Everyday Systems

Well I was very surprised this weekend when my 14 year old daughter mentioned to me that she was going to "No S" as well. She is slim and a dancer so she does not need to lose any weight. However she has been getting into the habit of snacking quite a bit after school and in the evening. She had been discussing obesity in her health class and when we were talking about her classes round the dinner table I mentioned the study which showed that the increase in snacking in the last 40 years or so has contributed so much to the obesity epidemic. My husband and I both remarked how none of our grandparents were ever really fat -although some of them got a bit padded in their later years.

She said to me that she thought about it and realized that she was not really hungry - just a bit bored and stuck inside with the weather. I agreed and said that the main harm was getting into the habit of eating mindlessly - that habits are hard to break. She has a colossal metabolism now, but that will not always be the case. If one's habits remain good, with 3 meals a day and treats on weekends, one need never fall into the world of diets. She was impressed that I had lost 9 pounds since the beginning of the year - you look good mom! So I guess maybe one can set a good example!

I have a 2 year old daughter. It is very important to me that I don't pass on any negative habits or attitudes to her - I don't want her to go down the same road that I have. I want her to have a healthy and balanced attitude to food.

No-S is helping with this.

She likes to share, and will often offer me food when she has a (healthy) snack. I've started telling her, "No thanks, Mummy doesn't snack. I'll wait until lunch/dinner." I'm teaching her about delayed gratification without giving any harmful 'diet' messages. Now that my own habits are becoming healthy, I am more confident that I am modelling the right things to my daughter.

Yet another positive impact that No-S is having on my life.

The eating habits of people around you affect you. Children learn their eating habits mostly from their parents. But it's not just children who are affected by this. People who eat with other people adjust the amount and manner in which they eat to not be too far out of line with what the others are doing, either consciously or unconsciously. If you're eating less on No S, you're helping anyone who eats with you to eat less as well.

That is so true. I know a woman who was always quite slim and had moderate eating habits. She married in her late thirties into to a big happy family which simply loved to eat and eat and eat! The pounds simply piled on - the family loved to get together and when they did - out came the food.
They were also a "food is love" family, who took offense when you turned down a third helping or a second piece of cake.

Very hard to lose weight in that sort of environment!

I've always been relieved that I did not come from a "food is love" background.

librarylady wrote:That is so true. I know a woman who was always quite slim and had moderate eating habits. She married in her late thirties into to a big happy family which simply loved to eat and eat and eat! The pounds simply piled on - the family loved to get together and when they did - out came the food.
They were also a "food is love" family, who took offense when you turned down a third helping or a second piece of cake.

Very hard to lose weight in that sort of environment!

I've always been relieved that I did not come from a "food is love" background.

I've been thinking about the whole "food is love" issue lately... need to post on that at some point.

Short version: I come from a "food is love" background, and had to battle it FOR YEARS. Finally learned to accept the love while turning away the food. Now, it's reversed.. I find myself using food to nurture - making special food for my son's b'day, or finding ways to make my mom's strict diet palatable. So, have been exploring the limits from the other side. My conclusion: it's okay to offer food as a form of love as long as you can do so without expectation... that is, the person you give to does NOT have to eat it to prove they love you back! And I have to admit that sometimes, that's difficult to do when you've worked really hard on something and want your efforts appreciated.

Hm. Maybe that's all I really need to say. The rest is just personal example.

librarylady wrote:That is so true. I know a woman who was always quite slim and had moderate eating habits. She married in her late thirties into to a big happy family which simply loved to eat and eat and eat! The pounds simply piled on - the family loved to get together and when they did - out came the food.

I've gained weight since I started dating Nicest Husband. He's a pretty big eater, and (like me) was brought up to "not waste food" and "finish it up so it doesn't go to waste". I'm trying to break myself of the habit of eating more than I want to so food "doesn't go to waste". It's proving difficult.'

Those quotes in the last paragraph are part of it. I'm trying to remind myself that it is wasting food if you eat more than you wanted to eat.

I'm also working on "you don't have to eat a large amount of food to appreciate it, or show you appreciate it." It's possible to appreciate food without eating massive quantities of it (Europeans and people who eat in fancy restaurants do this all the time), and I'm trying to train myself to do that.