NoSDiet Blog

Happy New Year 2009

2009-01-01T20:31:00.001-08:00

I have decided that I have come to the end of my NO S Diet blog journey. I have kept my N days green for nine plus months and built a very strong foundation of habit that got me through the holidays. I have grown tremendously in this past nine months and my passions are moving onto other areas of my life. These other things are where I want to focus in 2009.

I am so glad that I used the majority of 2008 to build my habit. If I have anything to say as a result of my NO S Diet journey thus far, it is take the time and make the commitment to build a period of solid green N days.

That will do more to alter your internal eating cues than you can imagine. It was very hard in the beginning. It was ESPECIALLY hard to stop on mondays in the beginning. But after a few months I am actually glad when Mondays roll around.

I am so THRILLED that losing weight is not one of my new year's resolutions in 2009. The only related resolution I have is to continue building my NO S habit!

Here's to actually living life!
Happy New Year!

Simplify, Simplify, Simplify

2008-12-21T17:07:00.000-08:00

With ten days left in the year, I am going to take advantage of these last few days of 2008 to "simplify, simplify, simplify". In that regard I am going to focus on the sentiments and real meaning of the season to spend time with those I love and in contemplation of what this passing year has meant to me and the seeds I would like to plant in the upcoming New Year.

My "peppermint-striped" No S has been going very well. I am no longer overly concerned with how it will effect my long-term No S compliance. Although I recognize that my HABITS are not impregnable they are pretty solid.

And to be honest that feels really good. And as food and weight becomes smaller and smaller issues of obsession and concern, an innate urge to "simplify, simplify, simplify" is taking hold.

I am going to heed the call of that inner voice.

To all of you precious people,

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I am officially going on a "blog vacation"!

Losing Self-consciousness

2008-12-19T09:35:00.002-08:00

It is ironic that "vanity" is associated with slimness and taking care of oneself. What I am finding is that the longer my weight is stable at a "normal, healthy, slim weight" the increasingly less self-conscious that I become. That means the less self-absorbed that I become.

I no longer worry about what I am going to wear, I pretty much pull on my jeans and Tshirts and cardy Uggs without thought. I don't worry what I look like, I know I look fine or at least all right. Maybe nothing spectacular but also nothing for others to point at, riducule or gleefully feel superior too.

So in the awareness of the how the symptoms of my overeating show, I am much more self-conscious than I am when I am not binging, overeating with great frequency, because after all the symptoms go away and nobody really cares anymore, including myself.

Of course, NO S compounds this Losing of Self-consciousness because no conspicuous, annoying, self-righteious, holier than thou, rigid, inflexible, you are no fun! behaviours are required. The innocous, "NOT HUNGRY" adequately covers any and all N Day assaults, incidentally ferreting out those with food issues of their own, i.e. "NOT HUNGRY" is accepatable code for I am not going to eat that now when it comes to normal people, but you can be assured that the people who fret and insist when you are NOT HUNGRY have a hidden agenda of their own and it is not an interest in your appropriate or sensible boundaries. No sense in confronting them, they will only deny and pretend that it is you and not they who are rude and insensitve, simply demur and play the game, how many ways can I innocently and politely say, "NOT HUNGRY"?

The culmination of all this is that I become more curious and interested and absorbed in those around me. What is going on with them? With all of that energy tied up in the discomfort of my too-tight jeans released I am revivified and renewed. What is going on with you? Life becomes more fun. Exciting.

Losing Self-consciousness, just one of the many and myriad and OTHER blessings of the No S Diet.

2008-12-19T09:35:00.001-08:00

Common Sense and the No S Diet

2008-12-15T10:40:00.000-08:00

One thing that I have learned for certain while doing the NO S Diet is that you cannot throw COMMON SENSE out the window and expect the NO S Diet to work. As much as I truly love love yes love the NO S Diet it is not an alchemical miracle that defies the laws of physics.

Topics that come up fairly frequently on the NO S Diet boards are:

whats filling your plate
the size of your plate
the size of your portions
S days gone wild
and
why am I not losing weight?
or even more discouraging,
why am I gaining weight?

To me the answers are obvious. But I am living in my own little world with my twenty plus years of searching and researching information on eating disorders, eating for health, etc. I have to step back and think, maybe these other folks have been doing other things with their time and have not yet figured out that ANY diet consisting of junk will not make you healthy, slim or functional.

SO to me, it is common sense that I think tells me, that I need to put some whole grains, veggies, fruit and/or healthy source of protein on my plate. Now I don't make sure every plate has an equi-portion of these items ... that would be irritating for me, I have already done and fallen off the Zone Diet (grin)! But I do make it a goal to have a whole grain, a fruit, something green and some healthy protien at least once a day. THIS is sustainable. FOR ME, it's also common sense. My body needs nutrients so I can think and move ... cheesy, white floury, fried THINGS may taste good but they are NOT feeding my body. AND BTW if you stop eating so much of that crud your palette will actually change and you will find it not tasting so good. What I am saying is this: Doesn't COMMON SENSE tell us that we need to put some actual, real food on our plates each day?

