No kidding, I'm No S'ing!

[sld]

Hi all!

I'm new to the No S diet, learning as I go. I just joined yesterday, but didn't do so well last night. Major scheduling interruption and dinner ended up being grab what you can, get more later. Ugh. Which of course led to poor quality, highly processed, full of fat and not healthy at all food.

O, well, today is a new day! I generally have no problem with daytime snacking - its that time when I hit the door after work --> from then on, it's like I can't not have something around to eat.

I'm 45, happily married, with 2 great kids - son is 20 and a USMarine, daughter is 15. I've slowly put on more and more weight since my daughter was born. I'm 5'5" and weigh 195. In my dream of dreams, I'd loose 40 pounds but I'd be happy with 20lb loss. For right now, I'm going to focus on no sweets, no seconds, no snacks...

I exercise - sporadically; going to the gym when I have time. In the last year I have gone from only being able to walk on the treadmill to being able to jog one mile before I have to stop. My goal is to go 1.5 miles, then 2... I need to be more consistant; especially with weight lifting - I usually talk myself out of that part of my routine.

My current exercise goals are:
M - Th 30 min cardio on the treadmill (jog at least 1 mile, walk 1 mile)
T, Th and S 15 min weight circuit machines or the dreaded "testosterone zone"

So, there's me in a nutshell. I'm very glad I found the No S diet; and this board. (you may just see too much of me! )

sld

[BrightAngel]

I'm new to the No S diet, learning as I go.
sld

Sid,
It sounds like you have what it takes to succeed.
I'll be watching your progress.
Good Luck

[Blithe Morning]

Semper Fi, Mom. My son is a Marine as well. Thank you for being a support to him while he serves his country.

And welcome to No S. It's a sane place in the middle of a crazy (food) world.

[sld]

I'm new to the No S diet, learning as I go.
sld

Sid,
It sounds like you have what it takes to succeed.
I'll be watching your progress.
Good Luck

Thank you Bright Angel. I hope I have what it takes to succeed. I've tried soooo many other things and they work - for a while, till I just can't stand it anymore or till I "give" and eat real food with the rest of the family. Both of my kids are in good shape - S in great shape and D is 5'4" and 107 lbs. Funny thing, she recently told me she is an ectomorph and needs to weight train...said she googled "skinny people". Hah! Too darn funny. I should have such problems.

Sherri

[sld]

Semper Fi, Mom. My son is a Marine as well. Thank you for being a support to him while he serves his country.

And welcome to No S. It's a sane place in the middle of a crazy (food) world.

Semper Fi!

Thanks for the warm welcome. I really like your "sane place" idea. Hoping to stop my on insanity. No, wait, wasn't that a tag line from something else?

Sherri

[howfunisthat]

What a great phrase....

"A sane place in a crazy (food) world!"

That's fabulous...and very, very true!

Welcome to the forum....

janie

[sld]

What a great phrase....

"A sane place in a crazy (food) world!"

That's fabulous...and very, very true!

Welcome to the forum....

janie

Janie,

Thanks for the welcome!

Sherri

[sld]

I've been at this for about 2 weeks, doing my traking on habit cal. My pattern seems to be that I can go 2 days without any problem, then boom! I let something derail me...there's always an excuse.

I haven't lost any weight and thankfully haven't gained any either.

My S days are ok, I don't binge or have too much of any thing. It's just a comfort knowing I *could* have something. If I do, I try to make it a real treat. This past w/e I was visiting my parents and my mom always has these maple-nut treats, I kept nibbling on them all weekend - so I didn't have any other type of treat.

What seems to be the worst for me is the "after work, just arrived home, nothing cooked for dinner yet" time period.

I have breakfast (usually oatmeal, 3 almonds, grape juice mixed 2/1 w/ water)
I have lunch (lately fast food take out, occasionally dinner leftovers, this week I will be eating more salads and veggies) late around 1 ish.
I get off work at 4:30, go to the gym (usually), pick up my husband and we're home by 6:30 and I'm starving. Trying to wait till I cook dinner is nearly impossible. And...once I have that one snack, I continue grazing till dinner is ready.

