Everyday Systems

I know that PB and J are allowed sometimes. This weekend I was sick and bought the uncrustables beacuse they were easy to take out of the freezer. They are basically 200 calories which is less than a sandwich made with PB & J so I was wondering if they would be OK for lunch each day with chips and fruit.

Also what about cereal? How do you determine if its OK to eat during the week. Crispix has only 3g of sugar and this is what I usually eat with a banana and milk.

Sorry so many questions, just wanted to make sure these two things were OK?

With the possible exception of overly sweetened cereals, nothing is off limits at meal time. There are some things that are obviously better choices than others, but in the end, the choice is up to you.

I think if it's enough, but not too much to constitute as a meal and it's not considered a sweet, then I'd say it was fine. I drink chocolate milk (carnation nutrient packs) with some dinners... so I'd say it was okay.

If it fits on a plate, it's okay. No math required.

Eating peanut butter and jelly sandwiches guilt-free for lunch is one of the lovely things about NoS!
My usual weekday breakfast is a peanut butter and banana sandwich. Besides being one of my favorites, it seems to be the only thing that holds me over until lunch time without a lot of stomach growling. When I eat cold cereal, it seems like I'm hungry an hour or two later.

Mimi

What about granola bars? Would you consider those a sweet? I eat these occasionally with yogurt and a fruit for breakfast. It hit me this morning that perhaps they should be considered a sweet. What do you think?

Granola bars are pretty much the same as candy bars -- with oatmeal. So, they're a sweet treat.

Thanks for clearing that up. I think that muffins and granola bars are OK as along as they are part of the meal. Maybe y'all would disagree. If I had a lowfat blueberry muffin, bacon,and fruit I think that would be fine and pretty well balanced. A poptart for breakfast might be a different story! I'm glad to know PB&J is OK because they are very filling. Thanks!

It's all about using your discretion---just be smart. Like wosnes said, almost nothing is off limits, and everyone knows the difference between better and worse choices. We all know that the huge blueberry muffins at Starbucks or sugary granola bars from a convenience store aren't the best choices, and are things you shouldn't be eating on a daily basis. If make normal size blueberry muffins or crumble a homemade granola bar into your yogurt for breakfast, you're probably good to go.

I would't consider PB& J a 'sweet' either. But I would skip the Uncrustables and all the unhealthy ingredients therein, and go with the real thing.

I tried to set out as many of these as possible in the beginning, but things come up that I forgot about, so this is always a work in progress.

Allowed on S-days:

- Any cereal allowed in the house when I was a child (plain or honey nut Cheerios, plain crisp rice, Life, raisin bran, etc. - also includes basic flavored instant oatmeal, which is something that lives in my desk at work just in case I forget to prepare for a meal).
- Non-candy-coated granola bars.
- Plain graham crackers (ie, not covered in cinnamon-sugar and not chocolate).
- Peanut butter, peanuts, or nuts.
- Jelly or jam or marmalade on toast as part of a meal or as part of a PBJ. (I usually get fruit juice-sweetened jams anyway.)
- Sweetened hot milk-based beverages IF they do not include ice cream or whipped cream: mocha, hot chocolate, chai tea, warm milk with a spoonful of honey, that sort of thing. Sugar in coffee allowed by the same logic.
- 100% fruit juices, as-is or diluted with water.
- Flavored yogurt.
- Dried fruits.

I find that at any given time I rely particularly heavily on a few of these foods, and they seem to have the effect of being satiating and helping me avoid obvious S-foods, instead of triggering binges or cravings. The hot beverages in particular seem to be of critical importance.

NOT allowed on S-Days:
- Cereals that I would not have been allowed to have as a child (anything chocolate-flavored or artificially colored or that is "mostly sugar").
- Ice cream, whipped cream, ice milk, frozen yogurt, sorbet, or anything based on these.
- Chocolate except in hot milk-based beverages. (This means cold chocolate milk is out.)
- "Juice drinks" or "juice cocktails" that are not 100% juice.
- Fruit smoothies.
- Muffins, coffee cakes, and other sweet baked goods that pretend to be breakfasts.
- Cookies, even "healthy" ones.
- "Yogurt coated" anything or trail mix with "yogurt chips" or any kind of candy-like thing in it. I don't even usually eat this anyway but it's something that was considered "health food" among parents when I was growing up, so there you go. (Mixed nuts or mixed nuts & dried fruits are OK.)
- Mixed drinks, since the ones I like are usually sweet.

LadyCheshire wrote:I tried to set out as many of these as possible in the beginning, but things come up that I forgot about, so this is always a work in progress.

Allowed on S-days:

- Any cereal allowed in the house when I was a child (plain or honey nut Cheerios, plain crisp rice, Life, raisin bran, etc. - also includes basic flavored instant oatmeal, which is something that lives in my desk at work just in case I forget to prepare for a meal).
- Non-candy-coated granola bars.
- Plain graham crackers (ie, not covered in cinnamon-sugar and not chocolate).
- Peanut butter, peanuts, or nuts.
- Jelly or jam or marmalade on toast as part of a meal or as part of a PBJ. (I usually get fruit juice-sweetened jams anyway.)
- Sweetened hot milk-based beverages IF they do not include ice cream or whipped cream: mocha, hot chocolate, chai tea, warm milk with a spoonful of honey, that sort of thing. Sugar in coffee allowed by the same logic.
- 100% fruit juices, as-is or diluted with water.
- Flavored yogurt.
- Dried fruits.

I find that at any given time I rely particularly heavily on a few of these foods, and they seem to have the effect of being satiating and helping me avoid obvious S-foods, instead of triggering binges or cravings. The hot beverages in particular seem to be of critical importance.

NOT allowed on S-Days:
- Cereals that I would not have been allowed to have as a child (anything chocolate-flavored or artificially colored or that is "mostly sugar").
- Ice cream, whipped cream, ice milk, frozen yogurt, sorbet, or anything based on these.
- Chocolate except in hot milk-based beverages. (This means cold chocolate milk is out.)
- "Juice drinks" or "juice cocktails" that are not 100% juice.
- Fruit smoothies.
- Muffins, coffee cakes, and other sweet baked goods that pretend to be breakfasts.
- Cookies, even "healthy" ones.
- "Yogurt coated" anything or trail mix with "yogurt chips" or any kind of candy-like thing in it. I don't even usually eat this anyway but it's something that was considered "health food" among parents when I was growing up, so there you go. (Mixed nuts or mixed nuts & dried fruits are OK.)
- Mixed drinks, since the ones I like are usually sweet.

Do you mean N-Days?