when you fail...

No Snacks, no sweets, no seconds. Except on Days that start with S. Too simple for you? Simple is why it works. Look here for questions, introductions, support, success stories.

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MJ7910
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when you fail...

Post by MJ7910 » Tue Feb 12, 2013 8:52 pm

especially when you fail repeatedly... what do you do to keep yourself going back to NoS? Just wondering... because i expect this will come up for me. Last time I got so frustrated I quit after only 1.5 months. But I was curious for those of you who have done this for a long time, what is the most motivational or encouraging things you have said or done for yourselves that kept you going with NoS?
Current BMI: 22.9. Height: 5'4.5"
Highest BMI: 25.5 in August 2011.
Lowest adult BMI: 20.8 in February 2012.

wosnes
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Post by wosnes » Tue Feb 12, 2013 9:32 pm

Three things:

1. I don't expect to follow this perfectly. I expect that there will be good days, bad days and sometimes downright awful days. Just like everything else in life.

2. When there is a failure, mark it and move on (assuming you use habitcal (I don't). I just resume the habits the next time I'm supposed to eat. Repeatedly.

3. Think progress, not perfection.

Hopefully as time goes by there will be fewer and fewer mistakes -- but if not, it doesn't mean that you should chuck it.

One of the long timers here, I think it might have been vmsurbat, wrote recently that she's almost never had a perfect week or at least not a perfect 21 days. And she's lost weight.

I don't even begin to understand why we think that failures or mistakes aren't normal and that we should be perfect. Most of us aren't perfect in anything else we do. Why should the way we eat demand perfection? Why should we feel like failures if we don't follow the rules perfectly?

I'm not a fan of perfectionism. I think most folks waste too much time trying to be perfect. Good enough is good enough. The goal should be progress, not perfection.
"That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do. Not that the nature of the thing itself has changed but our power to do it is increased." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."

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Over43
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Post by Over43 » Wed Feb 13, 2013 2:22 am

I try to remember it is about the habit, not the diet. (That is almost Zen. :lol:)

I can't stand eating limited types of food.

I have had success with No S since 2010.

There are no gimmicky super foods, or potions you have to buy, I just open the cabinet and cook.

I am a bit vain, that keeps me coming back.
Bacon is the gateway meat. - Anthony Bourdain
You pale in comparison to Fox Mulder. - The Smoking Man

I made myself be hungry, then I would get hungrier. - Frank Zane Mr. Olympia '77, '78, '79

vmsurbat
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Post by vmsurbat » Wed Feb 13, 2013 8:46 am

wosnes wrote: One of the long timers here, I think it might have been vmsurbat, wrote recently that she's almost never had a perfect week or at least not a perfect 21 days. And she's lost weight.

I'm not a fan of perfectionism. I think most folks waste too much time trying to be perfect. Good enough is good enough. The goal should be progress, not perfection.
Yes, it was me. Here is a repeat of that post because it addresses tangentially "motivation."
I don't track on habitcal or check-in, but I sincerely doubt that I've perfectly followed NoS for 21 days straight in all the 4+ years I've been NoSing. And I consider myself a very successful NoSer! It truly has become a way of life for me.

There is no magic about 21 straight days of perfect NoS. A slip-up is not a fail. A major binge is not a fail. NoS is a way of life. No "starting/restarting" thinking about tomorrow or even today. Do we start and restart life? No, we just continue on from where we are, aiming to make the best choices at the present time.

The best antidote to diet-head is to arm yourself with new thoughts. Look through the glossary sticky and get a few mottoes/mental pictures that resonate with you. My personal favorites include: One=done, more=sore (when I'm tempted to overeat/have seconds/snack), mark it and move on, 3 meals a day=3 blessings many don't enjoy; eat when it is time to eat (from the book), slow down and savor.

