Everyday Systems

wosnes

I can't speak for vmsurbat, but I only eat sweets at the end of a meal. After reading so much about how the French eat, I decided to give up snacking nearly completely. Major holidays are an exception. I can figure out how to incorporate almost anything I want into a meal. The only food I haven't fi...

wosnes

I weigh once a year at the doctor's office. I don't own a scale. Mine got lost in a move and I never replaced it.

wosnes

I'm a member of the "destroy the scale" club. I would suggest this for you, too, especially if no weight loss is going to affect your mood. No-S does not lead to quick weight loss. It could easily be a couple of weeks before you notice any weight loss and six months or longer before you lose the 10 ...

wosnes

I'D PREFER TO HAVE A SMALL DESSERT DAILY THAN CHANGE MY EATING PLAN AT WEEKENDS. IS THAT OK? If your dessert is a piece of fruit and it fits on your dinner plate then yes, you can. According to Vanilla No S you can't eat after the meal but you can have fruit with your meal and eat it last. You didn...

wosnes

STOP TRYING OUT THE NEWEST DIET! They don't work anyway -- at least not for any length of time. Reinhard recently wrote this: But we live in a society where food is ubiquitous and cheap as garbage, where there are few social structures to discourage constant eating, where, on the contrary, we are c...

wosnes

For some further inspiration: A 12-ounce can of classic coke has about 145 calories. A serving of potato chips has about 160 calories (there's some variation depending on brand and type of chips). That is 305 calories. If you're having a bowl of chips, you're probably having at least 2 servings equa...

wosnes

Ok, this is just a habit. Good habits are hard to make; bad habits are hard to break. If you're eating a substantial enough lunch you shouldn't need anything between lunch and dinner. If you think you do need something, have a glass of milk or juice (acceptable on No-S). To further help, keep the ch...

wosnes

I think almost everyone has had a few false starts. Someone here (Over 43? oolala?) has a great analogy about mistakes. Suppose you dented your car. Would you go out and total the car because it already had a dent? Expect bad days. They're going to happen. Either you'll have cravings or you'll eat s...

wosnes

I'm also retired and have adjusted S days to suit my schedule. HOWEVER, I'd been following No-S for a year or more (while retired) before I did that. I highly recommend developing the habits before making any modifications.

wosnes

A weekend is neither a success nor a failure; it's the weekend. I don't think your weekend sounds bad.

Success with No-S is more about establishing the weekday habits than worrying about overdoing on the weekends.

wosnes

It has never once occurred to me to quit or go off No-S, no matter how unsuccessful I might be at keeping the habits at any given time. I think it's a lot like any of the other things I do or roles I have in life. I rarely do any of them perfectly, but it doesn't keep me from saying I do or am those...

wosnes

I was thinking of using salad plates I'm just scared eating in between the 3 meals as I don't want to eat too much or start eating snacky foods. What if I put the food on a normal size plate to start with and then eat it over 2 meals. Does that sound ok You can do whatever works for you. Trust your...

wosnes

I love the No S Diet, but my doctor says I need to eat 4/5/6 meals a day because of my medical condition! The No S Diet has a little known loophole just for you. If you look closely at the site, you'll notice that nowhere does it specify the actual *number* of meals. Now most people will make a cer...

wosnes

This may be a bit off topic, but I think they make the point that quality food tastes better -- and may lead to us eating less. These articles are written by Wini Moranville, author of The Bonne Femme Cookbook : The French (Non!) Diet, Part I: Eat Three Courses for Dinner The French (Non!) Diet, Par...

wosnes

Does anyone know how much time is allotted for students to eat lunch? I have a feeling it's longer than in the U.S. In my region of SoCal, since the weather allows for students to be outside at lunchtime, almost no high school students eat inside a cafeteria and a minority of students sit down and ...

wosnes

I really dislike cookbooks that aim to pass on the American ideal of healthy eating. For me, that's usually concentrating on whole grains and eliminating refined grains -- especially in traditional recipes from other countries. Another of my pet peeves is the Americanization of traditional recipes: ...

wosnes

Congratulations, Sinnie!

wosnes

Just a side rant - nothing against Cliff - but I'm always suspicious of anyone who says they eat "as much as I want." I think that is just a nice way of saying they can control themselves and stop before feeling gluttonous. I doubt anyone of a normal weight ever eats as much as they really want as ...

wosnes

Here Mark Bittman is interviewed (scroll down and click on #6) by Evan Kleiman about his new book VB6. What he has to say about dieting or eating well in general is interesting.

