New here and Eat Like A Normal Person
Moderators: Soprano, automatedeating
New here and Eat Like A Normal Person
Hi everyone, I've tried NoS a couple of times during the last months but always stopped after a few weeks because I'm just too hungry between meals, even when I pile lots of food on my plates. I don't have any weight to lose but I tend to overeat - even healthy food - to the point that I don't feel comfortable anymore. I need some structure in my life and NoS just seems perfect for me. After a few attempts I was ready to give up on the "diet" but then I found the website Eat Like A Normal Person, in which the author proposes a simplified version of NoS: Eat 3 meals a day until you're satisfied, i.e. seconds are allowed (no snacks or sweets though). I've been trying that for the past few days and have to say that it's really amazing! At first I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to stop eating after the first plate but it's actually quite easy and I'm surprised that I'm feeling my fullness once again! Anyway, just wanted to put this out there for anyone who also struggles with the strict version of NoS. Lots of love from Germany!
Thanx, Mimimi.
It's exactly what I do.
I started three square meals because my first S-days were disastrous. And I didn't trust myself with S-days, as I would binge about once a week prior to trying.
At the beginning, I did need extraneous rules to tell when to end the meal, and they still provide a safeguard for me.
I simply limited my protein to 80-100g and had as much as veg with it as needed.
But now, it's, as you say, the fullness.
It feels liberating and restores dignity and confidence, as it is an inner cue, not some arbitrary outside imposition.
And it feels great to be in touch with the body.
To shift to watching out for fullness, though, I needed to be chewing more carefully.
One more thing that helped was to allow myself to eat whatever I liked at any meal.
I usually have only real food, but when the urge strikes, I may have rich cake, or fries, etc.
Thing is, whatever I have has to make up a meal or less, and never come on top of a meal.
So, it's never the post-meal Devil's Voice:'... feel like something more... something...'
There's no post-meal.
There are meals, and that's it.
Works a treat, and allows me to feel free.
It's exactly what I do.
I started three square meals because my first S-days were disastrous. And I didn't trust myself with S-days, as I would binge about once a week prior to trying.
At the beginning, I did need extraneous rules to tell when to end the meal, and they still provide a safeguard for me.
I simply limited my protein to 80-100g and had as much as veg with it as needed.
But now, it's, as you say, the fullness.
It feels liberating and restores dignity and confidence, as it is an inner cue, not some arbitrary outside imposition.
And it feels great to be in touch with the body.
To shift to watching out for fullness, though, I needed to be chewing more carefully.
One more thing that helped was to allow myself to eat whatever I liked at any meal.
I usually have only real food, but when the urge strikes, I may have rich cake, or fries, etc.
Thing is, whatever I have has to make up a meal or less, and never come on top of a meal.
So, it's never the post-meal Devil's Voice:'... feel like something more... something...'
There's no post-meal.
There are meals, and that's it.
Works a treat, and allows me to feel free.
At meals only eat.
Only eat at meals.
Only eat at meals.
so, mimimi, did i understand you well - now you came to the point that you actually do stop at the end of the one plate? and allowing yourself seconds after reading that book helped you in that?
yes, already no sweets and no snacking is a great thing...
also, reinhardt mentiones that some people (rare, though) have also introduced noS's one at a time... for example: first week or so - no sweets, then the next one - no sweets and no seconds... then finally - all three noS...
for someone who always had seconds i also really felt it "empty" to have no seconds in the beginning of noS...
that was because i didnt have a well developed ability to eyeball how much food i should serve myself, being in the habit of knowing that the food suply (for seconds and thirds) is relatively limitless... and snacking between meals often didnt help the development of that fine-tuning either...
but i have learned to serve myself perfectly pretty fast into noS... and it doesnt matter how hungry i am, i have become really good at estimating the size of my serving to be optimal for my needs and wishes... tuned in my true appetite, i guess...