I know some people find it very helpful to actually write out their battle weapons against diethead and review them daily or post them on the frig or where ever they find it helpful to have at the ready.
I didn't need to write down such mottoes but it is a tried and proven technique for many.
But I was curious for those of you who have done this for a long time, what is the most motivational or encouraging things you have said or done for yourselves that kept you going with NoS?
Personally, the thing that *really* motivated me in the early days was using shame in a positive way (a basic idea gleaned from the book). What do I mean? Well, eating just because food is there is really a base, Pavlovian response--I didn't want that to describe me. Overeating repeatedly is an accurate description of gluttony--I didn't want that to describe me. I wanted to rise above it, to be my better self.

Important Note: this didn't mean that I chastised myself when I failed (and as noted above, I did "fail", every week) but that I kept a vision of where I wanted to go, and made the effort to get back on the path each and every day, each and every meal. So, in my mind, I've never stopped "NoSing" even though I haven't done it perfectly.
Vicki in MNE
7! Yrs. with Vanilla NoS, down 55+lb, happily maintaining and still loving it!

Jonas Jonasson
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Post by Jonas Jonasson » Wed Feb 13, 2013 6:06 pm

made the effort to get back on the path each and every day, each and every meal
This sounds like the key to me.
Disclaimer (still applicable):
If a person is fairly new to English their English words and expressions are influenced by their mother tongue, so things that might sound impolite to you are not always meant in that way.

navi
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Post by navi » Thu Feb 14, 2013 2:10 am

I am a bit of a perfectionist - the red marks on the calendar set me up for ditching the whole thing. I have adopted this mod, which as worked well: I can change a red to a green if I have 5 consecutive greens on the calendar (OK if the greens "bookend" the weekend - but do not count yellows towards this). Anyhow, this allows me to "erase" reds, which appeals to my perfectionist nature. I am strict - the greens have to be 5 in a row for a red erasure. So far so good. YMMV.

MJ7910
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Post by MJ7910 » Thu Feb 14, 2013 2:32 am

navi wrote:I am a bit of a perfectionist - the red marks on the calendar set me up for ditching the whole thing. I have adopted this mod, which as worked well: I can change a red to a green if I have 5 consecutive greens on the calendar (OK if the greens "bookend" the weekend - but do not count yellows towards this). Anyhow, this allows me to "erase" reds, which appeals to my perfectionist nature. I am strict - the greens have to be 5 in a row for a red erasure. So far so good. YMMV.
navi - what i am going to start doing is if i have an unsuccessful day, i rate it in terms of how unsuccessful it was. you can see this on my daily check in thread but basically 10 is ultimate success and 1 means overeating to the point of sickness... 5 is a medium scale (a snack i didn't plan on or something like that).. you can even make your own if there are typical things you do. i dont' use habit cal because i hate reds and failure... i just like degrees of success. i know it's bad if i'm getting 1-5 a lot! dont' need to label it a "failure" or "red" to make me feel worse!
Current BMI: 22.9. Height: 5'4.5"
Highest BMI: 25.5 in August 2011.
Lowest adult BMI: 20.8 in February 2012.

leafy_greens
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Post by leafy_greens » Thu Feb 14, 2013 2:39 pm

A lot of deep thoughts here.. I believe what Reinhard says about being strict in order to build the habit.. I do have trouble overcoming "perfection" and throwing in the towel after making a mistake. It's easier when you are strict on yourself to observe whether or not this treat is worth risking your habit. What makes this day or this treat special enough? If it's not special enough then you have time to think about it, and maybe by then the urge is gone.

I have a harder time "marking it and moving on" than being strict. For example, there are treats in my office constantly. Especially for valentine's day. Someone brought in fudge. Then another person brought in a tin of cookies. I said I would take some, but I really wrapped it in a tissue and am saving for the weekend. That way, if I really want the treat, I can still have it in a couple of days. Or, the treat may be unappealing by then or stale. If so, I'll be glad I didn't eat it during the week.

