Everyday Systems

I'm back again! I fell into a pattern of overeating at night again, and it didn't get me anywhere, except I've had increased heartburn, and I haven't lost any weight (although thankfully, I've been active enough that I haven't gained any weight, either). Today is Day 3 of recommitting to No S. Day 1 was great! I wasn't perfectly Vanilla, but I came close! Day 2, I ate at night (and this was after having some tea with coconut milk, cinnamon, and a very tiny amount of sugar, and it was really good). I didn't enjoy the nighttime eating at all, though, so I'm ready to try it again today.
For today, it worked out that I didn't have breakfast until almost noon. Lunch will be at around 4:30-5, and dinner will be at 9, after my Monday band rehearsal. By putting off my meals, I should be able to successfully not eat after dinner tonight. I don't know if I can delay my meals all of the time, because it works out better for my schedule to exercise at around 6 AM, and I'm usually hungry after exercising. However, what I may try, is having something small right after my workout (like an RX bar and some nuts), and having my 3 main meals at 11:30-12, 4:30, and 8:30-9.

Oolala, Sorry to be so late in my reply, but I love your suggestion about having Thursday being my official S day, and two floating days each month!

Day 3: Great! It even ended up being a Vanilla day! Day 4: So far, so good! I've had a tiny bit of sweets today, but they've been contained in meals (1 TB of chocolate chips and about 1/8 of a cookie I bought for my boys to share). My big test will be tonight.

I hope you're making it! Consider going to bed earlier a few nights. IF possible.

Yes!!! I actually really need to start going to bed earlier.😴

Oh yeah I try to stop eating at least 2-3 hrs before bed. It makes a huge difference w/ my reflux. I also take a Pepcid ac and sleep on a wedge pillow. My reflux is much better since I started fasting but I cannot have even a drop of caffeine.

Anyway good luck with the nighttime eating !

Thanks, Linda!

Update: I made it without eating after dinner! I did get the urge to eat a few times, but I waited it out.

Day 5: (yesterday) I made it again! I still had several urges to eat after dinner, but I rode them out. Today is my S day. I plan to keep my eating mostly sane today, but I am getting a piece of pie after Band, and I might get a Starbucks coffee drink this afternoon.

Gillian Riley thinks that a lot of our eating is driven by hijacked reward systems gone cuckoo from cruddy food and just a greater acceptance of overeating and lots of sweets and starches. I like the metaphor, even if it isn't true. It's definitely helped me this week. Do I want to reinforce the false reward system or tolerate the desire and dissolve it over time? I'm free to do either, but not free to avoid the results.

Let us know what kind of pie...

Oolala, That's a good point, and I will keep doing it. I had pumpkin cream pie tonight, and it was really good. 😀

I'm not old school on pumpkin pie because it doesn't send me. I like the cream versions better, but I take what I get because neither one is important enough for me to buy one anymore. Now you have me wishing someone brings a cream version to something....

Oolala, I like the pumpkin cream pies much better, too!

Well, yesterday ended up being more challenging. My kids didn't have school, and I took my younger son out for awhile, which means I didn't get lunch until late, which then threw off my dinner, etc... I'm close to finishing the book that Linda mentioned (Delay, Don't Deny), and I'm thinking it might be very feasible for me to Fast for 16 hours and have an 8 hour eating window. That way, I could still have three medium-sized meals, and I would be done eating for the night at around 7 PM. I will still have my special treat on Thursdays, but aside from that, I think this might be a good plan for me (it should help my reflux, it will end the nighttime overeating, etc...). I might start with 14 hours of fasting and gradually work my way up to 16 hours.

Let me know how it goes! I definitely had to work myself up to the longer fasts too. Getting rid of the nighttime eating should help a lot for sure. Cutting out caffeine was a must for me though most ppl can still tolerate small amounts.

Best of luck!

I will do that, Linda! Thanks!

