Teach5

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

Post Reply
Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Teach5

Post by Teach5 » Wed Sep 06, 2017 12:19 am

Week 2
S S-Day
M Fail
T Success
W Fail
T Fail
F Fail
S S-Day
Last edited by Teach5 on Sun Sep 10, 2017 12:43 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Sun Sep 10, 2017 10:44 am

Week 3
S S-Day
M Success...with lots of effort
T Fail
W Fail
T Fail
F Fail
S S-Day
Last edited by Teach5 on Fri Sep 15, 2017 11:05 pm, edited 5 times in total.

gingerpie
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 8:16 pm
Location: Pennsylvania, US

Post by gingerpie » Sun Sep 10, 2017 11:39 am

Hi, nice to see you back. Best of luck in the coming week.

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Sun Sep 10, 2017 12:43 pm

Thank you, gingerpie.

This isn't as easy as I thought it would be, so I definitely need the encouragement.

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Sun Sep 10, 2017 3:16 pm

May I ask what gets in the way? Would you be willing to ease yourself into it rather than go cold turkey?

It's heartening that you are still going forward!
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

gingerpie
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 8:16 pm
Location: Pennsylvania, US

Post by gingerpie » Sun Sep 10, 2017 3:31 pm

This isn't as easy as I thought it would be, so I definitely need the encouragement.
I sure can relate to this!! :roll: If you are able to identify what is giving you a problem and are comfortable sharing, we may be able to offer ideas to help problem solve.

Kind regards,

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Sun Sep 10, 2017 6:39 pm

Well, my struggle is sweets. They have been a struggle my whole life. I get intense cravings for sweets which usually leads to overeating all things starchy too.

gingerpie
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 8:16 pm
Location: Pennsylvania, US

Post by gingerpie » Tue Sep 12, 2017 10:13 am

I actually gave up sweets before I started no-s. It wasn't easy that's for sure! :roll: It was very motivational for me to watch a video by Dr. Robert Lustg about sugar/high fructose corn syrup. I think it's called "Sugar the Bitter Truth" but I'm not sure about that and it's 90 minutes long so You have to have a bit of free time. You can find it on youtube.

I used every trick I could think of to get past the first couple weeks.
1) I refused to buy anything sugary.
2) I got my husband on board (more or less)
3) I'd drink a glass of milk when I'd crave sugar
4) I read motivational articles/books

Most importantly, I never gave up. If I ate something sweet at 8:00 I was back on my plan at 8:05. Just because you slip up doesn't mean you have to give up. After about 2 weeks. Sweet things just didn't taste as good and I didn't crave it quite so much. I still slip up sometimes it's still much better than when I started.

Oh, and learning to accept the struggle was very important also. Cravings come and go and when I learned to live comfortably with that idea it helped me relax a bit. I can crave something but that doesn't mean I have to eat it

I hope this helps some. Good luck to you this week.

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Tue Sep 12, 2017 12:22 pm

Sweets are a controversial area. In theory, I now believe we'd be better of without them at all, but I still have 'em. I had a lot of wild S days over them, but that's basically over now. There are odds on quitting them entirely,and then there's the individual convinced of the value of that.

But say or do whatever you need to to get through N days without them, even if it means phasing them out. And know that any panicky feeling you have about that is definitely a sign that they're actually NOT necessary. If you decide to fail, by the way, savor it! Don't sneak or rush. That will interrupt the pattern and interrupting the pattern at any stage is useful.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Thu Sep 14, 2017 12:03 am

Thanks for the advice. I have to make some changes. I am not sure which changes to make yet. I agree with much of what the two of you said. It is kind of scary to feel this bound to food. I mean there is so much to eat in this world. Why should I be so bound to sweets and starches AND so afraid to let them go?

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Thu Sep 14, 2017 2:09 am

Being afraid to let them go IS being bound to them. You're not alone in this at all. Most of overweight America is bound to them and some of not-overweight America, too.

There are tons of theories of why you crave sweets. Just concentrate on saying NO to them on N days no matter why you like them so much. You can decide how much more you want to close the window to them later. I know you want this to be over yesterday, but it isn't.

There IS a lot of food. That's why No S is so wise. Limit the access to food just to meals except for SOMEtimes. You can't know ahead of time what your SOMETIMES will be.