MJ7910
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Post by MJ7910 » Fri Feb 15, 2013 2:24 am

for me the idea of failure is worse. i give up when it happens. even if i know i wasn't successful it's easier for me to understand that it wasn't a 10 level day and work towards improvement. a "failure" seems like black or white thinking and then i end up way overdoing it. i think everyone is different in their degrees of taking the "failure" hard. some people can truly just mark it and move on, others have a harder time with that.
Current BMI: 22.9. Height: 5'4.5"
Highest BMI: 25.5 in August 2011.
Lowest adult BMI: 20.8 in February 2012.

oolala53
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Post by oolala53 » Fri Feb 15, 2013 4:40 am

Marking it and moving on is a learned habit, too. WTH is the default for most humans. It must be overcome by most. It is not usually a matter of people already being there. And that habit is probably as useful as moderate eating.

Did you make your list of reasons you want to eat moderately forever? I read mine several times a day for weeks and every day for a long time. I got shaky at times and went back to the list.

Plus, I am very sure I don't want to go back to binging and even though I now feel pretty good with food, I also know it's likely it wouldn't take much for certain refined sugar items to take me down that path again, or for that habit to nosh to take hold. It's practically a mathematical inevitability. It's in the nature of food and eating, I think, esp. for those who have been under their spell.

At times when it's true, I give purposeful attention to how good it feels to get hungry and to not be stuffed often. I don't let myself dwell on the pleasure I would get from eating failures. And I remind myself that in this food-rich culture, I really do want a reasonable way to limit my intake of food. I know being random involves too much dickering. No S is such a pleasurable way of negotiating it.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

MJ7910
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Post by MJ7910 » Fri Feb 15, 2013 2:16 pm

would love to read your list oolala53.. i have my reasons too. but i will make an effort to write them down and reread them! the main one is i hate feeling overfull and all the stomach problems that go with it. i love feeling satisfied and not a lot of trouble or rumblings. i also love having a flatter stomach, no bloat, and just dont' feel lethargic. thsoe are the main ones... and of course the feeling of shame.

i think i need to ease myself into this idea of "failure" because it's so hard for me. I have struggled with WTH for a long time. i think if i scale my nonsuccess it will be easier for me to cope with.
Current BMI: 22.9. Height: 5'4.5"
Highest BMI: 25.5 in August 2011.
Lowest adult BMI: 20.8 in February 2012.

oolala53
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Post by oolala53 » Fri Feb 15, 2013 3:51 pm

I know Reinhard is rather a fan of shame, but I don't think he ever felt the deep sense of self-denigration that many women feel from eating. I'd say getting over the sense of shame and not mixing it up with the very real unpleasant effects of overeating was central for me. Objectivity is empowering!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

vmsurbat
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Post by vmsurbat » Fri Feb 15, 2013 4:32 pm

oolala53 wrote:I know Reinhard is rather a fan of shame, but I don't think he ever felt the deep sense of self-denigration that many women feel from eating. I'd say getting over the sense of shame and not mixing it up with the very real unpleasant effects of overeating was central for me. Objectivity is empowering!
Shame, for the sake of shame, is no help. Again, it is all in the mindset--different words can hold different connotations for each of us.

To me, because I do not (and did not) believe that I was in the grips of some Pavlovian "I have to eat because of xxxx reason", it was helpful to me to realize that I didn't need to act that way because it wasn't/isn't what is really true about me--I am bigger, better, than that Pavlovian reaction. These thoughts inspire(d) me to make better choices. But I can understand that for others, that such thinking may lead them down a different path.

Following NoS habits gives us the room to figure out and improve our own mindset, which is great, because it is the one we live with.
Vicki in MNE
7! Yrs. with Vanilla NoS, down 55+lb, happily maintaining and still loving it!

simmstone
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Post by simmstone » Fri May 10, 2013 11:52 am

It is important to remember that the goal of No S is not perfection, it is 'less'...