Well, yesterday night was a bust, because I ended up overeating. At least I know it was from fatigue, and that I should have just gone to bed. I will get back on track tonight!

Sunday night was a success! I didn't end up eating dinner until a little later, so my Fast was only around 12.5 hours before I had some coffee with creamer in it, but it's a start! At this point, I'm more focused on breaking myself of the nighttime eating, and I can work on the fasting later.

Yesterday (Monday) was a fail, but it ended up being a good lesson for me. I ate dinner in the 5 PM hour, which was too close to my band rehearsal, and I ended up with terrible reflux during rehearsal. I also was hungry after Band, so I ended up eating late yesterday night. I think what I might do on both of my band days is have a Vega One shake with fruit and a little healthy fat before rehearsal and eat dinner after rehearsal. I'll still make Thursdays my treat day. I also still want to experiment with fasting the rest of the time, but I really don't think I can do it on Band days.

Yesterday night (Tuesday) was a success! I didn't eat after dinner, and my Fast was at least 12.5 hours, possibly closer to 14, since all I've had at this point (I'm writing this at 9:40 AM) is 10 calories of unsweetened creamer in my coffee.

The past several days have gone well, in terms of not overeating at night. That is still my top priority. I also still want to work on building up to a 16:8 eating window, because I’m convinced of the benefits of fasting. The only 2 days a week i’m not sure about yet are my band days, Monday and Thursday, because I don’t eat a lot before Band (it aggravates my reflux, if I do), so I’m always hungry after Band.

Just a quick check in to say i’m Doing much better about not overeating at night, and i’ve Built up to a 13-14 hour fast. My goal is to get to 16:8.

Congratulations. I'm glad things are going well for you.

Thank you, ginger Pie! Yesterday was a fail, but I got back on track today. I really don’t like waking up with an overly full stomach because of eating too late at night.

Bit by bit.

I really don’t like waking up with an overly full stomach because of eating too late at night.

Me either!! but I keep doing it Good luck today.

gingerpie, do you have a check-in thread?

Testing, to see if my new signature works.

Looks good to me

Thank you, Strawberry!

Hi there!
How is everything going? Of course I also want to know how your boys and their schooling is going?
Welcome from your fellow WA buddy.

Hi, Auto! I’m pretty good! Both of my boys are doing well in school. My older son is in 4th grade, and my younger son is in kindergarten! I’ll have to catch up on your check in, but I hope you’re doing well. Yes, it’s nice to see my WA buddy!

Hey there! My question about homeschooling on Tobiasmom's thread was for her -- not sure if she is still doing that but I am curious.

My boys are 12 and 8 now! My how quickly they grow.

I often think of you because parenting is already so exhausting, and I seem to remember you sharing about your schedule and how challenging it must have been to get your older son to school (long bus ride or lots of changes throughout the day?) Can't quite remember but I know it sounded hard!

Anyway, good to have you back.

What are your favorite places to take kids in Seattle?

Hello! It’s been a busy past few weeks. My eating hasn’t been perfect. I’m eating too many sweets, but pretty much all of the sweets I eat are within my 3-4 meals structure, so it’s progress. My habit of overeating at night has gone WAY down. I’ve had the cold/crud that’s been going around pretty much nonstop since November, and lately, i’ve Been too tired to do much at night, besides sleep.
I lost 1.9 pounds this month, which is a start! My goal is to have a slow, sustainable rate of weight loss (like around 2 pounds a month). That is one of the biggest draws of No S: that it focuses on sustainable habits.
My goals for this month are to continue eating 3-4 plates with no extra snacking, and to cut back on sweets.

Hi, Auto! I have actually not yet attempted taking my kids to Seattle. It’s a long drive for us (about 2 hours), and i’m Not sure how my older son (he has autism) would do. As for kids places, the one’s that come to mind are the Seattle Children’s Museum, the aquarium, Woodland Park Zoo, and Pike Place Market.

