Everyday Systems

This will be my daily (weekday) checkin to chart my No-S progress for 100 days. The initial chart will be 20 weeks, starting on Monday, January 4th.

The charting method will probably change as I get some consistency and find out what works for me.

To start, I'll have 3 Xs and comments. Each X will be to give myself credit for a no-S. The idea is, if I have a sweet or a snack, the day isn't shot. I still have my other two Xs to earn.

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

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That's cool. Looking forward to seeing the chart filled in.

Day 1


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Lunch was soup and half a sandwich. My sister made the soup over the weekend, and it was super-thick.

I dolloped some into a saucepan to heat it up, and I added water and a splash of wine to thin it out. Meanwhile I made the half-sandwich (chicken pate).

The sandwich wasn't all that satisfying, and the thinned soup ended up being a little less than I'd expected (I didn't measure it into the bowl before heating it since I was going to thin it out).

OK, way too much detail there -- but suffice it to say I was not satisfied with lunch. Couldn't wait for dinner, which was cooking in the crock pot all day.

Expected I'd be overstuffed from dinner but ended up being just comfortably full, even though I did pile my plate.

Anyway, all's well -- and I'll be having a larger lunch today.

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Wahine wrote:That's cool. Looking forward to seeing the chart filled in.

Thanks, Kate! I'm hoping to create a field of green Xs.

Day 2


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Thought my plate was too full at lunch but it was pleasantly satisfying. Then I thought my plate was too skimpy at dinner but it was also pleasantly satisfying. Nice.

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Day 3


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Kind of overloaded my plate (bowl) at lunchtime. All's fair for me with that, being that I'm in early days.

But it occurred to me that I'm mainly doing No-snacks and No-sweets. The No-seconds part is irrelevant because my "firsts" can be so substantial.

However, I'm OK with that. I'll figure out how to adjust portions in due time. Meanwhile, there's no comparable wiggle room on the Snacks and Sweets front.

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Good one! Look at that row of greens. To be semi-poetic, it looks like you're planting a crop...

Days 4 & 5


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Funny, I thought I posted yesterday. Welp, here I am today.

Had a light lunch before I was really hungry because my sister brought me a bowl of homemade soup. I knew it wouldn't hold me until dinner but I wasn't hungry enough to eat more just then.

So I enjoyed the soup, then I kept myself busy as a distraction from the growling stomach.

Really, it was not hard. Then I had a good supper. Could've eaten more but I still haven't gotten the hang of eyeballing my portions when I'm reheating something. So I'm feeling peckish again here but I'm just going to have a glass of wine and that's it.

My first full week is a resounding field of green.

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Beautiful row of greens! No wonder you held out on Friday, you wouldn't want to spoil that.

Enjoy your weekend.

congratulations on your successful week!

well done Queenie! and thanks for cheering me on on my thread too

Day 6


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Probably erred on the side of too much ice cream over the weekend but otherwise I found it very satisfying to have treats.

At first I didn't want treats but I remembered reading that it's important not to be restrictive with S days early on, and so I made a point of going and buying something off-plan to eat. It was a surprise to find how much I enjoyed it.

The second day wasn't quite as pleasurable and I think I'm going to give some thought to what I'd really like as my treats. But I liked having the treats.

And now I'm happy to be back to my N days.

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Yay, more green x's.

I felt like I ate way too much on the weekend, but reminded myself it was nothing like I could do in 7 whole days of snacking away.

Wahine wrote:Beautiful row of greens! No wonder you held out on Friday, you wouldn't want to spoil that.

The chart is highly motivating. You're right, I don't want to spoil the row.

Plus -- it's very annoying to switch the colors around in the middle of a row! (Hey, every little thing helps.)

mitchelll wrote:congratulations on your successful week!

Thank you kindly, Mitchell!

RAWCOOKIE wrote:well done Queenie! and thanks for cheering me on on my thread too

I appreciate the visit and the encouragement, RawCookie!

Wahine wrote:
I felt like I ate way too much on the weekend, but reminded myself it was nothing like I could do in 7 whole days of snacking away.

Good way of looking at it, Kate.

Thanks for visiting and good luck on a green week! I answered your questions about calorie banking and coconut oil in my thread. And you didn't ask, but at least at the 1/2 TBSP level, I can't really taste the coconut oil. The coffee is just a bit, naturally, oilier than normal.

You are doing awesome! Check out all that green!!!

Day 7 & 8


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: I guess I'm in the honeymoon phase. This just seems so easy.


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mitchelll wrote:Thanks for visiting and good luck on a green week! I answered your questions about calorie banking and coconut oil in my thread. And you didn't ask, but at least at the 1/2 TBSP level, I can't really taste the coconut oil. The coffee is just a bit, naturally, oilier than normal.

Thanks for checking in on my thread, Mitchell.

I'm in a great phase right now where it's easy to do this.

