Post
by hexagon » Thu Dec 21, 2006 9:49 pm
Hi,
I think that different things work for different people when it comes to weight loss and health.
First, I don't think universally that carbs cause cravings. In my experience, it depends upon the psychology/physiology of the person involved, as well as the carb. If I eat a slice of whole wheat bread or an orange, my blood sugar doesn't go wacko, as opposed to a pack of Oreos. (Incidentally, as an experienced gastritis/heartburn sufferer, I'd *never* advocate something like Oreos for heartburn, except maybe for a masochist.) Plus, I've lived/traveled a lot in both Europe and Asia, where bread (including white) and white rice, respectively, are pretty big staples of their diets. Many more Europeans and Asians maintain healthy weights--obviously their carb intake isn't inducing crazy cravings. I also have plenty of slim friends who enjoy a lot of carbs. Then again, for those people with really messed-up blood sugar, or recovering from Atkins, or with a really huge sweet tooth, a stronger restriction of carbs may be necessary.
As for assuming that compromising the rules now and then is a definite slippery slope into debauched gluttony...Well, maybe for some people it is, and those people should be strict. On the other hand, being overly strict can also lead to the "all-or-nothing" attitude of "well, I ate one extra thing, so I'm a total failure today, which gives me license to go hog wild." I just mentioned the calories thing not to rationalize the extra food intake as much as to put it in perspective. Having an extra 200 calories once in a month to soothe heartburn isn't going to make a person fat. It's the habits of eating a donut with coffee everyday, of snacking or emotional eating, of allowing every little slip-up to be an excuse to eat a whole box of cookies.
I'm living proof of this. Twice in my second 21-day stint of No-S, I overate due to severe gastritis (it was partially therapeutic, although I believe I took too much license to eat). I'm still losing, though (now 5-6 pounds in 3.5 weeks), because my (partially) therapeutic eating wasn't the problem. The habit of running to food for emotional comfort was the problem.
I honestly don't think that even within No-S that there is one absolute path to weight loss with absolute rules. Everybody has a different body and different emotional backgrounds. For some people absolute strictness is the only way. For other people who have struggled for years with overly-restrictive diets (like myself), some forgiveness and flexibility is good. I know there's a lot of people like that who are reading this bulletin board. What I've found is that the more forgiving I've been of myself, the less I've overeaten. Managing hunger and weight loss has been a matter of fine-tuning for me, of figuring out how strict I can be before I begin to rebel and tuning into my body's responses to different foods.
Ultimately, I believe instead of mindlessly hewing to any rules about weight loss and health, we have to take the responsibility to really do our homework on ourselves. Of course we have to be willing to change our behavior to be more healthy, but we have to consider our own individual preferences, situations, etc.
--H
I'm not really hungry feeling right at the moment, sortof heartburnish but I feel so compelled to have a snack right now!! Supper is in a couple hours yet, which isn't all that long but this craving has got to be the worst one yet I've had. 
for successful days, 
for S days and 
for failures)
