Everyday Systems

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 4:59 pm**

Which "S" (out of sweets / snacks / seconds) is hardest for you to release during the N days?

For me, it's sweets. I've given up snacks before, and found that I immediately released weight, because snacking is something I do a lot of. And, since learning intuitive-eating principles in 2005, "seconds" haven't really been an issue for me any more. I rarely have them.

Sweets, on the other hand, I'm used to having EVERY day, and I am terrified of giving them up (today is my very first N day!). But, I know I need to. I've known that for a while. And, I know it's not PERMANENTLY giving them up, as I can have them on "S" days -- that's something that makes this whole thing easier. I love knowing I can still "treat myself" (moderately) on the weekends.

The great thing, there, too, is that that's how I've always done it on the weekends. They used to be "weak-ends" for me, because I'd always go out to the store for my favorite treat: a can of Coke & a chocolate bar. Now I don't have to feel guilty for doing that. Whoohoo!

But, seriously... has anyone else, when first starting out with NoS, freaked out a little about giving up the "esses"?

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:06 pm**

I'm with you. Generally if I snack, it' sweet. I'm not big on other snacking or seconds. Sweets I have to conciously choose not to eat. But it does get easier. I did this for a long time before falling off the wagon last year. Before I was on bedrest with a busted foot I didn't even want sweets on N days. My S day treat was always an elaborate dessert that I simply couldn't justify having more than once a week (nor could I afford it more often) and lower quality sweets just didn't taste good anymore. I'm already back to that now.

Be prepared for slip ups and false starts. They will happen and they are part of the process. Remember you are building a habit of no sweets (and other Ss). It takes time, practice and patience but it will get much, much easier.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:08 pm**

Jaymiz

I was freaked about giving up snacks. I was sure I would die of starvation before supper. I can't say that I've never been hungry on this diet, but I did have a great realization (for me) this past weekend. I had several events on Sunday that all involved food. And you know, the stuffed to the gills feeling I had last night was worse than the hunger. Didn't know it until I let myself get hungry. Now I really look forward to meal times, and am beginning to have a whole different relationship with food. Can't say enough about this diet, slow though the progress may be. Because really, calling it a 'diet' is a disservice. A diet is something you do for a little while - this is just my new way of eating.

Have a great day!

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:12 pm**

Crunchy, salty snacks have been the hardest for me...but the cravings are lessening.

Stacy

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:16 pm**

Snacks. Absolutely hands down snacks.

I grew up in a household of permasnackers. That Diet Center I worked for? My mother owned it. It was a 900 calorie a day diet. You kind of have to nibble a little bit every few hours or you'll FAINT.

After we closed that business (got sick of the pressure to stay SKINNY), the habit of having a little something every few hours stuck.

What made it worse was that we'd also developed the idea that meals should be itty-bitty things. You would not BELIEVE.

So, not only is "not snacking" difficult, training myself to make meals large ENOUGH to carry me through to the next one was a challenge for awhile.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:28 pm**

lmt2pt wrote:Be prepared for slip ups and false starts. They will happen and they are part of the process. Remember you are building a habit of no sweets (and other Ss). It takes time, practice and patience but it will get much, much easier.

Thanks, Heather. And, yeah -- I've been really seriously trying to get this excess weight off for the past 3 years, so I've had *lots* of slip-ups and false-starts! LOL. But, I've learned that, like you said, it's just part of the process. As long as I keep trying, keep pushing forward, then I haven't "failed"...

There's a quote online, somewhere, that is from --hmm...Henry Ford?, I think? (might've been Benjamin Franklin) It has him saying something about how he found 99 ways to do something wrong, before he found that ONE way to do it right. LOL. Just a sec, gotta see if I can find that quote...

Nuts... can'd find it. But, I did find a bunch of other helpful quotes about Failure:

Many of life's failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up.
Thomas A. Edison (1847 - 1931)

Don't be discouraged by a failure. It can be a positive experience. Failure is, in a sense, the highway to success, inasmuch as every discovery of what is false leads us to seek earnestly after what is true, and every fresh experience points out some form of error which we shall afterwards carefully avoid.
John Keats (1795 - 1821)

We all have a few failures under our belt. It's what makes us ready for the successes.
Randy K. Milholland, Midnight Macabre, 10-18-05

If you have made mistakes, even serious ones, there is always another chance for you. What we call failure is not the falling down but the staying down.
Mary Pickford (1893 - 1979)

Failure will never overtake me if my determination to succeed is strong enough.
Og Mandino (1923 - 1996)

Before success in any man's life he is sure to meet with much temporary defeat and, perhaps, some failure. When defeat overtakes a man, the easiest and most logical thing to do is to quit. That is exactly what the majority of men do.
Napoleon Hill

Ninety-nine percent of all failures come from people who have the habit of making excuses.
George Washington Carver (1864 - 1943)

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:44 pm**

Sweets.... I love chocolate and got into the bad habit recently of eating ice cream every day. I'm nipping that habit in the bud now, but I guess I can say "it was nice while it lasted!"