Fantastic progress points, really. Give yourself lots of kudos for any observations on them, without getting too obsessed. That way the brain knows what to shoot for, and may help nudge you into whittling away at some of the "offending" habits, too.

So great to see you're still hanging in there and continuing to make progress!

Well, February was a rough month for me, eating wise. My birthday and Valentine’s Day are almost back to back (my birthday was Feb. 10), and I had a hard time getting back on track after that (sigh). On the plus side, my nighttime bingeing is still way lower than what it used to be, so that’s something.
I’ve spent the past few days tracking literally everything I eat, and it has been very instructive. I’ve realized that two of the areas where i’m Still struggling are that my portions are too big, and i’m Still having days where I don’t eat lunch (because of being too busy), and I make up for it at dinner.
My goals, for now, will be to make eating lunch a priority, and to really focus on the portion sizes of what I put on my plate.
I’ll try to check in a little more often, too, because I could definitely use more accountability and inspiration from the other check ins and threads in this forum.
I’ll also hold off on updating my BMI, until I see whether these changes work for me.

Linda and oolala, Thanks!

Heather

Hi there Clarinetgal!
Hope March is going better for you.

Thanks, Auto!

Well, today is my day to recommit, so I hope the rest of the month goes better!
How are you?

Kudos on reduced night eating. THAT is a big one for so many people.

It's funny, usually when I miss a meal or go very long between meals, if I really pay attention, I get full faster than normal. But I used to just keep going.

For your purposes, it does sound like somehow insisting on some kind of lunch is a good habit for you to aim for, just so that there's no justifying overages at the next meal. Besides, if we always make up for the food we miss, how will there ever be a reason for the body to dip into those stores we want to get rid of?

Oolala, That is a good point, and my goal for this week, while my kids are on Spring Break, is to eat lunch every day.

Well, this past month has gone better. I managed to lose the 3 or so pounds I gained in February. My naturopath put me on a moderate-carb diet (around 200 g a day), and she wants me to be strictly dairy free for the next few weeks. She also wants me to do IF 2-3 days a week.
The moderate-carb diet part is going okay. I actually feel better, when I eat fewer carbs. Being strictly dairy free has had its ups and downs, mainly because there is literally no one else in my circle of family and friends who eats dairy free. It’s easy for me to eat dairy free at home, but it’s very hard, when I eat out, or i’m At a social gathering.
I have figured out one day where it’s easy to do IF (I stop eating at around 7 PM Friday night, and I don’t eat again until 11 AM or so on Saturday. I think Wednesdays might work, and i’ll Also try it on Sundays (except for today, because it’s Easter). The rest of the week is hard, because on the nights I have band rehearsals, I usually end up feeling hungry afterwards.
That’s it, for now! For this month, i’ll Continue to follow my naturopath’s recommendations, and i’ll Try to aim for doing IF 3 Days a week.

I’m just doing a quick check in. I’m at a bit of a loss, in terms of weight loss. I’ve been stuck in a plateau basically since January. I tried fasting, but unfortunately it didn’t work for me. I’ve had to take on a much more active role in my son’s therapy, plus i’m much busier with my music, so I feel like I need more constant energy. On the plus side, i’m doing a lot better with the No S habits! I’m consistently eating 3-4 meals a day, i’m Usually only eating at night if I haven’t had dinner yet, and the overeating I was doing at night has become far less frequent. I guess i’m At a point where I need to tweak what is on my plates — although my eating is mostly clean, so i’m Not sure how much more tweaking I can do. Maybe I just need to trust the process...

One weight loss guru I follow says “weight loss is an ugly science†and I believe it. Some people lose weight readily on a moderate diet and others don’t. At times I have felt like i’m doing about all I’m willing to do, and other times I feel there is considerable room for improvement and my weight is about the same either way. I am in a room for improvement moment 😆 Are you still doing moderate carbs?

