I hope you all had a wonderful Valentine's Day weekend! I know this holiday is bitter sweet for a lot of people, but I have to say even when single, I've always loved this time of year.
Last week was so quick for me, and still seems like a blur. We had so much wind last week that it pushed all of our snow back into the roads making it almost impossible to travel to work. Wednesday night I didn't make it home at all. And today I'm contemplating a grocery trip before the next wave of snow comes in. It's hard to buy produce in the winter because you can't stock up without it going bad.
This is totally unrelated, but I've gotten a lot of emails about my GoWear Fit armband and I want to do a big Q and A post tomorrow for it. One of them involves expanding the armband which I did to mine and will show you how to do (it was very easy!). If you have any questions at all feel free to email them to me or leave a comment and I will get to each one of them!
Okay, the "No S" diet... After my last post about the S diet a very easy plan that I found while reading Food Rules by Michael Pollan. The website explains everything in more detail, but basically the plan is this: no snacks, seconds or sweets except for days that begin with S or special occasions.
It seemed really easy as I never pegged myself as a "snacker" even though as the week progressed I realized that all of my in between eats are considered snacks. I never realized how much I eat outside of a meal. I found myself wanting to eat when things were stressful. When I didn't want to deal with emotions. I didn't worry so much about what I was eating as long as it could fit on a reasonable sized plate, wasn't a sweet and I wasn't eating seconds or between meals.
This is what I found:
1. I have strong desires to mindlessly eat when I'm stressed out or have anxiety.
2. I was able to curb cravings and quell my desire to overeat with the knowledge that I could pick whatever I want for my next meal. For some reason, knowing that I could eat whatever i wanted (as long as it fit on a plate, didn't overeat, or go back for seconds) for my next meal helped me tremendously.
3. This plan prevented me from secret eating. It wasn't an option to go to the store and buy sweets and eat them secretly, so I didn't do it. Knowing that I was going to have special occasion treats on the weekend, ended all thoughts of overeating or finding a way to have something sweet.
4. I lost 2lbs. Which is showing back up on the scale this morning as a gain from my weekend treat eating, but I know that it is water, and it will balance out as losses over time. This isn't unusual for me. I also know that:
5. I only exercised once this week, which on the s diet is recommended and required daily. I need to do this, no excuses.
6. No day was ruined. I remember on Tuesday morning specifically where my mind was going back to old habits. We had some leftover baguette (locally made) , organic pepperoni (yes, i know that organic does not give me license to eat it in excess) and mozzarella. That is what I wanted to eat and I thought "oh I can't have that right now" and then I thought "well I can always start over tomorrow" . But guess what? that is how I always think! So I realized that I could have the baguette with two slices of pepperoni and the cheese for breakfast as a meal.
7. I ate real food, majority of the time except for Thursday morning. I'm looking at you Hardee's morning biscuit run. That was gross. I hate fast food.
That's all I've got for now, but send your GoWear fit questions my way!
I like the idea of the S diet, I’m just trying to figure out how it would work in my life. I go to work very early (either 5 or 7am) and then don’t get a change to get a real break till around noon, and still have a long commute home. Its almost like I need the snacks just to keep my blood sugar up and going. I hate schedules
Ohhh yes… the, “I’ll eat this now and start fresh tomorrow” excuse. I can’t count how many times I did that when I was on Atkins! Good for you for beating it!
I’m learning that item number 1 on your list is a problem for me too. The more stressed I am, the more I want to chow down on the worst, junkiest food. Why isn’t an apple nearly as appealing as chips or a doughnut when I am tense? ‘Tis a mystery.
It really sounds like you’re changing your perspective about food, and with a change of perspective comes success. It may seem like it’s difficult at first, but like everything else, it will begin to feel like second nature when you’re making food choices. It has already started for you, that’s quite clear. You’re doing great! Keep going!!
Emotional eating is a my vice and it looks like you have struggles with it as well. There is a website called Peer Trainer that I signed up for that sends advice all the time on weightloss. I recently signed up for a series of calls all about Emotional eating and it is REALLY helping me to figure out what specifically triggers it and how to deal with my emotions differently so I don’t just rely on my old friends Ben and Jerry.
I think it is worth you looking into! =)
I love following your journey. Thank you for your post, you have inspired me to write about my own weight loss path and share it with others.