Queenie maybe it's the power of the XXXs

That's great that you're in the swing of it

Day 9


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Felt ill yesterday just before dinnertime. Went to bed. So I only had two meals yesterday.

Still feeling under the weather today but was able to eat some rice this morning. Looks like it might end up being an S day for Sick day today.


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Wahine wrote:Queenie maybe it's the power of the XXXs

That's great that you're in the swing of it

Ha! I think it's honeymoon more than Green Xs at this point, Kate.

I'm under the weather today. Going to crawl back into bed.

Hi Queenie - re the green smoothies - for me it's variety that's key, but, yes, freeing yourself from having to have one every day might make it more appealing!

I have one made up for tomorrow which is pink blueberries, pineapple, yoghurt - c'est tout!

I like how you plan ahead, Rawcookie!

Day 10


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Felt lousy when I got up. Went back to bed a couple hours later and I slept most of the day. I'm feeling MUCH better tonight.

I did manage three meals today (only two yesterday). I got up and had plain rice for breakfast. Then I had rice with eggs for a late lunch. And tonight I ate a normal dinner.


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Glad you're feeling better.

Thanks for the good wishes, Kate. I slept a LOT this weekend. Am still feeling good.

Haven't quite figured out how to manage my S days. The first two weeks on the NoS Diet, my S days were the long Christmas weekend and the long New Year's weekend. I had special sweets and treats around for the holidays, and it was easy to know what I was going to enjoy on my No-S days.

But now it's not so clear. There's nothing in particular that I was craving during the week. I had ice cream, cheesy popcorn and potato chips both weekends -- and it was far more satisfying the first weekend.

Maybe that's part of what the No-S days are for. I didn't even finish the popcorn and chips over the weekend. The remainders are in bags in the cupboard right now, and I feel is no "pull" from them at all.

But this leaves me a little stumped as to what to have on my S-days. It might end up being fruit and nuts, which I pretty much don't have during the week now because they don't fit into a "meal" for me; they're something I've always had as a snack.

I don't want to add rules but I don't want to be eating pints of ice cream and bags of potato chips just to have junk food.

However, eating junk on the weekends has been absolutely positively 100% effective in making my N days easy easy easy.

So...I'm just going to wait and see. Will play around with different option on my S-days, I guess, and see what feels best.

Meanwhile. I'm glad to be back to my N-days here.

I'm a bit like that with S days now. At first, I really looked forward to that bar of chocolate, or cookie, or cake or chips or whatever - now there's often no strong craving at all! Also, I find that if I do eat, say cookies, I then don't feel hungry for my next meal - so what I'm finding is that at the weekends, if I eat 'treats' then there's no room for real food - which can't be good, right?!

I'm only 6 months into this - and am still learning. I know that, in theory, the S day is only supposed to be 'sometimes'....... it is great if a social event happens to be at the weekend - nice to be able to go out to dinner or something and be able to eat whatever I want!

Anyway - you're not alone!

Thanks for sharing your experience, Rawcookie.

I've seen so many of the longtimers saying not to restrict S-days that I'm leery of doing that. Especially as I'm so early in this (only in my fourth -- no, fifth week).

I had that same thought about real food.

It's surprising to realize I'm already more than a month into this. Feels like I've just started.

Day 11


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Didn't enjoy my S-days quite as much. We'll see how things go. It was easy to get back on track on Monday.


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Looking very good there Queenie.

Day 12


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:My supper last night was not as filling as I'd have liked. Nor was this morning's breakfast. I had a bigger lunch. Will see how things go with tonight's dinner.


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Wahine wrote:Looking very good there Queenie.

Thanks, Kate!

When I began working from home, my weight piled on. But now I wonder if No-S is easy for me because I'm working from home.

Day 13


SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Didn't feel satisfied from dinner when I finished eating but the rest of the evening, I have felt comfortable (not hungry). Curious that I didn't "recognize" that it was enough to eat.

And it made me very grateful for the "no seconds" rule because I really wanted to get more to eat -- but I didn't because it's an N day. Thank you, No-S.


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You are doing fantastic--yay!

That is interesting about your dinner and finding it was actually plenty to eat after all. The other thing I notice is the between meal hunger - how often it just completely goes away.

Day 14

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Went to a buffet for lunch. I've done buffets before on No-S and have just loaded up my plate and not gone back for seconds.

But this was a humongous buffet with table after table after table of food choices.

Since I'd never been there before and didn't know what I would like among the choices, I decided to go off-plan as far as seconds.

I got one small amount of about five things to try. Then I went back and got seconds of the ones I liked, plus a small amount to taste of some other things. Then I got some more seconds.

Three plates in all. I was full but not stuffed. However, it was more than "one plate" for sure. So I get a black mark for one of today's Xs.

Tomorrow may be a challenge because we're expecting a blizzard to start tomorrow and continue all through Saturday.

