Scott's Check In

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.

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crackityjonesjr
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2007 5:33 pm
Location: Austin

Scott's Check In

Post by crackityjonesjr » Tue Feb 27, 2007 12:55 pm

Day One: FAILURE

But only because I'm adhering to a strict version of No S and think that the only way this will work is if I am completely honest with myself.

Mistake #1: eating a handful of homemade (by a local restaurant) corn chips immediately after getting home from work at 6:30p, an hour before dinner. Maybe I need to eat a bigger lunch.

Mistake #2: I used sugar free/calorie free breath mints to get through the day. I consider this snacking and will not do it again. (What about sugar free/calorie free gum, though?)

crackityjonesjr
Posts: 9
Joined: Sun Jan 21, 2007 5:33 pm
Location: Austin

Post by crackityjonesjr » Wed Feb 28, 2007 2:12 am

Day One (Redux): SUCCESS

Fruit for breakfast. Need to eat more.
Yummy veggie burger & sweet potato fries for lunch.
Two very small chicken and bean burritos and corn chips for dinner.
No snacks.
Last edited by crackityjonesjr on Wed Feb 28, 2007 4:39 am, edited 1 time in total.

joasia
Posts: 1105
Joined: Tue Aug 22, 2006 3:22 pm
Location: California

Post by joasia » Wed Feb 28, 2007 2:39 am

I wouldn't count a sugar free breath mint as a failure. I chew regular sugar gum (one to two pieces a day) and they are about 15 calories each. I don't think that will impede progress. I remember a much earlier post where Reinhard said a teaspoon or two of sugar in your coffee is fine, so I'm sure that breath mints and gum are as well.
The destiny of nations depends on the manner in which they feed themselves. Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin

Bee
Posts: 125
Joined: Tue Jan 09, 2007 1:12 am

Post by Bee » Wed Feb 28, 2007 3:59 am

Crackity,
Hi,
I agree, I think it's OK to eat sugar free mints. Especially if it is helping you to get through to the next meal. You gotta do what you gotta do, especially when you're first starting out. Eventually, your body will adjust to not eating between meals and it will be easier.

One thing to think about though is that part of what you get from the No Sweets part is that you train your body to not want sugary things as much. And I would think that something sweet like that (even if it is sugar free) might counteract that effect.

I am kind of a hippocrite though because I enjoy a cup or two of tea every day with sugar and I have still noticed a dramatic reduction in my desire for sweets.

One more thing I've found is that if I eat a little bit of protein with breakfast (usually yogurt for me but it can be anything) I have a much easier time making it to lunch. This is something I never thought about before No-S, but it is consistently true for me.

I think the bottom line is that you have to follow the (very simple) rules, be mindful, listen to your body, and do whatever you find works for you.

I know we can do it!

Bee

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