Steph's Daily 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.

Moderators: Soprano, automatedeating

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StephC
Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2016 11:37 pm
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

Steph's Daily Check-in

Post by StephC » Fri Oct 21, 2016 3:21 pm

I'm new here, looking for a way to stop thinking about food so much! Actually, I stumbled upon the site a couple of years ago but didn't stick around long before I found something harder I wanted to try. Why make it easy when you can make it difficult???? :roll:

What brings me here is an interest in cutting out the snacks and putting some parameters around sweets (including alcohol, for me). I'm fortunate that I enjoy exercise and am healthy enough to run as a hobby. One result is that I don't need to lose any weight. But I may not always be able to exercise the way I want, as I see from my friends who are just a bit older than me. And I'm tired of trying having my good fitness habits undermined by poor eating choices.

I tend to eat healthy food (home cooking with no prepared foods--lots of veggies, fruits, lean protein), but when I work from home, I just pile on the snacks. I go from sweet, to salty, back to sweet, a little dairy, a couple crackers, etc. When I plug it all into a calorie counter, I find that I'm getting 1/3 of my total calories just from snacks! The truly damaging part is that it occupies so much mental space, and that I almost feel FEARFUL at the prospect of doing a complex task without a snack to keep me company.

I look forward to learning from you all!
Vanilla No-S + Alcohol on S-days only. For simplicity and sanity.
BMI 20.5, weight 135 (Oct. 2016)

bunsofaluminum
Posts: 339
Joined: Sun May 15, 2016 4:02 pm

Post by bunsofaluminum » Fri Oct 21, 2016 3:26 pm

Hi StephC

Welcome! Food sanity is coming your way :)

StephC
Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2016 11:37 pm
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

Post by StephC » Fri Oct 21, 2016 9:06 pm

Thanks so much, bunsofaluminum! Your words are music to my ears.
Vanilla No-S + Alcohol on S-days only. For simplicity and sanity.
BMI 20.5, weight 135 (Oct. 2016)

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Merry
Posts: 1658
Joined: Mon Sep 22, 2008 2:14 am

Post by Merry » Sat Oct 22, 2016 3:51 am

Welcome! NoS is a great approach for your goals, and I think you'll enjoy the simplicity :-).
Homeschool Mom and No S returnee as of 11-30-15.
2 years and counting on No-S.
29 lbs. down, 34 to go. Slow and steady wins the race.
Respect Moderation

Imogen Morley
Posts: 1022
Joined: Sun Mar 21, 2010 1:11 pm

Post by Imogen Morley » Sat Oct 22, 2016 3:57 pm

Good luck on your journey! Keep us posted on your progress.

ModBod
Posts: 78
Joined: Fri Oct 07, 2016 3:00 pm
Location: Europe!

Post by ModBod » Sat Oct 22, 2016 5:08 pm

Welcome StephC! I'm new, too - been here since the start of october. It's a great system, and everyone's very chatty on the boards :)
I'm looking to lose about 12lbs...
31.09: 65.7kg/144.8lbs, BMI-25.7!
14.10: 64.9kg/143lbs, BMI - 25.4!

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kaalii
Posts: 745
Joined: Sun Apr 24, 2016 9:42 pm
Location: switzerland

Re: Steph's Daily Check-in

Post by kaalii » Sat Oct 22, 2016 6:45 pm

hi and welcome, steph!
i love your reasons to join noS...
and that you like to exercise...
StephC wrote: I almost feel FEARFUL at the prospect of doing a complex task without a snack to keep me company.
this made me chuckle a bit, dont know why... probably laughing at my old self...

i know the feeling... and it is gone with noS... such a relief to not have that weird fear any more...
Age:40
BMI: 18.8
Body Fat %: 17.6
in it for maintenance and, more importantly, sanity!!

StephC
Posts: 9
Joined: Thu Oct 20, 2016 11:37 pm
Location: Winston-Salem, NC

Post by StephC » Tue Oct 25, 2016 9:42 pm

Thanks so much for the support, everyone! How's my fellow newbie, ModBod?

I guess I'm counting today as a RED/fail, mainly to keep myself to STRICT rules. I haven't snacked or had sweets, but I popped a couple of sugar snap peas into my mouth while making my lunch salad and decided only AFTER I made up my lunch plate that I should eat the rest of the salmon cake I made. So if I'm putting a fence around it, the peas were a snack and the rest of the salmon cake was "seconds."

But that's OK, as a failure doesn't have to be a bad thing, right? And it teaches me to be a little more generous with my lunch, since trying to have a modest salad and then power through until dinner is part of what's been triggering my snack-happy afternoons in the first case....
Vanilla No-S + Alcohol on S-days only. For simplicity and sanity.
BMI 20.5, weight 135 (Oct. 2016)

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