Everyday Systems

zoolina

Hi Jumbotights,

This is my first post in quite some time (years!). I've had a few difficult years in the lion cage, got some counselling, and gained some weight. So I'm back.

First of all, let me say that there are a lot of articulate, wise people on the board these days! It's so nice to see ...

zoolina

When I went into the store to buy my hammer, the guy behind the cournter asked what I (5'2" girlie) was going to do with it. I told him that I was going to use it to curl my eyelashes, and that was the end of that.

I love SGing, but I do have to admit I don't like doing it around other people. Then ...

zoolina

KCCC,

I also have a problem with binging "because life is tough and I deserve it, damnit" And I know what you mean about one part of your brain thinking rationally and the rest seccumbing to the fuzzy logic of treat=nourishment.

At my saner moments I realize that I crave other kinds of nourishment ...

zoolina

Dear KCCC,

It's going to be ok. Really. Take a couple of deep breaths and recommit to the 14 words of the plan. You really CAN do it, and you can keep it up too.

I've said before that I take my S days on Fridays and Saturdays so that I can go out on Friday nights if I want. It's also nice to have ...

zoolina

I take my S days on fridays and saturdays, and make sunday's an N day. We tend to go out a lot on Friday nights, but the damage is mitigated because while I'm at work on Friday there's very little "damage" I can do.

zoolina

Hi Reinhard,

I have a suggestion for how to make the habit traking calander better.

What I miss most when using it is actually seeing the word "success" after a successful day. I know it sounds petty, but for me, one of the best parts about coming to NoS was switching from the idea of having the ...

zoolina

I think the problem with this discussion is that none of us are experts. So many points of fact are obscured to us that we can only go on hunch and intuition and devils-advocaty points of logic. while I dearly love to play the game, I find my stamina flagging, so here are some questions I would like ...

zoolina

I have to say, despite Reinhard's caveat about no snacking, that I gained some weight on NoS too, when I tried to give up snacks. One problem was that I'm hypoglycemic and tend to "crash" if I go too long without eating, so I was eating waaaay too much at mealtimes to try to make it to the next one ...

zoolina

It seems to me that longgevity is a complicated issue . There must be dozens of reasons why people live longer now or died earlier then, that the question of whether or not people who eat/ate orgainc foods live/d longer just can't be ascertained.

And sure, H2O is a chemical (or is it, are all ...

zoolina

This is beginning to sound like a 'fess up page. Negative tracking just feels too negative. I'm going back to the daily check ins.

I hope to make June a perfect month.

June 1+2: S days

zoolina

I also struggle with a difference in my eating values and my husband's. I grew up with no desert, very few sweets, unstructured meal times (child of hippie parents!) and my husband grew up with structured meal times, desert (which was always yogurt-- the dutch idea of desert), and something (but ...

zoolina

KCCC,

When I started No S I made the decision to have my S days on Friday and Saturday for 2 reasons: 1) If we go out it's almost always on friday nights, and 2) I wanted to establish N Day habits on a home day. In the beginnings, Sundays were definitely the hardest day of the week, but now I take ...

zoolina

I have the feeling that my kids are very much concerned with what is healthy and what is not. They really WANT to be "big and strong" and will follow my advice in order to get there.

As far as the fruits and vegetables, don't despair, Reinhard. My son ate only tangerines for a year. but now, at 5 ...

zoolina

I loved this article.

zoolina

For those of you who have kids, do you let them snack? My kids are definitely on the 5 mini-meals a day plan...

zoolina

May 25 Failure

Ate in front of the tv AND had a midnight snack after coming home from seeing some music . And I was feeling so sanctimonious yesterday.

Ok, here I go again: refresher, zoo:
No empty calories
No eating after dinner
No eating in front of the tv or computer.
except on S days ...

zoolina

April 24: 134.8
May 24: 134
GOAL: June 24: 133

A successful and relatively easy week. Have had a few times when I ate lunch in front of the computer at lunch, but have stopped eating in front of the tv altogether.