wosnes

Mark Bittman's cookbooks are great for giving you easy, no-fuss recipes that you can customize for your own tastes. I have The Food Matters Cookbook, his fish book (OUTSTANDING!), and How to Cook Everything Vegetarian -- they're all good, although the vegetarian book is the weakest of the three IMO...

wosnes

Congratulations! No-S is slower than many (most?) other weight loss programs, but as long as you stick with the habit, it's likely more permanent.

wosnes

I think Melissa Lanz has taken the notion that cooking from scratch with fresh, seasonal, whole foods is too expensive and time consuming (especially for busy families) and blown it right out of the water. I haven't been doing the prep work and still get dinner on the table in a very timely manner. ...

wosnes

Anyone have a simple cookbook they are particularly fond of? We enjoy cooking, but it tends to be a rotation of hearty things we love. Plus a lot of soups. Hehe. My kids are grown and gone, but I stumbled across The Mom 100 Cookbook last year and I've enjoyed it. She also has a blog . Some of the r...

wosnes

Why do we think having those urges is abnormal or unusual? In today's world not giving in to the urges is pretty abnormal, but that doesn't mean it's a bad thing. In fact, quite the opposite.

wosnes

Bittman also has a book on cooking (not a cookbook): Cooking Solves Everything . It's available on Kindle, but not in print. Cooking is like exercise or spending time in nature or good conversation: The more you do it, the more you like it, the better you get at it, and the more you recognize that i...

wosnes

If you're eating enough and not, as finallyfull says "a diet meal," I wouldn't worry about it.

I ignore "hunger" now. It's not an emergency, even if it's 20 minutes after you've had a meal. I've found that most of the time it passes. You're going to be eating again in a few hours.

wosnes

Mark Bittman recently wrote an article about Michael Pollan's new book, Cooked: A Natural History of Transformation (released today).

Also, an interview with Michael Pollan (it's long, but good).

wosnes

I agree. Even if you don't want breakfast, you should be eating it anyway, so you build the three meal habit. Eventually you will get used to it and wake up hungry. Almost everyone does better with breakfast. You are probably grazing because you don't eat a real meal at breakfast time. Some people ...

wosnes

I rarely eat breakfast, but when I do it's one of the following:

toast and seasonal fruit
oatmeal (infrequently, it's not my favorite)
toast and 1 or 2 eggs cooked in whatever style appeals to me that day
smoothie (1/2 cup milk, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt, 1 cup berries)

wosnes

Are you snacking or mindlessly eating? It never occurs to me to make a snack, but I'll nibble at food that I can see and is easy to eat without even thinking about it. Pretty much anything that is sitting out is fair game. So now food gets put away immediately. I do have a bowl of fruit that sits ou...

wosnes

Somewhere recently I read that if you have a history of not only losing and gaining weight, but also going on and off diets, your body doesn't know what to expect so stops responding. It takes a while for your body to adjust. I don't know how much you have to lose or how old you are, but the less yo...

wosnes

I've noticed that, too. No-S is certainly part of it, but I think it's also because I'm eating better quality food. Junk tastes like junk.

wosnes

Generally I think it's important to follow vanilla No-S for at least a few months to a year before making any modifications. However, if the small dessert is your habit and your habit is working for you, why change to fit this program? I've been at this for over six years. Initially, I thought I was...

wosnes

Initially I wrote that I hadn't noticed this, but I have. My suggestion would be to eat slowly. It might serve two purposes: 1) you would be finishing at the same time as the others and 2) you might eat even less because it takes about 20 minutes for your brain to send the signal that you've had eno...

wosnes

If it's dark and high quality enough, one square is actually enough. That stuff can really be intensely flavored, you can't just shovel it in like M&M's. But I still save it for the weekend! I've found one square after dinner to be immensely satisfying and a good ending to a meal. More? Not so much...

wosnes

AndreaRN9 wrote:Cravings are like waves.

I've found that hunger comes in waves. I'll feel very hungry, but it passes. I also find that if it doesn't pass quickly, a glass of water will help.

wosnes

Before I added a snack, I think I'd try to make lunch more substantial. Like clarinetgal says, make sure there is enough protein and fat in your meals.

wosnes

If I just have a bowl of oatmeal (or anything else), I just have the bowl. If I'm having oatmeal, toast and fruit, the bowl goes on a plate along with the toast and fruit.

wosnes

Eeyore wrote:
Think of it this way....would you prefer quick weight loss and weight gain or a slow, steady, and sane weight loss?

