Everyday Systems

Day 4, yesterday was a success. I don't know if it's because I'm so new to No S or if it's because I'm still very motivated, but I find No S very easy. I do pile my plate with a lot of food, but most of my plate is filled with veggies. I do love my veggies. I don't even want any sweets. DH bought me a pack of 3 Snickers bars. I put them in the candy cabinet and thought "Oh, well-now I have something for S days". I'm not tempted to snack because I know that I'll be having a real meal in a few hours. Snacking has always just stimulated my appetite so I eat more and more. So much for the "experts"!

Tell DH to bring you flowers. You can't eat flowers. :)

mrsj wrote:Day 4, yesterday was a success. I don't know if it's because I'm so new to No S or if it's because I'm still very motivated, but I find No S very easy. I do pile my plate with a lot of food, but most of my plate is filled with veggies. I do love my veggies. I don't even want any sweets. DH bought me a pack of 3 Snickers bars. I put them in the candy cabinet and thought "Oh, well-now I have something for S days". I'm not tempted to snack because I know that I'll be having a real meal in a few hours. Snacking has always just stimulated my appetite so I eat more and more. So much for the "experts"!

Day 5 Nov 24 was a success. But, I was hungry 2hrs. after dinner. I drank a glass of water and sat at the computer instead of eating.

Nov 25 was a success. I was hungry all eveni´ng, but tried to keep myself distracted. I guess that now the hard part starts. Evenings are my downfall. Only tomorrow to get through, then S day!

Nov 26&27 a success.
Nov 28 S day. Don't know what it was as I forgot to eat.

Nov 29: an S day, so a success. I realized that I'm addicted to sweets, so I'm going cold turkey. Figure something out for next S day.
Nov 30: The day is done, my portion at dinner was a little smaller than last week. Started drinking H2Orange and it's killed my appetite. Didn't eat anything at all until 1330 today. Couldn't finish that meal, and wasn't really hungry at dinner. Hmm... Not good. But, I haven't snacked, no seconds and NO SWEETS!

Dec 1: Success. I find this No S very easy. Just don't break the rules and success is gaurenteed!

Dec 2, day 12 was a success. That H2Orange really helps to fight the evening munchies!

Dec 4: day 13 success!

Dec 7. Day 14: Green
Days 15 and 16 were technically S days, but I forgot to have
them. Well, it does say "sometimes". So, I can't say that I was an idiot and I consider them a succes!

It sounds like things are really going well for you, mrsj. Keep up the good work!

Day 17: Green all the way!

Day 18: started to feel really lousy in the afternoon. Nausea, hot then cold and generally awful. Had to lay down. So a sick day and today, Dec. 9 don't feel much better.

I had no appetite, so I followed the rules. Success.

Day 19: slept all day. feel much better. Success

Day 20: Green all the way. I felt much better, so back on track!!!

Glad you're feeling better!

Dec. 11 'Green!!! Am now a member of the 21 club!!! Yay!!!

Way to go!

Dec 14: Green all the way. Urban ranged. DH bought me some chocolate which I put away. It's there for the weekend if I remember it. Things are going so well that I don't want to screw up. No S is slowly becoming habit. I still have to think about no S. It's not an old habit YET.
In order for it to be an automatic habit I have to say "no" and resist tempation. The 21 Day Club and the Perfect December threads are a big help to me. Just the thought of having to post a red day is enough to make me stop.

Dec 15: Green day. It's getting harder. My old habits are starting to surface. I really have to think now. Thank Goodness for the daily posting!

Dec 16: Green, but it's HARD now
Dec 17: Green. No easier

mrsj, I find that I go through hard stretches on this too, but they don't last. You are doing so well, and tomorrow's an S day!

Starla's right. They come and go... and if you can stick it out through a hard time, you are doing SERIOUS habit-building!

Hang in there!

Thanks for your support!
Dec. 19& 20: S days, but wasn't an idiot. I'm finding that my s days just don't mean that much food wise. The garbage I threw in my face before No S just doesn't taste that good any more. I don't want to munch through my day. I have so much more time available now that I'm not constantly stuffing my face. Anybody else notice this?

Dec 21: Green! Yay!

Dec 22: Green! It's a little hard because the newness is starting to wear off and new habits haven't really kicked in yet. I still have to stop myself from taking seconds or snacking. I'm hoping that it will come...