Still have to remind myself several times a day not to eat sweets. Maybe the impulse ...

zoolina

Gilli,

I really like your idea of making your nighttime snack the same every single night. You don't have to feel guilty about it, really. Like Paulrone said, these are YOUR rules. You make them. But what is wise about always having the same half piece of toast with peanut butter (or whatever you ...

zoolina

Dear Ozarka,

I can totally relate to your problem.

(I AM going to go ahead and say, wow, at your weight and height I don't see No S helping you lose weight. And I am going to get it out of the way and tell you, from the point of view of a 40 year old who has never been satisfied with my own ...

zoolina

I've read that being sleepy makes you want to eat more, especially sweet things, to keep your energy up. I definitely feel that way when I'm sleep deprived.

However, it's probably a good idea to stay strict with yourself even during the rough patches. I don't think you actually need that many more ...

zoolina

I've been trying this too, and I like it. Here's how I've tweeked the concept for me:

I have separated the work cards from the routine and errand cards:

The work one sits on my desk and is a weekly card, separated into 5 days. On Friday I write on each column what I'd like to accomplish each day ...

zoolina

This debate reminds me of an article I read in one of those airplane magazines about how good it is to smoke, drink tons of coffee and eat a diet high in saturated fat and sugar. The article was, of course, tongue in cheek, but the author did quote a lot of credible scientific studies to show how ...

zoolina

Ann,

I can really understand your position. I had a sports injury about 18 months ago, and though I'm more or less recovered, my physical therapist has forbidden me to do any sports where I have to run or jump.

What happened with me is that I gained about 5 pounds right off the bat then my weight ...

zoolina

(May 14): Failure

hadn't eaten much all day and I just got the nibbles after dinner. Couldn't resist nibbling.

zoolina

Here's the article I quoted, about the health benefits of eating organic. It's from a UK newspaper, The Independant.

t's not just a fad - organic food is better for you, say scientists
By Ian Herbert
Published: 03 April 2007

New evidence has emerged showing that organic food does contain nutrients ...

zoolina

Week 1

No eating in front of the tv, computer, book or magazine.
No empty calories
No eating after dinner

Success

oh- one slip up: ate a tiny snack after dinner one day when I was famished.

and--started eating in front of the computer out of habit, stopped myself mid way.

zoolina

It really is interesting how the quality of food does matter. Besides being so much more satisfying to eat a really tasty peice of fruit, I notice a big difference in how hungry I get when I eat fresh, organic foods compared to the GM mass produced stuff in the grocery store. I read a study once ...

zoolina

I've been eating sweets on S days only for 6 a full months. I've been more successful than not, though there have definitely been a few slip ups. But I just haven't been able to make the habit automatic. It seems that several times every N day a little voice in my head says: "hmmm, sure would be ...

zoolina

Oh Woe!

There's something gnawing at me and I don't know what it is. I feel the urge, constantly, to numb myself with food. To sit in front of the tv and gorge. This is not hunger, but the impulse is so strong that I've caved in a couple of times.

It seems clear to me that I need another kind of ...

zoolina

You know what would be really cool? A board-wide traffic light. I don't know how technically possible it would be, but I imagine a big gold star. As each person checks in for the day, entering "success"or "failure" the star discolors slightly in the appropriate direction. On days when we are all ...

zoolina

Oh, I'm pretty sure our friends don't go quite so all-out when we're not there, but what I'm saying is not so much about what that particular family eats, but that there are not just habits that prevent them from snacking, but actual taboos. And that seems to be something that goes across the board ...

zoolina

While I agree that the French, in general, have some great attitudes towards what and when to eat, I would never want to eat like a French person. Whenever we stay with our French friends I feel awful. Breakfast: Coffee; Lunch: a green salad; Dinner: appitizers and drinks, salad and drinks, huge ...

