Everyday Systems

A lot of people on one of the other forums I read are into the No S Diet, so I started reading up on it. I like the idea, and want to try it, but am afraid to.

Here's the rundown on me: I'm 5'2.5". (Yes, I'm insistent about the .5. I really am right in between!) I have been overweight my whole adult life, though how overweight has varied. I was at a high point (or maybe I should say a low point) in late 2007, weighing somewhere over 190 lbs., probably close to 195. Then, I went through a divorce. I became so depressed that I lost interest in food and pretty much everything else, and very rapidly shed 30 lbs. without trying, ending up at about 162 at my low point. Obviously that's still overweight for my height, but I sure looked a heck of a lot better. Suddenly everyone was complimenting me. I had given up on weight loss, but once I started getting those compliments coming in, I realized I really wanted to not gain that weight back.

Fortunately I did not stay that miserable. Unfortunately, as soon as I was happy again and food started tasting good again, I started to put the weight back on. I ended up getting back up to about 173 in late 2008, at which point I decided I had to start dieting again. I went on a calorie-counting diet, since that's what had worked for me in the past (temporarily). And I'm still on that now. I've gotten back down to about 166 and stalled; my body really seems to like this weight and is being stubborn about going any lower. Still, the fact that I at least haven't gained all that weight back is still consoling to me. I'd rather lose than maintain, but even maintaining at this point feels like something of a victory.

My current regimen is 1200 calories a day (six days a week). I work evenings and my schedule is to get up at about noon every day and go to bed about 3 a.m. When I get up, I eat lunch, and then I eat dinner about 10 p.m. Lunch is tiny, dinner is medium-sized. I eat an afternoon snack (very small, about 100 calories) at about 5 p.m. and a bedtime snack at about midnight. I also do at least 30 minutes of exercise (e.g. Wii Fit, walking, DDR) five days a week (the other two are long days at work and don't leave time for it). One day a week is my free day on which I can go out to eat with my family or have treats or whatever I want.

I'm not losing on this scheme, I am simply maintaining. That would be all right, if not ideal, but the trouble is, it makes me miserable. Having a tiny little lunch so I can leave room in the calorie budget for an afternoon snack frankly sucks. Two meals a day also sucks, but if I ate three they'd have to be even smaller. And, as a lot of you probably well know, counting calories sucks. I've gotten to where all day I'm crunching numbers in my head so I know what I can have for dinner, measuring every condiment I put on my sandwiches, etc. It feels obsessive and unhealthy. Sometimes I even dream about counting calories, which just can't be a good sign.

So, I would love a diet that did not require me to count anymore. The thing is, I am convinced that if I didn't, I would not maintain my weight. As it is, I get one equivalent of an S-day rather than two (and I budget holidays in as my free days for that week, too, so they aren't extra), and I eat tiny portions of food. Even on this strict-feeling diet, I am not losing weight. If I could actually just put what felt like a real meal on my plate three times a day, even without the snacks, I would definitely be eating more than 1200 calories a day. And two free days plus holidays on top of that? I can easily see myself getting slowly back up to my old awful weight.

So, I want to try this, but am terrified of ballooning again if I do. Every time my weight goes up I feel sad and upset with myself. Still, I am thinking of switching over to No S after Easter. I do think I'd be more than happy with trading my tiny snacks for a third meal. (Although my meals would have to be odd -- like "lunch, tea, and dinner" -- because of my schedule.)

What to do... what to do!

Yep, calorie accounting sucks... give this a try for a week or two.

NoS has been successful for a lot of people--give it a try for a couple of weeks and see what it does for you. If it really turns out that you end up gaining weight because of it, you can't do that much damage in just a couple of weeks.

However, I'm wondering if you aren't eating enough? I've read that 1,200 calories is the absolute minimum any woman should be consuming---and considering you're getting exercise 5 days a week, maybe your calorie needs are a bit higher? Sometimes, not eating enough can put the body into a starvation mode where it holds onto all the weight it can.

One more thing: Maybe you're maintaining rather than losing because your body has hit a plateau. While I think NoS is brilliant, awesome, THE way to go, I'm not happy with the way my body looks unless I get some vigorous exercise in every day, too. Perhaps your body has just gotten really used to your routine and you need to shake things up. I know this suggestion kind of goes against what I said above, I'm just trying to think of some different possibilities that might apply to you.

We smaller ladies do have to be a little more careful about what we eat. I'm not much of a breakfast eater, but when I do it's fairly small. Lunch is rather small, too. Dinner is my main meal of the day.

What are you eating at your meals?