Larkspur, Thanks, and i’m glad you understand. I never thought weight loss would be this hard, but I am not giving up. Yes, I am still doing moderate carbs. I feel my best when I eat that way.

Sorry the fasting didn’t work for you! I’m not trying to talk you into doing it but just know it takes about three weeks to adjust. Those 3 weeks will pretty much suck till your body is fat adapted. Then you should have more energy then ever, not less. That being said it may just not be a good time to have to deal sit( the adjustment period but maybe in the future.

Glad NoS is going well, though!

Linda

Thanks, Linda! I’m actually not going to rule out fasting entirely. I spent the past week not eating after dinner, because my family went on vacation to a camp that provided 3 meals for us, but nothing after dinner (except for the last night, when we had S’mores!), and going about 14 hours between dinner and breakfast actually felt really nice! I think I could probably do a bare minimum of 12-14 hours of fasting 5 Days a week. The only two days it really won’t work are Wednesday’s (I just started a Taekwondo class that runs from 6-7, and it’s pretty intense), and Thursdays (my band rehearsal).


As for how i’m Doing, i’m Still working on kicking the nighttime eating, but this past week showed me that I am more than capable of not eating after dinner. I did eat late yesterday night (I was tired), so I think that if I try going to bed earlier, then that should hopefully stop the nighttime eating.
I’m committed to eating 3 meals today, and breakfast went well, so two meals to go!

Breakfast: Trader Joe’s Peanut Butter protein granola with unsweetened vanilla almond milk, uncurled bacon, a clementine, coffee.

Update: Yesterday ended up being a mixed day. In terms of eating 3 meals and not eating after dinner, yesterday was a success. I did have two mini ice cream cones with dinner, which is why I would call the day a mixed day. I’m not ready for Vanilla No S, but I think I might be willing to take baby steps towards it, by having at least 1-2 Days a week (for now) where I don’t eat sweets.

Baby steps are great. Also a 12-14 hr fast combined with NoS could be very powerful!

Keep on tweaking—you’ll get there!

Linda

Thanks, Linda!

I’m still continuing to plug away at improving my eating habits. Yesterday was a good day. I did have a couple of small sweets, but they were with meals (or very close to meal time), and I ate 3 meals, with nothing after dinner except for a cup of tea.
Today will be a 4 meal day, because I have a Taekwondo class tonight, so I will eat something small before the class, and eat dinner after the class.
I will try to catch up on other check in threads a little later!

The past couple of days went pretty well. I did not eat after dinner on Tuesday or Wednesday, and every time I ate sweets, they were part of a meal. I normally treat Thursdays as an S day, and I did go sort of ‘hog wild’ yesterday, but i’m Okay with that. I’ll try to rein it in a little bit next Thursday, but I won’t be super strict about it. I plan on keeping my eating more structured today and tomorrow, because my son’s birthday is on Sunday (he turns 7), and we’re having a big party for him.

Have fun with your son tomorrow for the birthday party!

After playing around with different diets, or just not dieting, I think i’m Ready to start posting in here again! I’ve gotten heavily involved with doing Beachbody workouts the past several months, because Beachbody on Demand has a ton of 20-40 minute workouts on it, and that is about all of the time I have right now. I also use a Fitbit Alta HR, and I try to get at least 10,000 steps a day. However, Beachbody also has different diets, which I have not been crazy about. I don’t want to track how many containers I eat each day, and I don’t want to have to worry about hitting ratios of certain foods with each meal. I love the simplicity of just eating a plate of food at each meal and being done with it. Because of my schedule, I pretty much alternate between 3-4 meals a day, anyway. I have been trying to make my meals more focused on fruits and veggies, but I don’t want to obsess about it. I think i’ll Go back to using my 8 inch plates. I do have to go, so that’s it for now, but I will try to post more often.

Hi Clarinetgal! So happy to see you posting today! Lots of snow, yes?