zoolina

Day 5 S day
Day 6 Success

Day 1 Monthly resolution: success.

zoolina

Weight 134.8 on April 28
Goal: 134 by May 26

Day 3 Success
Day 4 S day

S day was a bit over the top. Have been fighting the urge to binge and since it was an S day, well.... Why is it so hard just to be normal around food? I'm not talking about habit here, I'm talking about the inclination to ...

zoolina

After giving Vanilla No-S a good solid go for 5 months, not really losing any weight, and being constantly tormented by crashing blood sugar, I've adapted the program a bit (keeping the core: develop good habits, have simple firm rules, etc)

Here"s my "Chocolate No-S:"
1) No Empty Calories
2) No ...

zoolina

Day 2 Success

zoolina

I heard somewhere that muscles, besides weighing more than fat, also hold a lot more water, or, um (not sure of the science) collect a lot more water, especially when muscle is building.

Clearly I don't know what I'm talking about, but it's not at all uncommon to gain 3-5 lbs of water retention ...

zoolina

Day 25 success
Day 26 Failure
I put together a party for a coworker that was leaving. Got all kinds of sugary things I knew she liked and yep, I indulged. My god, it doesn't take a lot of sugar to wig me out anymore.

Good news : I've lost weight since I gave up no snacking. Go figure. I think it ...

zoolina

Day 23 S day
Day 24 S day

sick sick sick Funny: I can't stop eating because I can't taste anything. I eat and feel like I haven't eaten yet.

zoolina

Day 22 Success

zoolina

I'm all for tweeking the program to suit your needs. If salty snacks are your problem, just change the letter of the law to say:
No salt
No Snacks
No seconds

You'll be keeping the spirit of the law intact.

zoolina

Day 20 Success
Day 21 Sick/failure? Kept to the letter, but not exactly the spirit of the law. I'm not going to start recounting, but...

zoolina

Day 19 Success

As an experiment, I tried to only eat when I was good and hungry yesterday, and to stop when I was full, even if there was food left on my plate. Ended up eating a lot less, but lukily I did get hungry at meal times.

zoolina

Day 19 Success

Am concentrating on getting in touch with my appitite. Trying to eat only when I'm really ready and trying to stop when full, even if there's more on the plate. Clearly, this would be the ideal way to eat except that mealtimes with others is so nice and so important. What do you do ...

zoolina

I read a book once about how the industrial revolution and mass production changed what we ate. in the 1800s only the weathy could afford white bread and the lower classes ate only full grain bread. Then, when factories started making bread they found that it was much easier to mass produce white ...

zoolina

day 17 S day
Day 18 S day

Not too essy for S days, but I just can't seem to stop nibbling. Lots of fruit and healthy stuff, but I still feel out of control. Weirdly, I feel most out of control because I stepped on the scale and have gained a couple of pounds. Probably that time of the month, but ...

zoolina

Thanks, Merry Kat. Self acceptance is sooooo darn hard. (Went shopping yesterday and why oh why do they put those cellulite enhancing spotlights in the dressing rooms? I swear, I never have such a bad self image as I do when shopping for clothes. That *can't* be good for sales....

Day 16 success ...

zoolina

But the main thing is to relax and not worry about stocking up on diet food. Go shopping as you normally do, buy the things you like, and, like KCCC said, things that will fill you up till lunch. The greatest thing about No-Sing is that you can let all that planning about what to and what not to eat ...

zoolina

This is going to sound like a weird form of success, but I've given up the no snacking rule and I feel great! I call it "Chocolate No S" and there are only two rules: No empty calories and no eating after dinner (except on S days, sometimes). By empty calries I mean sweets, salty snack foods, and ...

zoolina

Day 15 Success
I've been thinking about the recent "diets don't work"post and about what it means to lose, to be losing weight. I remember starting to diet when I was 13. I was hardly heavy, but all of a sudden it was good to be in the process of losing . To be thin wasn't really the goal at all ...

zoolina

If it's sweets I crave, I have some raisins or dried figs as part of my meal. If I'm hungry, I have a glass of milk.....

zoolina

Easter gave the term "chocolate No-S" a whole new meaning.

