Everyday Systems

I do believe I've become the Lindsay Lohan of No S. I've stopped and started this diet more times than she's been in and out of the courtroom or headed off to rehab!

I've sworn dieting off completely, saying it's just not gonna work for me, only to find myself browsing through No S posts. Just can't keep away. I think it's because this diet worked for me back in November.....lost 11 lbs. over two months and felt GREAT the whole time......too bad I gained it all back.

I'm gonna try again. This time I'll just stick to it.....won't stop even if I have 7 reds in a row. Will just keep goin.......I did it before, darn it, I can do it again, right?

Anyone else out there that has tried to stick to it like a kagillion times only to fall off the wagon every time or is it just me????

While I do hope that I will lose weight, getting thin is not my primary reason for doing No-S and exercising.

I do it because I can feel confident when doing so that my eating habits are not out of control. Three meals a day and treats on special days? Way to go out on that limb, right?

I want at least to feel confident I have sane eating habits and sane exercising habits.

That is so true. I was happy about my weight loss when it happened, but I think I was more happy about the fact that I felt so much more in control of my food intake.

Good point!

The joy of No-S for me is the focus on behavior that I control rather than on weightloss, which is only partly dependent on what I eat (exercise, sleep, stress, etc. also seem to play important roles). By being in control of my eating more often than not, I have lost weight (45 lbs in a year). By celebrating my behavior more than my weightloss I have not been overly discouraged by the months I have not lost weight. By focusing on how lucky I am that I CAN eat three meals a day I have not felt deprived.

Lindsay Lohan seems to act like spoiled child. I enjoy being a grown-up. I can delay gratification so I enjoy it even more when I get it. I can choose actions that actually meet my needs rather than just trying to solve every problem with the same strategy. (i.e., if I need comfort, food probably isn't the best choice. If I'm tired, a nap is a better choice than a snack. If I'm bored, calling a friend is a great choice.)

Would it help you to think about what are you needing that causes you to "fall off" No S? If you're hungry, have a glass of milk. If you're bored/tired/anxious/lonely/discouraged/etc. does a snack, sweet, or seconds really help?

Good luck! Good luck! Good luck!

Oh my..maybe it is a spring thing but it seems there are several of us returning! We can all be proud we took that first step back!

I'm back, too. And glad to be here!

You can't be the only one who has started over many times. You are one of the many to actually come back and report it. Remember, the ones who leave hardly ever come back to say they're gone or they've quit.

Just keep trying. Get curious about what you can adjust. When do you usually cave? Could you go 15 more minutes one day? 20 minutes more the next? Is it possible you should actually plan a snack then and later see if you can wean yourself away from that? When you do it out of curiosity and not judgement, it can become more interesting.

Keep in mind that peace you felt. It is a worthy goal, even if there is a bit of discomfort getting to it.

Audiomama: Thanks for your advice! Maybe if I shift my focus, I'll have better luck this time around.

Yes, sweets actually do help when I'm feeling any of those emotions you listed (many years of feeding feelings with food, you see). However, like many others, those good feelings are later replaced with guilt, so obviously that's not a good fix! Will try to put a little more energy into finding some alternatives.

Thanks again!

oolala: Yeah, I've returned so many times, I can almost hear the eyerolling when people read that I'm starting....again... . And I almost didn't return because of that. But, there's just something about this place.....everyone's so supportive and helpful, that if I'm gonna do this, I feel like I need to include posting on the bulletin. It's just comforting, ya know?

Curiosity.....that's a good spin on it. I'll give that a try.

Thanks!!

There's no eye-rolling. We're all in this together, right?

Who Me? wrote:There's no eye-rolling. We're all in this together, right?

Nice to hear!

I don't eye-roll. That's considerably more hypocritical than I care to be.

Are you kidding? We're just happy for you that you're back.

I'm not beyond eye-rolling in private. But I'd be likely to use it for the extreme dieters. People who come back to No S are just sane!

Eye-rolling? Feh. If this was easy for any us, I don't think we'd need No S in the first place!

Aww...this is what I'm talking about. You guys are all so nice and encouraging. Just love this place. Always feel better after a visit.

Thanks!

Welcome back, everyone! I'm sure there's a catchy saying along the lines of "You're going to fail every time except the time when it works".

*Lots* of people around here have taken multiple runs at this. It's a hard thing, changing the way you eat, and it's the *norm* to find it difficult! It's even the norm to find that it takes multiple attempts! (Check out the main page, or the book: I believe Reinhard cites some study to the effect that the average number of attempts before achieving long-term changes in eating habits is somewhere around a dozen. A dozen!)

Ok then....this new attempt for me has to be somewhere in the double digits. Must mean I'm bound to succeed this time. Whew!

Trust me, I've failed waaaay more times than I've succeeded. I've never done a perfect week, even. But the fact that I get up every morning and keep trying is the reason I am still on the road to where I want to be (and am almost there!).

Sinnie wrote:Trust me, I've failed waaaay more times than I've succeeded. I've never done a perfect week, even. But the fact that I get up every morning and keep trying is the reason I am still on the road to where I want to be (and am almost there!).

That's encouraging!

I was away too but only because I gave up recreational internet browsing for Lent.

I did notice that my NoS compliance really suffered w/o the board support. I've never done a check in thread but I may start as I'm discovering that yes, even I respond to the positive reinforcement that comes from tracking. I'm currently participating in the Presidential Active Lifestyle Award challenge and there have been days when I worked out because I wanted my points, dangit.

Also, I technically don't consider myself leaving No-S. I just think of it as having a LOT of red days in a row.

Blithe Morning wrote:I gave up recreational internet browsing for Lent.

Woah, that's a big thing to give up. Harder than the usual ones, I'd have thought.

gk -
You know I've been on and off again for almost two years. But, overall, my binges have decreased in number and at least I know what the end goal is. I am definitely a happier person when I follow eating this way. I figure I spent 35+ years eating one way and so it's going to take some time to get everything to where I want!

You are doing great!! And I think many of us feel exactly the same way you do....I know I do.

ljk

ljk2009 wrote:I figure I spent 35+ years eating one way and so it's going to take some time to get everything to where I want!

Good point to remember! It's like expecting to fit into your skinny jeans the day after you give birth. Not gonna happen!!

Me! Me! Me!

I do fantastically for a few months and then jump off of the wagon, get fed up with myself and back to No S.

But you know what while they weight may not have reduced much, my eating habits are WAY, WAY more controlled than they used to be.

I still have red days, I still binge on stupid things, but all in all I am on a fairly good 3 meals a day M-F and S days free to do whatever and most times I stick to 3 meals with a few snacks.

The two biggest problems I have identified are:

- trying to fix something which is not broken (ie. improve on No S and tighten up the rules even more)

- snacking before and after dinner

If I just follow No S without over thinking it, I do fine. As soon as I start thinking about it the wheels fall off.

If you fall off, get back up and carry on immediately and don't every be ashamed to come back here (again and again and again!)

MerryKat wrote:If you fall off, get back up and carry on immediately and don't every be ashamed to come back here (again and again and again!)

So glad everyone feels that way here! Such a nice encouraging place this is. Thank you!

Too solid flesh wrote:Woah, that's a big thing to give up. Harder than the usual ones, I'd have thought.

I should clarify that I replaced some of my browsing with devotional reading. And I was also scrambling to finish my thesis, so I had a huge project with defined outcomes to keep me occupied. It could have been a lot harder than it actually was were I to have to get offline completely (not going to happen because of work).