And probably more permanent since there's nothing to go "off." What you do to lose the weight is what you do to maintain the weight loss.

wosnes

I don't think being perfect is nearly as important as finding a way to make this work for you -- instead of you working for it. If no snacks and no seconds with an after dinner sweet works, well, then, so be it. I think it's easy to get sucked into the diet mentality at the new year since it's about...

wosnes

Sadly, the one calorific drink that I was planning to keep was wine, and I've had to give that up. It makes me want to eat! I don't remember exactly where I first heard about not drinking calories, but it was in some way associated with the Mediterranean way of eating. The only two exceptions to no...

wosnes

Years ago I found a very simple formula for determining how many calories one should consume. I've also seen it twice in the last year or so. Determine your ideal weight. If you're sedentary, multiply that x 10; if you're moderately active, multiply x 15; if you're very active, multiply x 20. I've f...

wosnes

I know it's hard to lose weight when you're short, and I know that even when you do lose weight, it doesn't always look or feel like it when you're short (see: I've lost 25 lbs this year and I'm still wearing the same jeans because the next size down squeezes my middle too much, so it's a belt on m...

wosnes

I'll have to say that while eating two meals is pretty much routine for me, whether it's a light meal or more substantial meal isn't so much part of a plan as it is habit or just "this is what I feel like." Also, years ago I read that as we women age, we need to cut our calories by 10% every decade ...

wosnes

I'm an under 5'3" woman -- and way post menopausal, too. I don't gain at the drop of a hat, but it can be difficult to lose weight. I'm generally a two-meal-a day person and one of those meals is pretty light. At the other meal I pretty much eat whatever I want. I rarely eat breakfast and if I do, i...

wosnes

Following the advice of the Griesel's from their book Turbocharged , try drinking water. You'd be surprised at the result. I was recently in a situation where I was very hungry but couldn't eat yet. I had water and was shocked at how much of the hunger disappeared after the first swallow. Try it or...

wosnes

Eeyore wrote:Interesting....seeing as how veganism is a lifestyle (not just a diet) I can't even fathom the concept.

I think there are a lot of people who follow a vegan diet for reasons of health, but don't embrace the lifestyle.

wosnes

Mark Bittman has a new book coming out at the end of the month: VB6. VB6 = vegan before 6 PM. It's a book about diet and weight loss. He introduced this concept in his book Food Matters in 2009 and wrote a companion cookbook the following year.

Another angle, another book.

wosnes

I'm not sure it's morning or afternoon/evening that makes the difference. I think sugar before or in place of a meal is different from sugar after a meal -- like dessert in a reasonable time after a meal. Not so far from the meal that it becomes a snack.

wosnes

I'd just have two meals.

wosnes

I have been tracking my food on My Fitness Pal, and I'm being completely honest, which is eye opening and helping me make some better choices. Most days, I'm fine, but every so often, I have a day with way too much sugar or sodium. I also had one day where I was way over on protein. I need to do a ...

wosnes

I'm not a big fan of oatmeal, but this was pretty good (even though I ate only a child-size portion): Aprtil Bloomfield's Porridge

wosnes

Remember, it's not "no sugar," it's "no sweets." I think most people here consider a "sweet" anything that would be a treat or a dessert. Some people consider chocolate milk or hot chocolate a treat, only for S days. I'd try water, coffee or tea before I'd try chocolate milk or hot chocolate. Accord...

wosnes

I have a question for you, oohlala -- do you do habitcal? I seem to remember you (or maybe someone else saying the habitcal turned No S into a diet for them.) I have also found that keeping close track of red/green days seems to turn it into a diet for me, meaning something I go "off". I've gone mo...

wosnes

Vanilla No-S is: No snacks, no sweets, no seconds, except sometimes on days that start with S. In other words, the plan as written without modifications.

wosnes

I used to give the kids a small snack at the earlier "mealtime" and then they ate dinner later with us. So, a small snack at 5 or earlier, then dinner with us at 6-ish, then bath and bed.

wosnes

From the time they started eating solids, the kids always ate with us. It was always my goal to get them on our schedule rather than change our schedule to suit them.

wosnes

The No S Diet has a little known loophole just for you. If you look closely at the site, you'll notice that nowhere does it specify the actual *number* of meals [/i]. Now most people will make a certain assumption, and most people had better stick with that assumption. Bold italics mine. It's assum...