Dec 23: green
Dec 24: was supposed to be an S day, but I just was too tired to eat.
Dec 25: Same. I'm really pooped! I really had a good time for Xmas, just was too tired to eat much or even think about dessert.

Dec 26: Yellow day. I had a small bowl of ice cream in the evening. I really enjoyed it, but wasn't an idiot.

Dec 27: Yellow. Wasn't an idiot.
(Day 16 for 21 day club.)

Dec. 28: Green. I'm glad that I'm back to N day!

Dec. 29: Green
Dec 30: Green
Dec 31: Yellow

I wish you a Happy New Year! Congratulation for all the green days, I guess they have already added up and I see you're already feeling very good!
Elena

Thanks, ElenaS!
Jan 1: Yellow. Was so busy that I forgot to eat until dinner. Ate some chocolate in the evening, but wasn't an idiot about it.
Jan 2: Yellow

Jan 3: Something. I dozed most of the day because I felt so lousy. I've got a doozy of a cold.

Jan. 4: RED. I caved in the evening and had some ice cream. Then an hour later I had a sandwich and potato chips. I didn't even use a plate!

I'm angry with myself because now I have to start over for the 21 Day Club.

3501 steps on my pedometer. Have to start somewhere. No pain in knees.

To quote Scarlett O'Hara: "After all, tomorrow is another day".

You know, I'm glad you started counting steps! Last winter I was at roughly the same number. Besides knee pains, I had lower back problems and an attack of acute back pain just before Christmas, swollen legs and the worst plantar fasciitis (almost gone now). My morale was low, my clothes didn't fit. I lost weight in summer and I regained it, but I am very active now. Two years ago I quit smoking cold turkey, went from 70-80 cigarettes a day to none, and no matter what I did I gained weight: from 75 kg to 100 kg peak. I over-exercised and in no time I was in pain and almost couldn't move at all, and the kilograms continued to pile up. I also stopped yo-yo dieting when I stopped smoking and I swore not to do fad diets again. I still struggle with my weight as you can see, but at least 5 kg of my blubber has become leg muscle since last year and as funny as it can seem for a 100 kg person, I have an almost flat stomack. As my naturally fit husband says, I look more like a warrior than a whale! I didn't do much besides walking all last year, I just recently began to add some biking and boxing (which are my favorites).
I wish you good luck! Chin up! You can do it!

Thanks for your encouragement ElenaS! I tried your suggestion of eating later in the day (1100), then dinner and a small meal at 2000.So,
Jan 5 GREEN!
6064 steps!

I have nothing more to say than W O W!

Thanks ElenaS! I don't know what to call yesterday ecxept crash and burn. After rangeing with Thor and then rangeing home the groceries I got more and more tired. I ate my No S brunch and then just crashed. I slept most of the day. When DH came home I woke up a little but was very groggy. Needless to say dinner went down the tubes. I went to bed at 2030 and didn't wake up until 0500. I didn't snack, eat sweets or have seconds. Kind of hard to do when I'm sleeping!
3941 steps.

Jan 7: Green. 2482 steps. scrubbed down the whole kitchen.

Jan 8: Green.

Jan 9: Yellow
Jan 10: Yellow. Wasn't an idiot either day. 4553 steps.

mrsj, it sounds like you had a good weekend - are you feeling better from your cold? I hope so.

I'm impressed with all of your steps. I've been working on getting on the treadmill in the morning, and I'm hoping to start feeling some progress soon.

(also impressed that you got your whole kitchen scrubbed. If you're ever bored and want a transatlantic kitchen-cleaning trip, just let me know. )

Wow, you have so many greens! Does a red now and then really count? I think it's what makes us go on. Congratulations also for the increasing number of steps!

RJ., please scrub your own kitchen! Gives a great cardio workout and really works out those flabby upper arms!

ElenaS, yes, red days do count. But, that's how normal weight people eat. Mostly No S Green days and every once in a while a Red day. Just not every day.

To both of you, I would NEVER own a treadmill as I have a doggie who just loves to walk! I would also NEVER own a stationary bike. Don't even own a normal one. You know what the Indian said the first time he saw a bike? "White man lazy-sit on a## while run".