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:55 pm**

Great question. Although I do love sweets (all the C words, like cookies, cakes, candy and ice cream), my worst habits revolve around salty snacks. Somehow, in my teenaged mind, it was better to eat chips (another C word), Wheat Thins, nuts, etc., instead of cookies and candy. I would start with the salty things and wind up with the things that I loved, anyway. This really bad habit has lasted nearly 40 years . . . until No S. 15 days on habit for me.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 5:58 pm**

Ya know, maybe "snacks" is a big deal for me, too! Sweets wins the #1 spot, but snacks come in close 2nd... I love my chips & dip, and other stuff that's not necessarily "sweet", but definitely "snacky", too!

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 6:16 pm**

Sweets.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 6:37 pm**

Sweets....and I lump bread in there with sweets because I love bread. If I have really good bread, I don't even put anything on it...just eat it plain. To my credit I really love whole grain breads, and usually 2 slices of a good whole grain bread really fills you up.

Diane

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 6:46 pm**

I love bread, too, but it's sweets. And snacking on sweets. I crave the salty things, too, but I can add them to a meal.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 6:54 pm**

Hands down it is snacking. It is very hard for me right now. I cannot eat much at meals. I am doing 4 meals and it is STILL hard. Some of it is actual hunger. I had my 2nd meal (I call it first lunch) at noon and was quite hungry by 2 PM. I will have my second lunch in a bit. I get overfull if I have certain kinds of foods. I can more easily eat "soft" foods in higher quantities and could take in more calories at meals if I was eating icecream. I just need to work on meals and fine tune what works for me.

Some of it isn't physical hunger. I am way aware of how I use snacking as a way to calm down, relax, reward. I want to bang my head because I can't do that.

My kids are permasnackers and it is hard being around the snacks. I have had to consciously NOT reach out a grab a chip or cookie.

I think going into this, I though sweets would be my hardest but I seem ok knowing that I can have them on weekends.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 8:03 pm**

That's easy. SUGAR. I love Pepsi. Short of schlepping it around in an i.v. bottle - that's been my toughest hill to climb yet on this program.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 8:30 pm**

Noser

I can't say that I've never been hungry on this diet, but I did have a great realization (for me) this past weekend. And you know, the stuffed to the gills feeling I had last night was worse than the hunger. Didn't know it until I let myself get hungry.

seriously, i'm so glad you pointed that out. i've had both hunger pains and overstuffed pains since i've been no-sing. a full plate of food is alot for me! and now that i've learned that i WILL make it until dinner i've been better at eating the right amounts for me

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 8:37 pm**

pinkmommy wrote:I have had to consciously NOT reach out a grab a chip or cookie.

This was me, today. I caught myself 3 times, already, reaching for the chocolate Easter eggs, and then went, "No Snacks, No Sweets! No, no, no!" and I walked away. LOL

This is my first N day, so it was tricky. But, water seems to be holding me over until dinner okay. Going to eat dinner an hour earlier than usual, though, to save not being ravenous.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 8:57 pm**

What? You still have Easter eggs? I'm impressed! Mine -- and the Peeps, even the colors I don't like -- were gone minutes after I received them!

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 10:07 pm**

SWEETS!!!!!! Every night after my DD's are nice and tucked into bed, I have always had my sweet treats!! Kind of like a relaxing, end of day ritual. It is such a part of me that it is very hard letting go. I know, without doubt, this is THE habit that has kept the 15 pounds on me that need to GO. I can do great all day, then night comes and the sweets call me. They know me by name!!!! I just have to remind myself that an S day is not far away. Hopefully it gets easier with time.

Posted: **Mon Apr 21, 2008 10:14 pm**

I guess snacks. Mainly at night around 8ish. Every day gets a little easier.
:=)

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 12:30 am**

flipturn wrote:What? You still have Easter eggs? I'm impressed! Mine -- and the Peeps, even the colors I don't like -- were gone minutes after I received them!