wosnes

When I thought back to how we ate growing up I realized the #1 was prevalent in all our meals. One piece of chicken, one piece of toast, one egg, etc. heck my my mom cut bacon in half so those two pieces were actually one. I'm years into NoS but this single thing has helped me most to continue to d...

wosnes

I've eaten only two meals daily for most of my life. I've never been hungry for breakfast. The biggest difference between now and then is that I used to snack. It wasn't because I was hungry, it was because food was there. Is it detrimental to habit formation to allow a small dessert after dinner? N...

wosnes

To answer the question, S Days feel better because most people like to have a sense of control in their lives. I have never done the No S Days gone wild concept, just can't do it. It seems counter productive. I know Reinhard never implied that one should abandon all sensibilities and throw caution ...

wosnes

Thalia, it's true. It seems like no one can agree on what we are supposed to eat- however each of us is individual and can/can't handle different foods. I guess it makes us all special. I am a little sad to see people throw down the idea of Gluten free as a fad. For me, it's not. I only just wanted...

wosnes

I don't think gluten-free is a fad if there's a medical necessity. A lot of these authors make it sound like wheat/gluten are bad for everyone . They aren't. The same goes for meat (including poultry and fish), eggs, dairy products, added fats (including olive oil), grains and beans, many fruits and...

wosnes

I'm glad it worked for you, and I have known of at least one other person for whom the kind of diet you're talking about made life more than tolerable again, but for someone who is not suffering from near the problems you're talking about, these are not easy changes. For someone who doesn't have an...

wosnes

Why don't you make this a sticky so it's always up top if needed?

wosnes

When you're stressed, don't go to the kitchen. Go a different direction -- outdoors, maybe! I'm paraphrasing from French Kids Eat Everything by Karen Le Billon: Avoid emotional eating or eating when you're stressed. Food isn't a pacifier, a distraction, a bribe, a reward or substitute for anything e...

wosnes

And the French don't eat a lot of American-style processed foods, though technically, flour is processed and cheese is, too. So are cooked vegetables. Technically, anything not in it's natural state is "processed." But they don't eat a lot of manufactured foods and they don't allow all the additive...

wosnes

Looks like a companion piece to this.

wosnes

@Noni Yep, that's why I'm not doing any mods on S-days right now. If you leave it alone (even for a long time) it will probably work itself out. Oolala also has some studies that show it takes 3-5 years to build the habit :( which is discouraging but at least there's nothing "wrong" with us for not...

wosnes

Greek-style fasting does seem extremely healthy to me. You eat every day and don't skip meals, but sometimes those meals are more frugal. And then once in a while you have a feast. If every day is a feast, then feasts stop being special and enjoyable. From what I've read, that's essentially what th...

wosnes

vmsurbat wrote:
I wish the "super food" trend would just stop.....

Me, too!!

wosnes

Over43 wrote: but what could that new super food be?

You piqued my curiosity. It's chia seeds.

wosnes

There's an article on the Food Network blogs that asks if healthy eating is more difficult than doing taxes -- and suggests that for many people it is. I don't think it is, even though I'm one of those people with heart disease. I've spent enough time to raise a child to college age (that is, 18 yea...

wosnes

Grabbing a snack at 3 o'clock is a habit. Unfortunately, it's harder to break an old habit than it is to start a new one. That doesn't mean you can't do it. Distract yourself with something. Take a walk. Deep breathe. Jump rope. Meditate. Do something different than eating at 3 PM.

wosnes

I don't think our ancestors actually ate nothing between big hunts, but they probably ate less. Our problem is that we feast every day, even in comparison to our more recent ancestors.

wosnes

Habit-cal makes this a "diet" for me, not a habit. I think the amount of time it takes for this to become second nature varies among individuals. A lucky few might have created the habit in 21 days, but I think they're the exception, not the rule. I think six months to a year is the minimum and even...

wosnes

Thank you for your input on my plan Wosnes. I also like the idea of 1/2 plate being vegetables or vegetables/fruit, both of which I never eat enough of and I'm going to start doing that, at least for two meals each day. I first read about making the plate half vegetables in an article in Prevention...

wosnes

When I read "The British are embracing a weight-loss plan that involves five days of eating and drinking whatever you want, and fasting for two days a week," I thought it sounded like the exact opposite of No-S. But it was a blurb for an article about a new book on intermittent fasting. However, som...

wosnes

That being said, I've decided that I do need to put some restrictions on myself during "S" days. I'm going to allow myself the three meals per day and allow myself 1 or 2 (but not 3) of three things on "S" days and those things will be only one small portion of seconds, or one serving of a sweet, o...