Day 9 Sucess
Day 10 S day
Day 11 S day
Day 12 Special day Easter
Day 13 Special day 2 birthdays in the family
Day 14 Sucess , back to normal, thank you very much.

Definitely ate too much, and on Easter I was downright idiotic. I mean ...

zoolina

Day 8 Success

zoolina

Sinnie,

I'm so sorry that you have the food cumpulsion imp on your shoulder. I struggle with it too, and it often seems unfair to me that alcoholism or being a drug addict is so clearly a reason for getting professional help, when the tendency to use food as a drug is not.

No S provides good ...

zoolina

Panglesue, what a wonderful post. It would be lovely, indeed, to be on the verge of something better. Maybe all of this has to do with being over 40, giving up the image of myself as a desirable female (not many guys lookin' these days) and settling in to just being me "warts and all".

Anyway: day ...

zoolina

Panglesue-- exactly!

I think the reason I've been struggling with No-S in the past 6 weeks is that the novelty wore off but the habit wasn't firmly enough there to take me on to auto pilot. So with my "chocolate" version I'm committed to establishing firm core habits. I really, really hope that ...

zoolina

So many kinds of worry-- and I'm not sure any of those fit me. What I tend to worry about are the things that I can't control, either things I fear but don't know (vague, middle of the night unease) or things I know but can't do anything about because it's not my problem to solve. A classic example ...

zoolina

Thanks, Panglesue!

"Chocolate" No-S is still a relief, but I know I snacked a bit too heavily yesterday. On the other hand, it was hard to shut down after dinner, but I did it! We also had guests over, and I almost had some chips with dinner, unthinkingly, but I held myself back. I know these seem ...

zoolina

Sounds good. I'll try it.

Actually cutting back to 10 minutes has really solved the achy problem. I suspect that in a few months I can add more time.

Z.

zoolina

Day 4 S day

I feel a lot of relief that I've given up the no snacking rule. Time will tell if it means too many calories, but I really feel that I can be successful with my new plan--if not sucessful in losing weight, at least sucessful in building a long term habit.

But I've already gotten into ...

zoolina

Arm and Hammer (love the logo):

It's not the back that's a problem (after lifting three babies I've got a back of steel) but my shoulder and right elbow.

Got some other stretches for me??

Z.

zoolina

This isn't working out. I can't seem to build habit around the no snacking rule. Part of it is willpower, but part is a weird schedule combined with blood sugar issues. And every time I have a failure around snacking, two things happen: 1) I feel guilty and hopeless, like a failure. 2) I say, oh ...

zoolina

Maybe it's 'cause I'm a girl: when I shovelglove 14 minutes every weekday, I get aches and pains by the end of the week. For a while I was shugging every other day, but then the rhythem of the habit got disrupted and I started missing days.

Now I'm doing just 10 minutes a day, and no aches and ...

zoolina

This isn't really day 2 but I'm going to start the counting over just because this is the first time in ages that I've had time to think about anything other than family work family work.

This is the time to really do it, not accept failures of spirit (ok, if I crash or scheduling makes patterned ...

zoolina

Tons of travelling, wacky eating hours, overload at work.

I haven't even been keeping track lately, which means that I've probably racked up a bit of red, though there have been quite a few sucesses there too.

Life calms down on Monday, soooo... back to hard core moderation.

zoolina

I have a very irregular work schedule. There is no one time of day to take lunch; some days I have to eat at 11:00 and some days at 1:45. I'm finding it very difficult to build habit this way because the old grazer in me wants to eat at 11 AND at 2:00.