LOL. Yes. My two kids got sooooo much chocolate this past Easter, it's not even funny! And, my mom was *kind* enough (NOT!) to bring over MORE candy and chocolate eggs for both kids at my son's birthday party last week! Ugh!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 12:58 am**

Sweets, which are snacks. WHY even snack if it's not a sweet? FUNNY though--I had no sweets and no snacks today, but i caved with "seconds".
HA HA HA!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:28 am**

Interesting... I don't think I saw one "seconds" on here so far. And I'm not going to be the first, either! LOL! But, I am not sure which of the other two has been the toughest. I was sure before I started that it would be the sweets, but then when I was very hungry the first few nights at dinnertime, I realized that my body was missing the snacks to keep the hunger away.

But, neither the sweets nor the snacks have been that difficult to give up. And that is almost shocking for me to say. Being "a good OA-er" I was quite convinced that I was a food addict and that I would not be able to do this at all without all the support, working the steps, the tools and having a higher power. Turns out, I was able to have a completely successful N-week and a great weekend and get right back on the horse again today.

My daughter and I leave tomorrow morning for a vacation at my sister's and I am so happy to not be worrying about what I am going to eat all week. I'm not worried that I'm going to blow my diet, and I'm not worried that I won't get enough to eat. I know I'll be fine. There might be a little bit of "funny stuff" but even if there is, it's not going to be the end of the world. I can't believe how relaxed I am about it all. Freedom is what I am feeling. But, I digress... In my mind, it's the sweets I was prepared to miss but my body missed the snacks.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 2:08 am**

DianeA2Z wrote:Sweets....and I lump bread in there with sweets because I love bread. If I have really good bread, I don't even put anything on it...just eat it plain. To my credit I really love whole grain breads, and usually 2 slices of a good whole grain bread really fills you up.

Diane

OMG! I think we are twins!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:55 am**

SWEETS

my chai tea lattes ... I could just guzzle those ad infinitum ...

Blueskighs

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:42 am**

jazzys mom wrote:
DianeA2Z wrote:Sweets....and I lump bread in there with sweets because I love bread. If I have really good bread, I don't even put anything on it...just eat it plain. To my credit I really love whole grain breads, and usually 2 slices of a good whole grain bread really fills you up.

Diane
OMG! I think we are twins!

Here's another confession: I've been known to eat peanut butter right out of the jar (with a spoon...at least I use a spoon). Oh, and I only eat the all natural stuff without sugar. We always keep 2 jars of PB in the house at all times...neither one of us is willing to go into PB withdrawal.

AND I had a slice of bread w/peanut butter on it w/glass of milk for lunch.

Diane

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 5:28 am**

Another vote for "sweets" here. There was a period in my life when I was pretty rigid about not having any sweets ever, which I eventually overcame and developed the mindset that it's perfectly okay to have sweets if I want them, and I still think that is true in general. But I'd gotten to the point where many times having sweets was more a matter of habit or impulse than something I really wanted, so I figured confining them to S days would be a decent middle ground. But those habits die hard!

I am being a little narrower in my definition of sweets than I think some people are, which helps--I've been allowing myself sweetened yogurt and certain protein/nutrition bars on N days (the bars aren't the best food in the world, but sometimes they're better than the available alternatives). I figure if it's within the letter of the law, provides some useful nutrients, and keeps me away from cake and candy bars, it'll do for now.

The other thing that helps even more than I expected is having 3 filling, nutritious meals. If I'm physically hungry/underfed *and* craving chocolate, it's a lot harder to deal with than if I'm basically well-fed but just wanting the taste.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 12:23 pm**

For me it's Snacks.

I love sweets, but I don't want them as part of a meal.
I want them as a snack.
I also want crispy things, or salty things as a snack.
I even want crunchy things like veggies as a snack.

I don't care about seconds....because I don't want to stop eating my firsts.

In fact, I don't really want meals at all, I just want snacks.
Many, many snacks all day long..
Just nibble and graze as I feel like on whatever I want all the time.

Unfortunately, doing that made me really, really fat.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:38 pm**

DianeA2Z wrote:
jazzys mom wrote:
DianeA2Z wrote:Sweets....and I lump bread in there with sweets because I love bread. If I have really good bread, I don't even put anything on it...just eat it plain. To my credit I really love whole grain breads, and usually 2 slices of a good whole grain bread really fills you up.

Diane
OMG! I think we are twins!
Here's another confession: I've been known to eat peanut butter right out of the jar (with a spoon...at least I use a spoon). Oh, and I only eat the all natural stuff without sugar. We always keep 2 jars of PB in the house at all times...neither one of us is willing to go into PB withdrawal.

