Counting carbs/calories is a drag. Obsessive scale stepping is a recipe for despair. If you want to count something, "days on habit" is a much better metric. Checking off days on a calendar would do just fine, but if you do it here you get accountability and support. Here's how. Start a new topic in this forum called (say) "Your Name Daily Check In." Then every N day post a "reply" to that topic as to whether you stayed on habit. A simple "<font color="green">SUCCESS</font>" or "<font color="red">FAILURE</font>" (or your preferred euphemism if that's too harsh) is sufficient, but obviously you're welcome to write more if you want. On S-days just register that you're taking an S-day. You don't have to do this forever, just until you're confident you've built the habit. Feel free to check in weekly or monthly or sporadically instead of daily. Feel free also to track other habits besides No-s (I'm keeping this forum under No-s because that's what the vast majority are using it for). See also my <a href="/habitcal/">HabitCal</a> tool for another more formal (and perhaps complementary) way to track habits.
Moderators: Soprano, automatedeating
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pasofan
- Posts: 11
- Joined: Mon Nov 12, 2012 8:27 pm
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by pasofan » Thu Nov 15, 2012 12:54 pm
I was so proud of my self being on day 3 NO S. I went to a church dinner meeting and had no seconds and no desserts !! And it was not that hard. Then I came home and was placing the broccoli salad I had brought from a serving bowl into a storage bowl and realized that I was eating the salad !! It was mindless eating...then suddenly I realized what I was doing as if I had been sleep walking and just woke up.
It was a red flag for me - how much mindless eating do I do??
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JustForToday
- Posts: 44
- Joined: Sun Nov 04, 2012 2:10 pm
- Location: Maryland, USA
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by JustForToday » Thu Nov 15, 2012 5:10 pm
I think thats one of the best things about NoS - it instantly points out to you where all those little pockets of mindless eating happen! I thought sweets would be my problem, but quickly discovered it's the grazing and the second helpings that are my achilles heel.
I'm having a rough S week myself - but I think we're learning, and thats awesome!
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ironchef
- Posts: 1630
- Joined: Mon Jul 30, 2012 10:12 am
- Location: Australia
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by ironchef » Sat Nov 17, 2012 11:40 am
It's amazing isn't it. My most recent red day was an afternoon drink with some friends. I made champagne and orange with strawberries as a garnish. One strawberry per drink to me is part of the drink. As we sat outside I mindlessly ate another 4 or 5 strawberries from the dish. It wasn't until we got up to go inside that I realized "oh oh, that makes today a red day".
Luckily this is very rare now after several months on No-S. It's a simple program, but very powerful at highlighting exactly what we are eating and making us aware of it. There's no hiding.
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Kathleen
- Posts: 1688
- Joined: Tue Sep 16, 2008 12:46 pm
- Location: Minnesota
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by Kathleen » Mon Dec 10, 2012 2:16 am
I have a story to tell you from just last week from someone who has been practicing No S for a while. I went to a Boy Scout meeting where the Boy Scouts were entertaining the Webelos (younger boys considering joining the troop). One of the mothers had bought cookies and said to me and another mother: "The cookies are for the Webelos." You know what? It had not occurred to me to eat a cookie! I think what tends to happen after practicing No S is you just tune out the thought of eating outside of mealtime except on S Days. Isn't that great? There was no willpower in resisting the cookies. There was literally no thought of considering eating the cookies!
Kathleen
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heatherhikes
- Posts: 181
- Joined: Fri Jun 24, 2011 5:57 pm
- Location: uetliberg
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by heatherhikes » Mon Dec 10, 2012 9:59 am
Awesome Kathleen! When it comes to sweets, I still have a ways to go.
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