Everyday Systems

Hi everyone, I was interested in what you believe they keys to a successful lifestyle change are please?
I just listened to a podcast of “the Minimalists” and they were talking about thinking about what you can add/substitute concentrating on, such as instead of thinking: oh I can’t eat between meals and concentrating on it I should be thinking: mmmh, what delicious thing will I have as my meal.
Any other nuggets of wisdom?

When I was weaning myself off my worst highly processed sugar & fat combo binge food, I used the substitution method, finding a substitute that was similar but didn't have the same addictive quality for me and allowing myself to eat that when the cravings hit. Eventually I stopped eating my substitute too. Just doing that lead to a small, but permanent weight loss.

Oh that’s a good idea! Do you have any examples please?

Here are my most successful techniques - frequently used, although some were more common in the past and not needed now.

*my number 1 technique for normalizing my eating was to have basically the same foods every day. There is some variation, but not much.
*my number 2 technique for eating the way I WANT to eat in this life is meal planning. I make a general plan for the week for dinners, then make sure I have enough of my basics for breakfast/lunches.
*If a craving hits, I tell myself, "I must be hungry". Then I begin planning for a true meal. (This is a current high-use method that works because I don't eat out of boredom, etc., anymore)
*For strong cravings (alcohol was the biggest one I've dealt with, never cravings this strong for junk food) - hot baths w/my kindle, long walks, running errands, cleaning
*If I am presented with foods that I could eat, but would rather not (in the big scheme of things), I imagine eating it and recognizing the flavors. This has never failed me and is a high-use method now. At this point, I think, "I know what this tastes like and I'm fine not having it right now."
*If I am trying to avoid giving in to wonderful quantities of junk, I remind myself how much I'll regret it later. This was a high-use method at some intermediate time in the past 6 years - not used a ton in the beginning or now.
*For survival between meals, I have relied on milky/creamy coffee for virtually all 6 - 7 years. The only changes here are changing from milk to half/half or cream in the past couple years, and weaning away from lattes to drips or americanos when out and about (within the past 6 months).

Those a brilliant - thank you for all the specific strategies .

For any lifestyle change, be clear what you think the advantage[s] will be or what you really want to avoid. Keep the drama out of it.

For eating less: In times of difficulty, minimize the discomfort of skipping the food and magnify the benefits of waiting to eat in terms of pleasure and satisfaction. (I"m surprised that imagining the taste of teh food technique works, but I think I've heard it before. I found that imaging how wonderful I thought certain foods would taste sent me off to buy them. Maybe auto meant she purposely imagined how great they were and then forced herself to say she didn't want them than as a show of power?

Minimizing difficulties of new behavior and maximizing benefits is a good all-around technique.

Per Habitcal and habit theory. Record success and do not get riled up over failure.

I really meant it like it sounds - that imagining it ends up making me think, "you know, that's not really anything special." And I use it when the food is being eaten AROUND me, like at a party. It's not about showing willpower at all; I try to avoid using my willpower and when I do have to use it, using as little as possible.

Thank you oolala, great tips!

Auto, I tried your imagining how it tastes like and in the short term it nearly ruined my resolve but half an hour passed and I felt like I already had eaten it haha! I don’t think I’ll dare doing that again until my N day habits are firm though.

1) Do not turn your No S journey into a 'zero-sum' game (where you are either totally compliant or totally off the rails for days/weeks/months)... if you fail on a given day, make it an acute event (1 item/event on one day, right back on track afterward) rather than a protracted 'state of being' (extended periods - weeks/months - of complete abandon). Learning to fail reasonably/moderately is as important as learning to succeed, if this is going to be a program you follow for the rest of your life.

2) Be kind to yourself and realistic about how much time it will truly take to turn this way of eating into your default behavior... I'm going on 8 years and still trying to master it - it's almost like golf! The key is to keep returning to No S when you stray because you believe this is the way you want to eat/relate to food, even when you fail, and even if you aren't guaranteed to lose weight (remember - not gaining weight over time is a win, for many!)

3) If it's too hard, initially, then remember that you can ease into this. If you find 5 days of No S per week to be too hard initially (or even during some periods/years once you are experienced - it's okay to take breaks and have periods of lower compliance), then aim for 4. I'm willing to bet that even 4 N days per week (and, say, a 48 hour 'S period' that starts on Friday night and ends Sunday night), if followed exactly for an entire year, would produce results for many folks. But, sadly, many folks just abandon the No S program during times that they can't initially follow it exactly as written.

4) Make your meals count. Eat what you really like. The pleasure of food really does increase when you reduce your input opportunities - and pleasure might eventually become the most powerful force that drives you to stick with No S long term (it certainly has become that for me). Since this is mostly a mental game, I occasionally pick a week and eat 3 meals that would fit the profile of a more restrictive diet (Paleo, Atkins, Intermittent Fasting, Etc), just to remind myself how luxurious it is that I don't have to do that... it makes No S seem like I'm not on any kind of diet at all.

Best of luck on your journey! I've found No S to be a very rewarding and enjoyable way of eating and I hope you do, too.

simmstone wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 4:38 pm

Learning to fail reasonably/moderately is as important as learning to succeed, if this is going to be a program you follow for the rest of your life.

Simmstone, I will have to take all of your advice in properly again but this has massively struck a chord. This is definitely where I abandoned other diets in the past and it makes so much sense.

Lots of good advice Simmstone..

Jx

Thanks Simmstone, I agree it is a long learning process. I am still working on truly moderate eating. I love the way No S gives a structure for me to find out what works and what doesn't.

Been away for some time but wanting to get back on the horse- this thread is so great! Thanks everyone for sharing your tips!

Simmstone, so many gold nuggets in your post! Thank you so much for taking the time to share these pieces of hard-earned wisdom.

I still am fond of the theory that what makes NoS so special is that it teaches each person (gradually but eventually) how to learn their own triggers, boundaries, rebellious points, etc., until the way of eating we end up with fits us like a glove.

automatedeating wrote: ↑

Thu Jan 09, 2020 1:01 am

I try to avoid using my willpower and when I do have to use it, using as little as possible.

Auto, this has really stuck with me the last few days. Such an interesting point! I need to get more non-willpower strategies.

Sorry, in my mind, if I have to use ANY technique, strategy, thought, etc., I call that willpower, and I have accepted that it often takes willpower to implement strategies, esp. at first and sometimes even later. Maybe by willpower, people mean actually thinking/saying, "I WILL?WILL NOT do x, y, or z." When it's a habit, I guess it means there is little opposition to it. For me, it tales willpower until there is no opposition. I know this flies in the face of a lot that's written out there! Not my first time...

Warmest wishes to everyone's new automatic habits!