Reinhard's plan is simply a really a humane way to reduce, overall, the amount eaten over a long period of time - so make it your goal to learn, over time, how to fit failure within the concept of 'less': maybe you learn, over time, to fail more reasonably, without binge eating; or maybe you learn how to eat a 'lighter' meal (calorically) for the next meal or two after a failure; or maybe you learn, over time, how to simply mentally move forward without punishing yourself with more failure... the process differs for each of us, but learning/planning how to respond to/integrate failure into your No S plan is a key component, in my opinion, of sticking with it.

You are, ultimately, learning a skill that is completely different from standard deting - eating a little bit less, over a long period of time. Think of it like golf :-) Obviously, most folks starting out with No S/golf (and many of us who have been following it/playing for a while) haven't 'mastered' it at all, or, at best, 'mastery' has been elusive (here are certain times, gone at others). But, much like golf (or any sport) you dont play it on the condition that you expect to be perfect... you play it because you seek enjoyment from it, and feel there is merit in it.

So expect there to be setbacks. Embrace setbacks as a necessary component in learning this (or any) skill, and try to enjoy the process of learning it.

Good luck!
"No S is such a good way to combat the randomness, which is often the slide into more and more." - oolala53

noni
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Post by noni » Fri May 10, 2013 1:25 pm

Like oolala, I've made a list of all the health/sanity/vanity reasons of sticking to No S. And another list of all the negatives of reverting back to out-of control eating or another loser diet. I particularly studied it in the beginning when I was tempted to eat out of control on Normal days.

finallyfull
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Post by finallyfull » Fri May 10, 2013 4:36 pm

I look back over the last several years and realize that I "quit" No S whenever I didn't see "results" after a couple or few months. Fortunately, I realize that all of those "failures" were just learning. I only wish I would have gotten back up on the horse right away each time, instead of wandering off back into stupid-land and deciding I can just "cut back." The thing that keeps me going now (5 months, down just 5 pounds, but that's good for me) is that I have stopped having the "goal" be losing weight, and making the "goal" be to find a way to eat healthily, to lose any semblance of diet-head, and to enjoy three nice meals a day until I die, except for S days when I will enjoy guilt-free whatever I want.

If I ever imagine going "off" of that wonderful plan again, for me, it will be because I am fooling myself again into thinking a diet is a good idea, or that I will naturally lose, or that I just plain don't care. The truth is though, even if I didn't care about weight (and I'm trying not to), I still absolutely HATE the fact, when not on No S, I slowly gain weight while always trying to cut back. So I feel both deprived and annoyed. WITH no s, I feel less deprived (three nice meals) and NOT annoyed, because the "creep creep creep" of the looming muffin top is shut-off. That in and of itself is truly worth it for me.

Total rip off, my birthday and mother's day are both this weekend: three possible S days rolled into one!

wosnes
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Post by wosnes » Fri May 10, 2013 9:05 pm

It has never once occurred to me to quit or go off No-S, no matter how unsuccessful I might be at keeping the habits at any given time. I think it's a lot like any of the other things I do or roles I have in life. I rarely do any of them perfectly, but it doesn't keep me from saying I do or am those things.
"That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do. Not that the nature of the thing itself has changed but our power to do it is increased." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."

emmay
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Post by emmay » Sat May 11, 2013 5:41 am

"looming muffin top" :lol:
Finallyfull, I laughed at that image! That's what I get too, or used to get, pre-No S.

r.jean
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Post by r.jean » Sat May 11, 2013 11:38 am

I am in year 3 of no S. Like vmsurbat I have never restarted. I also have had many failures, but there was no need to "restart" because I never felt the need for perfection with this plan as I did with every other "diet" I tried. I enjoyed reading the experiences of others in this topic so here are some of my reasons No S works for me.

My initial motivational mantra was maintenance is progress, and I have maintained most of the weight I have lost. ( I have had some minor fluctuations in weight.)

I changed my mantra to the journey is the reward once I realized the habit is more important than the weight. No S promotes a sane relationship with food. It allows me to enjoy food without guilt.

