Hi, this is my introductory post though I have been lurking for years. I wanted to post out here in front of everyone that I am serious about this Way Of Eating--and witness my fear since I wrote this paragraph on June 27 and I am only just now posting it! It is the hardest thing ever. I have started this WOE dozens of times, and I'm not sure I have been able to stick to it for more than 2-3 days at a time.
My downfall is snacking on chips, candy, cookies, and ice cream. No-S is the plan for me, starting again right now. I am 5'2" , 61 yrs old, and probably 40 lbs overweight. I would like to progress in my 60s without getting hypertension and other life-style diseases. So far no problems, but I feel like I'm skating on thin ice. I want to get back on my bike and do some multi-day bike tours. I want to wear pretty clothes. Time for a change! I plan on vanilla No-S, but it will be hard getting from lunch to dinner, and then the thought of not eating from dinner to bedtime almost throws me into a panic attack. Also, I cook almost everything from scratch so it's really hard to do that and not continually taste-test!
There are other post-meno ladies on this forum, so I will have no excuses about how hard it is, hormonally-speaking. I have been wanting this gift forever and I'm the only one who can give it to me. Aren't I worth it?
now off to join the August Challenge....
A fresh start
Moderators: Soprano, automatedeating
Welcome! Look forward to reading your posts.
I cook everything from scratch as well. You'll get used to it. If I actually need to taste for seasoning, I get a teaspoon and take a small taste. Anything else is just snacking. I've come to love the feeling of cooking a great meal and coming to the table hungry, rather than full of all the bits I picked at before I got there.
I cook everything from scratch as well. You'll get used to it. If I actually need to taste for seasoning, I get a teaspoon and take a small taste. Anything else is just snacking. I've come to love the feeling of cooking a great meal and coming to the table hungry, rather than full of all the bits I picked at before I got there.
Yes, you are worth it.
I'm several years older than you and also cook everything from scratch. I've found that if I season as I go I don't need to taste most things. The exceptions are soups and sometimes stews, especially since I usually use water instead of stock or broth.
I use a teaspoon to taste and rarely fill it up.
I think that after you've cooked for awhile you know there are things that need more seasoning and things that need less. You know your preferences and those of the people you cook for and cook accordingly.
Over the weekend I saw a video of Marcella Hazan cooking with a young chef. The Chef offered her a taste of the dish and she refused, stating that she never tasted. She smelled. She took a whiff of the dish and told the chef it was good. The Chef tasted and it was good.
I'm several years older than you and also cook everything from scratch. I've found that if I season as I go I don't need to taste most things. The exceptions are soups and sometimes stews, especially since I usually use water instead of stock or broth.
I use a teaspoon to taste and rarely fill it up.
I think that after you've cooked for awhile you know there are things that need more seasoning and things that need less. You know your preferences and those of the people you cook for and cook accordingly.
Over the weekend I saw a video of Marcella Hazan cooking with a young chef. The Chef offered her a taste of the dish and she refused, stating that she never tasted. She smelled. She took a whiff of the dish and told the chef it was good. The Chef tasted and it was good.
"That which we persist in doing becomes easier for us to do. Not that the nature of the thing itself has changed but our power to do it is increased." -- Ralph Waldo Emerson
"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."
"You are what you eat -- so don't be Fast, Easy, Cheap or Fake."
I recently de-lurked myself and I'm also "a lady of a certain age" 
I also cook from scratch. Unless you are "tasting" the equivalent of a small meal, don't worry about the the tasting.
I find that keeping the process simple helps me stay focused. For me, I use the "sucks my energy" test for simplicity. I'm the caregiver of a 95 year old mother (currently in rehab for a broken hip) and I have 3 kids 15,14 and 10 years old. So, my test is: does this thing that I'm doing give me energy or suck my energy? If it gives me energy, e.g. Watching my kids play sports or reading a 'chicken soup' book to my mother or eating good healthy food in good healthy amounts, I keep doing it. If it sucks my energy, e.g. fussing at myself for imperfections. I talk to myself in the same voice I would use to talk to someone I love; ,explain to said self that it just isn't worth fussing over; make myself a cup of tea; make a plan of how to deal with whatever is sucking my energy; put the plan in action and let go of the worry. Yes, sometimes I have to do this a lot but eventually the fussing part of me does let it go.
So, I used a lot of words to say. Try to relax. Take your days minute by minute. Don't sugar coat your mistakes but don't hang onto them either.
