Everyday Systems

Hi all -

Thank you all so much for your input within the last week regarding my diet and exercise habits. As I mentioned last week, I tend to do best when I stick to 2 meals + dessert each day. Lately, however, I have been binging (about once per week), and then going back to my plan to get the weight off, then binging a week later, then getting the weight off. You see where this is going...

I should remind you that I am already at a healthy weight (5'7.5 and ~140lbs), but the mental anguish of going back and forth between binging and dieting is getting to me. I've tried to return to No-S many times, but since I KNOW I can eat a moderate amount of dessert and still maintain, or even lose weight, I end up telling myself that it's okay to eat a little dessert, and having a red day.

I KNOW that telling myself that I can't have sweets Mon-Fri will only lead to overindulgence, as it has many times in the past. I want this year to be different, so I am going to adopt a modified version of No-S. Three healthy, satisfying meals per day, plus one sweet after dinner. The sweet must be pre-determined earlier in the day, and I will stick to it. I also won't beat myself up if sweets creep into my meals a bit (say, pancakes for breakfast, but that's a rarity). Basically, I need to give myself these freedoms, because without them, resentment builds, and expresses itself through overeating, specifically sweet foods. If I end up drifting back into 2 meals + dessert, then so be it, but for right now I just want to stop the viscious cycle.

As far as exercise, I do not want to push too hard in that regard either, since exercising alot in one week pretty much guarantees that I won't do it at all the week after. I also have a fairly active job, and some days, the thought of exercising after eight hours of hustling around at work (starting at 6:00 am, no less) makes me want to pass out. So, I plan on incorporating exercise whenever I have the time/energy/desire, and hopefully that will turn into a genuine enjoyment of exercise, not just another thing to check off my to-do list.

Also, I have tried to quit the scale many times, because I tend to let the numbers dictate my mood, but I just feel better when I know what the number is at the beginning of each day, whether it's good or bad. For some reason, not knowing it and the accompanying anxiety makes it more likely that I'll get off track. So yes, I have accepted that I am someone that weighs every day, and that's okay. It works for me.

I used to be someone that was very Type A, very routine-oriented, and very all-or-nothing, which I think jives well with No-S. You either follow the plan, or you don't. However, at this point in my life, I'm finding that I need a little more leeway, a little more forgiveness, and a little bit of chocolate!. So, starting tomorrow, I will be following a modified version of No-S to include three meals + one dessert. I would also like to stick to this plan on weekends as well, but I'm not there yet. Let's get the habit built first, shall we?

Thanks for listening, and Happy New Year!

Jocelyn

For whatever it's worth, my father ate three meals a day, and had a small dessert every night, and he was slim all his life.

Who Me? wrote:For whatever it's worth, my father ate three meals a day, and had a small dessert every night, and he was slim all his life.

I am so glad you posted this. REALLY inspiring for 2012

3-0-7 girl wrote:

Who Me? wrote:For whatever it's worth, my father ate three meals a day, and had a small dessert every night, and he was slim all his life.

I am so glad you posted this. REALLY inspiring for 2012

I've written this before, but my ex-husband eats much the same way. He generally eats 2 meals daily (not a breakfast eater) and has some kind of snack in the evening. It could be popcorn, ice cream or some simple homemade dessert. While he's gained some weight in the last few years, I don't think he's overweight. I've never known him to weigh as much as he should, he's always been under the ideal weight for his height.

His father had the same habits and was at a normal weight when he died a couple of years ago.

xJocelynx87 -- I think any way of eating that is simple, moderate and uses common sense is a good idea. I don't think there's any one formula that is right.

You've got to find what you can LIVE with. If this makes you fret less, perfect! I may have said before, I used to weigh every day and average the numbers once a week, like scientists do. The physicsdiet site will do that for you on a daily basis.