I stick with Vanilla No S which is simple and straightforward. I have sometimes chosen to track my reds on habit cal or on posts, but mostly I take it one day at a time. The more complicated it is the more opportunity for failure.

I have always hated tracking. When I started No S I used the habit cal which is about all of the tracking I can handle. Currently the only thing I track is exercise.

Exercise has been a huge key to my success at No S. While it appears that some people are successful at No S without the exercise, I am not. It feels so good to be fit.

Participating in this forum is helpful. I was a daily visitor for a long time but now I visit less often.

I am still overweight but not obese. Maybe someday that will change but for now I am content with where I am at....psychologically and physically.
The journey is the reward.
Maintenance is progress.

osoniye
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Post by osoniye » Sun May 12, 2013 1:57 pm

I keep coming back to NoS because it seems like the most sane approach to eating for the long-term.
When I "go off" it's usually because of travel for work, or vacation, and I just get out of the good habits and then it takes me a while, and some weight gain, before I come back. But then no matter what appeals to me at any given time as I try to eat better, I can always combine it with NoS, so that there is kind of a safety net.
Like, I might decide to be mostly vegan for a while, or I might be thinking I need to be drinking more milk for the sake of my bones, or I might have limited access to a variety of foods (traveling in a developing country, rural). Having the one plate rule during the week days keeps me centered on that at the most I'll be eating one plate of those foods, whatever they are, and if I don't eat whatever my 'ideal' is at that time content-wise, at least the amount is stable. I like coming back to a structure that is adequate and sensible. I always hope that I'll get to where the habit sticks all the time, even when I'm on vacation or traveling for work, but until then, I am pretty content to keep coming back.
-Sonya
No Sweets, No Snacks and No Seconds, Except (Sometimes) on days that start with "S".

osoniye
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Post by osoniye » Sun May 12, 2013 1:57 pm

(Oops, sorry. Double post.)
Last edited by osoniye on Thu May 23, 2013 3:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
-Sonya
No Sweets, No Snacks and No Seconds, Except (Sometimes) on days that start with "S".

leafy_greens
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Re: when you fail...

Post by leafy_greens » Mon May 13, 2013 1:10 pm

MJ7910 wrote:especially when you fail repeatedly... what do you do to keep yourself going back to NoS? Just wondering... because i expect this will come up for me. Last time I got so frustrated I quit after only 1.5 months. But I was curious for those of you who have done this for a long time, what is the most motivational or encouraging things you have said or done for yourselves that kept you going with NoS?
The first time I was on No S I only made it 4 weeks. What brought me back is that there is no better diet than No S. This time I have only been on for 13 weeks but at least it's longer than 4. When I have felt like quitting I just remember the years I meandered about looking for a better diet and there isn't one. So I might as well just get down to business and do this.

oolala53
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Post by oolala53 » Mon May 13, 2013 1:19 pm

Yes, reminding yourself, "What's the alternative? Count? Cut out?" can be motivation enough.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

Nicest of the Damned
Posts: 719
Joined: Wed Aug 11, 2010 4:26 pm

Post by Nicest of the Damned » Fri May 17, 2013 12:28 am

For me, I remind myself that I do this so that I don't have to do things that I really don't want to do, things like weighing and measuring my food, counting calories (or carbs or fat grams), keeping a food journal, or never eating foods I like again. I know I would hate doing any of those things. But that's me- one of the very best ways for me to motivate myself to do something is to say to myself, "If I do X, I won't have to do Y" (where Y is something I really don't want to do).

Motivating yourself to stay on No S is really not that different from motivating yourself to do anything else. Think about ways you've been particularly effective at motivating yourself to do anything in the past, and see if you can use that technique to stick to No S.

vmsurbat
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Post by vmsurbat » Fri May 17, 2013 6:17 am

Like Wosnes, R.jean, and others, I've never considered myself as having stopped NoS even though I've never perfectly followed it. I doubt I've had more than a couple of perfect weeks in the 4+ years I've followed NoS.

