Everyday Systems

Hi everyone,

I know I'm only supposed to have two NWK S days per month, but...

See, it's my birthday on March 28, so there's one.
Then, on March 11, it's my friend's birthday party (haven't seen her in forever and probably won't for a while afterwards, and the party's motto is food, so... that's another evening, starting 6:30 pm).

Two S days/events, all good.

But just today I was invited to a Mardi Gras party that's tomorrow, 4:30 pm to 6 pm, and its main focus is food as well. There'll be all kinds of good seasonal treats, but... three S days/events per month?

Help!!

AVERAGE, darlin' AVERAGE.

Some months I take none.

Some months I might have four.

OKAY! I GUESS I CAN RELAX NOW!!

Sorry, but it really bothers me when I think I'm not sticking to No S to the letter, and may lead to binges, and nobody wants that, right?

I wouldn't worry about it. After all most months you probably only have 1 or 2 so just enjoy it and savor the memories during the months when you have none, lol.

If you are worried, you can also opt to make only the parties S time, instead of the whole day. For example, tomorrow you eat normal breakfast and lunch with no snacking, and then treat the party as an exempt S dinner. I've found this is a good strategy in general to deal with NWSdays.

I'm taking a different tack. First of all, I wouldn't call it an emergency. Esp. when your BMI is 19.8. You are in your normal range, which means you don't need to be in a hurry to lose weight. The discipline of moderate eating is more important.

Because discipline is the point, I think you need to choose. Life is going to offer many more chances to eat outside the rules than you have extra S days to "spend," and you are going to have to make choices then, too. Besides, even if the focus is food, it doesn't mean you can't fix a plate of great food while skipping desserts.

Breaking the rules does not make you binge.

Anyway, whatever you decide to do, just be at peace with your decision and get back into the routine.

Noel nailed it. I, too, have had months with 3 or more NWS days -- a fair number over the years. But big picture, it's closer to 2, and big picture is all that matters.

If it's stressing you out keeping track and you want a handle as to whether you're slipping into dangerous territory, just use the habitcal. It's got a built-in mechanism to adjust your "compliance score" downward for each NWS over 2 a month. If you don't like your score/medal standings after 3-6 months (go into "stats view" to see this), then it's time to consider further action. But from what you're describing, I think you'll be just fine.

Reinhard