We already know that tomorrow will be a snow day (even though the snow won't start until 4PM) so today has felt like Friday all day. I have to keep reminding myself that tomorrow is not Saturday.


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lpearlmom wrote:You are doing fantastic--yay!

Thanks, Linda! I've been lucky with No-S.

Wahine wrote:That is interesting about your dinner and finding it was actually plenty to eat after all. The other thing I notice is the between meal hunger - how often it just completely goes away.

Yes, that was eye-opening about that dinner, Kate.

And I know what you mean about the between-meal hunger, that it just recedes.

Day 15

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Perfect day on Friday. No problem remembering it was not yet Saturday. : )


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What happens on a snow day? Do people work from home?

All of you talking about snow shovelling and snow days brings me mental images of Charlie Brown and Snoopy. That's my cultural reference for snow shovelling. It's like when I went to the pyramids at Giza, internally I kept on getting mental images of Tintin. I was embarrassed for my brain - not highbrow and also culturally insensitive.

Sorry, I know the weather over there is pretty severe and I hope you are all ok.

The term "snow day" refers to school, where there are a certain number of "snow days" allowed per year. (And if there was a lot of snow and more snow days were used, then the school year was extended by that many days.)

On a snow day people goof off at home. Make snowmen. Throw snowballs. Drink hot chocolate.

Being all grown up, today I shoveled snow. A neighbor was shoveling the walk of another single woman in the neighborhood -- and when he saw me, he came over and helped me shovel.

Meanwhile another neighbor showed up with a snowblower and finished shoveling my walk and driveway.

That freed me to shovel a sort of path around the perimeter of my house, which will help the melt (when the snow eventually melts) to go away from the house (keeping my basement dry).

And I also cleared my back porch, back steps -- and a path to the heated birdbath.

Now I'm happily sore. Have just finished my first hot chocolate of the weekend.

I didn't measure but it looked like about 15" (38 cm) when I was outside three house ago. The snow hasw picked up again. There's a lot of wind.

So far, so good. Knock wood.

Enjoy your hot chocolates and your Lindt chocolates this weekend. It sounds like you deserve them for all that industry.

It snowed here once about 3 years ago. 1-2cm. Everyone panicked and the team leader let people go home early! Even at the time I knew that was ridiculous

Day 16

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Monday was fine. I did have pretzels and cheese for dinner, which isn't the most nutritious choice. But it's what I wanted, it fit on a plate, and it satisfied me.

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Day 17

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Tuesday was fine.

Not sure about Wednesday. Normally I work from home but I'm doing a little freelance work lately.

In connection with that, I'll have business meetings from 1PM until 7PM -- not the type with snacks -- and then going to dinner with the businesspeople around 7-ish. That's far too long a stretch without eating.

Maybe I'll have a huge breakfast around 11AM, and then grab something in that long stretch and call it "lunch."

That feels like the letter of the law but not the spirit of it. I'd rather have a decent breakfast and lunch, then have a piece of fruit or something to tide me over. Except that would be a snack.

But I didn't like that black X last week and I don't want another one this week, so we shall see. : )

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I think the first plan sounds good. The time of the meals don't matter and if I have a snack of any kind (even a planned one) it definitely feels like a fail and can lead to wth (for me). Do what feels best though, remember NoS is suppose to be a livable solution so make it work for you.

Linda

I say preserve the green Xs!

I'm not envying you with 6 hours of meetings.

Guess what? It's all working out perfectly.

The person we need to meet at 1:00 (the first meeting) can't see us in person because the plow got stuck on her street last night and she's still snowed in.

So we're going to have that meeting via conference call, which I can do from home. The next meeting isn't until 2:30. So I can have lunch ready to eat AFTER the conference call, and before I head out the door.

Thanks for your thoughts, Linda and Kate. You validated my feeling about how to approach it.

Day 18

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Today went great. We were served a small salad before the meal at the restaurant, and vegetables were served on a side plate. I did not pile everything onto one plate. But I'm counting this as a Green X for not having seconds. No snacks, no sweets.

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Excellent!

You're doing amazingly well! Keep up the good work and thanks for stopping by my thread!

Day 19

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments:Went to an Indian buffet yesterday. Loaded my plate up high so I wouldn't be tempted to get seconds. The food was delicious but I definitely took too much. It was hard to finish.

Good to have a better visual of how much will make me feel "pleasantly full."

Also, when I got home I slept for two hours after lunch. Don't know if that was "food coma" from over-eating, or a result of still being tired after Wednesday's long hours of meetings.

But the food coma factor is now something else I've got my antennae up for.


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Thanks for the supportive visits, Kate and Linda.

My meals aren't always the healthiest but the food all fits on one plate.

And the plates are not as loaded as they were in the first couple of weeks.