But, Reinhard just brilliantly summarized the reason on audiomama's testimonial why I love NoS and will never drop it:
I don't view it (NoS) as a "diet," but as a stand-in for cultural structures which no longer exist in a meaningful way.
Meals with NoS structures are sane, sound, and satisfying. Random eating, overeating, mindless eating are insane, harmful, and dissatisfying. Losing weight is the bonus!
Vicki in MNE
7! Yrs. with Vanilla NoS, down 55+lb, happily maintaining and still loving it!

r.jean
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Post by r.jean » Fri May 17, 2013 12:55 pm

Absolutely!
The journey is the reward.
Maintenance is progress.

finallyfull
Posts: 354
Joined: Wed Mar 17, 2010 6:10 pm

Post by finallyfull » Tue May 21, 2013 2:07 pm

@vmsurbat: you said "Meals with NoS structures are sane, sound, and satisfying. Random eating, overeating, mindless eating are insane, harmful, and dissatisfying. Losing weight is the bonus!"

well put!

I am starting to realize that the insane, harmful and dissatisfying eating on the weekends is a drag, yet I feel pulled into it, and am unhappy with it every weekend. Not because of eating too much, or worries about weight, but because it's just plain icky. Yet I have trouble finding a balanced way to add in sweets or snacks without throwing the whole system out of whack.

I will take my time and I'm sure I will figure it out without having the impose rules that turn it into a diet.

Great summary of what's great about No S and bad about lawlessness.

vmsurbat
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Post by vmsurbat » Wed May 22, 2013 8:21 am

finallyfull wrote:
I am starting to realize that the insane, harmful and dissatisfying eating on the weekends is a drag, yet I feel pulled into it, and am unhappy with it every weekend. Not because of eating too much, or worries about weight, but because it's just plain icky. Yet I have trouble finding a balanced way to add in sweets or snacks without throwing the whole system out of whack.

I will take my time and I'm sure I will figure it out without having the impose rules that turn it into a diet.
You WILL figure it out. Take your time. Back at the beginning when I was starting NoS, I had dessert at both lunch AND dinner, plus something like a muffin or cinnamon roll for breakfast on my S days. After several months (maybe 6 or 7), I realized that by Sunday night, I was going to bed with a very uncomfortable ache in my stomach. I didn't feel the ache during the day, just at night, so it took me awhile to realize that I was possibly overeating because I was slowly but steadily losing weight.

It took me several months of trial and error and mental adjustment--actually the biggest hurdle for me to tone down my weekend eating habits. The two biggies of "mental adjustment" were learning to appreciate "normal" serving sizes (pre-modern day supersizing) and recognizing my own eating preferences unbiased by anyone elses.

If you look at a cookbook from the 70's (my Joy of Cooking, for example), a pound of meat was four servings. Muffins made with 2 cups of flour made 18-24 muffins. Now, many modern recipes used 1.5 lbs of meat for four servings, and 2-3 cups of flour (with triple the sugar) for 12 muffins. We (as a society) have normalized LARGE servings as normal. It has taken me several years to come to the place of recognizing AND believing that smaller servings will nourish and sustain me.... So, in the end, smaller servings (pre-NoS I'd cut the 9x13 pan of snack cake into 12 servings--which morphed into 15, then 18, and now, 5 years down the road, into 24 servings which I find very satisfactory) has helped.

Finding my own eating preferences is an ongoing project. My husband is a big snacker and likes little "treats" throughout the day, so I'd join him on S days. But, in really thinking about it, I realized that I actually don't like to snack. Before the big media push to snack, snack, snack, I wasn't a snacker. And, just because my husband does, I don't have to. I can sit down and chat with just a cup of coffee or tea. This was a lightbulb moment. So, I repeat the truth to myself (part of my mental adjustment) that "I am not a snacker." Note: this isn't a "rule" but a "motto." Which doesn't mean I can never have an inbetween nibble, but I tend not to and never do so mindlessly....

