Question for noser Veterans

No Snacks, no sweets, no seconds. Except on Days that start with S. Too simple for you? Simple is why it works. Look here for questions, introductions, support, success stories.

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Jamiebf
Posts: 102
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2008 6:50 pm
Location: Elmira NY

Question for noser Veterans

Post by Jamiebf » Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:31 pm

Hey this question goes out to all the long time nosers that may be able to help the ones that are new.

I am on day 22. I love this diet. The no obsessing, guilt, anger and failure. I like some have experenced weight gain. I personally do not know numbers because I refuse to weigh myself, scale obsession is another issue for me. However I have had to pull out a size bigger pants since I started. I have continued to exercise as I have done for over a year. I have 30 pounds to loose. I know for me I loaded my plates with whatever for the first few weeks and my weekends weren't crazy but not great food choices.
I have decided to try to make more healthy food choices for my meals. I know this is frustrating but is it normal :?: Have any of you experinced this in you nos journey? I know I would love to hear from some of you as many other would. We all need to hear this really does work in the long haul from the people who live it every day.

Thanks so much, I look forward to hearing from you all!!

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FarmerHal
Posts: 1013
Joined: Fri Dec 15, 2006 11:54 pm

Post by FarmerHal » Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:36 pm

Jaimebf I did experience some weight gains in the beginning. I had(have!) some real issues with feeling like I am desperate to have food available all the time. Like it's an emergency (survival) issue to have the food all day long. So when I did 3 meals a day my plates were enormously mounded. I did this for about a week till I really realized I wasn't going to be starved or deprived. I cut back to normal portion sizes (they are much smaller than most americans are used to) and I also switched to 9" dinner plates rather than 13" ones. The plate still looks way full with normal portion sizes when it's smaller.

It also helps to increase your movement. Take the dog for a walk, park far away at the grocery store and walk, etc. I HATE exercise, so make it fun. ONe of our favorite activities is bike riding, and I pull the kids in a trailer behind me and hit the hills! (eek!) Weight training is very effective, even if it is just 14 minutes. Of course I say this all and am currently in an exercise slump due to health issues, but hope to get back into the swing SOONER than later!

Keep posting on the board, keep asking questions. And you might just have to be stricter with your tummy toddler. After a while it won't be as hard.

Good luck
{FarmerHal} ...previously Shamrockmommy...
Vanilla NoS... Making good habits.
Restart 12/2015, size 22
3/2016 size 18
1/2018 size 18

Jamiebf
Posts: 102
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2008 6:50 pm
Location: Elmira NY

Thanks

Post by Jamiebf » Tue Apr 22, 2008 6:47 pm

Thanks Tiffani
Your advice is very helpful. I know it will help my other noser friends that are struggling with some weight gain at this time. I just read Carla's forum and that too was very helpful. The kind support on this site is a blessing :D I am so happy I found Rienhards book and all the wonderful people out there with all the support.

Thanks again!!

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Beckycan
Posts: 90
Joined: Mon Apr 14, 2008 4:36 am
Location: Missouri

Post by Beckycan » Wed Apr 23, 2008 7:24 pm

Just bumping this topic to the top to see if anyone else will reply. I'm on day 10, weighed this morning and disappointed to see my weight has stayed the same.

Becky
SW 295
CW 292
GW 175

A turtle travels only when he sticks his neck out. Korean Proverb

rose
Posts: 332
Joined: Thu Mar 22, 2007 6:06 pm

Post by rose » Wed Apr 23, 2008 8:05 pm

Hello Jamie,

I have not really experienced a "weight gain" but there was a time in my 2nd month when it looked like my weight was creeping up (see chart in signature). What I did was follow advice on the board regarding meal composition i.e. do have at least as many veggies/fruit as complex carbs at every meal. Also I got more reasonable with the meal sizes and stopped eating trigger foods (for me kebab).
It's an experimental process: downgrade meal size or eat more veggies/less carbs, check for cravings, if any: upgrade meal size or eat a little more carbs, check for drowsiness after the meal etc. It's not unexpected to have a few snack-failures during this process although it's better to tough it up.

