Friyay's 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.

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Friyay
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Friyay's check in

Post by Friyay » Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:21 pm

Hello, all. I began No S for the first time on Monday. So far my record is:

Day 1: SUCCESS
Day 2: SUCCESS
Day 3: SUCCESS
Day 4: SUCCESS

All that green is nice. Food tastes better, and it is so freeing to be able to eat whatever sounds good for each meal (except for sweets, of course).

I have been so hungry, though. Satiety lasts for maybe two hours after a meal, then my mouth begins to water, then my tummy begins to rumble and cramp. Yesterday I had some milk between meals because I really couldn't stand it, though I'd rather not do that very often if it can be helped.

I make a point to have some protein with every meal, because I have hypoglycemia issues (and amazingly, my blood sugar has felt fine all week). My plates are certainly full, and I am certainly eating to the point where I can feel it at each meal. I guess this is just an adjustment period. Anyway, if I'm feeling so hungry, I MUST be set up to lose some weight, right...?

Whosonfirst
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Post by Whosonfirst » Sat Mar 24, 2018 1:43 am

Good start and welcome. You say your plates are full, but you're hungry two hours after meals. What are you putting on your full plates? I've found that protein, and good fats hold me better than anything. If you drink milk, make it the full fat, and not skim. Cheeses are good, again, not the low-fat variety. If you drink coffee with milk or some substitute, use cream or half and half instead.
https://twitter.com/SipeEngineering
Current weight(9/2020)-212 lbs.
Goal Weight- 205 lbs.
NoS Goal: >= 80% Success days

ladybird30
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Post by ladybird30 » Sat Mar 24, 2018 2:45 am

Good luck Friyay. Remember, you are not dieting, you are establishing long term habits. So your meals need enough calories from energy dense carbs or fats as well as protein and vegies or fruit. If you experiment, you may find the nice balance which will keep you comfortable after meals but still satisfied until the next one.

I remember when I was hungry two hours after a meal that filled my stomach. Lean protein plus vegetables simply wasn't enough calories for me.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Sat Mar 24, 2018 4:07 am

Thank you both for your replies. Maybe some of my plates haven't had enough fat on them to get the calorie count where it should be.

Breakfast has been two eggs, fruit, and some kind of carb--oatmeal, whole wheat rolls, shredded wheat.

One lunch was lots of sushi and an orange--not much fat there. Another was a big ham and tomato sandwich with an orange. Seems like an old-timer would think that was just fine. My dad would have given me the stinkeye for eating a whole sandwich instead of just a half.

Dinners have been, for example, pork and broccoli stir fry with rice, or spaghetti with meat sauce, and one night--the only night I didn't get crazy hungry before bed--Turkish mezze, which has lots of oil and fiber. I didn't wonder why I didn't feel hungry that night because it seemed like a lot of calorific food. Maybe all the vegetables and bulgur wheat balanced that out.

It's been years since I've eaten full plates of food, so this all feels weird. Years since I ever ate until I felt full. Rather, I noshed all day.

I'm having lots of trust issues about whether this will lead to weight loss or not, given that eating until I'm full is so unfamiliar, but there's nothing to do about that except keep working it for a long period of time.

I will try adding a little more fat to meals that seem skimpy on it.

Oh, and:

Day 5: SUCCESS. On to my first weekend!

osoniye
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Post by osoniye » Sat Mar 24, 2018 1:45 pm

My rule of thumb these days is half the plate fruit/veg and half heavier foods. About 1T olive oil or some other fat at each meal. This seems to be working for me at the moment as far as (re)losing weight.
-Sonya
No Sweets, No Snacks and No Seconds, Except (Sometimes) on days that start with "S".

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Sun Mar 25, 2018 4:27 am

osoniye, adding more low-calorie foods seems counterintuitive if I'm having satiation problems, but I have experienced in the past that whatever fiber/water/nutrients vegetables offer will actually increase the satiation factor of a meal. I will be more conscious of including veg in my meals in the coming week. This past week was great for fruit--I usually hold back my tendency to eat it, but I've let loose a bit now.

Today was my first S Day. It was fine. I don't feel bloated or out of control. I was keenly aware of how disorganized my eating was today, which is new, also the treats I had tasted AMAZING. Way more than they would have if I wasn't coming off a week of N days.

The headache and irritability that dogged me during the week didn't go away with a sugar hit, so I guess something else is to blame. Might be changing seasons, allergies, hormones, who knows.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Tue Mar 27, 2018 4:18 am

Monday Monday. I caught up on sleep over the weekend, which helped the headache and irritability.

Day 7: S DAY
Day 8: SUCCESS (?)

