A summer of learning

No Snacks, no sweets, no seconds. Except on Days that start with S. Too simple for you? Simple is why it works. Look here for questions, introductions, support, success stories.

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TeacherJ
Posts: 28
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2021 11:35 pm

A summer of learning

Post by TeacherJ » Sun Jul 25, 2021 4:11 pm

Hello
I am a teacher who has found some balance with eating this summer. Normally, I work in the summer, but this year I decided to take time for me. I was really stressed this past school year due to the COVID issues. I have been overweight for about 15 years, and this year I decided to do something about it. Once school was over, I started reading about weight loss. I knew that my biggest problem was sweets and starchy junk food. That led me to a low carb diet. That killed the cravings, but I wasn't losing weight. I was still eating too much because I was snacking on high calorie foods. That led me to calorie counting. I can't do it! My brain doesn't enjoy that at all. I knew I needed a way to limit my food intake. I asked Mr. Google about no snacking diets and I found two blogs about the No S diet. https://chroniclesofkyle.com/ and https://nosdiet.blogspot.com/

I LOVE the idea of tracking habits. I made a habit tracker on my computer in Excel. I use the red, yellow, green system. I cut the snacking two weeks ago and it hasn't been bad at all. I hope this will give me the weight loss I desire. I still eat a low to moderate carb intake (not Keto). I increased my protein, which has been super helpful. I make dishes lower in fat when I can, but I don't sweat it if I can't. I have been enjoying my meals. I have more energy. The first week of summer break I averaged about 2,000 steps. Now I average about 5,000 steps per day. I have started doing some short exercise videos as well.

On S days, I don't eat regular sweets. I can't handle those without going overboard. I do better with snacks like chips or popcorn. I have more self-control with those. I think low-carb sweets are safer for me right now, so I am going to start having those but only on weekends. They can have a lot of calories.

I don't weigh myself. I know that my clothing is starting to feel a little looser. I wear a 16 in pants. I will probably use my clothing and maybe a measuring tape to track my progress. I think a size 10 would be a good size for me. I am short woman with an hour glass figure and a medium frame. I think I would look OK in a size 10 because my weight always looks balanced on the top and bottom. Even though I would still be slightly overweight at that size, it would probably be more sustainable than a 6 or 8.

Whew... that was a lot of info. I just wanted to share in case anyone has advice.
5'2 female; 40-something years old

Started No S on 7/11/21
Starting size: 16/XL
Current size: 16/XL
Goal size: 10/M

Soprano
Posts: 1184
Joined: Thu Mar 08, 2018 8:56 pm
Location: UK

Re: A summer of learning

Post by Soprano » Sun Jul 25, 2021 7:35 pm

Welcome, sounds like you are sorted with your plan.

You may change things as you go but that's ok.

Jx
Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it. The time will pass anyway.

sharon227
Posts: 292
Joined: Fri May 18, 2018 12:13 pm

Re: A summer of learning

Post by sharon227 » Sun Jul 25, 2021 7:39 pm

Hi and welcome! I haven't been in the discussion group for awhile. I'm planning to post a testimonial at some point after my next doctor's appointment (to see how my bloodwork is), but did want to share a few things I learned the past years in case any are of interest.

No S is great -- my doctor recommended it to me. For those of us with sweets/refined carbs issues, though, I don't think "eat anything on your plate that's not an 'official' sweet" and "relax the rules on all S days" is necessarily enough, even if we don't go crazy on S days. Some of us have issues with breads and pastas, too, and that can seriously affect weight loss. No S including more healthy carbs might be a good maintenance strategy for me, though, and that's important. How many times have I lost weight without knowing how to keep it off!!

I've done more research, and I believe many of us with sweets/refined carbs issues probably also have insulin issues as well. I've been reading a lot about high insulin levels and insulin resistance, including Jason Fung's books The Obesity Code and The Diabetes Code. I'm not obese (but I have a narrow frame and even a "normal" BMI above 23 is too high for me) and I'm not diabetic, but those books still spoke to me. You can have insulin issues even at a normal BMI and normal / pre-diabetic glucose levels.

Those are long and science-packed books. Main takeaways for me is that weight loss for people with these issues involves both what you eat and when you eat. Dr. Fung agrees with the No S philosophy that traditional 3 meals a day no snacking was a main reason why obesity rates were so much lower before the 1980s. But he's not sure returning to that alone is enough to rebalance insulin levels.

I am not interested in Dr. Fung's intensive fasting regimens for people with major obesity and diabetes issues, but I do like one idea he also mentions and my doctor suggested to me: time-restricted eating. If you only eat in an 8-hour time window, you give your body's insulin levels more time to lower. My doctor suggested that to lose additional weight I should eat 2 meals a day instead of 3 (so I do have a doctor's note to not eat 3 meals!), starting at noon, as well as follow the No S principles of no snacks, no seconds, and no sweets. Other people do fit 3 meals into an 8-hour eating window. Maybe even breakfast a bit later and dinner a bit earlier might help. That may not be for everyone, but I have been losing almost a pound a week since I started a month ago, and that's considerably more than I was averaging with No S alone.

Also, I've re-evaluated whole grain breads and pastas. I still have them occasionally, but Dr. Fung says that industrial-milled whole wheat flour has a bigger effect on blood sugar than old-fashioned stone ground whole wheat flours would, and they may not be great if you have insulin issues.

Good luck on your journey! And good for you taking time for yourself this summer!!I think everyone needs to find useful broad principles and then make a plan that works for them. I'm glad I did vanilla No S for more than a year. It really made me see how much snacking and grazing I was doing, and how much I was fooling myself when I used to take a small initial portion and then just small seconds and maybe another spoonful as thirds. It was also important for me to re-learn that it's OK -- and even desirable -- to be hungry between meals.

ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

Re: A summer of learning

Post by ladybird30 » Mon Jul 26, 2021 4:03 am

Hi TeacherJ, welcome.

As for advice, mine would be consistency, regular tracking, honesty with oneself and don't try to change too much at once (unless that is really your thing).

Also, use No S to reign in the eating overages before trying for restriction (dieting).

Good luck.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

TeacherJ
Posts: 28
Joined: Fri Jul 23, 2021 11:35 pm

Re: A summer of learning

Post by TeacherJ » Mon Jul 26, 2021 11:58 pm

Thank for the great insights ladies.

I would not be surprised if I were to be diagnosed with insulin resistances. Diabetes and PCOS runs in my family. I think monitoring my carb intake is the most important decision I have made for my health.
5'2 female; 40-something years old

Started No S on 7/11/21
Starting size: 16/XL
Current size: 16/XL
Goal size: 10/M

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Re: A summer of learning

Post by oolala53 » Wed Jul 28, 2021 2:20 am

These are all controversial topics. Each expert can point to contradictory evidence. Just because a particular therapeutic diet also leads to weight loss doesn't mean it is a good strategy for someone who doesn't have the same incentive. Even those helped can have negative repercussions.

But few long-lived cultures rely on much flour-based starch. The ubiquitous flour-based foods in our culture have got to have something to do with our problems. I think awhile back Reinhard posted a finding that sweet baked goods had become the major source of calories in the modern diet. Holy moly! No human society can thrive on that.

We have to be our own sane society!
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)

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