I totally trust you to know how to best take care of yourself. You just have to learn how to trust you and the process will fall into place.
What are you making tonight? My kids asked for broccoli soup. . .
I also cook from scratch. Unless you are "tasting" the equivalent of a small meal, don't worry about the the tasting. I find that keeping the process simple helps me stay focused. For me, I use the "sucks my energy" test for simplicity. I'm the caregiver of a 95 year old mother (currently in rehab for a broken hip) and I have 3 kids 15,14 and 10 years old. So, my test is: does this thing that I'm doing give me energy or suck my energy? If it gives me energy, e.g. Watching my kids play sports or reading a 'chicken soup' book to my mother or eating good healthy food in good healthy amounts, I keep doing it. If it sucks my energy, e.g. fussing at myself for imperfections. I talk to myself in the same voice I would use to talk to someone I love; ,explain to said self that it just isn't worth fussing over; make myself a cup of tea; make a plan of how to deal with whatever is sucking my energy; put the plan in action and let go of the worry. Yes, sometimes I have to do this a lot but eventually the fussing part of me does let it go.
So, I used a lot of words to say. Try to relax. Take your days minute by minute. Don't sugar coat your mistakes but don't hang onto them either.
I totally trust you to know how to best take care of yourself. You just have to learn how to trust you and the process will fall into place.
What are you making tonight? My kids asked for broccoli soup. . .
Thank you for the warm welcome, everyone, and for all those hints. I'm having soup too! Mexican chicken soup, yummy. Out of the freezer, so no taste testing tonight. I was afraid I was not putting a "fence around the law" with taste testing. But see how I have already let that affect me? What a head game I play on myself! It's not like taste-testing my dinner is what has made me overweight! I need to think of that as the 20% and not the 80%. Sigh.
Hi Redrockin, welcome! I mostly cook from scratch and I'm 3 years younger than you. Yes, being post-menopausal is harder to get the larder off and keep it off, but No S is simple in terms of rules, the execution of those rules are a little harder, of course, but I know no other way as most here can testify.
I also am making stew tonight. I taste test it for salting purposes a couple of times. Just a bit on a teaspoon. I use a cookbook for a lot of things as I enjoy cooking different recipes. If I've made it before, I write down any adjustments and don't need to taste, at least no more than once! I wish you well!
I also am making stew tonight. I taste test it for salting purposes a couple of times. Just a bit on a teaspoon. I use a cookbook for a lot of things as I enjoy cooking different recipes. If I've made it before, I write down any adjustments and don't need to taste, at least no more than once! I wish you well!
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Donnadolittlemore
- Posts: 32
- Joined: Sun Nov 03, 2013 8:18 pm
- Location: Ohio
Love your post! I wish you well and want to tag along. I have been successful with this plan. However, summer hit and now preparing teenage girls for school... One excuse and stress after another. I have not been lurking. I have been completely avoiding. Your post motivated me. Rolling up my sleeves... Let's do this!
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catservant
- Posts: 89
- Joined: Wed Feb 08, 2012 4:02 pm
Re: A fresh start
I could be you...59 years old, 5' 2", and easily thrown into a panic attack at the thought of going from lunch to dinner or from dinner to breakfast without eating! I have tried many times to get started on No S. Never succeeded beyond a day or two. I've posted a few times, but in my heart I don't think I really have ever thought I could do this...so I haven't. So...today I started again because I am sick of treating myself without kindness and consideration. I'm also pretty sick of not being able to fit into my clothes! Hope you are doing well...I wish you great success on this journey!
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catservant
- Posts: 89
- Joined: Wed Feb 08, 2012 4:02 pm
That is great, catservant, and welcome! It's been rocky for me the past couple of weeks but now YOU have inspired me to get serious again. I find that I can manage lunch-to-dinner and dinner-to-bedtime if I deflect my mind from it. If I emphasize to myself that I cannot eat, I get anxious. If I can deflect my mind to other things, it's not hard. I can't even do that trick of brushing my teeth after dinner because that brings home too clearly that I should not be eating. Crazy, isn't it?
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aspencer27
- Posts: 298
- Joined: Fri Sep 16, 2011 8:26 pm
I am the same way! I definitely struggle with boredom eating, so I try to keep myself busy. I also find that some days on NoS are really easy and others are really hard for me. I think tracking and not getting overly concerned about the fails has actually helped me stay on track better and makes NoS easier overall. Good luck!