Okay. My young daughter, who has had a lot of disappointments lately and who has gotten clingy, really wanted me to eat some Pez with her. So I ate about six pieces of Pez. It was not technically a green day, it was a red day. But I didn't eat the Pez because I wanted it, and it was about as much sugar as if I'd put sugar in my tea or on my oatmeal, the way Reinhard has no problem with. So I feel like it was a green day, even if it technically wasn't. My willpower didn't give in (I find the absolute nature of NoS very comforting), my humanity did.

oolala53
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Post by oolala53 » Tue Mar 27, 2018 5:07 am

I'm repeating what's here, but anyway, though there's so much on the web about protein protein protein and satiety, I find it's fat that makes the difference. For one thing, it's so dense, you can eat it and not feel too stuffed right then, in case you're feeling that trying to eat more starch. veg, and protein is volume is to much volume. You know, getting way full because of veg but not that much later. I did use it for years, but have been slowly emptying out my fridge of protein and starches before I buy any more. I've been out of Greek yogurt, eggs and cottage cheese for weeks, though I've had meat and fish from freezer and cans. But it's meant that I have meals with mostly carb and some fat, and lo and behold, I don't get any more hungry than I usually do.

I don't know what's up because your meals sound fine. You may have to give up on weight loss for a bit before you find some kind of compromise between hunger and loss.

I recently had that feeling that I might not be able to sleep because of hunger. I honestly never had that in the beginning and rarely ever. It's ture that it's not fun, and can be harder because you have nothing else but trying to get to sleep to occupy yourself before the next meal.

I'm curious to know if you wake up ravenous. I can't tell you how many times I've gone to bed after not much dinner, promising myself a gargantuan breakfast if I just don't give in and awakened with no desire to go to town. But I wasn't starved when I went to sleep.

Maybe you need to start with a mod and have a snack somewhere. Then practice adding that amount of food to the meal before the snack and later cut back on the extra food. When I started, I forced myself to eat about the same amount of food, but in three meals. Eventually, I was down to the meals without the extra food.
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)

Friyay
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Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:16 pm

Post by Friyay » Tue Mar 27, 2018 3:44 pm

Last week I was indeed waking up ravenous. Being hungry right away in the morning has always been my metric for identifying calorie deficits, so that part was great, but the not-sleeping part took a serious toll. Dinner is often 4-5 hours before my bedtime, and for various family reasons I can't see that changing much.

So last night I introduced a mod: an official bedtime snack. Or meal. Or whatever. It's tightly scripted: yogurt mixed with Fiber One cereal. I really need it to fall asleep.

And I did sleep well last night, and wasn't hungry upon wakeup this morning. So I'm working with it. I'll figure it out.

automatedeating
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Post by automatedeating » Tue Mar 27, 2018 3:49 pm

Hi! I don't know if you already explained where you are weight-wise, but you are sounding like a thin person with a fast metabolism! :) If that's not the case, it might be a nice image to have of yourself. :lol: :lol:
Month/Year-BMI
8/13-26.3
8/14-24.5
5/15-26.2
1/16-26.9; 9/16-25.6
8/17-25.8; 11/17-26.9
3/18-25.6; 8/18-24.5; 10/18-23.8;
3/19-22.1; 10/19-21.8
6/20-22.5; 7/20-23.0; 9/20-23.6
4/21 - 25.2

Friyay
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Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:16 pm

Post by Friyay » Tue Mar 27, 2018 4:09 pm

Haha, not a thin person. Female, late 30s, 5'6", 205 pounds. I have an advantage in never having succeeded at severe calorie restriction diets, so I've never slowed my metabolism down that way. My FitBit says I burn between 2300 and 2400 calories on a normal day (though gardening season is coming up, when I sometimes hit 3000).

I have some strikes against me on the weight loss front: PCOS with insulin resistance, thyroid disease.

I've lost 10 pounds twice in my life. Once when I was 20, by mad exercising for an hour every day. Second using the old WW Core program, which I was able to follow when living by myself and not socializing much, but which I just can't manage now that I have a family.

oolala53
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Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Tue Mar 27, 2018 4:38 pm

If you burn that much-ah youth-, it must mean you are eating about that much when you maintain. Unless you have some kind of leptin shortage or something that is preventing the signal to burn fat. That's challenging. I know I would be absolutely stuffed on 2000 cal. a day now as a senior citizen, never mind 2300-2400., but maybe you wouldn't. In your case, if you're willing, you might consider tracking for a few days to see where you're at. If it turns out you're eating a lot less than that, that may just be too little for you for now. I know diet programs often say to cut 500 calories a day, but we see how successful that is in the long run.

I was thinking it might be fake hunger, but that's not usually an issue before bedtime.

You might be someone who does need to eat more often, in which case you could fix your plates of food, but eat them in stages.