No sweets I'm ok with cos I know I can have something on the S days, no seconds I'm ok with too...

This week, my goal is to get thru 3 continuous days without the after work/pre dinner snack...

[alanajuliana]

Sounds to me like a Crock pot needs to be on your Christmas wish list if you don't already have one.

Or else you need to pull out the one you have and start using it.

Having Dinner ready and waiting would solve ALL your problems.

and WAY TO GO with the consistent workouts!

[winnie96]

sld -- during one phase of my Diet Years, I used to walk in the door after work and toss a Lean Cuisine in the microwave before even taking my coat off so that by the time I'd changed out of my work clothes, I could be eating my pre-dinner dinner while cooking the actual dinner -- gak!

With the advent of No-S, I've made kind of a rule that I get up just slightly earlier and prep the evening's vegetable for steaming. When I walk in the door, I know that all I have to do is toss it on the stove. Costco chicken tenders can be ready 18 minutes after I take them out of the freezer and sprinkle a few spices on them, and quinoa only takes 10 minutes or so in the microwave while the chicken is cooking. This is my default meal if I haven't planned a specific menu, and it is so tasty that I find I can last the 20 minutes after walking in the door.

Maybe on Day 2 you could pre-cook the dinner for Day 3 so all that you have to do is heat it up without much fuss, or develop a Day 3 default dinner like mine above that you know can be ready really fast. Also, do you think you are eating enough for lunch? I know I had to make some lunch adjustments, like eating it a little later (around 1:30 or 2:00) and adding a bit more protein to get me thru til dinner. I enjoy being hungry for supper, but not ravenous, so beefing up lunch helped a lot.

Good luck -- be sure and let us know how you make out with your 3 continuous days goal!

[NoelFigart]

Sounds to me like a Crock pot needs to be on your Christmas wish list if you don't already have one.

I'm gonna second the crock pot. My office is my laptop and I still use the thing at least twice a week! Matter of fact, it's gonna be 15 bean soup tonight, and I just threw it in the crock pot a few minutes ago.

[howfunisthat]

NoelFigart...can I have your recipe for the 15-bean soup??? (I had to correct my post because misspelled bean and wrote "bead"...that would NOT be a great soup!)

Sid...Do you like hot tea? Perhaps a cup of tea when you get home would help....or some juice....or milk...just something you can sip on while you work on dinner.

Also, have you read the book yet? If not, it's a small investment with huge returns. It's full of great information & reminders. I just pulled my copy out again today to get a bit of encouragement. My copy is underlined & highlighted & continues to help me on days that I just want to throw in the towel. I'm not going to though...the alternative to eating this way is just plain unacceptable any more.

Hang in there....the first few weeks of this plan are the hardest...they really are.

janie

[NoelFigart]

NoelFigart...can I have your recipe for the 15-bean soup???

When I make soup, I tend to scan the fridge and get creative. This is what I did for today's meal. No guarantees about the next time I make it. I was trying to make sure I had veggies in it.

This recipe fits in a 3qt crock pot, so be sure to scale it for a larger or smaller one.

1/2 package of mixed dried beans
28 oz can of crushed tomatoes
1/2 of that can of water
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 15 oz can of corn
1 1/2 c. diced carrots
3 small stalks celery
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 Italian sausage links, browned like you'd brown hamburger
1 T chili powder
1/2 T cumin
Salt and pepper to taste


Soak beans first. I usually just simmer 'em for about an hour until tender.

Toss everything in the pot, give it a good stir. Set the crock on low and walk away until dinner time (at least 8 hours).

This freezes really well and is a hearty meal. Good with a salad or cornbread.