Day 20

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Went to a friend's home for dinner tonight. On any other diet, I've had to go off-plan to go to dinner at someone's home. Tonight it as almost surreal to realize that I was on-plan.

We discontinued having dessert at our dinners a couple of years ago, so that was no problem tonight.

It feels GOOD to have a solid green week.


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Awesome job on your green week! Isn't it wonderful to feel normal around food! It's such a relief.

Here's to another great week--you got this!

Linda

Very beautiful row of greens there. I hope you enjoyed your weekend.

Day 21

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Crazy busy on Monday morning and didn't eat breakfast until late morning. So I was hungry for "dinner" a couple of hours earlier than usual.

As expected, by nightime I was peckish. Ended up having some pretzels with leftover pate and butter (no cheese in the house!). I should've had a bit more to eat, as I was still hungry.

Ah, well, I lived. : )


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lpearlmom wrote:Awesome job on your green week! Isn't it wonderful to feel normal around food! It's such a relief.

Here's to another great week--you got this!

Linda

It's still a little unreal to feel normal around food -- so I guess I don't quite feel "normal" yet! But I'm definitely headed there.

Wahine wrote:Very beautiful row of greens there. I hope you enjoyed your weekend.

Yes, I did. Not putting any stops on my S-days but did find that I ate more ice cream than I strictly enjoyed. It was too good not to eat it, but I would've been satisfied with less.

Actually, that occurred to me and I did look for a smaller-sized container in the store, but that would have meant having a brand that I didn't like as well, so I stuck with what I knew would satisfy me.

There is another store that sells a brand I like in a smaller size, I can go there in the future.

But I'm going to be spending the next weekend with a friend so it will be a while until I'm having at-home S-days again.

I did still get a large bag of cheese popcorn, and I devoured the whole thing in one day. That is still very satisfying to me.

Hi Queenie - thanks for commenting on my post about being a lone person (and for thinking I was a young person - that's the beauty of the internet!)

Yes it's a bit of a transition from eating like a "normal" person to feeling like a normal person around food. I remember early days in NoS and I wrote something about not obsessing about food and saying I imagine this is how normal eaters feel. Then in the next moment I said "oh wait maybe I'm actually becoming one of those people!" And lo and behold I think I have and you will too--yay!

Glad you enjoyed your cheesy popcorn. Sounds really good right about now.

Linda

Day 22 & 23

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: I made a roast beef with carrots in the crockpot on Saturday and have had lots of leftovers for meals this week.

And my sister made a roast pork for Sunday dinner and gave me several slices.

Plus I bought some canned vegetables before the storm and I'm eating through them.

Which is to say, I've had the makings for a variety of meals this week. It's been easy to eat well.



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RAWCOOKIE wrote:Hi Queenie - thanks for commenting on my post about being a lone person (and for thinking I was a young person - that's the beauty of the internet!)

It's fun getting to know folks here.

I don't visit other threads every day but I try to stop by a couple of times a week.

lpearlmom wrote:Yes it's a bit of a transition from eating like a "normal" person to feeling like a normal person around food. I remember early days in NoS and I wrote something about not obsessing about food and saying I imagine this is how normal eaters feel. Then in the next moment I said "oh wait maybe I'm actually becoming one of those people!" And lo and behold I think I have and you will too--yay!

Glad you enjoyed your cheesy popcorn. Sounds really good right about now.

Linda

Hat's off to you for becoming a normal person about food! And I'm looking forward to becoming one of them (one of you), too.

Day 24

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: The day is not over but I know it will be green. The cookies are made (five dozen for each neighbor plus some rejects that I'll enjoy this weekend with my friend -- that's about 130 cookies I baked today).

While chopping the nuts, one nut bounced off the cutting board and onto the counter. I popped it into my mouth -- and remembered before I even bit down on it that it would be a snack. So I spit it into the trash.

That was it. I scraped into the trash all the little broken bits of cookie that were left on the cookie sheets in between bakings. Ordinarily I'd have eaten those.

The day may come when it will feel okay to eat those on an N-Day. But I kind of doubt it. It's easier for me to eat no cookies, not even a crumb, than it would be to eat the crumbs and stop there.

The last three sheets of cookies are cooling. My house smells terrific. I am enjoying the aroma without dying to eat one. I didn't expect this.

It was spitting out that nut that did it. I drew my line in the sand with that, and I am not crossing it.



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Heroic!! You can remember this day as the Day of the Nut Jettison
Well done!

It looks like you're doing great!

Wow, Queenie. I really like your system! Mind if I use it for my weekly check-in as well? It's visually pleasing to get an X for every No S you adhere to. Very smart!

You seem to be doing great. May I ask you about your diet 'history'? Or is this the first attempt at eating somehow differently? You seem so realistic and calm about everything. No dieter's desperation etc. etc. I like that!

Wahine wrote:Heroic!! You can remember this day as the Day of the Nut Jettison
Well done!