I hope that's not what you'll need as it means have food around to eat all the time, but something's gotta give!
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)

Friyay
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Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:16 pm

Post by Friyay » Wed Mar 28, 2018 4:22 am

Day 9: SUCCESS

The hunger wasn't quite as bad today. Certainly my mouth didn't water as much. Breakfast was too thin, so I was ravenous in the morning, but my lunch and dinner both lasted a good 3-4 hours before I started feeling hungry again. So maybe this is just an adjustment period. I don't think I've ever in my life not had an afternoon snack before. Old habits are hard to break.

I did find myself wandering into the kitchen as if for a snack today, for the first time since I started. Even opened the fridge and pantry a couple times, then remembered and shut them quick.

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Octavia
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Post by Octavia » Wed Mar 28, 2018 9:45 am

Hi Friyay! Thanks for dropping by my thread the other day.

Just wanted to add, I too was always physically hungry two hours or so after a meal, in my early No S days. I used juice, milk, and lots of coffee and tea, to get by. One day I was so desperate I had a cuppa soup. It all helped establish the non-snacking habit. Sure enough, I started to suffer less hunger as the weeks went on, and the hunger I did get was more tolerable. Now I find that if I’m caught short, very hungry in a situation where I need full concentration, I’ll have an orange juice. The whole experience has made me realise what a terrible habit snacking is - how it perpetuates hunger! I wonder if our bodies are conditioned to expect food at those times, and produce insulin in anticipation? Maybe that’s why we get so hungry after having a proper sized meal. That’s how it felt for me...though sometimes I have to make sure my meals are a bit bigger and more protein-rich.

Good to hear that your hunger signals are getting a bit less strong! And that you managed to shut that fridge door... :lol:

oolala53
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Post by oolala53 » Wed Mar 28, 2018 4:20 pm

I don't know if it's insulin that does it, but it definitely conditions expectation to eat more often. Brad Pilon, a convert to fasting after some revealing research for his masters, said even after several years of fasting for 20-24 hours once or twice a week, if he has a lunch date, he is antsy as heck if the person is late.
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)

automatedeating
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Joined: Sat Aug 31, 2013 2:16 pm

Post by automatedeating » Thu Mar 29, 2018 3:00 am

Octavia, I also don't know if it's actually insulin, but I have totally had that same logical thinking. I've read pubmed studies where the "expectation" of food at predictable intervals does cause a phase I insulin release -- so theoretically, if you don't get to eat right away, your falling blood sugar could theoretically cause frustrating hunger!
Month/Year-BMI
8/13-26.3
8/14-24.5
5/15-26.2
1/16-26.9; 9/16-25.6
8/17-25.8; 11/17-26.9
3/18-25.6; 8/18-24.5; 10/18-23.8;
3/19-22.1; 10/19-21.8
6/20-22.5; 7/20-23.0; 9/20-23.6
4/21 - 25.2

oolala53
Posts: 10059
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Location: San Diego, CA USA

Post by oolala53 » Thu Mar 29, 2018 4:03 am

Did anyone see the camp movie Little Shop of Horrors that introduced Jack Nicholson in small role? Aside from that, it was about a carnivorous plant that talked and got the plant shop clerk to keep getting it bigger and bigger prey. The plant got so big it could eat humans. It would say loudly, "Feed me! Feed me!" A metaphor before its time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mt9wVzkPwrY
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)

Friyay
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:16 pm

Post by Friyay » Thu Mar 29, 2018 4:27 am

Yeah, we have wild blackberry around here that says that. Usually when we're whacking it back in the spring. The stuff is carnivorous. It wants blood.

Day 10: SUCCESS

This was the easiest N-day yet. I'm feeling good about things. Really hoping that it continues to get easier.

Friyay
Posts: 32
Joined: Fri Mar 23, 2018 4:16 pm

Post by Friyay » Fri Mar 30, 2018 5:12 am

Day 11: SUCCESS

Easiest day yet. Also, surprised to realize it's Thursday and I haven't really plotted what sweets I'm going to eat over the weekend.

Oh, okay. Easter candy. You got me.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Sat Mar 31, 2018 5:00 am

DAY 12: SUCCESS (?)

Another day that was a success other than eating a couple bites to make my kid happy. Food isn't just fuel, it's an integral part of human bonding, and I'm not going to refuse a couple mini-pretzels from my kid on a special day out. If that makes the day a failure then it was a failure, but I feel like it was a success.

Into the weekend. Monday will be a full-fledged S day, too.

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lpearlmom
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Post by lpearlmom » Mon Apr 02, 2018 5:54 am

I think you’ve got the right attitude. Great job!

PS thanks for the encouragement on my page. You will definitely reach your goal. It’s a slow process but so much more enjoyable than a traditional diet. Just keep on keeping on.
:twisted: SW: 210 lbs
CW: 172
GW:160

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Tue Apr 03, 2018 7:56 pm

Thanks, lpearlmom. I see you had a significant weight loss in 2015...what prompted that? Was it just a matter of getting in the NoS groove?

