long time. Don't remember whose it ...

Cassie

Hi everyone As I wrote in my daily check in, I've just completed a successful round of 21 days with pure greens on my HabitCal and the normal yellow S days. I'm very happy about doing this as I've been on & off NoS for a while (with a disastrous Atkins style crash diet in between) & I'm DETERMINED t...

Cassie

Reneew, I think it's good (as the others have said) that you've given this a lot of time so you can perhaps start thinking of making some changes on S days. If you read through KCCC's stages of NoS (sticky) it does say that tackling S days & making some changes there tends to be the second step, aft...

Cassie

I'm proud of myself: I completed the 21 days challenge of pure green N days (& of course yellow S days). The only doubt I have is one N evening when I went to the movies & instead of a 'sitting down' dinner I had a hot dog & nachos with cheese. It felt too much & then my stomach was upset, but I sti...

Cassie

Mander, the main thing to do I think (and everyone has given good advice) is to take one step at a time. Your idea, to declare your desk a snack free zone, is a good starting point! Also, maybe pushing dinner earlier as a first step? And then gradually structuring breakfast too? The thing is, the No...

Cassie

I also think it's relevant whether it's desirable to go through one's life without any desserts (or worse, any wheat). Desserts & baked goods were always as far as I know a part of normal life, just not consumed in excess. (I believe this is actually also true of alcohol, tobacco etc but that's anot...

Cassie

I think KCCC's right, it's what we make of the term 'addiction' that matters. However, just a side point to say that, from talking to addiction counsellors etc, there tends to be an acceptance in the research that 'chemical / physical' addiction is actually the EASIEST part to deal with even with ha...

Cassie

I happen to be a psychologist but I also happen to hate psychobabble, and I'm afraid to say that it's my feeling that 'food addiction' falls in that category :( . I'm sure, however, that there are people who have found Overeaters Anonymous helpful, which is based on a model of abstinence & admission...

Cassie

Hi mander & welcome to NoS. I also work from home & I, like you, found grazing hard to resist, particularly since it's so easy when working from home to take a little break & go down to the kitchen etc. I agree that you should make the effort- and it's an important one- to structure your meals. I al...

Cassie

I (kind of) gave up bagels. They used to be my guilt inducing foods at home. I just gobbled them up like there was no tomorrow during random trips to the kitchen (I work from home so there was always an excuse to go to the kitchen). I say I 'kind of' gave them up because I still have a bagel for bre...

Cassie

Roiboos tea, fennel tea, lemon & ginger tea. But also regular black tea. The other thing I drink a lot of is cold water with sprigs of mint from my garden

Cassie

I have to confess that my s days- a year in- still feel slightly out of control (but I've been on & off NoS this last year, before I alarm any of the new members!). I completely agree that having out of control S days doesn't feel that great at all... Having said that, I had a nice dessert at home t...

Cassie

KCCC , just wanted to say thanks thanks thanks for a wonderful, helpful post. I read it yesterday & it really resonated with me...and then I read it to my partner who is helping me along on my NoS path. He found it excellent too. I think it's now clear to me that I'm still firmly in phase 1 (even t...

Cassie

Here I am again, a bit more than a month after my last post :) . Glad to say that the goals / thoughts I outlined in my last post still hold true. I haven't weighed myself more than once a month and- happily- on June 1 I found that not only did I maintain (a big thing for me) but also lost a little....

Cassie

Just want to make a note- and correct me if I'm wrong- that combining fasting with NoS is not recommended for the first stages of NoS. I just have in mind KKCC's wonderful sticky post about the phases of NoS. I myself am still struggling with establishing N days (after a year doing NoS...don't ask :...

Cassie

I just read through this whole thread & I find it interesting. I've never myself thought of fasting as an option. I suppose I'm too attached to my 3-meals-a-day mentality... it slightly panicks me (but also intrigues me) to think that it would be possible to go for a whole day without eating. I wond...

Cassie

Adding to what the others have said, I have found that I feel at my happiest & most sane when I don't weigh myself more than once a month. I used to have a weighing-myself habit / addiction. I would start each day by stepping on the scales. Since I've cut that down at once I month, I find that I foc...

Cassie

Desertmom, wanted to welcome you & see how you're doing one month in the NoS way of eating? Good luck...hope it's been going well.

Cassie

Hi Suz, I just want to offer a bit of support & encouragement really. I think most of us here on the NoS boards have been where you are now, i.e. feeling like a failure, having diets not work etc. I agree with all the others have said, but I also want to stress that if you've been eating dinner PLUS...

Cassie

I usually have one medium latte with skimmed milk from Starbucks everyday to tide me over between meals. I wonder now if that's too much?

Maybe I should make it a small latte?

Cassie

In general April went very badly. After the illness I had which completely de-organized my eating, we then travelled to Greece & stayed for about 2 weeks with family. I've learnt by now that whenever I go to Greece there is a big danger that my eating habits will derail, and they did! My mum also ea...