Happy to see you back here too!

Happy birthday Clarinet Gal!

Hi, Auto! Thanks! Yes, we ended up with about 16 inches of snow. I’m guessing you had around the same? Thank you, Linda and Octavia!

Hello! It did take me a few days to get back on track after my birthday (which was Feb. 10), but I actually got back on track yesterday, on Valentine’s Day! I didn’t eat the healthiest, but I did eat 3 meals, and I ate nothing after dinner. I’m determined to stay on track today, also. I did get chocolates from my husband yesterday, so I will try to stick with eating a couple (no more than 3) with my dinner.

Happy late bday! It’s hard to get back on track sometimes so good for you! Enjoy your chocolates!

Thanks, Linda!
I’ve made it three days in a row with not eating after dinner! I want to try to establish this as a habit, this time. There will be some times where I have to eat late (like if I don’t get the chance to eat dinner before my band rehearsal), but I know it’s not good for you to eat too close to bedtime.

Hi Clarinetgal! Congrats on your late-night successes!

I seem to remember that the late-night eating has ALWAYS been the toughest part of moderate eating for you. My husband also has struggled with this. If he eats a big enough dinner he seems to do better, and the other trick for him is not having much snack-ey food in the house.

Snow is finally melting up here!!

Good job Heather! I think not eating too close to bedtime really helps with my reflux.

Keep up the good work!

Hi, Auto! Yes, late night eating has been a struggle for me for many years. I’ve found that some of the same tricks your husband uses have been helping me. I’ve been having a bigger dinner, and keeping less snack foods around. In the past week, i’ve Only eaten after 9 PM once!
Hi, Linda! Thanks! I struggle with reflux, too, and not eating after 9 PM has helped me to have less reflux.

I haven’t had too bad of a week! As I mentioned above, in the past week, I have only eaten after 9 PM once, and I didn’t enjoy it. Realistically, I will still have to eat later sometimes (it’s hard for me to eat dinner before my band rehearsals), but even if I just limit the late night eating to band rehearsal days, that will still be way better than what i’ve Been doing for a long time.
I may be tweaking my meals soon, because I really haven’t seen a change in the scale (in spite of exercising more intensely the past couple of weeks), but for now, I think i’ll Just focus on not eating late at night.

I feel your pain. Scales not budging on tbis end either. I really just want to be in maintenance already.

Great job on the not eating late. Mines so bad that i have to stop by 7pm although I usually go later on the weekends. Ive probably mentioned that ive used a wedge pillow in the past but it seems to help too for what its worth.

Thanks, Linda! I’ll have to look in to the wedge pillow.
Well, I slipped on not eating after 9 PM over the past few days, and I really don’t like it. I’ve come to use late night eating as a kind of sedative after my kids go to bed (my house is just really busy, and both boys are high maintenance), and I know I need to find a replacement behavior. Tea sort of works, so I will try that again. There are certain times (like the nights where I have rehearsals) that I don’t have time to eat dinner before rehearsal, and I have found that if I eat a Low Carb dinner at that time (like a bunless burger and a side salad), then I do better at controlling my eating for the rest of the night. I think I will play around with eating lower carb at night, and see if that helps.

For the previous two weeks, I had quite a few days where I slipped and ate at night. However, over the past week, I have done MUCH better about not eating at night, and better with my eating overall. I’ve made healthier choices, and i’ve Been forcing myself to eat lunch, which has resulted in not being nearly as hungry at night. I’m trying to take it one day at a time.

Glad this week was better. Definitely one day at time is the way to go. Ugh, why does eating have to be so hard?

Clarinetgal, something tells me that if we could combine your night-time energy with my morning-time energy we would have a woman of inexhaustible productivity.

