Everyday Systems

Hey everyone! I'm new on here, but I'm loving No-S. The only thing is...after being deprived of yummy, fatty food for so long (so many diets), I feel like I always want carbs and filling food at meals. I'm also always starving when mealtime comes around and eat till I'm pretty full. I'm eating protein and carbs and fruit, so I feel like I'm eating filling foods, but I'm nervous I'm going to gain weight. I know Reinhard says that this will happen in the beginning and will naturally subside....any advice?

clescop wrote:Hey everyone! I'm new on here, but I'm loving No-S. The only thing is...after being deprived of yummy, fatty food for so long (so many diets), I feel like I always want carbs and filling food at meals. I'm also always starving when mealtime comes around and eat till I'm pretty full. I'm eating protein and carbs and fruit, so I feel like I'm eating filling foods, but I'm nervous I'm going to gain weight. I know Reinhard says that this will happen in the beginning and will naturally subside....any advice?

Yes. Take it one day at a time, and cut yourself some slack. First, get yourself used to the concept (3 meals, no snacking, no sweets) ... and do it while eating anything you want that follows those three rules. Your first few S days, cut yourself some slack there too. You're probably going to go a little of the deep end, especially that first weekend.

Don't beat yourself up, remind yourself that you're changing the way you view food, and your relationship with food.

Then, once you have the pattern down pat, so you're not struggling with it every single day, then you can start monitoring how what you eat affects you, and making better food choices. But until then, don't worry yourself to death over the little stuff. Remember, you didn't gain weight over night, you won't lose it overnight. Give your body a chance to adapt to what's good for you, which will be different from what's good for someone else.

Good luck!

Laura L.

Lelovelady has very good advice.

My two cents:

Remember that though you are now playing by different rules, you still have winning conditions. Every time you make it through a day give yourself a high-five. (You can even do this for shorter time periods, I remember congratulating myself on making it between meals when I started.)

Don't think of the negative "I ate an entire plate of nothing but mashed potatoes and roast beef and gravy!" (actually not a bad choice, compared to some of my successful meals). Think of the positive "I only ate one plate of food and it's going to hold me over until my next meal really well!"

This is a common phenomenon at the beginning. It does settle down, as you get used to not eating between meals and the novelty of formerly-forbidden food wears off. You'll figure out what you need to eat and stop overloading... but in the beginning, it's better to be generous with yourself. (Also, once you cut out snacks, it's rather amazing how much you CAN eat at meals and maintain/lose.)

Give yourself the full 21 days, then take another look at where you are. By then, the hunger pangs ought to have lessened a bit, and you'll have a better handle on what you really need, and can make better decisions. For now, just try to do vanilla No-S... take stock after you've given the habits time to take hold.

It is a common thing. I still eat far more at meal time than I used to in my pre-No S days - but less than I did the first month. Along with that, you've got post-diet deprivation to deal with. Hopefully it will level out before too long.