Anyway, we're back from our mini-vacay.

Day 13: S DAY
Day 14: S Day
Day 15: S Day (?)

Yesterday I decided to take as an S day because we were out enjoying ourselves at a resort. I stuck surprisingly close to N Day restrictions, though. Only a handful of potato chips before dinner, otherwise I was on track.

Now back in the groove after a run of three S Days. At the end of last week I was beginning to instinctively experiment with smaller meals. My body seems to have gotten the message that snacks are out, and I'm not so bothered by hunger as I was in week 1. We'll see what happens in week 3.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Wed Apr 04, 2018 5:03 am

Day 16: SUCCESS

Now that Easter's over, I want to plan to bake something really nice on the weekend for my treat. Some kind of dense cake with lots of fruit and a crumble topping. Maybe almonds should be involved.

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lpearlmom
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Location: Arizona

Post by lpearlmom » Wed Apr 04, 2018 5:22 am

Hi Friyay! My husband had a heart attack in 2015 and we both got super motivated to get healthy. I kept the NoS structure but added a lot of exercise and ate healthier. I think the fact that I’ve kept it off for so long is because of NoS. I still have another 20-30 lbs to lose so am now doing Intermittent fasting along with NoS to hopefully achieve that goal. Either way I’m so much healthier and happier than I was three years ago.

Thanks for asking!

Linda
:twisted: SW: 210 lbs
CW: 172
GW:160

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Fri Apr 06, 2018 4:18 am

DAY 17: SUCCESS
DAY 18: SUCCESS

It's easy and sensible, now. Today I didn't eat lunch until after 1. I wasn't desperate for dinner, either.

The real question is, will I lose any weight? I'm going to weigh myself Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of next week, and continue to do that once a month.

ladybird30
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Post by ladybird30 » Fri Apr 06, 2018 4:44 am

Friyay wrote:
The real question is, will I lose any weight?
The question I ask myself is am I still eating in excess of my body's needs? Alas, still yes on occasion, but much better with NoS than before.
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Sat Apr 07, 2018 5:03 am

DAY 19: SUCCESS

I didn't think it would be, for a while. Breakfast was two hours earlier than usual and lunch was scanty. I thought for sure I'd need an afternoon snack, but I got by with an early glass of milk and a later glass of wine. No snacks. I didn't even suffer much.

My body has learned to cope with hunger. That's amazing.

Into the weekend I go. Hubby is sending me to the fancy grocery to buy fancy mushrooms for his fancy soup, so I think I'll pick out something fancy from the bakery for my weekend treat while I'm there.

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Octavia
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Post by Octavia » Sat Apr 07, 2018 7:52 am

Yay! 😊 Enjoy your bakery goodie!

It feels to me like a miracle to go without snacks on N days. No S is truly amazing in retraining those impulses. I had a lovely long walk yesterday, nearly 2 hrs from 4 to 6 pm, on an empty stomach (after a tiny lunch)! Just took a bottle of water with me. I totally agree with you Friyay, this sort of thing is amazing!

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Sat Apr 07, 2018 3:38 pm

I saw that in your thread, Octavia, and if I hadn't been so tired I would have replied: you sound like you were EXACTLY like me. Worried about fainting, haha. I've had times in my life when I would walk, fast, for an hour every day, but I always had a snack beforehand so I wouldn't have blood sugar problems. A couple weeks of NoS seems to have made those blood sugar problems go away. Maybe because what I'm eating on N days is fairly low glycemic index? Who knows.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Mon Apr 09, 2018 3:30 pm

Okie dokie, three weeks on NoS are in the bag. Zero failures, one planned S day that ended up being not-so-S. Had to institute a bedtime snack because I couldn't sleep otherwise. Aaaaaand...

206. I'm up a pound.

I am coming off the weekend, and also off my period. And I'm going to weigh myself Tuesday and Wednesday morning also, because this is a time when I can drop a lot of water weight. But that's a kick in the nuts. Welcome to my world. There's never any magic--heck, there's rarely any reward for discipline. I do about as well doing nothing as I do following most regimens.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Tue Apr 10, 2018 3:33 pm

Monthly weigh-in #2: 205

One more weigh-in tomorrow, but I think it's clear I didn't lose just by changing my eating habits. I need to incorporate some intentional exercise, especially if the rain keeps me out of the garden the way it has been.

Friyay
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Post by Friyay » Wed Apr 11, 2018 3:32 pm

Monthly weigh-in #3: 206.

Okay, folks. There's my three-week induction all done. Maybe I'll check in with my monthly weigh-ins, but no more daily updates. It's been fun!

ladybird30
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Post by ladybird30 » Thu Apr 12, 2018 4:54 am

Hope to see you here again. Did you learn anything from the past 3 weeks?
Three meals a day - not too little not too much, but just right

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