Gabriella
http://thrivinginthecity.blogspot.com/
I loved this post. You’ve inspired me to share about my weight loss and tips.
http://thrivinginthecity.blogspot.com/
Hmm… I don’t think the “S” diet, or any diet for that matter, would work for me. I feel like anytime I’m on a diet, I immediately want to eat whatever I’m keeping myself from eating. I know it’s psychological, but it becomes an overwhelming compulsion when I can’t have it.
Buy frozen vegetables!
I’m so excited to read food rules, I am a big fan of his. I ordered it last night and BONUS found out I get three continuing education credits after I read it and take a quick test. Sweet!
The ‘S Diet’ doesn’t really sound like a diet to me.. it actually kinda just sounds like a healthy, positive attitude towards food and eating in general. There’s so much more I could write on this topic but I think I’d bore you senseless and I’m willing to bet you know all about the subject anyhow! Keep up the good work though, the ‘S Diet’ sounds like a winner to me
rachel, i totally agree…which is why i really like this plan so far. There aren’t any foods that I can’t have except for desserts (but i can on weekends or special occasions). I can eat anything I want, but only a plateful and no seconds.
I’m happy you found something that’s working for you!
Hmmmmm…. just days that start with an “S”?
SO, like, Smonday, Stuesday and Swednesday?
Actually, it’s a cute trick but if I had the strength of will to not snack, have seconds, or eat sweets most of the week I wouldn’t have gotten this heavy to begin with.
I think, for me, I have to find a way of eating that I can live with everyday of the week.
By the way, I just discovered your blog and I’m having a lot of fun reading the entries in your archives. I really liked your “decadence” list from Jan of last year.
Thanks for helping inspire me with my weight loss program!
Hi
I’ve been visiting your blog for a couple of weeks now. I’m terrible with the comments but I’ll try. I really this diet. I’m not much of a snack person but I do tend to eat a lot a food whenever I do eat. I go for seconds and I know if I cut that out then I’ll lose more weight. I think I’m going to try this to see how much of a difference it will make. Right now I’m kind of on a salad diet at work but I broke that twice already.:( Great blog you got here 
Loved the article! Awesome to hear that you’ve found a diet that seems to be working for you. Your urges for in-between meals are something that everyone struggles with but it sounds like you’ve got a good way to overcome it. Keep up the good work!
I’ve never heard of the ‘S’ diet, but I’ll have to give it a try. Thanks!
I’m so anxious to hear about your success with the S diet. It sounds great!
Hi there. One thing that can really help you in winter is to buy frozen fruit and veg. That way, you can be sure of having the ingredients at hand for healthy meals without worrying that they will go over-ripe. Frozen veg mixes are great for stir fries, stews, soups, etc. And you can use frozen berries in smoothies or heated up and spooned on top of pancakes or porridge – all of which will give you healthy breakfast options.
Congratulations on your weight loss so far, keep up the good work!
Your post turned me on to this diet, which I’ve been trying for about a week. I’ve made some of the same discoveries about my habits that you did (I never realized how many trips to the office vending machine I made!) and experienced some of the same challenges, but overall, I’m feeling really good about this one. Thanks for posting it! Good luck with your journey! I know you’ll be successful.
Great to see you’re uncovering some of bad habits you used to have. Some people diet over and over and never realize where they’re going wrong. Having a food diary is great way of doing this…as long as you write everything down.
Comfort eating has long been one of my struggles. Stressed mid-day, CHECK! Tired at night and mindlessly eating in front of the TV, CHECK!
I’m integrating a new habit. That of hot herbal tea when stressed, tired and even just before or after I eat. The fruity ones really help with the sweet tooth.
Since reading this yesterday, I’ve been sharing the ‘S’ diet all over the place. People seem to really like the idea.
I am dying to know how you expanded your armband! Mine is tight at night but really fine during the day. It just tugs too much at night and then I wake up with a welt on my arm. :0(
I am having a ton of success with the GWF. I have dropped 8.5 pounds in 22 days. I am thrilled with it. It is such a good motivator. I post my calories burned and consumed as a status on facebook everyday so that my friends can hold me accountable. It is probably the best investment that I have made in the past ten years, that is how much I love it!