LOL!!! Thank you, Kate!

clarinetgal wrote:It looks like you're doing great!

You know how they say, when you're 99% committed, it's hard; but when you're 100% committed, it's easy? I think I must be 100% committed. : )

bjalda wrote:Wow, Queenie. I really like your system! Mind if I use it for my weekly check-in as well? It's visually pleasing to get an X for every No S you adhere to. Very smart!

Hi bjalda,

Please feel free to use it. I adapted Jerry Seinfeld's Daily X system in creating it but I'm not as strict as he is.

I used this first for daily writing but I gave myself weekends off (which is one way No-S is a fit to me).

The biggest reason this works is, I don't have to do a "good" job to earn my X. I only have to do whatever my minimum is. So with an article, I DO have to write a complete article -- but it doesn't have to be any good.

In reality, most of them are good enough and a few of them are good enough to be proud of. But in the moment of writing, most of them seem really lousy. That's OK -- all I "have to" do is write an article, I don't have to write a good one.

In writing my three Xs are:

Edit the article I wrote yesterday, and send it to a proofreader.
Come up with an idea (for tomorrow's article).
Write an article (using an idea I came up with on a previous day)

So when I came here to do the No-S and saw that there were three S's AND I deliberately chose to have an S on an N day in my first week (before I began charting here), I knew that three Xs would work here too.

It's not as easy to do No-S "badly" since there's no fudge room with snacks and sweets. That's partly why I'm not going with "red days" -- I want Black Xs to be OK. And I do load up my plate at times (while still earning a Green X for no seconds).


How to do it:

On my "Day 6" post at the top, click "quote" to open a new text box with all the formatting.

(I am suggesting Day 6 because that's where I started using boldface with the green section. It's much more satisfying in bold.)

Copy the contents of that box to your clipboard. Then cancel out.

Now, go to your own thread, post "reply" and paste the contents of your clipboard there.

Edit it for yourself, then submit the post.

I add a line or two in the "Comments" section because my thread is very boring to follow otherwise. : )

bjalda wrote: You seem to be doing great. May I ask you about your diet 'history'? Or is this the first attempt at eating somehow differently? You seem so realistic and calm about everything. No dieter's desperation etc. etc. I like that!

First, I'm a lot older than you are (58 ) and my body has become very resistant to losing weight. For most of my adult life, I was able to diet and exercise, and maintain a size 6 or 8 figure.

That changed about ten years ago. Suddenly, my body quit responding to diet and exercise. It didn't stop responding totally but the level of strictness I needed to follow was not sustainable.

I didn't give up right away. I kept trying different plans. Eventually I did give up, and I had some mild health issues. I tried eating paleo for health reasons -- and to my amazement, the weight came off.

But paleo was not sustainable either. I hated going out to a group breakfast and have a three lone eggs on my plate along with a side of bacon (because I had read that restaurants put pancake batter into omelets to make them fluffy, so I didn't dare risk ordering an omelet).

We have a weekly family dinner at my mother's house. A friend invites me to dinner on a regular basis, going out with friends -- I was the "problem child" that they had to cook something special for, or who declined half the dishes at the table.

Doing that once or twice to take weight off would have been okay. But I didn't want to live like that, especially since I didn't have to. I'm not someone who had a dramatic health recovery from paleo.

So I began making exceptions, and the weight came back on. But I was MUCH happier eating (relatively) normally. I decided I wasn't willing to do what was required to be slim. I'd live with being a size 14.

And that was fine until I started working from home, nearly two years ago. My weight crept upward. Last spring I was up to a size 20. I did manage to get down to a size 18 by the fall (through daily walking) but I still couldn't button my winter coat.

So I went to the thrift store and bought plus-size clothes. If I could lose a size a year from walking, then I figured I'd be back down to a 14 in a few years (which is a size I maintained when I had a dog and walked daily with him).

A few years ago (maybe '07 or '08 ), I tried No-S for about a month. I didn't lose weight. I could see that I was piling my plates high in order to avoid taking seconds, and I didn't see how that would ever result in weight loss.

And I had a lot of food judgment. The fact that I could eat a burger and fries, and call it on-plan because it fit on a plate -- I was very judgmental about that.

At that point, I had not yet given up on being slim again.

After I couldn't sustain paleo, I gave up on being slim. That made all the difference in coming to No-S this time.

Before restarting, I read KCCC's post about the phases of No-S. I realized that my heavily-laden plates were just a phase. And I understood that S-days should be permissive.

And then I read the testimonials section. One person (sorry, I can't remember who), said that during her first year she had very indulgent weekends and high-piled N-day plates. She lost nothing that year -- but she also GAINED nothing that year. And then she proceeded to lose 45 pounds the following year.

I was barely managing to fit into my size 18 clothing after Thanksgiving. With Christmas approaching, I began trying to figure out how to avoid being a size larger in the New year.