I also follow some nutritional guidelines (on N days) in addition to NoS:
* 5 pieces of fruit or vegetable a day
* carbs at every meal according to your appetite (but eat the veggies first, it helps avoiding too many calories)
* meat or fish (or eggs...) in small quantity once or twice a day
* don't add a lot of oil or butter to your food (but a little is ok)
* dairy products 3x a day (errr... I have some trouble with this one ...)
* avoid foods which are very salty, very fat or sweet (doesn't mean they are forbidden, just don't have them too often)
* drink water :)
Started NoS Jan 07 at 74.5kg (164 lbs, BMI 26.7)
Stable since Jan 08 at 64kg (141 lbs, BMI 23)
My progress chart

kccc
Posts: 3957
Joined: Fri Oct 27, 2006 1:12 am

Post by kccc » Thu Apr 24, 2008 12:04 am

Jamie,

Start with habit-building. I have found when I gain, I'm actually cheating on the habits. (See my "backsliding" thread for a great example.)

About a month in, your plates will start to stabilize as you get a better sense of "how hungry AM I?" and your appetite starts getting trained to show up at mealtime. At that point, you can start thinking more about what is on your plate. Make LITTLE changes, that are easy and sustainable, to improve your nutrition. Don't go all out, don't make yourself crazy.

I find that I do better with "do these things" than "don't do these things." So, I work on "more veggies, more water, more complex carbs" (which naturally leads to less junk as a side effect). And of course, exercise does help.

But first look at your N-days. How on-target are they?

Hang in there, and good luck!

CrazyCatLady
Posts: 301
Joined: Sat Apr 12, 2008 6:58 pm
Location: Illinois

Post by CrazyCatLady » Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:03 am

I actually gained about 5 pounds after starting No S. I was not exercising, and I was not truly sticking to the plan. I did make lots of positive changes, though, and knew that this was the plan for me. I thought seriously about tightening up the No S rules, but found myself feeling panicky, like when I was on other restrictive diets.

At that time, I truly found comfort in Reinhard's statement
"What if I am an idiot and insist on following the letter of the law but breaking it in spirit by (say) eating a gallon of ice cream every S-day and counting my second cousin's hamster's birthday as an S-day?

Then I can't help you. You will be fat and die young.

Seriously, this is less of an issue than you think. I haven't heard of anyone messing this diet up because they followed the rules during the week and overbinged on the weekends."


LOL! I would tell myself that even if I just continued as I was doing, cutting out the majority of snacks, sweets and seconds, and overdoing it some on S days, at least I would not continue to add 5-10 pounds of weight every year. I knew that if I just gave it time, I would be able to do this and feel positive about it, not restricted!


Finally, after a few months, I was ready to make the final step, and start seriously following the rules, and posting. I weighed myself, and found the 5 pounds had left me. And now I'm working on the next five pounds....have lost about 3, but will wait to get excited as I pass 5 pound marks.

Hang in there, Jamie. I think that we all come into No S with such variables....some of us may start off the blocks a little slower than others, but this is a marathon, not a sprint. Keep up the good work!

blueskighs
Posts: 1787
Joined: Thu Mar 27, 2008 4:11 am
Location: California

Post by blueskighs » Thu Apr 24, 2008 3:10 am

CrazyCatLady,
that was a truly inspiring post, thanks for sharing it with us,

Blueskighs
www.nosdiet.blogspot.com Where I blog daily about my No S journey

Jamiebf
Posts: 102
Joined: Tue Apr 01, 2008 6:50 pm
Location: Elmira NY

Thanks guys

Post by Jamiebf » Thu Apr 24, 2008 5:46 am

Hey thanks everyone, you have all been so helpful. I have been good about staying on habit that is until tonight. As Tiffany said, I will not let one red moment get me off track. I am still convinced this is the only way to eat so I will keep going.

Thanks so much

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MerryKat
Posts: 786
Joined: Fri Sep 02, 2005 11:35 am
Location: Sunny South Africa

Post by MerryKat » Fri Apr 25, 2008 6:44 am

I really have to agree with KCCC. Due to my metabolic issues, I loose very slowly, but that is better than gaining, and when I follow No S 100% I loose.

