So confused about food now after reading posts

[gettheweightoff]

I'm reading all this conflicting information on these boards now and I'm getting confused as to what to eat.

From what I understand, as long as it's not sweet, it's not a second and it's not a snack and it fits on my plate I can eat it.

I know we can all choose what that plate consists of but many here post about Taubes and Pollan and don't eat carbs but then on the S days they do? Is that the case, or do you do no carbs/no sugar always?

Also, some say there is such a thing as sugar addiction, others say it is a myth and No-S corrects it through habit.

I am trying to be free from all these food phobias and "diet head" and every time I think I'm ok and do not feel guilty about what I eat, I read something and then I feel guilty for having 1/2 a white cheese bun.

So confused. Maybe I should stop reading so much and just stick to the basics of the program because it seemed simpler that way.

[DaveMc]

I'm reading all this conflicting information on these boards now and I'm getting confused as to what to eat.

From what I understand, as long as it's not sweet, it's not a second and it's not a snack and it fits on my plate I can eat it.

This second part is absolutely what you should be focused on, when you're getting started with NoS. I'd say you should avoid getting distracted by food-choice advice beyond that, whether it's here or elsewhere.

The thing is, there are a lot of people around for whom the basics have become automatic, so they have mental "bandwidth" left over to consider in more detail what kind of food they want to eat. Which is absolutely fine, but it can be distracting when you're just starting out.

Big picture: don't let anyone tell you what to eat. Including me. [No, but seriously, if the more detailed discussions are derailing you, you should do your best to ignore them! Later on, you may find you're comfortable enough with the structure of NoS to start thinking about the details of food without it getting you off-track.]

[Nicest of the Damned]

So confused. Maybe I should stop reading so much and just stick to the basics of the program because it seemed simpler that way.

Lots of people combine No S with other diets. The nature of No S is such that it generally works in combination with a whole lot of other diets. You couldn't combine a low-fat and a low-carb diet together, but you could combine No S with either one pretty easily. I combine No S with Alex Bogusky's Nine Inch "Diet" and some tips I've gleaned from Brian Wansink's Mindless Eating.

Some of my extra rules apply on S-days as well as N-days, some don't. I eat off nine inch plates on N days but not S days. That means it's another cue for me that "this is a special day". Other rules, like not eating standing up, I apply to S days as well, because I've found it useful to keep me from grazing on S days. If I really enjoyed grazing and felt deprived by the idea of never doing it again, though, I might do that only on N days.

You have had problems in the past with diets that limited your food choices. For that reason, I'd be extremely wary of No S mods that limit your food choices, if I were you. If limiting your food choices puts you in a mental state that you don't think is a good place for you, then don't do it.

Low-carb diets do that kind of thing to me. I have depression, which is pretty well controlled by Prozac. But if I go on a low-carb diet, I get depressed and irritable. I've read that there is some evidence that the brain uses carbs to make serotonin, and low serotonin levels are something that is affected by Prozac, so there may be a connection there. Or it could just be that I get angry about not being able to have my favorite foods. Either way, it takes me into a part of mood-space that I don't like being in.

[kccc]

I

From what I understand, as long as it's not sweet, it's not a second and it's not a snack and it fits on my plate I can eat it.
...

Maybe I should stop reading so much and just stick to the basics of the program because it seemed simpler that way.

You've already figured out exactly the right strategy. But I'll be happy to confirm it, just like DaveMc and Nicest. (And like Dave says... don't listen to anyone else - including me - if it derails you.)

One of the things I love about this site is that it's a place where people who hold different opinions can all gather and treat each others' opinions respectfully. We recognize that what is true for one person may not be true for another - in BA's phrase, we are all "experiments of one." Each of us figures out our own path over time, and most of us like to share "what worked for me" in hopes that it will work for someone else.

But it can be confusing to listen to all those different possibilities. To begin with, tune it ALL out and focus on the basics. In most cases, the basic No-S habits will take care of at least 80% of your food issues, and quite possibly all of them. Once those core habits are in place, you'll have more time/energy to spend on fine-tuning... if you even want to at that point.

If it's on a single plate at mealtime and not a sweet, you're good. Enjoy.

[BrightAngel]

Don't listen to anyone else - including me - if it derails you.

One of the things I love about this site
is that it's a place where people who hold different opinions
can all gather and treat each others' opinions respectfully.
We recognize that what is true for one person may not be true for another -
in BA's phrase, we are all "experiments of one."
Each of us figures out our own path over time,
and most of us like to share "what worked for me"
in hopes that it will work for someone else.

But it can be confusing to listen to all those different possibilities.
To begin with, tune it ALL out and focus on the basics.
If it's on a single plate at mealtime and not a sweet, you're good.
Once those core habits are in place,
you'll have more time/energy to spend on fine-tuning...

I agree with the above-quoted comment of KCCC.

Another thing that might be helpful to avoid confusion...
When you read a post about No S modifications,
look at the left column of the page under the person's name.
It tells the date they joined the forum.
Most of the posts that add information about modifications such as calorie counting, low-carb etc.,
come from members who have been working at doing No S for a long time.