I don't recall what made me think of checking into No-S again. But when I came here and read those threads (KCCC's phases thread, and that testimonial about not losing -- nor gaining -- in the first year), something clicked.

The idea of a year of piled-high plates and indulgent weekends felt like the food equivalent of "writing a bad article" -- and I saw the amazing progress I've made by taking that approach with my writing.

In the first week of No-S, I went out to an Indian buffet with my family, and was able to take a piled-high plate on my first visit to the buffet table, and it lasted through everyone else's seconds and thirds. No one noticed that I didn't make another visit to the buffet line. I saw that I could do this.

And I chose to have a small dessert that day. This restaurant makes a to-die-for bread pudding but it's not always offered. My family knows I love it, and they kept commenting that I sure was lucky that my favorite dessert was there.

So partly it was because I didn't want to be the problem child. And partly it was because I didn't want to be an idiot about a small, reasonable treat that truly was a rarity. This wasn't something I could just defer until an S-day.

I didn't slip or fall, it was a choice. And I wanted to get credit for no seconds and no snacks -- while acknowledging that I did have a sweet. And that's why I decided to do a black X for something like that dessert, while still earning my green Xs.

If I had gone hog-wild on sweets, I would have made it a red X. But I think my hog-wild days are long gone.

By the way, I tried Intermittent Fasting while doing paleo. It didn't work for me (if anything, it seemed to stall my weight loss). But I learned that I could deal with being hungry. That's another reason why No-S is so easy for me.

When I misjudge and have an N-day meal that doesn't quite fill me up, it's not a big deal. I know that I can handle feeling a little hungry. And I make sure to eat a bit more at my next meal.

One other comment. I started No-S on December 18th, one week before Christmas. There are three reasons why I think this was significant.

1) My first two weeks were "short" weeks. Christmas and New Years were on Fridays, and I consider Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve to be holidays.

So I had 4-day weekends my first two weeks. In other words, I eased into No-S.

2) I saw the beauty of the weekend being S-days. We had family visiting from out of town; they arrived on Sunday, December 20th. A neighbor brought over a cake his wife had baked as a holiday gift for our family. I had two slices of it.

So when I declined cake the next day, no one batted an eyelash. I was not being the odd one out, I was just not having cake this one time (or so it seemed to them).

Our family dinners are always on weekends unless it's a birthday. It was eye-opening to realize how normal I could be on No-S.

3) I didn't gain weight over the holidays. My clothes fit the same in January as they did in December. Even in my 20s, 30s and early 40s when I maintained a trim figure, my clothes were always tight in January.

Maintaining my size over the holidays told me that the experience of neither losing nor gaining could be mine -- and it gave me hope of eventually trimming down on No-S.

It gave me a lot of confidence to start when I did. If I could successfully No-S over the holidays, with no one being the wiser, then doing No-S the rest of the year would be manageable.

Wow so awesome info and insight Queenie!

I agree understanding the different phases is really important. I am one of those ppl that didn't lose weight the first year but just really got the habit down. At some point I felt safe enough to put less on my plates and gradually used smaller plates which now seem more than enough to me know. It's a process. Slow but well worth it!

Keep up the great work and enjoy those S days!

Linda

I love reading about your journey and epiphanies.

Thanks so much for writing that up Queenie.

What I have gleaned from reading the boards, is that we women with a bit of a dieting history often don't lose weight quickly at the beginning. People get through that first year because they have other goals, like establishing a normal relationship with food. And belief in the rightness of it all I think.

I'm with you, I love being able to eat everything without guilt at social gatherings! And I started the day before you. At one stage I had more yellow days than green, but still my weight has basically stayed the same. And I am starting to chose foods like vegetables because I like them and I know they will make me feel good, not because I SHOULD eat them or they are on my list.

Anyway, keep up the 100%ness!

Congrats on your progress, looking good!

It looks like you are doing well. You have some great insights. We are close in age (I am coming up on 60 in April.) so I identify with many of your experiences and observations.

Good luck as you continue this No S journey The best thing for me has been the sanity. I enjoy food so much more than I did before No S.

Day 25 & 26

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Green day on Friday. We did have pizza for dinner, and it was served on pizza-slice-shaped plates. So I did not put four slices on the plate. I had one slice, then I had a second slice, and I called it 'virtual plating.' That's it, two slices. Large-ish slices but definitely within reason.

And a green day on Monday as well.

Today I had a late breakfast, and am going to my mother's church's pancake supper for Mardi Gras. I expect to have pancakes and sausage on one plate. But I'll wait until tomorrow to take credit for today. : )



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lpearlmom wrote: I agree understanding the different phases is really important. I am one of those ppl that didn't lose weight the first year but just really got the habit down. At some point I felt safe enough to put less on my plates and gradually used smaller plates which now seem more than enough to me know. It's a process. Slow but well worth it!