Jan 11: Green. 4073 steps.

Jan 12: Green. 8868 steps. Too much! was exhausted.
Jan 13: Green. 7068 steps. -ditto!-

Jan 14: Green. Only 2793 steps, but I Home Ranged and used mostly upper body. Doesn't really register on the pedometer!

Jan 15: Green. Was hard. My old habit of munching after dinner while watching TV really started to act up. Knitted instead.2671 steps. Home ranged.

Jan 16&17: Yellow days. Wasn't an idiot. Friday, jumped on the scale--I'm maintaining at 90 Kilos. Have to start looking at WHAT I'm putting on my plate. I do so want to shrink!

Hi mrsj!

I tend to feel impatient about my slow pace of weight loss about every two weeks. . . then I get on the scale and discover I've lost about a pound. I think my weight is coming off at the same pace it went on. If it stays off, well, I guess I don't mind.

Looks like you're doing great with building the no S habit - keep up the good work!

Thanks, Girl Next Door!
Jan 18&19: Green. Cleaned the house a lot, not many steps on pedometer. 2913 steps.

Jan 20: Green. 5052 steps. Weighed myself this AM, and I'm back to starting weight! Sob! I have to look at my plates and adjust them accordingly.

Jan 21&22: Green. After weighing myself I realized that I've gained more than my start weight, even with all my green days. I'm at 94 kilos again! My clothes are tight again! Sob! I read some of the old posts and I think it was either renew or wosnes that posted that she would be very strict with No S. It inspired me to get my act together and to really look at my portions. I'm limiting myself to two "cheats" per day on S days.
Time to do some serious habit changing. Smaller portions, more Rangeing. Thank God DH is back at work Monday! More Urban Rangeing. More scrubbing at home! MOVE;MOVE!

Jan 23&24: Yellow. Jan 23 4995 steps. Jan 24 4324 steps and still counting.

Jan 25: Green!5550 steps on pedometer and still counting. Yay!

Jan 26, 27 &28. Green. Over 5000 steps every day.
Jan 29: Green. Ranged into town and all over town with DH. DH found a beautiful dress for me (green of course!). Bought myself a green sparkly.
8900 steps yesterday. I'm sore in my buttocks muscles of all places!

Jan 30&31: Yellow. I'm so glad this month is over! I'm planning to have a perfect Feb.

Feb 1: Green! Over 8200 steps on my pedometer. I'm a little sore in the lower legs, but otherwise o.k. Ranged to town and all over town. Both Fri%Sat night we had snowstorm, so it was hard going shlogging through snow. Great workout though. I'm trying for an average of at least 5500 steps every day this week. Snow storm expected tomorrow, so I'll be house ranging and will clip my pedometer to my arm. DH has taken the rest of the week off, so there goes my rangeing with Thor!

Feb 2: Green. 5200 steps on pedometer. I'm starting to get ready to throw in the towel as I'm maintaining at 94 kilos. I'm moving a lot more and my plate is SLIGHTLY smaller, but nothing helps. The first 2 weeks I shrank a kilo a week, then I gained them back plus 2 more!It's fat, because my clothes feel tighter not looser. It's getting harder to move not easier. Is it really neccessary that I go overboard just like Bluebunny to loose just 100 grams? I just don't have it in me. WAAAAAH!

Feb 3: Green. 5123 steps. Most through deep snow. Thought I'd have a heart attack! I'm not sore today, which surprised me. Going to start shovel glove to get in shape for gardening season. Suddenly, shovel glove has a purpose!

Feb 4&5: Green. I've started to move more and am getting re-motivated. I'm so tempted to throw in the towel, but I'm going to keep at it.

Feb 6: A yellow day. Got lazy and watched DVD with DH. Had some snacks that really didn't taste good. The result was I couldn't eat very much dinner. Got real hungry at about 2200 so had some cheese and peanutbutter. I've learned the evils of snacks even on S days! BLAH!

Feb 7: Yellow again. Ate a good brunch and will eat a nice dinner and that's that! My "S" is sitting here at the computer. I'll read a little in my book later this afternoon and watch Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan with a nice cup of tea. I'm still training myself to not associate "S" with stuffing my face. Instead, I want to do something special that's non-food.