Welcome, bunnyhugger Don't be afraid of No S. Be afraid that you can't count calories for the rest of your life. You have learned a lot so far about what foods are high calorie. Apply that to No S and make better choices at mealtime. I think if you try No S for one month, even ease into it doing one S one week at a time to get comfortable... you will find it to be the best thing you've done.

I also think you might want to look at your exercise routine and change it up a little. I have Wii Fit, but moved from that to more intense Wii fitness programs and I am seeing better results. Good luck. Can't wait to hear your progress.

No S = No Counting.

It is simple.

Welcome! As someone who is actually 5' 2.75" but calls herself 5'3" I know how much those half inches count!


I agree with the others:

1.) No S can work. Please don't be scared. It is a very sane and sensible way of eating.

2.) For better or worse, us shorter ladies don't need tons of food to maintain or lose weight. I don't count calories at all. It's just not something I could do for the long-term. But I've found that eating a lighter breakfast that is just enough to keep me happily full until lunch and a hearty but lighter lunch (usually a big bowl of homemade veggie-based soup with a hunk of good bread) helps to moderate things. For dinner, I eat normal fare ... One plate of whatever I'm serving my family.

3.) Bumping up the exercise a little can make a huge difference and is something to look into if you are on a plateau. I walk or do nordic skiwalking most days of the week. In February, by doing No S and getting approximately 45 minutes of exercise in, I lost about 2.5 pounds. This month, I started wearing my pedometer and have been challenging myself to increase the number of steps I get in a day ... and I've lost 6 lbs.


HTH! Hope to see you around the Boards!

Gotta tell you, I've had a lot of days of around 1400 calories without really trying. I got used to eating only about 100 calories, maybe 200, of starch with my meals years ago. I have a few ounces of protein and a lot of veggies, plus a nice sauce, maybe Indian. I just like it that way.

I think you need to try this out, but don't expect weight loss very soon. In fact, some people do go up a bit at first. But, from someone who had to keep trying to make a go of it for over a year, it takes awhile to get over the freedom and just eat. Now I've had nearly 12 weeks on plan and have lost about 12 lbs., about 6% of my weight. I'm still about 20 lbs. over the highest normal BMI for my height, just to give you perspective. I haven't exercised consistently, yet, either.

You may find that your satisfaction from your meals comes less from the amount of food than from the enjoyment. Have about half the volume in dense foods you really like, and chew them 3 or 4 times as long as you're used to. A medium biscuit with butter goes a long way chewed slowly and savored for every stage of its mouth pulverizing. The other half can be fresh vegetables and a piece of fruit. They can become joys in themselves.

Thanks everyone, I may give it a try. Wii Fit is just my fallback for when it's too nasty outside to do something else and my foot is too sore for DDR. Unfortunately I have plantar fasciitis in my right foot and that means I really can't do a lot of exercise that involves repeated impact to the feet. Obviously that precludes running but even walking can make it act up if I do it too many days in a row. That's too bad because walking is my favorite exercise. I have a hobby called letterboxing, which involves hiking. When my foot permits, I'll do about a 3 mile walk on weekend days. On weekdays I do more like a 2 mile walk. I like riding my bike, but for some reason in the past it never seemed like I lost any weight doing it. Too bad since that's the easiest exercise on my foot.

So, I don't do really strenuous exercise, but I think I still do a pretty respectable amount of it, especially compared with most people. I've succeeded in making it a pretty well-established habit. It's kind of depressing to think that when people look at me, because I'm overweight, they probably think I'm a couch potato, when actually I'm not that bad.

bunnyhugger wrote: I like riding my bike, but for some reason in the past it never seemed like I lost any weight doing it. Too bad since that's the easiest exercise on my foot.

I used to bike commute 4 miles to work and 4 miles back (about an hour total riding time with some decent-sized hills), and found I lost a few pounds without even trying to do anything else differently. It was the best form of exercise, in my opinion, because it was vigorous while still managing to be completely functional (i.e., didn't have to take any extra time out of my day to do it. I still had to get to work!) Do you ride outdoors or a stationary? I have a feeling stationary might be easier unless you purposefully make it more challenging. Also, it's important to pedal quickly and try to choose routes where you won't do too much coasting.

marygrace wrote:Do you ride outdoors or a stationary? I have a feeling stationary might be easier unless you purposefully make it more challenging. Also, it's important to pedal quickly and try to choose routes where you won't do too much coasting.

I ride outdoors. It's not especially hilly around here, but not completely flat either. I used to ride to work on my bike which was maybe 5-6 miles round trip (2.5-3 either way). Sometimes I did longer jaunts on the weekends. I did that for a year or so and it didn't seem to do a thing for my weight, and I was really very heavy at the time. I guess I could try again now that the weather's nice.