I am back again. I’m still struggling with the same issues of overeating at night, and eating a bunch of extra carbs when i’m really tired. (Sigh). I’ve also been struggling with ongoing allergies and sinus issues, which hasn’t helped. Anyway, i’m back to the No S structure, which I like the best. I think i’m going to make a hard and fast rule for myself of not eating after 9 PM, except for on Thursday, when I have band (and it’s usually too difficult to eat much before rehearsal). I’m also going to really focus on going to bed earlier, since I think fatigue is a big part of my problem with overeating carbs. I’m also going to focus on No Snacks and No Seconds for now, because I don’t do well when I detox cold turkey from sweets.

Hi Clarinetgal! So glad to see your post today.

In my classes, I have students set study goals for themselves and also sleep goals (with a specific bedtime). I tell them to take their sleep just as seriously as their study time. Good luck getting that rest that your body needs.

Thank you, Auto! Setting a sleep goal is a great idea!
Yesterday wasn’t too bad. I was done eating at 7:45 PM. I ate a little too much yesterday, but it wasn’t overly excessive. I have done a decent job with staying on track today, so far, and my goal is to not eat after 9 PM again (and to get more sleep!).

It is good to see you back on board. I remember you when you joined and before you had your children I think. I am an old band girl too. My father was a university band director and I played flute...All State even! We have had a few community bands over the years, but they never lasted and it was difficult to keep up my playing. My dad commissioned some arrangements for flute/cello for his 90th birthday. My daughter was a cello major. He told me I had a year to get ready! And you know how band directors are. It was done.

Anyway, you know I think NoS is the best way to go and we make our own adjustments from that structure. I think when I was younger my music practice is what I did instead of eat. It was a good emotional outlet and you can't eat at the same time for sure!

I am back after a year away from here. I have spent the past year flirting with various Beachbody programs and diets, with almost nothing to show for it (with the exception being that my bloodwork and other health numbers, aside from weight and body fat, are really good). I have been perusing some of the check ins, and I realized that for now, I just need to return to sanity with food, and self control. I think the biggest thing I need to do right now is stop eating after dinner, a habit that has become much worse since the pandemic started. For the time being, I think I’m just going to focus on eating 3 plates of food, and on not eating after dinner. I’m still working on finding other ways to relax at night, and my community bands aren’t meeting, because of the pandemic. I am also shifting in my attitude towards working out. I literally did only Beachbody workouts for several years. I do like that Beachbody workouts are shorter, but none of them have the personality that my exercise dvd workouts have. I also started taking Taekwondo classes about 2 years ago, and I love them! I have to go, for now, but I will try to check in a little more frequently.

Hi, so good to “see” you again. I can’t believe it’s been a year! Definitely hard not to snack while being cooped up inside all day. That sucks you don’t have your music outlet either. I know how important that is to you.

Anyway GL and glad to see you back!

Thanks, Linda! It’s great to ‘see’ you, too! How have you been?
I would call today a success! I decided to use Life is a Blessing’s mod and allow myself sweets each day, as long as they fit on my plate. I’ll see how it goes!

B: Grande breve latte with sugar free cinnamon dolce syrup and a reduced fat turkey bacon and cheddar breakfast sandwich from Starbucks.

L: Vegan vanilla Shakeology with 1/2 C water and 1/2 C cold brew coffee, about 1 C frozen cherries, and about 1 C frozen cauliflower rice. Carrot sticks with Greek yogurt ranch style dip. 2 fun sized packs of M and Ms.

D: Coffee with Nut Pods creamer and collagen, 2 bunless uncured beef hotdogs with ketchup, mustard, and pickles. Left over salad from a Taylor Farms Asian salad kit. 1 fun sized Reeses. 1 small chocolate donut.

Hi Clarinetgal! I would say that having great bloodwork is a pretty huge positive, so I'm glad to hear that for you!
Lovely to see you on the boards, my fellow Washingtonian.

Hi, auto! It’s great to ‘see’ you again! Yes, hello to my fellow Washingtonian!