Any ideas and/or reflections on this? When I ...

zoolina

Still incredibly busy so this will be telegraphic:

S day
success
failure
special day
success[/color]

zoolina

I do the same thing-- yoyoing 5 lbs. But when I think about it in the long run, my weight has been stable (plus or minus 3 lbs) for the last five years, since my last kid was born. Yes, I'm about 15 lbs over my ideal (and yes-- I do tend to let myself go at times like a snacking robot) but maybe ...

zoolina

Been sick recently. Here's the updates:

S day
Success
Success
Sick (success)
Sick
Success with some funny stuff
S day

zoolina

I live in Europe and have about 8 weeks of vacation a year. So far, three weeks of No-S vacation.

My vacation guidelines have been: no sweets on S days, but snacks are ok (seconds have never been a problem for me, so I don't really worry one way or another on vacation.) On active vacations, like a ...

zoolina

Day 2 success

and while I'm gloating about being during and not before or later, let me just say some things I never say about myself: I'm strong and beautiful and important and interesting. And, gosh darn it, I'm a success no matter what I eat.

Z.

zoolina

Hi Jent,

I've been reading your posts and what you say sure sounds familiar. for me, too, food=comfort, security, reward. And in the four months I've been NoSing, it's been easy when I've been calm and so hard (read lots of red ink) when I've been stressed. Right now I'm just coming back after a ...

zoolina

After a couple of weeks of cascading failures. I feel ready to recommit.

Yesterday (Day 1) was a success.

Building good habits is important to me. Being able to see a row of "successes" is so fantastic. I mean, I would love to whittle my middle down to my pre-baby pre-injury weight, but if that ...

zoolina

I have my S days on Fridays and Saturdays, for a bunch of reasons:

First of all, most of the time if we go out it's on Friday.

Secondly, I think it's important to practice habit building on days when I'm not distracted by work. Sunday is definitely the hardest day of the week.

Thirdly, while I ...

zoolina

I also consider alcohol an "S," mainly because after I've had a drink I really crave a salty snack. And the alcohol makes me much less able to resist the temptation.

zoolina

Day 3 Success
Still eating a LOT at every meal, just to keep me from getting hungry between. I think I'm eathing too much, but I guess habit is more important than high-piled plates right now.

zoolina

Day 2 Success
Day 2 Tea-- Glass ceiling exploded: had 3 cups

zoolina

Day 1-- Sucess
Tea day 1: sucess

2 more days till S day...

zoolina

I used to hate yogurt until I moved to the Netherlands and had the full fat version. You don't even need sugar because it's so rich and delicious. When I visit the states I try to find "real" yougurt but it's not even available. Only the kind made with extra cream, which is too rich. Pity, because ...

zoolina

I hear you, Tiffany!

It's just that time of the year: winter blahs, kids sick, and just not enough "me time" to even begin to think about what to think about. Pretty familiar territory.

This might be bad advice, but maybe you should work on the S's one at a time. You're breastfeeding, right ...

zoolina

March's Monthly resolutions:

1) Vanilla No-S, super strict!
2) Coffee S days are Smondays and Saturdays, other days I will drink tea. The glass ceiling is two caffinated beverages a day.

zoolina

Day 4 Failure

Ate dinner too early and (stress again?) had a burning stomach later in the evening. Eating did sooth it.

I don't feel too down about the failure since it was so physical, and I never get that kind of feeliing from just having the nibbles. I was No-S all day up till then.

zoolina

Thanks Everybody!

Even if I don't reply right away, I'm really thinking about all the things everyone has said here and I'm trying, trying to get back on track. Yesterday was another failure. Erg. But I really do see No-S as a sane way to eat, and I know that I will make it back into the habit ...

zoolina

One of the best peices of advice I got on this site was to be really strict about N days so that you could relax on S days. If you're already being strict on N days then any "damage" you do on S days really (really!) won't count so much.