Feb 8: Green. Shovelgloved with a shovel this morning. Put pedometer on arm. Movement is movement, right? Did 10 reps of each video. Am I weak! I felt like my arms would fall off! 6000 steps. I found it real hard to get my step count up to 6000 as rangeing with Thor was hard. It's real icy out. Downright dangerous! Home ranged, and while scrubbing put ped. back on arm. Ranged home some groceries.

I need to move a lot more as I'm maintaining, not shrinking.

Feb 9: Green. Shovelgloved this morning with my shovel. My arms are sore now. Shows how weak I am. 6150 steps.

My appetite is really wierd now. I'll feel really hungry, then when it's meal time I can't eat very much. I don't understand this.

Hello, congratulations for the increasing number of daily steps!
From my past experience: increased activity made me hungry!
Also, I need to do at least 20 minutes of uninterrupted brisk walking in order to see results (weight loss), otherwise I just stay at a plateau.

feb 10: Green. Shovelgloved. Only 3000 steps as I crashed and burned. I fell asleep on the sofa and slept all afternoon. I don't know why, but I was so tired that my joints ached!

Thanks, Elena. I find that the more I excersize, the LESS hungry I get. But, I'm wierd. If I stop eating, I GAIN weight!

Fri, Feb 12: Green. I've stopped wearing my pedometer as many of my steps aren't registering. I am just as active every day, but it's so icy outside that I have to take small baby steps so I don't slip and fall. I still range home the groceries, but a lot of my steps don't register and it discourages me.

Feb 13&14: Yellow

Feb 15: Green

Feb 16: S Day as it's the day before Lent and I fast during Lent. 2 meals per day and the only S Day is Sunday as Sunday is always a feast day.

Feb 17: Green. My shoveling is going well. I've added 5 reps to my routine. I'll borrow that 3.5 kilo sledgehammer next week and do 5 reps with my shovel and 5 reps with sledge. I want to try some of the reps that involve twisting. Fireman and fenceposts. I'll start with mop.

Feb 18, 19 and 20: Green
Feb 21: Yellow. My friend can't get into his shed due to snow, so no sledgehammer! I do 12 reps instead of 10, then 5 reps.

Feb 22,23&24: Green. Shoveled.
Feb 25: Feel a little woozy. Delicate stomache. Shoveled.
Feb 26: Feel really awful. Jumped on scale. Yes, it survived! Weigh 91 Kilos. Tried to shovel, but had to stop.
Feb 27&28: Blah! I've got some kind of bug. Couldn't shovel.
Mar 1: Still feel rotten. I'm going back to bed. At least I'm not stuffing my face! Ugh-just thinking about it!

2 mar: Started to fell better, but tummy's still delicate. Stqarted eating small portions of real food. Weighed myself and dropped 3 kilos due to illness. Will try to maintain it.

3 Mar: Much better today. Did a little gardening. Green!

4 Mar: Green. Starting my normal routine up again. Still feel a little weak, but fine.

5 Mar: Green. Felt incredibly lazy, but forced myself to vacuum and tidy up. Then I HAD to range into town. As of now I have 9560 steps on my pedometer. I haven't had this many steps since I started No S. I'm really tired, but proud of myself!

Mar 6: Green.

7 Mar: Yellow. My S day went a little wild, so I'm going to really watch what I eat this week. I'm going to try slightly smaller portions this week. I really want my wieght to go down because I get so tired every day. Sometimes I want to throw in the towel because I'm not shrinking at all.

8 Mar: Green. I had a really bad craving for a piece of spice cake that's in the goodies cabinet. I brewed a pot of winter tea instead. It was like drinking cake! I'll have to remember this.

I didn't move that much. I don't know why but I'm really tired lately. Must be spring fever!

9 Mar: Green. My clothes are feeling a little looser now. Don't want to weigh myself. I'll wait until April and (hopefully) be pleasantly surprised.

10 Mar. Green. Completed another 21 Days.

Mar 11: Green. It's getting harder and harder to stay green. I do it though.

Mar 12: Green by a hanging hair. These days I'm just constantly hungry. It's like I just can't get full. Must be spring fever. I'm scared to death to even get near a scale. My clothes are feeling a little looser, but it could be that the fabric is old.