Also, regarding preferences, being picky about treats has also really helped. I've come to realize that I particularly enjoy fruit-based desserts (as opposed offerings like cheesecake, triple layer chocolate cake, and brownies which I had equated with "real" desserts) and have made it my newest project to collect delicious fruit desserts--some light (poached pears in wine), some rich (raspberry trifle)--so I have a generous repertoire from which to choose.

When a meal or treat is deeply satisfying, a little goes a long way... Focus on what you find gratifying.
Vicki in MNE
7! Yrs. with Vanilla NoS, down 55+lb, happily maintaining and still loving it!

finallyfull
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Post by finallyfull » Wed May 22, 2013 1:47 pm

I'm curious -- do you just eat sweets at the end of a meal? I do find that I hate to "spoil my appetite" -- I guess that's what I've been doing on weekends. I do enjoy the stuff while I'm eating it (usually), but it spoils my appetite.

I like the "motto" instead of "rule" reframing. I feel like no S'ing during the week has become what I prefer, rather than the rule it used to be a few months ago.

wosnes
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Location: Indianapolis, IN, USA

Post by wosnes » Wed May 22, 2013 4:10 pm

I can't speak for vmsurbat, but I only eat sweets at the end of a meal. After reading so much about how the French eat, I decided to give up snacking nearly completely. Major holidays are an exception. I can figure out how to incorporate almost anything I want into a meal.

The only food I haven't figured out how to incorporate into a meal is popcorn. So when I want popcorn, I have it as a snack, usually in the evening.
"That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do. Not that the nature of the thing itself has changed but our power to do it is increased." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."

vmsurbat
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Post by vmsurbat » Wed May 22, 2013 8:17 pm

I almost always eat sweets at the end of the meal, unless it IS the meal. For example, on a holiday like Thanksgiving, we'll have a later breakfast, Thanksgiving feast in the late afternoon, and then in the evening we will enjoy pies (yes, plural) for our dinner.

However, in general, I don't eat much between meals, neither sweets nor savories. Like Wosnes, I've found that snacking ruins my appetite for my next real meal and I'm rarely tempted to snack.

I, too, like to distinguish between the rules of NoS and my mottoes. I use the mottoes as guides within the rules whereas the rules are the fence.

Best wishes for good success!
Vicki in MNE
7! Yrs. with Vanilla NoS, down 55+lb, happily maintaining and still loving it!

finallyfull
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Post by finallyfull » Wed May 22, 2013 9:03 pm

uh, I think I've just discovered my new Thanksgiving tradition!

wosnes
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Location: Indianapolis, IN, USA

Post by wosnes » Wed May 22, 2013 9:55 pm

I've also found that snacking ruins my appetite. I've found that if I feel hungry between meals, that feeling will last for a few minutes, then go away.
"That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do. Not that the nature of the thing itself has changed but our power to do it is increased." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."

mastermesh
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Contact:

Post by mastermesh » Fri Jun 07, 2013 4:42 pm

Recently started tracking my weight with an open office document...

Image

Doing so based on some interesting reading over at
http://markforster.squarespace.com/blog ... -diet.html

Red line is goal (goal is to get to good weight based on BMI ratings for my height in 5 years) Blue line is weigh ins. Even though I'm just starting this charting I think this type of charting will help me stay motivated since it helps me show myself visually where I am in relationship to my goal. It also shows me visually what progress I've made up til now... which can be a positive thing in helping me reinforce good habbits in the future.

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Over43
Posts: 1850
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Location: The Mountains

Post by Over43 » Sat Jun 08, 2013 4:03 am

What do I do when I fail? I just seem to naturally gravitate back to No S. Being healthy is a life long journey.
Bacon is the gateway meat. - Anthony Bourdain
You pale in comparison to Fox Mulder. - The Smoking Man

I made myself be hungry, then I would get hungrier. - Frank Zane Mr. Olympia '77, '78, '79

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