Everyday Systems

I'm back to No-S..
Found myself bingeing on tons of food again nearly every night.
It hasn't totally affected my weight yet because I restrict and/or exercise the remainder of the time. But I know it's not good for me and occupying too much real estate in my brain.
Looking to return to No-S for some sanity.
My "sanest" times were following this plan. I look back on them longingly!
Anyone else experienced DAILY habits of bingeing? It's feeling really tough to break those patterns.
THanks for all your inspiration.

Hi Liz - welcome back.

The things that stopped me bingeing at the start were no eating between meals, dishing out all my meal at the beginning, having no seconds unless I really felt I hadn't eaten enough and having quite substantial meals. If I started to have pre binge thoughts or found myself eyeing off S's while out on N days, I would take that as a sign to eat more at meal times for a few days.

Because free S days didn't work for me, I decided to keep the 3 meal habit on weekends as well.

I also kept temptation out of the house on N days, but gave myself permission to eat the odd treat on S days. I only bought as much as I wanted to eat during S days.

At the beginning I had to wait out the cravings, and clock watched until the next meal time. That got a lot better after a while.

I prioritised not bingeing over losing weight, but after a few weeks the weight started coming off anyway.

Regular reporting here was extremely important. It was probably the one thing that made me able to sit through the desire to eat outside meal times.

Thank you for your input, ladybird30!
I really appreciate the thought of prioritising "not bingeing" over losing weight...
I let the pendulum swing back and forth (too full--to starving) to counteract my binges, that it contributes to my urges. But if I just focus on not bingeing, but take the focus off weight loss, that's helpful.
I also like the "sanity" of your s-days of keeping the 3 meal habit then.
Thanks for your advice!!!

I'll second the emphasis on putting weight loss on the back burner. It just brings in an element that complicates the process. If you have to lose weight AND not binge in order to feel successful- well, I think you see the problem. You've linked two things that are not necessarily dependent on each other and thus jeopardized your sense of accomplishment.

Enjoy every bite!

Hi Liz,
It sounds like you are on the right track. I am no example, but I notice others have stressed eating enough at meals. Wishing you the best and hope to see you around the forums.

Best of luck, Liz! Like ladybird said, I also do better keeping to three meals on weekends, but allowing a sweet treat like dessert.

Thanks, friends for your advice!

I had a “normal†breakfast and lunch already today for the first time in ages (usually I’m fasting Until about 2pm). “Normal†as in not measured or weighed or counted. I just put food on a plate that looked good and ate it. It was scary and satisfying!
Looking forward to dinner. I am noticing if I plate my food, I’m telling my brain that I’m “important tooâ€. I know that’s silly but with five kids and a husband to feed, often I just finished what’s left out and rarely sit down.

It’s foreign to plate and sit down with a meal (aside from being at a restaurant), but so far it feels pretty great.🙂

Good for you, yes you are important and deserve some time out to eat something delicious every mealtime

Jx

[quote="lbb (Liz) “Normal†as in not measured or weighed or counted. I just put food on a plate that looked good and ate it. [/quote]

Love this!

5 kids and a husband to feed? I'm tired just reading that.

One thing I find No S is doing for me is making me plan my meals. That's long been a goal of mine, but it was always too easy to be busy and then just graze and grab. If I only get one plate, though, I need to make it count. So I put more thought into it. And I pay attention to the food I'm eating and enjoy it more.

It's not silly at all to feel that plating your food signals that you are important -- and what you're doing matters right now. There's a reason why in cultures where meals are an "event," eaten at the table on a plate with family in a daily ritual, paying attention, there's less obesity than when people are snacking and eating in front of the TV or their computers or in their cars or standing. I've long believed that how you eat is almost as important as what you eat.

I'm pretty sure women in slim cultures take it for granted they will sit down and eat their food from a plate. And the kids do it, too. You might have seen references here on No S (or maybe not- been busy) to two books written by women who moved to France and ended up having children there. Lots of interesting differences between French and English/American beliefs and practices for feeding and raising children. Authors Karen Le Billon and Pamela Druckerman. Of course, it's easy for those on the outside to say, oh, just do this. But the reports of French women thinking that child rearing is not terribly stressful are intriguing.

I'm glad you had that meal on a plate and here's to many more!