Mar 13: Green
Mar 14: Green. Went to General Assembly at the Allotment Garden Society and it dragged out. There's never food served, only drinks. By the time it was over, I was too tired to even think about eating. I did keep my fluid balance up though!
Mar 15: Took my S day, but again didn't have time to eat much. DD stopped by and after our visit gave me a ride into town. Ranged in town and ranged home. Had a piece of cake for dessert. Only meal I had was dinner. 6400 steps.

Mar 16-22: Been sick. Still am. Feel like I'm in a fog. Really congested.
I'm weak as a kitten and am living on O.J and H2Orange. No appetite at all. BLAH!

Mar 23 and 24: Still a little shaky and weak. Appetite is strange. Starting to feel hungry, but when I start to eat I get full on not very much. I think my stomache sac has shrunk. I see no need to stretch it out again.

Today: Green. Although it's still afternoon here, I'm posting now. I ranged with Thor this am and we went a little further than yesterday. Then, I ranged into town and around town. 8100 steps and still counting. Had 1 piece of bread with cheese this am. I'm hungry, but not hungry. The thought of eating is not good. So, a nice dinner with lean meat, new potatoes and new carrots. My feet hurt!

Mar 26: Green. Did some gardening and am very happy. The soil is very wet and heavy, but I could cultivate the soil by hand, and my arms didn't fall off! Thanks to shovelglove!

Mar 27: Green. Didn't eat very much.

Mar 27: Yellow. DH borrowed a car, so we went shopping for garden things. Walking through all the stores I managed to log over 6000 steps on my pedometer. Not bad for an S day! I'm very proud of myself-my treat was a bag of dried fruits and nuts. After a few mouthfuls I was satisfied. So, I have some left over for next S day. I'm proud of myself because I'm treating myself with healthy sweets instead of junk.

Mar 28,29,30&31: Green.
Yesterday I completed another 21 days!

I'm maintaining my 3 kg. shrinkage from when I was sick. Now I just have to pull myself together to shrink a little more.

Renew is taking a break from the monthly challenges, so I'll be posting here more. I'll miss those challenges. I'll challenge myself!

Today is day 1 for 21 day club.

My plan for April is as follows:

Vanilla no S.
Range at least 6000 steps a day.
Garden 2 days a week.
Shovelglove with my shortened sledgehammer every other day.
ONE S day a week: Sunday.

Thank you for your encouragement and congratulations also.

1 april: RED!!! No kidding.
2 april, Day 1 for 21 day club! Yellow. Planned and executed a 75th birthday party for a dear friend.
3 April, Day 2 for 21 Day Club: Green. Gardened.
4 April, Day 3 for 21 Day Club: Easter, Yellow.

Got on my scale yesterday and I'm 1 kilo lighter.

April 5: Yellow. Holiday here in Dk
April 6: RED!!! Bad Girl!
April 7: Green
April 8: Red!!!
April 9: RED!!!
April 10: Yellow
April 11: Yellow

I've had a whole lot of RED days in a row. Have to pull myself together. On the upside, I'm moving a lot more. Gardening and spring cleaning. Longer ranging with Thor.

I crawled on the scale this morning and now weigh 91 kilos. Even with my RED days, I'm maintaining my shrinkage from when i was ill. Now, I need to lay off the goodies, move more and eat normal portions of REAL FOOD!!! Then I'll shrink some more.
I put my pedometer on my upper arm, as I'm using my arms more than my feet. I've averaged 7000 last week on my pedometer. Not bad for a couch potato!

Oh dear, it's been a while since checking in. Here goes:
12,13&14 Mar: Green Gardening
15&16Mar: RED
17 Mar: Green. Really busy in the garden.
18Mar: Yellow, but kind of forgot. Our garden pond is really out of balance and some damned bird has eaten EVERY SINGLE FISH! Fishies survived the winter, but there's not one single one left. Not even a cadaver! The water is so green that I can't see more than 30 centimeters down. Ugh! Used all day cleaning and planting the swamp area. Hard work! Washed 200 kilos of gravel for the pond.
19&20 Mar: crash and burn. RED

21 Mar: Finally a GREEN day! Not so much excersize, but I managed 7100 on my pedometer.
I'm giving up on weighing myself as it's the same 3 kilos I'm fighting. I'm going for shrinkage of my measurements instead. As long as I'm active and control my portions my body has no choice but to shrink.