The past couple of days were rough, because I found out on Thursday there is a good chance I won’t have a teaching job next year, thanks to Covid. In August of 2019, I was hired to teach band and orchestra at a small private school in my area, and I LOVED it. The kids were great, and I felt like this job was where I was meant to be, and I had high hopes of being there for many years. Thanks to Covid, I don’t know what’s going to happen with teaching band and orchestra (and music/choir) in schools. It’s been hard enough not being able to go to rehearsals for the past couple of months, but my (more than likely) job loss really hit me on Thursday. I did eat way too much on Thursday and Friday. Friday night, however, I realized that since I more than likely won’t be busy with teaching next year, then I can use the next several months or so to really work on taking better care of myself.
Yesterday was a much better eating day. Since I always sleep in on Saturdays, I ended up having brunch and dinner, and I ate nothing after dinner. Today will be a normal 3 meal day, but I will again aim to eat nothing after dinner.

This post made me cry. After following you for years, and knowing the joy your music brings you, this is very very sad. I feel like you deserving something to go smoothly for you. Hugs, CG.

So sorry to read that Clarinetgirl, great you are positive about your eating.

Jx

Auto, Thank you. These past few months have been hard without my band rehearsals, and especially with the uncertainty about my job, but I’m trying to trust that at some point, this WILL end, and then I can get back to making music with my band friends again.
Soprano, Thank you.

Well, the past week didn’t go too well with my eating, but after doing a lot of thinking, I decided to focus on things I can control. I am committing to a workout program on Beachbody on Demand called Morning Meltdown 100 that has 100 20-30 minute workouts. I’ll use this program on the days I’m not doing my Taekwondo classes (my Taekwondo school was thankfully able to adapt to online classes when the quarantine started, and the dojang is opening up again on Monday!). I am also going to keep working on sticking to 3 plates with no eating after dinner. I’ll just take it one day at a time, and trust that I’ll eventually reestablish the habit again.

I think it’s important to be realistic and exercise always makes me feel better no matter what i weigh so that is a great place to focus your energy on. And yes this will eventually end!

Thank you, Linda! Exercise is one of the things that has helped keep me sane during all of the craziness of this year.
Today was a success! I stuck to 3 meals, and after dinner, I just had tea!

Happy Weekend, CG!

These past couple of weeks haven’t gone the best, eating wise. I’m not eating after dinner as much as I used to, so that is a positive. I have had several times over the past couple of weeks where I’ve snacked on carbs late in the afternoon, so that I would have enough energy to stay awake until my kids go to bed (which has been between 10-10:30, ever since Covid started). I haven’t been sleeping well, and according to my Fitbit stats, I’m getting mostly light sleep, and not a lot of deep or REM sleep. I’m not sure of the reason for that, at this point. I also don’t think my mod of allowing myself sweets with meals is working for me. I find it hard to stop at just one sweet. I actually tossed a bunch of sweets yesterday. I figured I would rather waste the money I paid for them, then add them to my waist (LOL!).
I will continue to commit to not eating after dinner. I may have to allow some additional coffee or tea in the afternoon between lunch and dinner, to see if that will help eliminate the afternoon snacking I’ve been doing lately, to keep my energy up. I’m thinking of experimenting with bringing a treat home for myself, my hubby, and my boys once or twice a week (but trying to limit it to one serving for each of us). I’m starting to get REALLY bored with still being mostly stuck at home thanks to Covid, and having a couple of days with a special treat should help. I guess I’m essentially going Vanilla No S!
I’ll see how this idea goes. At the very least, not snacking between lunch and dinner, and not eating after dinner, should help.

Sounds like you are really listening to your needs, CG. Keep doing that!

I personally don't prefer the mod of daily sweets. I know that people fear feeling deprived, but it just takes me a moment of imagining life for people before processed foods to get over that feeling....! In short, I think removing processed foods/sweets the vast majority of the time is actually a decent long-term strategy. Once we are away from those foods for long enough, the craving goes away.

