First month weight gain

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shelly_k
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Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2009 3:25 pm

First month weight gain

Post by shelly_k » Fri Sep 18, 2009 2:08 am

I am just above a healthy weight range for my height and a 26 BMI. However, to feel at my best, I would still like to lose around 15 pounds.

On the first month of NoS, following it reasonably well, I gained 1.5 pounds. I work out on average 3 times per week (resistance and cardio). I've had a few additional S days other than the weekends, but otherwise, been following the rules.

Do I need a modification? I feel frustrated. What else should I be doing? Should I be limiting my portion sizes even more (a smaller plate?). I've never been one to drink soda, but I dearly love mochas and stuff from Starbucks which I've cut back alot (just weekends now for treats). I did do alot of snacking before, especially in the afternoon/evening and now I don't snack. But I must be just eating so much at meals now that I managed to GAIN weight.

Please help!
Shelly

Age 40
Started Dec 6, 2014
Start Weight: 173.8
Start BMI: 26.3
Goal Weight: 155
Vanilla NoS

Start: 173.8
Week 1: 172.8
Week 2: 172.8
Week 3: 170.6

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sporkfancier
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Re: First month weight gain

Post by sporkfancier » Fri Sep 18, 2009 4:13 am

shelly_k wrote:I've had a few additional S days other than the weekends, but otherwise, been following the rules.
This is where you should look before adding a modification. Reinhard did a podcast about this: http://everydaysystems.com/podcast/episode.php?id=34

Get your N-days perfect before worrying about changing your S-days.
shelly_k wrote:But I must be just eating so much at meals now that I managed to GAIN weight.
While this *might* be true, it isn't the only reason. In fact, it's probably not even the most likely reason. If you're doing No-S, you should expect to lose about 2lbs per month *over the long run*. What that means is that when you look back 6 months later, you should be down about 12 pounds.

No-S is not a rapid weight loss system--it's a maintenance system that gradually gets you to your ideal weight.

I know it can be tough to stay motivated--hell, I can't wait to hit my goal weight and am always wondering if I could "accelerate" it. But I know that if I start to further restrict myself or push myself, the most likely scenario is that I abandon it altogether.

Without a doubt, the hardest part of No-S is the waiting. I think Tom Petty wrote a song about it.[/url]
Shovel glove? Isn't that the size of prophylactic I use?

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NoelFigart
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Re: First month weight gain

Post by NoelFigart » Fri Sep 18, 2009 8:42 am

shelly_k wrote: On the first month of NoS, following it reasonably well, I gained 1.5 pounds. I work out on average 3 times per week (resistance and cardio). I've had a few additional S days other than the weekends, but otherwise, been following the rules!

A pound and a half does feel incredibly frustrating, yes. I feel your pain. Getting past the month granularity to a longer term is important on No S.

It's also (to quote Our Founder) statistically insignificant in a single month.

I can think of lots of reasons you gained a pound and a half:

* Hitting the weights REALLY heavy. If you're a beginner training hard, you might very well gain as much as half a pound of muscle a week.

* Scale error. Scales to weigh people are not scientifically accurate.

* Hormonal changes. Plenty of women gain and lose five pounds depending on where they are in their fertility cycles.

* Constipation. Yeah, full of.... Well, you get the point.

* Fluid retention of other sorts. Stress, muscle soreness, eating more salt than usual, standing or sitting considerably more than usual.

These things don't actually show up in traditional diets quite as much because you're losing at a much faster rate. On No S, it's not unheard of to stabilize at a particular weight, then start dropping almost imperceptibly. If you wanna be thin RIGHT NOW, that's really gonna get you grinding your teeth, and who can blame you?

The point of No S is to treat the problem (overeating) rather than the symptom (excess weight). So while the results are much slower to appear, maybe even microscopically slowly, that slowness is beautiful because it means your habits change and change forever. So the weight, stays off forever.

I say this as a long-term yo-yo dieter who feels that I've been dealing with the issue from the wrong end for close on to thirty years.
------
My blog https://noelfigart.com/wordpress/ I talk about being a freelance writer, working out and cooking mostly. The language is not always drawing room fashion. Just sayin'.

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DaveMc
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Post by DaveMc » Fri Sep 18, 2009 2:25 pm

Let me just add a "hear, hear" to what spork and Noel have said, above. The other thing to bear in mind is that many people have noted that the less weight you have to lose, the slower it's likely to be. People who are trying to lose 50 or 100 pounds often have pretty rapid weight loss in the early months, but if you're aiming to whittle away those last 15 pounds, it may be a very slow process -- even slower than usual for NoS.

I'm in about the same situation (15 or so pounds, to get back to where I used to be 10 years ago), and I find that the advice in the book (and around here) is the best way to get over the feeling that this is too slow: focus on behaviour (which you can directly control) rather than the result (which you can't directly control). Noel points out a bunch of reasons that the number on the scale is very "noisy": it combines a whole bunch of factors that may not have very much to do with how well you are eating or exercising.

The other psychological trick is to focus on the long term: think of this as a way of eating that you're going to be following for the rest of your life. You might even want to consider not weighing yourself at all for a couple of months, just focus on following the habits. When you do weigh yourself, you should probably do it for several days in a row and take an average, since one weighing can be deceptive. (There are elaborate ways to track long-term trends in your weight and "smooth out" the noise, but unless you're a geek (like me) you probably won't want to get involved with all that.)

shelly_k
Posts: 19
Joined: Thu Aug 13, 2009 3:25 pm

Post by shelly_k » Fri Sep 18, 2009 3:01 pm

Thank you all for your encouragement. I did weigh 3 days in a row and by taking the average, I've gained about 2 pounds this month.

I will stick with it and try to make sure my N days are perfect. That is good advice.

I have never been a quick loser, in any diet. Even doing weight watchers, I lost absolutely no weight in 8 weeks and that was following the diet strictly.

I am only 5 pounds from the top of my ideal weight range and a healthy BMI -- so, yes, this weight loss will happen slower. I had a full physical with my doctor and I am in tip top shape, low blood pressure, low overall cholesterol, above normal HDL, etc... So obviously, my body is functioning well at this weight, it is just that I am 10 pounds heavier than I was a year ago and 15 pounds heavier that I was 18 months ago... so frustrating. I can't wear my clothes. I hate to think of buying new ones. You know... the usual stuff.

Anyway, sticking with it... but just wish it would go faster.
Shelly

Age 40
Started Dec 6, 2014
Start Weight: 173.8
Start BMI: 26.3
Goal Weight: 155
Vanilla NoS

Start: 173.8
Week 1: 172.8
Week 2: 172.8
Week 3: 170.6

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reinhard
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Post by reinhard » Fri Sep 18, 2009 7:06 pm

Shelly -- you've built the habit of mealtime eating. That's huge. Sometimes that takes some extra large meals until you get a feel for how much it will take to see you through to the next one without breaking down. My guess is that slowly, without adding extra rules your meals will shrink as you develop that sense.

Best wishes and keep us posted,

Reinhard

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