AND I had a slice of bread w/peanut butter on it w/glass of milk for lunch.

Diane

Peanut butter on a spoon is my favorite quick snack! I LOVE peanut butter! Mine is Skippy's Peanut Butter though so not as healthy as yours. My granddaughter eats peanut butter the same way - must have caught it from me!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 1:43 pm**

This is fascinating.

My (not very rigorous) sense is that most people say "sweets" but discover it's "snacks."

For me personally it was without a doubt "seconds." (though none is a problem at all anymore)

Of course, as many people have pointed out -- there is significant overlap between the esses. Many snacks are sweets, and the finest form of seconds is dessert.

I think sweets seem like they're going to be the hardest because they are what most of us ENJOY most. Snacking is more of a nervous tick, not really enjoyed, but a reflexive habit, usually more about relieving boredom or stress than actual hunger or pleasure. But it's a POWERFUL reflexive habit, far more so than most of us anticipate it being. The good news is that when it's gone, we don't miss it at all, any more than we miss scratching an itch that's no longer there. And sweets, which are an actual pleasure, become even more pleasurable when served up on the platter of limited S-day opportunities.

Reinhard

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 2:15 pm**

I found this out this weekend. All last week (after the initial 2 days the week before of no sweets) I found that I didn't have a problem at all craving sweets, even when hubby sat across the table from me eating a 1280 calorie molten cake! Then came the S days of Sat and Sun. I didn't go overboard on sweets --- a couple of brownies spread over the 2 days, 1 cookie and one small scoop of chocolate ice cream. Then Monday, a NO S day! I have been craving the rest of those brownies like crazy! Do you think that having sweets, even just a few, triggered the sweet craving or should I just ban brownies (MY ALL TIME FAV) from the house? I did cheat last night and broke a tiny piece from a brownie edge and ate it. That was enough - then had a menthol drop and went to sleep!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:11 pm**

reinhard wrote: Snacking.... The good news is that when it's gone, we don't miss it at all, any more than we miss scratching an itch that's no longer there.
Reinhard

Oh. I. So. Hope. that your above-stated Truth proves to be true for me too.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:14 pm**

jazzys mom wrote:Do you think that having sweets, even just a few, triggered the sweet craving or should I just ban brownies (MY ALL TIME FAV) from the house? I did cheat last night and broke a tiny piece from a brownie edge and ate it. That was enough - then had a menthol drop and went to sleep!

Why in heaven's name would you ban something from your house or your life just because you crave them?

I tend to think it's normal to crave things. What's not normal is giving in to the cravings and having the food around all the time! I've been trying to bake for the weekend on Friday or early Saturday in not very large amounts so the stuff is GONE by the time Monday rolls around. If it's not gone, freeze it!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:14 pm**

For me it's like Reinhard said - If you asked me pre No S I would have said sweets hands down. I'm a sugarholic now (carbs and candy) and always have been.

However, since starting the No S Diet, I have come to realize that I snack a heck of a lot. I never even saw myself as a snacker! I'm a boredom snacker. I can get antsy and bored quite easily. When those times come, I go into the pantry and scout out snacks. Admittedly many of the snacks I choose are sweets but it's more snacking for me. I am now enlightened.

~Danielle

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:16 pm**

wosnes wrote: .....I've been trying to bake for the weekend on Friday or early Saturday in not very large amounts so the stuff is GONE by the time Monday rolls around. If it's not gone, freeze it!

That is a great idea!

~Danielle

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:30 pm**

Reinhard -- Thanks for your insight! I think that we all probably know what you said, but somewhere along the way decided to ignore all those bells going off in our heads.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:49 pm**

Noturningback wrote:
wosnes wrote: .....I've been trying to bake for the weekend on Friday or early Saturday in not very large amounts so the stuff is GONE by the time Monday rolls around. If it's not gone, freeze it!
That is a great idea!

~Danielle

I've also been known to just throw it away. Not the least wasteful thing to do, but maybe the least "waistful."

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:52 pm**

If it's not gone, freeze it![/quote]

Can't freeze them because hubby and son go by and pick at them.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 3:59 pm**

well, today is day ONE for me, and I have started to reach for a SNACK twice (and it isn't even lunch time yet) - so snacks are it!

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:06 pm**

jazzys mom wrote:Peanut butter on a spoon is my favorite quick snack! I LOVE peanut butter!