Think about what besides weight loss you'd like from No S. Have faith that you will get it in time, but realize you have to live it to get it. You won't get it by looking forward to it but not walking the walk.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Mon Sep 18, 2017 11:23 pm

Week 4

S S-day
M Fail
T Fail
W Fail ...maybe I need medical help :(
T Fail
F Fail
S S-day
Last edited by Teach5 on Fri Sep 22, 2017 11:27 pm, edited 4 times in total.

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Mon Sep 18, 2017 11:24 pm

I made it longer today without sweets and snacks than I have any other day. Everything came undone after dinner time.

gingerpie
Posts: 1031
Joined: Sun Apr 06, 2014 8:16 pm
Location: Pennsylvania, US

Post by gingerpie » Tue Sep 19, 2017 12:25 am

Now you know you can do it. Tomorrow aim for just a little bit longer. Maybe a half hour or an hour later than today. You know you can make it to after dinner because you did it today. How did things come undone? Is it possible to eliminate the sweets and snacks from the house? For a while I would only buy sweets or snacks on the day I planned to eat it so I wouldn't have any extra in the house. So, Friday afternoon I would stop on my way home from work and buy what I wanted for the night. Then again on Saturday I'd do the same. You can't eat it if it's not in the house. Yes, it was a bit of a pain but it was effective.

Good luck.

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Tue Sep 19, 2017 1:28 am

Hi gingerpie. Yes, you are right I did do it today. I made it through the dreaded 3:00 sugar call. My husband and my children have snacks and sweets in the house. I usually end up grabbing their stuff.

I have been trying to think about why I made it until after dinner and why I crashed after dinner. These are the things I thought of.

1. I had a lot more at lunch than normal. I did have a sweet available to me at my desk and I still managed not to eat it.

2. I eat lunch at about 11:30, and I didn't sit down to dinner until 6:15. I wasn't extremely hungry, but I did have strong cravings.

3. I had a reasonable amount at dinner, but I suppose I could have or rather should have eaten more.

4. I felt really stressed because I was tired but I had so much more work to do before I could sit down. I think I was worried about getting everything done.

5. I started making the children's lunches for tomorrow right after dinner and that is where the snacking began. A little nibble here; a tiny bit there....but I didn't stop.

Those are the things that may have influenced today's success and failure. Let me know what you think. Please!

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Tue Sep 19, 2017 4:12 am

For me, it was recognizing a lot of mental justifying of what I was doing, and it was all basically bogus. Reasons paled against the truth that I can have three meals, and that it's no more than irritating, either mildly or intensely, but not dangerously, to have to fast between those meals. Nothing MAKES me eat the food. Situations can make me WANT to eat more, but they can't MAKE me. Only me deciding to put the food in my mouth, slowly or quickly, does that. And only I can change the habit by NOT doing that. Replace the usual reinforcement with a new pairing: having a food-free block of time. Fill it with whatever, but not gambling or cigarettes.

You want to be a meal-eater. Meal-eaters do not "grab" food. If you are grabbing food, drop it.

It can pay to eat rather generously at meals for awhile, especially the meal before the toughest part of the day, as much to to convince yourself you can't possibly really need ANY food before that next meal as to dampen hunger.

You can have the snack foods AT A MEAL. Yes, you will probably want more later, but see above.

Try thinking that the sweets ARE NOT YOURS UNTIL THE WEEKEND. They're just not. You are depriving yourself of the delight of conquering them and enjoying them so much more when you've "been apart" for several days by having them before that. Yes, you might overdo them when you get the chance to eat them at first, but give yourself some time to deal with that later.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Sun Sep 24, 2017 12:19 pm

Week 5

S S Day
M S Day - dental issues :(
T
W
T
F
S S Day

I have decided to add two modifications.

1. I am quitting sweets, even on SDays. I think that eating them on weekends fuels the cravings and makes compliance during the week harder. I will still allow savory snacks on SDays.

2. I am going to be mindful about my carbohydrates. I will not count grams or remove them completely. I will just be sure that I am not eating too much starch with a meal. I will try to choose whole starches/grains when ever possible, but I will eat refined ones too. I hope this will also help with cravings.

I will be adding in 2 days of body weight exercises this week. Last week I did one day. It felt good. I want to get up to four days.
Last edited by Teach5 on Mon Sep 25, 2017 7:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

ladybird30
Posts: 1118
Joined: Sun May 07, 2017 10:41 pm

Post by ladybird30 » Sun Sep 24, 2017 10:30 pm

Hi Teach5 - your post made me think about my own approach to sweets. NoS for me is about permanent, maintainable changes that I can live with, not just during a short term weight loss, but for ever.