If you are interested in a particular member's post, and wonder where they're coming from,
you can always go to the No S Check-In section which has individual "daily" Threads,
and look up their check-in threads to read some of their No S History.
This will tell you a lot more about them individually.

You ARE an "Experiment-of-One",
and I agree with KCCC that it is best to START by doing "vanilla no s"..
which means....start with the basic plan as is specifically stated by Reinhard.

[gettheweightoff]

Thanks everyone.

I'm just sticking to no-s vanilla.

[wosnes]

With the exception of allowing myself an S daily, I wouldn't call anything I do a modification of No-S. BTW, I didn't modify No-S (in terms of how I handle S-days) until I'd been following No-S for about two years). For health reasons, I avoid most processed foods.

As for Pollan, what he teaches is more of a way to think about food than a specific way of eating. It's definitely not a "diet."

[BrightAngel]

For health reasons, I avoid most processed foods.
As for Pollan, what he teaches is more of a way to think about food than a specific way of eating.
It's definitely not a "diet."

wosnes, Actually, that's also true of Taubes, who basically teaches another way to look at Obesity.
As a Michael Pollan fan you might be interested in this recent quote by Taubes:

Gary Taubes: Here I side with Michael Pollan.
If you’re eating “food†instead of food–like substances,
the fat it contains will be at the very least harmless and probably beneficial.

[wosnes]

Gary Taubes: Here I side with Michael Pollan.
If you’re eating “food†instead of food–like substances,
the fat it contains will be at the very least harmless and probably beneficial.

I'll have to say I've stopped worrying about fat. I try not to go crazy, but I certainly don't worry about it anymore. Butter tastes so good!

[osoniye]

I think what you're reading on these posts is others fine-tuning their NoS to what works for them. I'd advise doing vanilla NoS for a couple of months and see if you are losing weight, feeling well, etc. For many that's all that's needed. For others of us due to schedule or lack of weight loss we try to add different modifications to the original. But try the standard way before you get derailed by all our bright ideas!!

[Blithe Morning]

I know you are anxious to get the weight off but at some point you have to make peace with the idea that quick weight loss is no longer an option.

As others have said, those of us on the board who prattle on about food quality and carbs and so forth have been doing this a while. No S revolutionizes the way one relates to food. What you are reading is people thinking through their individual food paradigm. Often, the only way to make sense of this is to process it by communicating your thoughts with someone else.

And as others have said, I can't stress enough that you work vanilla no-s before modifying. I recently made some mods but I've been attempting vanilla for quite a while. The outcome of doing vanilla is that my default mode is to not eat a sweet or take a second every time there is opportunity. So strong is the habit, I prefer to cluster my s opportunities on the weekends as it doesn't "feel right" otherwise.

Please forgive me for being so forward but I have to wonder if there are external forces (meaning not from you) that are pressuring you to lose weight faster than is reasonable. It's hard to tell as internalizing this new way of looking at food takes a while and we all have had our lapses back to diet head. But it seems that you make a lot of progress in understanding the underlying principles of No S then boom! you are back to diet head land as if something undermined your recent progress.

I mean no criticism, we all need the time we need to really, truly internalize No S. So if you need to take two steps forward then one step back for a while, by all means do so. We are happy to support you. But if there are people who are - in some way - undermining your progress especially through criticism and tearing you down (are you eating that? you aren't losing weight "right") then at some point you will need to address that since that will hinder you from being truly able to enjoy the freedom of No S.

[reinhard]

I am trying to be free from all these food phobias and "diet head" and every time I think I'm ok and do not feel guilty about what I eat, I read something and then I feel guilty for having 1/2 a white cheese bun.

So confused. Maybe I should stop reading so much and just stick to the basics of the program because it seemed simpler that way

I love this board -- but if reading it is giving you "diet head" then by all means stop! Vanilla no-s is all I and many/(most?) people here practice. It's the foundation for what pretty much everyone here practices. So by all means, focus on that and if the discussion here is distracting, read a good novel instead.

Why does so much of the discussion here center around "sprinkles" instead of plain vanilla no-s if the latter is what's most important? Because it's a discussion board there's not all that much to discuss about vanilla, wonderful and fundamental as it is. Except, of course, for periodic reminders like this. Sorry you were feeling confused and thanks for letting us know -- I'm sure others who were being confused in mute silence appreciate it as well.

Hope you're feeling less confused now and best of luck,

Reinhard

[gettheweightoff]

No one is pressuring me at all...it's all me and my "diet head". I've only been doing this 2.5 weeks so it's going to take me some time to get rid of this thinking completely.

When I get nervous that this won't work I turn to these boards but because I've been reading too much I just got confused about how to eat because there was such conflicting info.

But after reading the replies I see vanilla no-s is the way to go and I have to keep telling myself it's going to go slow.... even if it's 1 lb a month it will still be 12lbs in a year without it being too difficult...

I just need to take a deep breath and relax with all of this. It has already helped me so much.

[BrightAngel]

Why does so much of the discussion here
center around "sprinkles" instead of plain vanilla no-s
if the latter is what's most important?

Because it's a discussion board
there's not all that much to discuss about vanilla,
wonderful and fundamental as it is.
Except, of course, for periodic reminders like this.

Well Said, Reinhard !!!