Everyday Systems

Hi

I started my first week on Friday Feb. 22nd. I'm struggling. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday was no problem. Then Sunday night I sprained my ankle so I ended up spending Mon-Wed on the coach trying to get over a sprained ankle. I'm just getting around wobbly today.

I had a snack yesterday and today. Both were a dessert item. I'm really struggling with giving up the snacks. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Does the S diet really work?

Sorry, I have no tips for giving up the snacks, but I did want to say that the No S Diet definitely worked for me. I lost 16 pounds before being an idiot and going back to my old way of eating (lots of snacks and sweets).

Now I am back and knowing it works is what keeps me from the snacks. I want to lose weight and in order to do so I have to stop snacking. That's it.

I recommend the No S Diet book if you haven't already read it, and Eating Less by Gillian Riley for to help deal with the urge to eat.

I hope your ankle is better soon!

Thanks Spirit Song...I just feel discouraged. I'm not going to give up because I already feel a difference when I eat day's with snacks and those without snacks.

I don't have any suggestions for how to give up snacks either -- except to just do it and take it one day at a time. It does get easier and you do start to feel better.

Sorry to hear about your mishap, Aprilsparrow, and hope you feel better soon.

The snacks thing can be hard at first, but it is really worth persevering. I did it gradually, initially giving myself the option of an apple or some cottage cheese at my (then) difficult time of day, late afternoon. This helped me through the initial period, and I later found that I no longer needed this mini-meal.

And yes, No S really can work! Look at the testimonials bulletin board:

http://everydaysystems.com/bb/viewforum.php?f=13

Wishing you every success.

it has worked for me but with much effort at first. we get so used to snacking that at first it is hard to take them out of your day. but it is doable. just focus on putting stuff on a plate, 3x a day at first . if one has to be a sweet at first, it's ok. focus on the non snacking first. then maybe phase out the sweets. sometimes doing all at once can be a bit much.

Thats what I have trouble with not eatting snacks. So used to it when I was on WW or counting calories.. I know ive been trying to just start with eatting three meals and trying to just drink some tea between to see if that helps but so far I having a hard with snacking..
Well i wish you best of luck on your journey..

Make sure your meals are substantial and really something to look forward to. If you want something yummy and calorific... go for it!

Knowing you have something great just a few hours away takes the edge of your hunger. So do hot drinks and milk (or even hot milk / lattes).

This is all within the No S rules! This approach got the habit down really well for me in the first few weeks, although I have had to tone it down a bit since then in order to actually loose weight!

I really was a super snacker before starting No S, and amazingly it's become the one S that I don't much miss! For me the habits needed to be dealt with first.

Look on the bright side. You have identified your enemy. As is documented in the No S book, snacks account for virtually all of the extra calories people have been eating since the 1980's.

You could do a diet that lets you snack - but then you wouldn't really be facing down and defeating your enemy. So in the long run, he's probably going to win. You'll gain the weight back. But now that you've identified the enemy, you have the advantage.

Thanks everyone for your encouragement and help. Yesterday I found the No S Diet book at the library and picked it up. I started reading the book and it's really helped me put everything into perspective and I'm ready to start again.

Thank YOU!!

In my experience: The first and second weeks are hard. Very hard. You have to distract yourself big time and make up your mind that you are not going to eat, no matter what. Oolala53 calls this "white knuckling it." It sucks, but is normal. It's very uncomfortable having to face things you don't want to be doing, like work or chores, instead of grazing.

The third week gets easier. My fourth week is pretty easy. Although I still really want all the snacks.

It helps to be busy so you aren't at home. Maybe spraining the ankle is keeping you from being busy. Read a book, paint, go to the movies. Come on the forums and talk to people. Read excerpts of the No S book when you forget what you are doing. Listen to the podcasts. Just stay away from the pantry. Before you know it, your month will have passed. Then why not keep going?

I do recommend doing all the No S's at once. It's a lot to overcome but including sweets on one of the three plates is just prolonging the eating issues.

The feelings of discouragement, just take them for what they are. "Mark it and move on." Every one of us are discouraged because we have eating problems. We are here to fix our eating problems. Don't use the discouragement as an excuse to fail.

Glad to hear it, April. It's really WAY too soon to be discouraged. That's diet head. You are learning to feed yourself adequately and consistently. It makes sense that it could take longer than you expect. It's like learning a musical instrument. Even the easy songs are hard at first!

April, I'm glad you're feeling better about it since you received the book. I'm coming back to No S after a long time away and I'd given my book away but just got my new one in the mail yesterday.

That being said, I haven't had time to read much of it yet and don't remember what was said about "diet" drinks, but I am keeping diet Dr. Peppers in the fridge for when I get a strong desire to snack on No S days. Sipping those has helped me through a couple of rough patches.

Best wishes to you!

See pp. 56, 57 and 77. Reinhard isn't a big fan of artificial sweeteners, but it's not a central issue for No S. Beverages, both caloric and non-caloric, are acceptable between meals. He does recommend staying clear of fake or partially fake fruit juices.

Three years in, I use beverages variously.

I read that section just before going to sleep last night. Thank you Oolala.