That's reassuring to hear. THANK YOU, Linda!

And thank you, too, for your encouraging words about what I posted about my journey. I appreciate it.

CDee wrote:I love reading about your journey and epiphanies.

That's so good to hear, CDee. (I was worried that I was rambling on and on!)

Wahine wrote: What I have gleaned from reading the boards, is that we women with a bit of a dieting history often don't lose weight quickly at the beginning. People get through that first year because they have other goals, like establishing a normal relationship with food. And belief in the rightness of it all I think.

You're right about having other goals, Kate.

It took me years of hearing about yo-yoing and about gaining back more than had been lost before I could acknowledge that that's what I had been experiencing.

There's a real freedom in doing this for 'other goals' than trimming down.

Wahine wrote: I'm with you, I love being able to eat everything without guilt at social gatherings! And I started the day before you. At one stage I had more yellow days than green, but still my weight has basically stayed the same. And I am starting to choose foods like vegetables because I like them and I know they will make me feel good, not because I SHOULD eat them or they are on my list.

Look at us, starting the week before Christmas! Ha!

It's still taking me time to remove the "shoulds" from certain foods. But I'm seeing my strictness soften and ease up.

Wahine wrote: Anyway, keep up the 100%ness!

Thank you!!!

Merry wrote:Congrats on your progress, looking good!

I appreciate the encouragement, Merry!

r.jean wrote:It looks like you are doing well. You have some great insights. We are close in age (I am coming up on 60 in April.) so I identify with many of your experiences and observations.

It's so reassuring to find so many people here in my age group. And I guess I should say, in my 'philosophical outlook' group!

r.jean wrote:Good luck as you continue this No S journey The best thing for me has been the sanity. I enjoy food so much more than I did before No S.

Yes, the sanity! (An S-word.)

Well done days 25 and 26. Hope the pancakes went well.

Day 27

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: The church had fresh fruit cups and cupcakes as dessert. We bought the pancake dinners to-go so we could eat with my mother at her house.

My sisters got fruit cups so I got one too, and I added the fruit to my plate before I began eating.

Only one sister knows I'm doing the No-S but no one said a word.

The paper plates were slightly smaller than a regular dinner plate so I felt like it wasn't too crazy. All my food stayed in place (nothing fell off the plate!).

It is so nice not to be inwardly harrumphing about a social meal. In previous years, I would have felt put out that I "had to" eat grain (in the pancakes) and sugar (in the syrup) and grain-fed meat (in the sausage) in order to be social.

And -- while these are all foods that I wouldn't normally be choosing -- it was wonderful to know that I was not going "off plan" by eating them. Even the fruit, by adding it to my plate, meant I was keeping on-plan.

I could feel the difference internally, in how I felt about the meal.


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Wahine wrote:Well done days 25 and 26. Hope the pancakes went well.

The meal went well indeed, thanks, Kate. I thought I overloaded my plate and would be stuffed, but I wasn't stuffed. I was pleasantly full.

Day 28 + 29

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: I can't even remember Wednesday but I do know it was a green day.

Thursday was a little challenging because I didn't eat breakfast (always a mistake) and at lunchtime I had a relatively light lunch. I was nowhere near full when I finished eating but that's what was on my plate -- no seconds.

So I decided to wait a couple of hours and if I still wanted to eat, then I'd have a "meal" then.

At the two-hour point I could have gone either way. But I knew if I didn't eat, then I'd be having my next meal way before dinner time, and be ravenous for a third meal late.

Since I didn't want to eat real late, I had another light meal at that 2-hour point, then a pretty big dinner at my usual dinner time.

But -- man, oh, man -- my N days are MUCH easier when I eat breakfast in the morning.


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Well at least you know the problem! Can you have something like a protein bar available for days you have to eat quickly? You are really doing fantastic otherwise though so keep up the good work!

Linda

Did you skip breakfast because you ran out of time?

My mum used to keep boiled eggs in the fridge to eat in these situations, but I am sure there are many glamorous solutions as well.

Good move on the afternoon meal.

Just stopping by to cheer you on. It looks like you are figuring it out.

Just like you, I do not want it to be obvious that I am on a "diet." I no longer consider NO S a diet; it is just a way of eating. It is now natural to decline sweets without an explanation. If I am pressed to accept after saying no, I just say I am too full and depending on the situation I might ask for a to go dessert and then give it to my husband at home. Or sometimes I just say that I am really not much of a dessert person.

I also agree that it is problematic when you skip a meal. It sets off cravings and can derail you for the day. I have taught myself to always have V8 or low fat milk as a snack if I am feeling too hungry on days that my meals are off. Beverages between meals are allowed unless they are sweets!

Day 30 + 31

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Friday was fine. I went away for the weekend. There wasn't much (maybe not any?) opportunity for snacks or seconds on Saturday. I did have a few raw almonds because lunch was late.