(i think no snacking and no sweets help there in the big picture, too)
unless, besides being hungry, im also tired and/or stressed - then my judgement can be clouded a bit... but for that i still have my one plate rule, flexible but real reference point... a reassurance that i will not go mental with food even in that type of situation...
and also - plates sizes vary... i mean, if i fill the plates we have at work (pretty big ones) full heaping with food - there is no way i could put all of that food in me without exploding... and if i did - and im still hungry after that - then i have another problem and that is emotional eating, cravings etc... and that is not real hunger... and no amouts of seconds will feed that beast... peace and happiness will...
also i already know that one of my 3 meals has to be lighter than the other 2... but none should be too light, snack-like... not with my level of activity... there is an overall daily level of satiety and i am tuning into that more and more...
the hunger before a meal i see as a good thing...
i remind myself that in nature there is no food stand behind every corner to run to at the slightest sign of hunger... so, why not feel it a bit every once in a while...
just like there is no harm in feasting every once in a while...
as long as it is once in a while...
yes, already no sweets and no snacking is a great thing...
also, reinhardt mentiones that some people (rare, though) have also introduced noS's one at a time... for example: first week or so - no sweets, then the next one - no sweets and no seconds... then finally - all three noS...
for someone who always had seconds i also really felt it "empty" to have no seconds in the beginning of noS...
that was because i didnt have a well developed ability to eyeball how much food i should serve myself, being in the habit of knowing that the food suply (for seconds and thirds) is relatively limitless... and snacking between meals often didnt help the development of that fine-tuning either...
but i have learned to serve myself perfectly pretty fast into noS... and it doesnt matter how hungry i am, i have become really good at estimating the size of my serving to be optimal for my needs and wishes... tuned in my true appetite, i guess...
(i think no snacking and no sweets help there in the big picture, too)
unless, besides being hungry, im also tired and/or stressed - then my judgement can be clouded a bit... but for that i still have my one plate rule, flexible but real reference point... a reassurance that i will not go mental with food even in that type of situation...
and also - plates sizes vary... i mean, if i fill the plates we have at work (pretty big ones) full heaping with food - there is no way i could put all of that food in me without exploding... and if i did - and im still hungry after that - then i have another problem and that is emotional eating, cravings etc... and that is not real hunger... and no amouts of seconds will feed that beast... peace and happiness will...
also i already know that one of my 3 meals has to be lighter than the other 2... but none should be too light, snack-like... not with my level of activity... there is an overall daily level of satiety and i am tuning into that more and more...
the hunger before a meal i see as a good thing...
i remind myself that in nature there is no food stand behind every corner to run to at the slightest sign of hunger... so, why not feel it a bit every once in a while...
just like there is no harm in feasting every once in a while...
as long as it is once in a while...
Age:40
BMI: 18.8
Body Fat %: 17.6
in it for maintenance and, more importantly, sanity!!
BMI: 18.8
Body Fat %: 17.6
in it for maintenance and, more importantly, sanity!!
Welcome Mimimi..I absolutely love that website also. It has helped me SO much with eating normally, along with no s of course! I actually now am a strict Vanilla No S girl..although I did at first allow myself to eat seconds and sweets like she suggested as long as I was eating at 3 distinct mealtimes daily..and it helped me get the meal time rhythm and habit started with no snacking in between..but after reading what she writes about addiction and how we are actually left unsatisfied by the very foods we can't seem to get enough of (that's why we want more and more) I made a decision to follow the 3 rules of no s and keep s's to sometimes and special days and it's just clicked for me. I remember, like you, being so miserable and hungry between meals with no s (I joined in 2011), just plain white knuckling it-but now I find it so different. I make sure I eat full meals that I love and I feel very satisfied with..and this allows me to be able wait for s days to have a treat. I would love to lose a few kgs sure, but mainly I want sanity and normalcy with food. I'm definitely getting there with no s and that website, I can't wait to read more of what she has to say!!
Thanks for your input and all the best!
Thanks for your input and all the best!