wosnes

It will get better when you think it will get better. Let me explain: thinking precedes action. When you think, when you decide it will get better, it will get better. It doesn't mean a mod. It just means that when you decide you're done with wild S days your S days won't be wild. By the way, 5 week...

wosnes

Men have also gotten fatter and they did not traditionally do housework. There should be a study called "Lack of Farming in Fields Causes Rise in Obesity Among Men." I can think of any number of things that have changed in the activity levels of men over the last 50 years, too. One could start with...

wosnes

As long as these dinners are infrequent occurrences, here's what I'd do: I'd make it an S event (the whole day isn't an S, just this one meal). I wouldn't try to virtual plate or skip a course. Concentrate on the main course, but don't ignore the other courses, just eat less of them. With dessert, f...

wosnes

This corroborates what I've been thinking and saying for a few years. Our level of activity has declined to the point that it affects our weight.

What Housework Has to Do with Waistlines

wosnes

Yes. If I have a cup of yogurt, toast, eggs and bacon and can fit it all on one plate, it's fine.

wosnes

Welcome back.

wosnes

I also keep reminding myself: the French and Italians don't worry about calories. They don't snack, they love good food, and they have the lowest average BMI's in Europe. They just don't long to overeat. Enough is enough! End the meal, have your caffe, and enjoy the memory of how good the food was....

wosnes

If the bowl of cereal and the toast would fit on your dinner plate, you're good to go. Same goes with soup at lunch.

wosnes

I don't have any suggestions for how to give up snacks either -- except to just do it and take it one day at a time. It does get easier and you do start to feel better.

wosnes

BrightAngel wrote:Update: The book arrived and I'm starting it today.

I've sampled it on my kindle. If I weren't already avoiding processed foods, this would make think very seriously about it.

wosnes

I suspect the corporations feel like the consumer is leading them about by the nose since corporations have to constantly be extending their product lines, developing new products and ruthlessly weeding out marginal sellers in order to keep their "stomach share." Of course, their motivation is prof...

wosnes

Most of the time the customer doesn't know they want it until the company introduces it. wosnes, Good Point !! Some of you might also be interested in this article about Lying Food Labels. http://www.diethobby.com/blog.php?ax=v&nid=806 Granted, they have focus groups and test markets, but by and la...

wosnes

"Giving the customer what they want" is not responsible. What if what the customer wants are controlled substance drugs? The company does not have a responsibility to keep pumping customers with the substance if it harms them. Most of the time the customer doesn't know they want it until the compan...

wosnes

I'll join. I've had lots of reds in the last week. I got the flu and found myself comfort eating. You do know that Sick days are "S" days, right? Sick days also start with S. Though I don't imagine you'll be too hungry if you're really sick, you officially have license to do whatever it takes to ge...

wosnes

Even Slim Fast has gone from their traditional "a shake for breakfast, a shake for lunch, then a sensible dinner" to their new 3-2-1 system. So you're now buying 3 Slim Fast snack bars in addition to the 2 shakes every day. They just want to sell bars in addition to shakes! Why don't people see thi...

wosnes

It's fine.

wosnes

Welcome!

wosnes

I wonder what he thinks is so wrong with being "thought of" as a vegetarian. Maybe he gets more meat eating followers by insisting he is not? Or maybe he thinks meat is so bad for you that it's only worth eating once every two years? Although he does think meat is so bad it should be consumed very ...

wosnes

I don't recommend weighing more than once a month.

wosnes

All I can say is "WHOA!" There was also a section where he was featured in a magazine and made this statement: "Every other Thanksgiving, as a ceremony to prove, I am not a vegetarian, I have an ounce of sliced turkey." Every Other ?!?! An Ounce ?!?!':shock:' That could be funny, but also sad. Sad ...

wosnes

Just an example of how sticking to the basics can take you pretty far. I liked the response to a comment about Steve Reeves eating habits: We think the supplement companies are probably responsible for the greater promotion of the 5-6 meal plan since it provides greater opportunities for someone to...

Everyday Systems

Search found 4168 matches

Re: CAN I HAVE A SMALL DESSERT AFTER EVENING MEAL

Mark Bittman on VB6

Pollan Cooks

I should have expected this

Re: Fell off the wagon

For those of you who like oatmeal

Re: The power of one

Re: Get ready for the new diet craze...

Re: Get ready for the new diet craze...

Healthy Eating Difficult?

The Opposite of No-S?

Housework and Your Waistline