Cassie

I've made a promise to myself that it's important to be accountable for what's happening, both in good & bad times, so here I am again. I was doing pretty well in March (my first month back on NoS after quite a while). But then I got sick with gastroenteritis & all hell broke lose. For about 5 days,...

Cassie

Sunday & Monday were both S days. I didn't record what I ate on those days but it was pretty much normal. The reason Monday was 'S day' was because I was out with a friend. I think it makes sense for the way my life is planned to have the 2 S days on days during the week that I have an outing (which...

Cassie

I think it's a very good point, a small excellent-quality dessert or other treat works very well, & usually goes a much longer way than eating lots & lots of junk. I'm still at that stage (sadly) that I overeat- sometimes on junk- on S days but I'm noticing already a small improvement & I hope to ge...

Cassie

Good points, make sense.

Cassie

Saturday 20 March Another green day (this was because wed was an S day). I'm on a bit of a roll, I'm finding sticking to the rules a lot easier (for the moment). Losing weight is another issue though. I don't really feel I'm losing. I'll weigh myself on April 1 & will see what's what. I plan to con...

Cassie

Thanks Shannon for your supportive post :) . OK 2 green days to write about (always a good thing). Thurday 18 March Green Breakfast: 2 slices wholemeal bread with butter & 2 poached eggs. Black tea. Lunch (at Costa): A tuna melt pannini. A skinny medium latte. Dinner: chicken sausages with a spoonfu...

Cassie

Wednesday 17 March 2010 S day (exempt) OK this was a bit of a judgment call. I had a celebratory meal to go to yesterday (Wednesday) which was planned ages ago for my PHD submission. I decided that, rather than not enjoying my meal as much as I could, I would simply go with wednesday as a S day & s...

Cassie

Another green day. Its a relief; the more green days I have, the more reassured I am that this is going well. Today I also made a small effort to look at my food choices e.g. tried to include veg with my main meals. Tuesday 16 March 2010 Green Breakfast: 2 slices wholemeal bread with butter & orange...

Cassie

Monday 15 March Green Breakfast: 2 slices wholemeal bread with butter & orange marmalade. 2 cups black tea. Lunch (Starbucks): a bean, boiled egg & potato small salad. A steak & red pepper Panini. A medium skinny latte In between: 2 cups tea with a bit of milk Dinner: Some cucumber salad. 2 slices ...

Cassie

Thanks so very much everyone for all your thoughts & encouragement! It has helped immensely, I'm now back on 'green' days. I've also started filling in my 'daily check' daily (plus habitcal) which helps loads. Patience is hard, I'm not good at it, but I'm learning the hard way how to get better at it!

Cassie

Donna, hi. I wouldn't for one of the reasons Reinhard outlined. NoS is a slow weight-loss program as it is (for some people, like me, its more a maintainance plan unless I really pay attention to what I eat at mealtimes: and that's all fine). If you only do one 'S' at a time, the trouble is you run ...

Cassie

Hello Robyn & welcome to NoS :) I don't consider drinks 'snacks'. For example I always have a latte with skimmed milk in between lunch & dinner (one every day) in order to tide me over. Black tea or even tea with a splash of milk is also not a snack. That said, some drinks (e.g. smoothies) are quite...

Cassie

Sunday 14 March 2010 S day Breakfast: 2 slices white bread with butter & orange marmalade. 2 cups of black tea Lunch: some baked cheese pasta (leftovers) with a bit of green salad, a piece of feta cheese. Served with water In between: a skinny medium latte (Starbucks). A spoonful of yesterdayâ€™s c...

Cassie

Saturday 13 march 2010 (S day) I'm interested in keeping track on how/what I eat, particularly to see what's happening on S days during which I feel I lose the plot! Breakfast: a plain bagel with some cheddar cheese, 1 medium skinny latte (Starbucks) Lunch: (at restaurant) grilled salmon with pesto...

Cassie

Friday 12 March green Good day in general. I've found that having oats for breakfast and/or something with protein in it (and the same for lunch) tides me over well to the other meal. Haven't had hunger problems. Breakfast: a bowl of porridge made with water & milk, with 1 chopped up medjool date, ...

Cassie

THis thread is very interesting in order to see how healthy, moderate eating patterns & structures emerge if you give it time. I would love to see if there's any similar patterns for N days that people who have been on NoS for a while find helpful?

Cassie

...SO as I said from now on I'll try to keep a food diary because it'll help me have an idea (gradually) of what kind of food choices to make on N days & S days. S days are important, I feel, because I tend to go overboard on them. Thursday 11 March Green Breakfast: 2 slices white bread with 2 poach...

Everyday Systems

Search found 213 matches

How do you manage the holidays?

others in London? Support group?

Going back to Vanilla NoS...

quick question: how to record S events

advice about modifications needed...

Thanks Reinhard for NoS book

Have put on weight...

21 successful days under my belt! What now?