I tried the daily sweet mod thing as well because I also had the feel of deprivation but in the long run I didn't like it. I have discovered I feel better with less sugar and if I just get into the habit of only having sweets on weekends, I don't want them during the week. It is nice to not feel like a slave to sweets anymore.

Those workouts sound serious! I hope they are going well for you.

I was letting myself have some desserty things during the week. But I just felt like I'm not getting anywhere, in spite of not snacking, so I am trying to just do Saturday. I do drink sweetened coffee as a crutch. Trying to stay out of the diet soda as well since for me it just seems to keep the cravings going. Good luck! I hope you're sleeping better!

Thank you, everybody!
I’m having mixed success with my eating. The no sweets during the week has been a huge struggle, but I will keep trying to work on it. I really would like to get to the point of not being a slave to sweets. HOWEVER, I am doing much better about not eating after dinner! In the past few weeks since I last checked in, I’ve only had 2 or 3 slip ups where I ate after dinner. I actually don’t even like how I feel when I eat too late at night. I have also stopped snacking between lunch and dinner. I’ve never been a huge fan of between meal snacking, but since Covid started, I would have certain days where I felt really tired and stressed in the afternoon, and I would eat a carb-heavy snack like chips.
I’m also finally starting to move away from Shakeology. I can’t justify the cost, and I don’t really like the taste of most of the flavors anyway. Plus, I never feel as satisfied when I have a shake for either breakfast or lunch.
That’s it, for now! At this point, I’m focusing more on habits. Eventually, a I’ll work on tweaking the contents of my plates, so that I can see some weight loss.

The more you can eat unprocessed food the more satisfying you will find your meals.

Sounds like you are heading in the right direction, well done

Jx

Congrats on not eating after dinner! For me, that was the HARDEST habit to break because I really felt like eating It was how I relaxed, wound down and did something just for me after a stressful day. I also over time have realized I don't like how I feel if I eat after dinner, too close to bedtime.

Hi CG! I hope you are enjoying this lovely weather we are having here in the Pacific Northwest! My favorite favorite times of the year. Doesn't last long but oh how it sings to my soul.

Thank you, everybody! Auto, Yes, I am definitely enjoying the gorgeous weather in the Pacific NW!
I’m still staying consistent with not eating after dinner, and my sweets consumption is getting less, which is a start! I’m starting to get to a point where as long as I stay active (which I am), stick to 3 meals a day (which I have been doing at least 95 percent of the time), don’t eat after dinner (which I’m getting better at), and continue to work on reducing my sweets (which I’m still working on), then maybe that should be enough for me, and I shouldn’t worry about weight loss anymore. It’s been a mental battle for me since my younger son was born (and, he’ll be 9 next month), and I want to free that space in my mind to think about other things besides weight loss.

You are doing great and I definitely believe letting go of weight loss goals is worthwhile. I like what Reinhard says about focusing on having ideal habits rather than ideal weight. When you have ideal habits you will be at your ideal weight. It may be higher than you’d hope for based in societies ridiculous expectations but it will be. A good & healthy weight for you.

Something I’m working on too. Acceptance of not fitting into stupid standards.

When you have ideal habits you will be at your ideal weight. It may be higher than you’d hope for based in societies ridiculous expectations but it will be a good & healthy weight for you.

Bravo, yes!!

lpearlmom wrote: ↑

Sun Aug 02, 2020 1:48 am

You are doing great and I definitely believe letting go of weight loss goals is worthwhile. I like what Reinhard says about focusing on having ideal habits rather than ideal weight.

When you have ideal habits you will be at your ideal weight. It may be higher than you’d hope for based in societies ridiculous expectations but it will be. A good & healthy weight for you.

Something I’m working on too. Acceptance of not fitting into stupid standards.

I love the bolded! It's such a good reminder and its so true. I need to remind myself of this often.

...I’m working on this too...