My first 12 (or so) S days were a blitz of all the things I ...

zoolina

Hi Sue,

Just wanted to check in to your check in and tell you that I appreciate, so much, all of your support. You seem to have your feet on the ground these days. Go girl!

Zoo.

zoolina

Day 3 (S days included!) Sucess ...

..by dint of eating huuuuge meals so that I could not be hungry. I must have eaten more than usual, but as far as habits goes, back on track.

I don't know why I really resist the idea of taking charge of how I deal with stress. I mean, I just don't want to hear ...

zoolina

Thanks, Sue! I can't wait for another high....

Z.

zoolina

Once, when I was about 13 and dealing with the aftermath of some prety nasty abuse, I saw an afterschool special where an Atticus-like single dad gave his teenage daughter what seemed to be the ultimate advice: Ïf you're fat, go on a diet; if you don't like yourself, change. Two sentences in ...

zoolina

Thanks for all the advice. Somethow it was important to me to acknowledge my failure in a more public venue than my check in, because I actually felt like cheating on the info in my check in, saying that I had 2 failures instead of 3, silly stuff like that.

I think, Reinhard, that you hit the nail ...

zoolina

Here's my latest check in post:

Day 5 Failure
Day 6 Failure
Day 7 Failure
Aargh. Habits down the drain. Blech. Didn't even want to post here but figured I had to own up to this. So, failure. So, back on track?

So strange: In the past 3 months I haven't been perfect, but I've had more successes ...

zoolina

Day 5 Failure
Day 6 Failure
Day 7 Failure
Aargh. Habits down the drain. Blech. Didn't even want to post here but figured I had to own up to this. So, failure. So, back on track?

So strange: In the past 3 months I haven't been perfect, but I've had more successes than failures by far. Now I've ...

zoolina

I have a 6.6 lb. hammer, and though I'm pretty strong (historically) and though some exercises feel easy with it, I can hardly imagine a 12 lber.

If I could choose again, I'd go with the 8 lb myself. Best of luck; Shovelgloving is an amazing upper body workout!

zoolina

Day 4 success

Funny stuff: drink-yogurt before my bike ride home.
Shovelgloved. Suddenly harder than before.

Am sooooo looking forward to being able to walk again. Physical Therapist says it may be years. No wonder I'm not losing weight (was losing until the accident and now I'm sitting on my ...

zoolina

I'm finding that the only way for me to lose weight on no-s is to have some kind of portion control. Otherwise my body seems to know exactly how much to eat to maintain the weight I am. I've been doing this 3 months and I'm not sure that I've lost anything at all. On the other hand, I'm sure that I ...

zoolina

Day 3 Sucess

It was kind of hard to get back into it, but I made it through the day. BUT... I had breakfast an hour ago, and i already feel hungry (had the same as usual, this is just the nibbles) But I am committed to this. I believe in this and I believe I will do it.

And thanks, Kevin and Sue ...

zoolina

When I look at my palm, I can't imagine eating that much protien 3 times a day. At dinner, maybe. I probably eat about a fist of carbs, but also lot fruit at every meal except dinner. Then again, I'm not losing weight particularly fast.

zoolina

shamrock mommy,

Good to have you back! I've also gotten off track lately. But we can do it. We CAN!

Zoolina

zoolina

Christi--

Great Job! It's great that you are able to recommit. You're an inspiration!

I also have lost the plot a bit lately. Argh!

Good luck keepin' on,

Zoo.

zoolina

Day 1 Failure
Day 2 S day

Whoops. A handful of stress-producing seems-like-extenuating circumstances (hubby away, kids are sick, work is a mad house, damaged leg acting up) but really what's going on here is a crisis of will.

This is what I'm going to do: enjoy my s days and then get back on ...

zoolina

Amen to that, Sue

Everyday Systems

Search found 252 matches

habit calculator

Kids and snacking?

How automatic are your habits?

10 minutes

When do you eat?

zoolina's recommitment page

Mea Culpa