But then, because lunch was late, I had a big lunch. Then when we ate dinner, I was really stuffed (having had a late lunch) and really truly did not have room for dessert.

I've been spending weekends with a friend who is moving, helping to pack up her house. So she just doesn't have much in the way of snacks on hand. Her fridge is already unplugged so even when we go out to eat, we're finishing our food as well as we can and not bringing back leftovers.

Sunday I tried to make it feel like an S day. I had a doughnut at breakfast, then dessert after a late lunch, and had cheesy popcorn and grapefruit for supper.

The dessert after lunch was something I wouldn't do if I had a redo on that meal. It was cheesecake, which I like but it's not a huge treat for me. But mainly, I was well-satisfied from a very tasty meal. My tastebuds would have preferred to have ended on that note (of the meal), and my fullness-factor would also have been happier without the dessert.

Interesting to observe. And, since it was an S day, I knew I could have a treat later (and could even have gotten cheesecake somewhere later if I'd felt somehow deprived of it).

I might have felt I was 'depriving myself' on an S-day if I hadn't ordered it. But now, having had the experience, I think I'm feeling my way along with my S-days.

Also, my friend was picking up the check. I partly ordered the dessert to keep her company while she ate a slice of caramel cake as her own dessert. If I were hosting, I would definitely have ordered dessert if my guest was ordering one. And if I were the host, I would have felt like I could just take a bite and leave the rest of it (as opposed to feeling like I should eat most of it, which I did, since the person who was paying for it was sitting across the table from me).

Curious all the dynamics in play over one slice of cheesecake!

Yesterday was back to normal with an N-day. I had too-big of a lunch, then just had some plain rice and a grapefruit for dinner.

Today I had a normal breakfast.

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lpearlmom wrote:Well at least you know the problem! Can you have something like a protein bar available for days you have to eat quickly? You are really doing fantastic otherwise though so keep up the good work!

Linda

Hi Linda!

I could have had a couple of slices of toast for breakfast. I was just not paying attention to the time, then suddenly it was time to leave.

I'm definitely taking care, now, to eat something for breakfast.

Queenie

Wahine wrote:Did you skip breakfast because you ran out of time?

My mum used to keep boiled eggs in the fridge to eat in these situations, but I am sure there are many glamorous solutions as well.

Good move on the afternoon meal.

I suppose "ran out of time" is a polite way to put it, Kate. : )

I was lazy about sitting down and eating, and then it was time to leave. On days like that, I need to make breakfast a priority.

There were no extenuating circumstances.

Queenie

r.jean wrote:Just stopping by to cheer you on. It looks like you are figuring it out.

Just like you, I do not want it to be obvious that I am on a "diet." I no longer consider NO S a diet; it is just a way of eating. It is now natural to decline sweets without an explanation. If I am pressed to accept after saying no, I just say I am too full and depending on the situation I might ask for a to go dessert and then give it to my husband at home. Or sometimes I just say that I am really not much of a dessert person.

I also agree that it is problematic when you skip a meal. It sets off cravings and can derail you for the day. I have taught myself to always have V8 or low fat milk as a snack if I am feeling too hungry on days that my meals are off. Beverages between meals are allowed unless they are sweets!

I definitely use a glass of milk to tide me over sometimes between meals or the evening. It doesn't satisfy like a meal, though. (I don't think it would have kept me from over-eating at lunch that day.)

I suppose the too-big meals to compensate for a skimpy or missed meal is something that will work out in time. I had a light dinner on Sunday. It was all I wanted on Sunday, and it satisfied me.

But then I was ravenous on Monday morning. And I had too-big of a breakfast. While I was preparing it, the thought crossed my mind that it was too big. But I remembered feeling dissatisfied over not-big-enough meals so I went ahead.

Well, I'm still feeling my way. I realize I'm almost two months into this but I'm still calling this "early days" and letting things work themselves out.

So, piled up plates are OK, and crazy S-days are OK. I trust that my portion sizes and S-days will gradually self-correct.

Day 32

SSS = Special day

Green X = Success
Black X = Failed that X
Red Triple X = Entire day is a Fail

First X: No Sweets
Second X: No Snacks
Third X: No Seconds

Comments: Nothing special. This was an ordinary N-day. Love days like this.

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You're doing fantastic! I agree that you'll figure out the right size of meals for you overtime. I used to make my meals too big in the beginning because I was afraid of being hungry eventually I realized I was fine with less and even switched to smaller plates. Now I can't imagine eating how much I used to before.

Anyway you are in a good groove so just keep up the good work!

Linda

I know what you mean about 'early days'. I feel the same. All the people who are Long-termers say it WILL work itself out. Of course, the ones for whom it didn't work itself out have probably left this site....
But I am with you. This system is good. Practical, social and kind of old-fashioned in a comforting common sense kind of way.