Everyday Systems

Hello everyone!!

I'm 'newish' here...I have to confess, I've been lurking for the past year and 1/2 (What can I say? Lurking is a way of life for me!! ).

Yesterday, I finally decided to join up!! Everyone here is so kind and respectful of each other... It's really tough to try yet another algorithm of eating on your own; I’ve learned that group efforts (and therapy!!) work far better that going at it solo. I’m hoping that No S will help me get straight about eating!!

So, I’ve decided Friday’s day one...Any suggestions to how to kick it off in style?

Thanks!!

Vee

Plan ahead. Think about what you're going to eat for each meal. Be sure to have good food readily available for your meals so you won't resort to crappy snacks. Be sure to eat enough at each meal, so you can last til the next meal. Something my husband and I have really begun to enjoy is to go through cookbooks and pick out new things to try. This keeps meals interesting, and we're less tempted to snack out of gastronomic boredom.

And...plan a really nice treat for yourself for the weekend, preferably something that be entirely consumed by Monday, so it won't be calling your name from the fridge all week.

If you fall off the NoS wagon, don't despair. We all fall off from time to time, but this wagon moves slowly, so it's easy to jump back on, and the people on the board will give you a hand, too.

Best of luck!

Welcome!

My advice would be to make sure you start the day with a good breakfast and take time to enjoy it!

Most mornings I have a large bowl of oatmeal topped with raisins, nuts, ground flax seeds and cinnamon.
I also enjoy some freshley brewed coffee or some herbal coffee if I don't fancy caffeine (at the moment I quite like dandelion root coffee).

I'm usually up early enough to take my time and enjoy it - it's my precious quiet time to think, read, relax etc. before getting caught up in the day's activities.

I recommend you carve out a good breakfast ritual for yourself to get you off to a good start each day! (or if you're not a breakfast eater, then whichever meal is your first).

Welcome!

Make food that you really enjoy eating, and take the time to savour it all. Why waste your appetite for things that you don't really like? I've noticed that I've become much more critical about what I eat since I started this. More organic fruits and vegetables, real butter, no light stuff that has no taste, a lot of homemade food, really nice cheeses, things like that.

And plan one delicious high-quality snack or sweet for the weekend!

Welcome!

My advice:

1) Give yourself big plates to get you though to the next meal without snacking.

2) Drink plenty of beverages between meals, even caloric ones if necessary.

3) Proactively treat yourself on S-days instead of reactively binging.

4) Be strict about the rules. You'll learn them faster. Then they'll be easy.

5) Be patient. It's a moderate plan so progress in terms of results will probably be slow. It may also take a few false starts before you really get the habit down -- it probably will. Mentally budget for this.

Best of luck getting started today!

Reinhard