Everyday Systems

First let me make it clear, I am not ditching the No S, but I am getting more than a little annoyed that the scale has not moved in the 5 weeks that I have been No S-ing. This is where I would typically go nuts and eat myself blind, or do the opposite and go on some crazy starvation plan, telling myself that I will go back to No S after I drop a few pounds. But not this time. In the past 5 weeks I have felt like I have been on vacation from dieting. Imagine a 5 week vacation and not one pound gained. So feeling this way and not gaining is great, but......... I do want to lose about 17 pounds. I am 5'9" and weigh 167. I know 17 pounds isn't a lot compared to some so I don't expect it to just fall off, but I would have thought I would see 2 or 3 pounds by now. I have had all perfect N days since starting, but my S days have not been what I would eventually like to see as my normal S days, but then again I have not gone any crazier than I used to on an ordinary day where I wasn't on any type of plan. I just got back to walking this past week so I am hoping that will catch up to me and I will see a difference. When I say walking I mean 3 miles, 3 hilly miles, not a stroll around the block once. I have always had a slow metabolism and I have a strange habit of gaining a few pounds when I start an exercise routine - and no it's not muscle at that point. I feel like such a freak, who the hell else starts out a diet plan and hits a plateau right out of the gate?

But all in all I feel great about what I am doing, all I need to do is to keep doing it and to put more focus on my S days, that's all I can really think to do. I keep reminding myself to be patient, that it's so much better for this to take a long while and really work then to be another get thin quick scheme that will not last at all.

Thanks for listening.

Dawn i can totally relate to you when you say that after 5 weeks of no s ing that since the scale has not budged you would of normally resorted to binge out of control or tried other diets. I would of done that also in the past but i am so beyond all the fad diet mumbo jumbo. I want enjoy healthy foods of my choice at meal times and i will. No more counting calories, weighing food, measuring cups or counting points for me. I am so over that. The fact that you are not going to do that is an accomplishment in itself along with the so called 5 week vacation without gaining a pound. That is awesome. Just stick with it you deserve to eat normally just like everyone else your body will respond. Just think of it as if your body is going through some changes and it needs some time to catch up.

Chiqitabanana, Thanks for the encouragment. I KNOW I am doing the right things to get me where I need to be and getting rid of the mentality that it has to happen tomorrow is one of the biggest hurdles I have had to face. My fear when I started this plan was that I would be able to maintain my weight on it, but I feared I wouldn't be able to lose on it, and here I am right in the middle of that fear. So now I will take baby steps and make small adjustments until I get into a groove that I can live with and still lose a few pounds a month. So it takes a while to find the groove, at least I am not going backwards right?

Dawn,

I'm glad you can see that you've made progress in these 5 weeks even if it hasn't been scale progress -- because it's very true. Pleasurable maintenance is a huge improvement over the typical status quo of miserable, guilty gaining.

But you're also in better shape even relative to results. Why? Because you've got a firm foundation of habit from which to launch further initiatives if necessary. The first thing I'd try is what you suggest: a little bit of exercise. This is a good thing no matter what the scale is saying. Don't go nuts -- make the smallest, least obtrusive change and then see what happens. If a month goes by and nothing happens, then tweak a little more, wait a little more... etc. Losing weight is not the hard part -- maintaining, the part you've got down already, is the hard part. So don't risk that for fleeting glory. I'd advise coming up with a small amount of *time* to do some kind of exercise --whatever you feel like -- every N-day. I'm partial to 14 minutes

You can also make dietary tweaks, but I'd try exercise first because two moderate efforts are better than one extreme effort.

Best of luck, whatever you decide, and keep us posted,

Reinhard

Dawn baby steps is the perfect way to look at how to go day to day with this program. I will take those baby steps with you. I use this thought when i am thinking about binging now- I think of myself as a little girl maybe around 5 years old and i imaging shoveling food into her mouth even if she is not hungry and forcing her to eat it all even if she is so stuffed that she wants to throw up. That stops that binge feeling right away i would never do that to her as a child so why would i want to do that as an adult. The point is that we have to start inside and love ourselves enough to take the very best care of ourselves.

Dawn
Stay strong, you are on the right track and now you have the most awesome habits in place to allow you to make the plan perfect for you.

Good luck as you start slowly tweaking things.

Keep up the excellent attitude! You seem to be handling your fear constructively by making small reasonable plans and turning to your support structure (us) for comfort and guidance. Good luck with your walking! I wish you good weather and pleasant scenery.

Hi Dawn,

I'd just like to add to the sentiment here that you are on the right track and have a great attitude Perhaps it would help to ignore the scales for now and just consider how you look in the mirror and how you feel in your clothes? (as these things can change before the scales even record anything).

Thanks for all of your support and for confirming that I am doing the right things and that I just need to keep doing them and eventually I will start getting slimmer.

And I will take Bonnie's advice and not rely on the scale for now at least. I have a friend who never weighs herself, she just relies on the mirror, her clothes and how she feels - isn't that weird? In a good way of course:] Boy, to get to that point would be huge for me. And I can see how No-Sing can get me there and keep me there. I just need to find my formula and to make adjustments in small increments so that I can establish good habits and not start up doing anything that I can't live with for the long term. This takes patience, but that's a lot easier than will power any day.

I will share my progress so that others can see that it does work!

Dawn

I hope you read this really carefully, because it is soooo true. The less you have to lose the SLOWER it comes off!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! If you had 100 pounds to drop, the first 50 would come off with the smallest changes. But 17, if you do moderation, will take some time. Be happy you have not gained and step up the calorie burn through exercise and it will come off. Been there, feel your pain.