[la_loser]

sld,

I've found that when I first get home in the evening, I can stave off those feelings of wanting to dive into the mixed nuts or whatever by having a good sized glass or orange juice-either full strength or mixed into my Crystal Light concoction I call H2Orange. (There's a thread on that-I'll bring it back to the top in a minute since it's been a while since it surfaced.)

Even full strength juice or milk is totally legal, even for N days. It will perk you enough to hold you over till dinner. And I've found that it has just enough of a sweet taste to make me not to want to grab something salty--my weak spot.

Occasionally, I'll even throw a little ice in the blender with a little wine and lemon or lime juice and make me a little "wineade." (You know--like Sonic's crushed ice limeades!) But that will only work if wine doesn't cause you to let down your No-S guard.

Good luck.

[blueskighs]

Having Dinner ready and waiting would solve ALL your problems.

Sld,
have to agree with Alanajuliana!

The crockpot is a great idea, also cooking in quanitity for weekends for week day meals, I keep a mental arsenal of "intelligent dietary defaults" ... Reinhard's phrase ... meaning meals that are fairly easy and quick to scrap together under duress and intense hunger when it arises, I have a place close by I can get a truly healthy salad and add fruit and packaged baked tofu, I do freeze meals soups, beans, chilis that can be pulled out the night before or the morning and thawed in the refrigerator. Just figuring out quick and easy meals to prepare in a crunch really does seem to be critical in the long run in maintaining any kind of "healthy eating" lifestyle,

the key is figuring out what kind of foods you enjoy and how to get them ready to go ASAP!

Blueskighs

[sld]

Thank you all for your wonderful ideas...

Yes I have a crock pot and use it some - I should get it out more!

I like the juice ideas too - hadn't thought of that...

I have ordered the book, waiting for it to arrive.

I try to eat more for lunch and I do eat lunch later in the day...

And.. just knowing I have all your support makes all the diff in the world!

Thanks Again,

Sherri

[sld]

So, I did good yesterday with all the suggestions!

I had a glass of oj when I felt the "snack attack", started dinner (easy baked boneless skinless chicken breasts, veggies and mac & cheese), then I physically left the room. I didn't even go to the family room(usual habit to sit and watch tv...and snack! while dinner cooks); I started a load of laundry and then racked up a game of billiards (I'm a terrible player - so this took a while to get all the balls in). I would go check on things in the kitchen, but I didn't stay there...

Staying busy seemed to help tremendously. I didn't even *think* about being hungry.

Woo hoo! Thank you all!

Sherri

[alanajuliana]

Bravo!!!!!

[sld]

Thanks Alanajuliana! (luv that - it's so lyrical)

Did good again yesterday!

Today will be a red day - I'm sure. There is a retirement function this afternoon...I'm sure I'll have something during that time period...which would count as a snack

and tomorrow will be questionable as it is the office Thanksgiving luncheon...actually, it might be ok - as long as I stay away from the sweets and desserts...

[winnie96]

Noelfigart --

I just wanted to let you know how much I am enjoying your 15-bean soup recipe, posted above. I've made it twice since, and it is really, really, really good! And it does freeze beautifully!

I made mine with ground turkey instead of sausage as that is what I had on hand, and since I don't have a crockpot, just cooked the beans first, browned the turkey, then simmered it all for a spell.

This is just the ticket for the winter -- very hearty -- and depending on what's in my pantry at the moment, I'm looking forward to "foodling" with various ingredients for my next few batches.

So, thank you very much! This is a wonderful addition to my repertoire!

[NoelFigart]

I made mine with ground turkey instead of sausage as that is what I had on hand, and since I don't have a crockpot, just cooked the beans first, browned the turkey, then simmered it all for a spell.

Hey, if you follow a soup recipe exactly, you're not following the Great Art of Soup! GOTTA modify it by what's in the kitchen what you have, and all that.

Sometimes I don't cook it in a crock pot, either. If I have the wood stove going, chances are good that I'll be cooking it on that!

I'm glad you enjoyed it.