I would call that easing into Vanilla. It's perfectly acceptable to try fading the S's out. (I have'nt seen that work well with sweets.) I've seen many people do well with three meals and a snack for a few weeks or months. Having seconds is an alternative.
I've seen other references to eeating like a normal person, but in those, there was no set number of meals. It was more like intuitive eating, which, pardon me, is NOT normal for any but a few. Having that meal structure is central to most slim cultures.
Glad you found your way to your moderation!
I've seen other references to eeating like a normal person, but in those, there was no set number of meals. It was more like intuitive eating, which, pardon me, is NOT normal for any but a few. Having that meal structure is central to most slim cultures.
Glad you found your way to your moderation!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23
There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23
There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)
Thanks for your feedback, everyone!
I still allow myself to eat more after one plate of food if I'm truly hungry but most of the time I'm now satisfied with one big plate of whatever I want (except for sweets), which is a mix of mostly healthy stuff and some not-so-healthy food. Knowing that I don't strictly have to limit myself to that one plate is a huge relief for me and the NoS diet works much better for me that way.
I allow myself to eat as much as I need - not overstuffing myself but also not stopping at 80% full as so many people recommend because for me that always ends in extreme hunger later on. Now I'm just not hungry in-between meals because my hunger is completely satisfied at every meal. I only get hungry shortly before my next meal, after about 5-6 hours. I also love what the author of Eat Like A Normal Person has to say about that:
"At each meal, eat intuitively: that is, eat whatever you like (normal, tasty, nourishing, non-diet meals) until you feel full. Not 80% full, almost full, or ‘maybe-I’m-full-perhaps-I’ll-stop-and-see-in-20-minutes’ full, but until you have no desire at all left to eat. Aim for well-balanced, semi-nourishing meals. On special occasions have deserts, like a normal person." And here is the link to her article about how to stop overeating (which was my problem - sweets were never that much of an issue): http://www.eatlikeanormalperson.com/how ... vereating/
Have a great day/evening/night guys, wherever you are!
I still allow myself to eat more after one plate of food if I'm truly hungry but most of the time I'm now satisfied with one big plate of whatever I want (except for sweets), which is a mix of mostly healthy stuff and some not-so-healthy food. Knowing that I don't strictly have to limit myself to that one plate is a huge relief for me and the NoS diet works much better for me that way.
I allow myself to eat as much as I need - not overstuffing myself but also not stopping at 80% full as so many people recommend because for me that always ends in extreme hunger later on. Now I'm just not hungry in-between meals because my hunger is completely satisfied at every meal. I only get hungry shortly before my next meal, after about 5-6 hours. I also love what the author of Eat Like A Normal Person has to say about that:
"At each meal, eat intuitively: that is, eat whatever you like (normal, tasty, nourishing, non-diet meals) until you feel full. Not 80% full, almost full, or ‘maybe-I’m-full-perhaps-I’ll-stop-and-see-in-20-minutes’ full, but until you have no desire at all left to eat. Aim for well-balanced, semi-nourishing meals. On special occasions have deserts, like a normal person." And here is the link to her article about how to stop overeating (which was my problem - sweets were never that much of an issue): http://www.eatlikeanormalperson.com/how ... vereating/
Have a great day/evening/night guys, wherever you are!
So when you eat until you have no desire at all, you still get hungry 5-6 hours later? If you didn't, would you skip the next meal?
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23
There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23
There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)
Welcome! And thanks for the interesting "mod." Certainly sounds like it could work for some people, either indefinitely, or as a stepping stone.
I personally would have a hard time with it... I'm on the "lion" end of the appetite spectrum. Huge amounts at one sitting, seconds, thirds, etc. were my biggest problem, pre-nos. My intuitions about "enough" were nothing compared to the clarity of an empty plate.
Reinhard
I personally would have a hard time with it... I'm on the "lion" end of the appetite spectrum. Huge amounts at one sitting, seconds, thirds, etc. were my biggest problem, pre-nos. My intuitions about "enough" were nothing compared to the clarity of an empty plate.
Reinhard