Some sweet foods I gave up some time ago - the momentary pleasure wasn't worth the ill effects on my body. Others I have not eaten for a while, but I think it is entirely unrealistic that I will go the rest of my life without for example eating chocolate. But at the moment, the memory of how the last lot of chocolate awakened my food cravings is stronger than my desire to indulge.

I still eat some sweet foods occasionally on S days. They are foods lower on the food reward spectrum - ie not highly desirable fat & sugar confections. I get the pleasure of something sweet without awakening cravings or guilt. As I eat pretty well sugar free during the week, a packet of dates will do the trick nicely on the weekends.

This is working for me at the moment. I was wondering when you say you are quitting sweets, is this for ever? Christmas? birthdays? I am mostly an abstainer, but I like having the mental out of S occasions.

all the best, Ladybird
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Mon Sep 25, 2017 7:40 pm

Hi Ladybird, I do intend this to be for life...at least that is my thinking right now. I will incorporate fruits unless I notice cravings. It could change. I will have to try it and see if I can handle it.

However...

Today threw me a curve ball. I went in for an simple dental procedure and left with an extracted tooth. I am limited for the next few days to soft, cold or room temperature foods. Today, I have had scrambled eggs and pudding. I think mash potatoes might be the dinner. My modifications will have to wait.
:(

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Mon Sep 25, 2017 9:01 pm

A lot of foods will blend into soup pretty well, even rice (as your whole grain) if you have some broth around.
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Wed Oct 11, 2017 2:07 am

I became a little frustrated with this whole process and gave up for awhile. I am ready to give it another go.
I still intend to be mindful of my carbohydrate intake, but not count grams of anything. I did decide that I will allow myself to have semi-dark chocolate on SDays instead of totally abstaining from all sugar.

NO S
Week 1 -restart

W Success
Th Success
Fr Fail
Sa S
Sa S Day
Su S Day
Mo Fail
Tu Success

Exercise

Week 1 -restart

W :D
Th
Fr
Sa
Su
Mo
Tu :D
Last edited by Teach5 on Tue Oct 17, 2017 11:42 pm, edited 6 times in total.

oolala53
Posts: 10059
Joined: Mon Oct 06, 2008 1:46 am
Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Wed Oct 11, 2017 12:57 pm

Good for you! Sometimes it helps to back off for awhile and get convinced again that it's worth another circling the airport.

I also made a conscious decision early on to eat fewer servings of starches than I had been. I think of it more like pretending I come from a culture that eats that way and I'm just getting back to my roots. (though I'm "from a different culture" than that, for now. )
Count plates, not calories. 11 years "during"
Age 69
BMI Jan/10-30.8
1/12-26.8 3/13-24.9 +/- 8-lb. 3 yrs
9/17 22.8 (flux) 3/18 22.2
2 yrs flux 6/20 22
1/21-23

There is no S better than Vanilla No S (mods now as a senior citizen)

User avatar
Gracie
Posts: 62
Joined: Fri Oct 06, 2017 5:30 pm

Post by Gracie » Wed Oct 11, 2017 1:02 pm

Good luck, Teach5! I'd like to mimick oolala's words... sometimes stepping away from a situation is helpful in allowing one to have a much-needed breather and prep for a successful restart.

I'm rooting for you! Let us know how the days treat you. :)
28 year old who believes that true growth comes from stepping outside of your comfort zone.
Fun-sized (4'10"), fun-loving, and on a journey to embrace a healthy and practical approach to food.
SW (10/9): 118#
CW (11/6): 113#
GW: 105#

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Wed Oct 11, 2017 11:35 pm

Hi ladies! Thanks for the encouragement.

Teach5
Posts: 17
Joined: Sat Aug 26, 2017 7:29 pm

Post by Teach5 » Tue Oct 17, 2017 11:45 pm

I had three green days for my first week. I also managed to exercise 2 days.
Week 2 starts tomorrow.

NO S
Week 2-restart

W Success
Th
Fr
Sa S Day
Su S Day
Mo
Tu

Exercise

Week 2 -restart

W
Th
Fr
Sa
Su
Mo
Tu

Post Reply