Admittedly, I still make a PB snack that I learned from Mr.Dressup when I was knee-high... you mix PB, sugar, and honey... then just eat it like that. It is SOOOO not healthy for you, but it's the perfect thing when you're craving something sweet, 'cause it's got the protein in the PB, too!

Mind you, now that I'm doing NoS, I am not making this any more (could on an "S" day, i suppose). But, having this daily really puts on the pounds, I tell ya! It was a really bad habit of mine that I'm okay with saying "goodbye" to! LOL

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:06 pm**

wosnes wrote: I've also been known to just throw it away. Not the least wasteful thing to do, but maybe the least "waistful."

That's a thought!

I know this is a more expensive option and perhaps easier for me since it's just my husband and myself but, a thought I'll throw out there none the less.

You can purchase items in single portions. I love lemon merengue pie. So, I go to the bakery section and purchase a slice instead of the whole pie.

~Danielle

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:21 pm**

Sweet Snacks are my downfall! And though I rarely ate seconds, portion sizes were probably too big.

Last evening I actually stopped with ONE slice of pizza for supper -- two wouldn't fit on the paper plate I was using without hanging over the sides.

Becky

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:22 pm**

slickchic wrote:SWEETS!!!!!! Every night after my DD's are nice and tucked into bed, I have always had my sweet treats!! Kind of like a relaxing, end of day ritual. It is such a part of me that it is very hard letting go. I know, without doubt, this is THE habit that has kept the 15 pounds on me that need to GO. I can do great all day, then night comes and the sweets call me. They know me by name!!!! I just have to remind myself that an S day is not far away. Hopefully it gets easier with time.

I totally agree. What better way to celebrate the end of the day, it's just me, the TV and my dessert. That was my idea of one sexy three way

In the beginning I would break out in a cold sweat at the end of dinner, how the heck was I going to make it until morning without food!!!! That first month or so I was "starving" by 8PM. Well, after a while I was no longer "starving". Which is proof it wasn't really hunger, it was merely habit.

It does get easier. I am going on three months now and I admit I still get that "boy would some ice cream taste great right now" feeling, around 8PM, but it's nothing that I can't shake off. For instance, last night I really should have filled my dinner plate a little more but I was being lazy and thought it would be enough. By 8PM I really was hungry, way more than usual, but I didn't have anything. And you know what? I woke up this AM feeling fine, not even hungry. I got hungry this AM the same time as I usually do.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:30 pm**

Noturningback wrote:
You can purchase items in single portions. I love lemon merengue pie. So, I go to the bakery section and purchase a slice instead of the whole pie.

~Danielle

If you cook for just yourself, you can also make just a serving or two of whatever it is you want. As previously (in another thread) mentioned, Cooking for 2 magazine, the Cook's Illustrated web site and other online sources have recipes for 2 or the ability to reduce recipes to 2 servings (although some of those come out with some strange measurements).

Things from a good bakery are great, but usually nothing beats homemade.

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:47 pm**

Sweets, no question.

I have an "if I'm ever universe forbid diagnosed with a terminal disease and have only X time to live" diet:

cans of frosting, almost any flavor
brownie batter
chocolate chip cookie batter
Sara Lee cheesecakes, any flavor
if they ever make it again, HEB pecan pie ice cream

Last night when I was wide awake in bed and hungry I went through memories of every single sweet I ever loved and tried to imagine their taste, since I couldn't eat any of them.

including

Entenmann's strudel
Entenmann's blueberry coffee cake
Tasty Kake krimpets
my mother's lemon meringue pie

and the apple crisp served at the cafeteria, Beloit College, Beloit, WI, 1974.

f

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 4:59 pm**

wosnes wrote:..........

Things from a good bakery are great, but usually nothing beats homemade.

One can't argue with that!

Thanks for the ideas. I do usually make smaller portions for two but, those recources will come in handy none the less.

Thanks again,
~Danielle

Posted: **Tue Apr 22, 2008 8:27 pm**

Thanks -- I am not being facetious -- for the mention of peanut butter. I had it for lunch on multigrain bread and am still feeling "pleasantly satisfied." I love peanut butter and ate it without the slightest bit of guilt.

Posted: **Wed Apr 23, 2008 9:33 am**

I have always thought my hardest was snacks, but thinking of my the last few months and reading here it is sweets as snacks that are my downfall and where I have the strongest urges between meals.

As others have said my salty snacks can be made part of a meal and enjoyed, but sweets are just that - sweets and must wait for the weekend (when they are so much more enjoyable).

Everyday Systems

Which "S" is hardest for you to let go of?

Which "S" is hardest for you to let go of?

I am so glad you posted this Q!