Everyday Systems

Let me start by saying that even if I don't lose a pound I plan to continue to eat on the No S system for life. No S has made me realize that after spending half my life dieting (I am 29 and started that rollercoaster when I was 14), I had completely lost any concept of what 'normal' eating meant. I had no normal. I only had 'diet' and 'not diet' which meant eating in an unsustainably minimal or unappetizing way or compensating for this by overeating. Increasingly, I would be 'dieting' a month or two a year, and telling myself 'today I feast and tomorrow I diet' 10 months of the year. No wonder I got fat.

Thank you Reinhardt for giving me normal back. I can trust myself again. Ironically, when I look back at the way my parents fed me as a child, it is, essentially, No S. It feels natural, sustainable, and healthful. Balanced. Moderate. Easy. In 3 weeks, I feel like I have left 90% of my food hangups behind. I am loving the weekends and find the week days a breeze. I haven't had a single 'red' day since I started. I feel like an enormous albatross has been removed from my neck.

The only thing I am finding challenging is the pace. It's so slow! I hate being patient! I have to keep reminding myself that even IF I don't lose any weight, at least at least I have all of the above benefits. However, I have lost 3 pounds since I started. Usually, when I diet, I can drop 15-20 lbs in a month. Not sustainably, but I am finding that I am doubting that I will lose weight. I need to - I am about 45 lbs overweight and this is not healthy on my frame. How have others dealt with this?

I should add that I have also been totally inspired by another one of genius Reinhardt's ideas, Urban Ranger...I have, for the past 2.5 weeks, added a walk to work and back each day - 6 days a week. About an hour and 15 minutes of walking this adds up to daily. This should help, right? Also the first time I have been able to exercise every weekday for two weeks...well...ever. Doesn't feel like work!

All said, I think its going to take me about 2 years at this pace to lose my weight. Does this sound about right? I can hold out but I would love to hear about people with comparable amounts of weight to mine to lose who have dealt with the patience issue. I am resisting temptation to mess with No S - I don't want to add any food rules or limitations because I think this is why it's working for me...but I worry that I won't lose.

PS - my most recent quick weight loss success was last November 2009-December 2009 on South Beach - I lost 23 pounds - and guess what - by April 1 I had put it ALL back on. I am so glad I never need to do that again, as its extremely depressing. I found it depressing to be on that diet as I knew I could never eat that way forever.

Thanks for reading my long post. I have enjoyed reading everyone else's as well.

It's great to see someone so committed despite the long term nature of No-S. It really is more about the head than the body. It's nice to hear from someone who has been on the diet rollercoaster, and that No-S has been a way back to stable ground.

Welcome, Baron. Urban Rangeing is really good exercize without killing yourself. If you UR every day there's no reason you shouldn't lose weight. Check out the Shovelglove threads. Really great for upper body toning and strength.

Happy Shrinking!

Baron wrote:I found it depressing to be on that diet as I knew I could never eat that way forever.

I think the "secret" to losing weight and maintaining that weight loss is finding something you can do for life. Most people can lose weight on any program, but sticking to it is the problem.

I have also had a very similar experience. I've done the South Beach thing. I lost quite alot of weight in a small amount of time. However, I was so depressed on that diet, and I got more and more depressed as time went on. It was actually like a raincloud had decended over me. I don't know if it was a chemical thing, or the idea of being on that diet forever! Of course I couldn't stay on it and gained all the weight back and more. At the beginning of this year I considered trying SB again because it worked before but the idea made me want to cry! Then I found No S and I am beyond glad that I am doing this instead!

I also have a considerable lack of patience. Doesn't Rheinhart say somewhere that most people have just as much trouble with patience as willpower? I found this quote recently and I think it really helps me when I'm thinking about how weight loss is on No S:

“Patience is waiting. Not passively waiting. That is laziness. But to keep going when the going is hard and slow - that is patience.â€
Unknown source

Keep focusing on the benefits you've already listed and staying on habit and the weight loss will come, it just takes patience!

I agree totally with everything in this post. No S takes all the mind games/depravation and other diet crap out of the equation. BUT, despite how easy it is, it is also VERY HARD to wait. I am 40 and have been dieting since I was 12 and I am so tired of the cycle. I have tried every diet twice and have never managed to keep it off forever.

There are so many great things about this lifestyle. For me, one of the greatest is this web site. Since I am not snacking, I spend a lot of time on here, being encouraged by others. So, I'm with you. I am going to stay on No S, be patient and enjoy life.

Baron - I have a couple of observations:

Like you, keeping patience is tough. I've also been yo-yo'ing for oh at least 15 years. My goal here is to change my habits permanently. I would like to lose a few pounds in the meantime, and I know once my good habits are solid it will happen. I've lost 3lbs in 3 months, not 10lbs in two weeks like I'm used to with Atkins but I'm also in the process of changing my habits to what they were when I was a kid - 3 meals a day no snacks. I didn't become a calorie-counting, carb-counting perma-snacker until I was an adult and out on my own.

As far as walking goes I love it !! It's the one thing that I've been doing since I was a little kid trying to keep up with my Grandmother. We walked everywhere (only had 1 car) if it was really far we'd take the bus but that was few and far between. Now I consider myself to be a "Sub-Urban Ranger". I live in the suburbs, not close enough to walk to work or stores, but I do walk 3-8 miles a day depending on weather and time. I love it, if by some chance I don't walk I feel bad the rest of the day, like I missed out on something. I walk 3 miles at lunch (45mins) each day and then anywher from 2-5 miles when I get home. Just hang in there !!

An echo from me about all that's been said in this post. Also worth mentioning may be about what would happen in 2 years time if you didn't eat like this? I know from my own track record that I'd just get bigger and bigger and more unhappy about my lack of control. That thought alone makes up for the long time I feel its going to take to shift my lbs.

I am a relatively newcomer to No-S, I started in January 2010. I found that initially it felt very slow but as the lbs kept dropping off and the cumulative number started growing, my perception of slowness changed because the change became significant. Sticking with it is the key. What I kept telling myself is that as long as the loss was in either stable of lower, I was doing fine because it was in one direction only! I have lost 17 lbs since I started... that's about 4 lbs a month. I did hit a plateau and then after a while, it started going down again. I have found that tweaking what I eat is key for me if I am not losing weight. Just small shavings off the top add up on a weekly basis. One book that really helped within the framework of No-S is Mindless Eating. Small changes throughout the day add up. I think you will find that your walking will make a huge difference over time.

If anyone wants to read an interesting story about patience, and waiting, check out Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. It's a play, you might be able to find a screen version somewhere as well.

Thanks for all of your comments. I will keep it going because its so much better than any other approach to eating I have had, well, ever. I agree with Swarah - it's almost certain I would be fatter in 2 years if I hadn't found this approach.

And its great to hear that perseverence does pay off.

Aleria wrote:If anyone wants to read an interesting story about patience, and waiting, check out Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot. It's a play, you might be able to find a screen version somewhere as well.

The current production with IanMcKellen is touring at the moment. I saw it last month and it's brilliant.

For me, I am impatient not for weight loss, but to rid myself of food obsession. One week in, and the day where I don't obsess can't come fast enough. It does help to think of where you'd be 2 years from now if you hadn't found No S. It's kind of like a soul mate relationship.