April 21-25: Green. Forgot about S days because we were so busy in the garden. Measured myself yesterday. Gaine 2 cm on my waist. Gained 3.5 cm on hips. Waaah!!! Am maintaining at 91 kilos. I'm working like a dog and reducing my portions. I'm throwing in the towel and not thinking about shrinking. I'm sticking to No S but I'm forgetting about weight reduction and shrinking. I refuse to live on 10 lettuce leaves and 3 liters water a day. My body is my body and it wants to be at 91 kilos. however, I like No S. Very easy, healthy and doable. Que sera,sera!

26 April: Xtra GREEN. Since throwing in the towel, my appetite has evaporated. It sounds like I'm giving up, but I'm not. I'm just letting go. I've battled my weight for over 20 years and I'm tired. I'm 50 yrs old and I've got 20-25 yrs left. I don't want to spend the rest of my life obsessing over my wt. I will however stick to No S because it's so much a habit. It's healthy. If my body wants to be at 91 k, so be it. I'll make sure that they're healthy kilos. I am what I am, and it's hight time that I accept it. I'm tired of hating myself and of feeling bad and guilty. Life's too short. I don't feel like I'm giving up, I'm just letting go. What will happen will happen.

Don't toss in the towel... twist it up and make it a whip! I think that if you stick with it, it will become your "norm" and you will slowly loose. Give it time. Reinhard said that if you keep doing it you will eventually build a ring of fire around the S es.

27 April: Green! Vanilla! I feel so free now. Unburdened.

28 April: Too early to post yet-it's 0850 here. Renew started up the Vanilla Team. Yay! As soon as I saw it I rushed to join. Something has happened mentally to me. I'm craving a GREEN SALAD! I feel so much more at peace with myself after I've let go. I even feel ready to try for a new 21 Days! Let me see...yesterday was 6 greens in a row for me. Yay!

29 April, day 7 for 21 Day Club. Green. Very busy. DH took day off, so we went shopping in the morning. My green sparkly is a pond vac. Just had to try it out, so the day flew by!

30 April: Green
01 May: Today is a day off for everybody here in DK. Something about International Worker's Day. Technically it's an S day, but I'm going for green with one single yellow. Don't know what it will be though. The garden is calling...

02 May: Whew, what a day! First off, I forgot to eat dinner last night as I was so pooped. Today I started gardening already at 0830, so no time to eat. Knocked off early, at about 1500. Ranged home some groceries, ranged with Thor BACK to the garden and did a little more. Finaly at 1700 had something to eat. Was so over hungry that I couldn't eat very much. Later I'll have a piece of bread and cheese and collapse!

It's 1830 and my pedometer reads 9421 steps. My feet hurt a little. I've promised myself ONE small treat today as it's Sunday, but I don't know what I want.

All in all, I'd say that today has been a Green +.

mrsj wrote:I forgot to eat dinner last night as I was so pooped.

I am impressed, and inspired! It's been a while since I forgot a meal.
I'm going to get myself so busy that it happens to me too!!!

Thanks, Renew!

03 May: Green. Not as active, but acccomplished a lot by puttering. My body was tired from Sunday, but I didn't want to just sit.

04 May: Green. Threw my back out shopping. (Hekseskud) translated to Witch Shot. Whatever. I won't be declaring sick days as it will be about a week until I can move normally. Stuffing my face isn't going to help my back one bit. As a matter of fact, that's the problem. My huge tummy puts a strain on my lower back ligaments and cartelidge. One wrong move and ouch!

I plan on eating lighter meals. Soups, salads and such. If I can just maintain I'll be happy.

Hi mrsj,
I threw my back out recently too, it sucks doesn't it? I totally agree with your approach--I'm taking some exemptions from my strength training but there's no reason to take sick days from No S in my opinion.

I hope you feel better soon--do you a ice or heat person??

ShannaR, I'm an ice person on the advice of my chiropracter.

05 May: Green. Was tempted to eat sweets out of boredom, but I resisted. I can't do anything and I'm bored! If I sit for more that 10 mins. my back locks. So that excludes reading or knitting much. My chiropracter said no gardening this weekend! Ugh!

06 May: Green. Ouch! Enough said.

07 May: Green. Still defective
08 May: Same
09 May: Same