Whenever I gain, I have been fooling myself somewhere and or tweaking to try and make me loose faster (this never works for me).

Just follow the basics and fence a round the plan as Reinhard explains on the web and the book. Don't allow yourself any lea way to break the rules and things will improve.

I have really also found that as my N Days get better they definitely slide into my S Days and I find myself quite happy with a planned treat and the odd bite of something on some days in between meals.
Hugs from Sunny South Africa
Vanilla No S with no Sugar due to Health issues - 11 yrs No S - September 2016 (some good, some bad (my own doing) but always the right thing for me!)

lostnfound
Posts: 21
Joined: Wed Apr 02, 2008 11:32 am
Location: PA

Can't get impatient...

Post by lostnfound » Fri Apr 25, 2008 11:33 am

I'm frustrated! Just finishing up my first week of No-S. I diligently followed the rules, but instead of losing I gained half a pound. Hoping to find some support I logged into what is rapidly becoming my favorite website and the first post I found was this one. What a help! It's a good feeling to know we're all in this together and here to support each other. In analyzing the past week, this is what I know:

1. I know I did not stray from the diet. I know I did not have one bite of anything sweet (even though it seemed I was constantly serving something yummy to some family member all week long).
2. I made an effort to walk more, but did not really exercise in the true sense of the word. Exericise is something I am not fond of at all, but am determined to find the right type of exercise that I know I can stick with, so it's an ongoing process right now.
3. I did not eat mountains of food each meal, like some have said, but I did eat alot of bread and I know that can't be good. I am not a great fruit and veggie eater, so have to really concentrate on deliberately adding more of those things to my diet.
4. I did manage to stay away from the scales. In the past I have gotten weighted daily, but now I am limiting it to once a week..and if that is proving to be too discouraging, I will cut back more.
5. I know for a fact that I feel better. I am not waking up bloated, I am not losing my energy through the day, I am not riding the sugar wave.

All in all this is a good diet, and one I intend to stick with. I don't even like to call it a 'diet' as it is more of a lifestyle. One of two things will happen as I continue on this journey. Either I will make it to the size I want to be, or I will continue to be heavy but will also be healthy. Either one will enable me to stick around a little longer and enjoy my grandchildren!
"Time's fun when you're having flies!"....Kermit the Frog

noSer
Posts: 54
Joined: Wed Apr 09, 2008 2:40 pm
Location: Central Time

Post by noSer » Fri Apr 25, 2008 12:01 pm

lostnfound -

Not a veteran here, but have been very happy with the simplicity and ease of this diet. Your weight can easily fluctuate by more than 1/2 pound during a day, so don't be discouraged! If you truly want to weigh yourself more often, try this. Weigh yourself everyday and record it. At the end of the week, figure your average. The next week, do the same. Compare the averages. This gives a better picture than just a once a week 'snapshot' weigh in.

Hang in there!
It's more of a waste around the waist than it is in the garbage pail.
Beginning again 04/19
April 2019: 242 :(
July 29, 2019 218.5
Aug 5, 2019 220.5
Oct 28, 2019 205.5
Nov 11, 2019 203

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NoelFigart
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Post by NoelFigart » Fri Apr 25, 2008 12:04 pm

Image

This is a chart of my weight loss trend since the end of February. The red line is a moving average with a period of 7. Since I weigh daily, that means it's a weekly moving average.

Now, I exercise a whole bunch, and I'm good about sticking to No S, mostly.

But, see that there are plateaus and often large gains?

Then see the overall trend is down. My large initial drop was, I think a combination of serious overeating before I started and starting at a point in my monthly cycle where I ALWAYS have a water weight gain. The huge drop in the middle of the chart was also an anomaly. I was very sick (bedridden) with a case of Martian Death Flu and couldn't eat much more than the occasional bowl of chicken soup. You'll note I gained it right back. That was a relief rather than otherwise. As a weightlifter I know that large drops of weight are either water or muscle. I'm okay with dehydration. I'm NOT OKAY with losing muscle.

One week is not nearly enough data! It could be your cycle. It could be you've started exercising more. It could be your body is coming out of a starvation mode if you've been seriously restricting calories a lot and is readjusting.

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