As far as the size of the plates and portions go, I honestly don't worry my pretty little head too much about that. I am pretty comfortable with a lot of blank space on my plate if I am not too hungry or very little blank space on my plate if I am eating a bunch of fruit and veggies and/or very hungry. Sometimes people get on and say things like smaller people need to eat less food than larger people. Like Reinhard is trying to put something over on us by telling us we can eat three plates of food a day. I find this confusing, but maybe its just an indication that COMMON SENSE is not fully functional. I don't read eating three plates a day as ... YOU MUST PUT AS MUCH CRAPPY, JUNKY FOOD ON YOUR PLATE AS YOU CAN FIT. Maybe this is the problem. Maybe some people read those three plates and the freedom to put whatever you want to them as "instruction" while I read them as "maximum" boundary and then fill in the actual amount I need to eat with COMMON SENSE. I mean ... isn't it common sense that a smaller person will need to eat less than a larger person? Or is there something I am just missing?

As far as S days gone wild there is much hooha about how many restrictions, what kinds of restrictions and what does "sometimes" mean? and "sometimes" I read this stuff and I am like, is it just me, or has COMMON SENSE completely fleed, bolted the premises for fear that we might discover that the No S Diet is really a straight forward and simple proposition once we apply a little COMMON SENSE?

DIETING is restricting what you eat. THERE are SOOOOOOOOOOO many ways we can RESTRICT our natural appetite. Interestingly enough our natural appetite can be rather strong. Funny thing. It finds away to rebel, get even, punish us for our restrictions ... binging, overeating ... then we gain weight. THE S Days on the No S Diet, IMHO, are for taking off the choke leash. Maybe your little puppy of an appetite pees on the floor, digs up your favorite flowers and runs away with you chasing it down the street. But if you don't give it those moments of freedom, how are you going to know what you are really dealing with?

What I love about the NO S Diet is the freedom I have attained. I take my appetite off the choke leash every weekend and NWS day. Somtimes I am embarrassed by my appetites behavior, sometimes I am appalled, but sometimes I am pleased, proud, exuberant and exultant. I know, I know, you need those restrictions. I know, I know they keep your puppy manageable.

But I wonder, when your N days start going bad, is it because you have insisted on some sort of dietary restriction EVERY DAY, i.e. not letting up on the S days, or is it because the NO S Diet doens't work and you need to resort to even more and greater restrictions to lose weight?

Metaphysically the S/NWS Days are a great way to get to know the real you, in the meantime Common Sense and Keeping Those N Days Green really does go a long way in acheiving success and weight loss on the NO S Diet.

Years of Going Through Several Sizes of Clothes ...

2008-12-13T12:27:00.000-08:00

As my weight loss has been somewhat slow for the past approximately 6 months (I have slowly gone from about 126.5 to 120.5) it is starting to dawn on me that the years of going through several sizes of clothes are finally coming to an end. Let me repeat that. AN END. The years of going through several sizes of clothes are finally coming to an end.

My weight gain journey started in puberty. At age fourteen, my paternal grandmother died and all eating structure in my life pretty much evaporated overnight. Preceding my grandmothers death I had already lost my mother and learned to turn to sweets for comfort. After my grandmother died I became a hardcore sugar junkie. Breakfast white bread toast with cinnamon sugar and hot cocoa. Now and Later candy on the way to school. Little Debbies Star Crunches, ice cream sandwiches and chocolate milk for lunch. A Snickers bar in the afternoon for a snack. A stressful "family dinner" often steak, pink with blood running on the plate that sickened me. Or maybe pancakes with maple syrup and powdered sugar. YIKES! Sounds pretty awful. YES, it was.

No wonder, now that I can be, now that I have the power and ability to assert myself I am so picky and demanding about my food!

Since I was fourteen I do not beleive that my body weight has EVER been stable for ANYTHING like a year. I don't think it has EVER been stable for more than four months. This is a painful realization that I confess. But it is the truth.

SO you can imagine that I can hardly fathom that the years of going through several sizes of clothes are coming to an end. I have been wearing the same jeans, shirts, slacks, skirts and dresses for months. I suspect this will continue. Think of all the time and money I am going to save by not having to buy several size wardrobes each year? Because I am on a non-hoarder. When my clothes become to small I don't hang on to them, just in case, I let them go and I give them to charity. When my clothes become to big, I don't hang onto them, just in case, I let them go and give them to charity. This means cycles and cycles of clothes. Of course I keep these purchases limited to less pricey venues ... Target for reasonably prices Moissimo shirts and jeans, thrift stores for a real bargain, throw something decent I can fit into during a trip to Walmart to pick up household items.

The Merry Go Round has not ever ended. Until now. The carousel music is fading as the wheel spins slower and slower. And I am getting used to myself. A new self that wakes up in the morning and does not have to worry "Will my jeans fit?" A new self that actually becomes less self-conscious because I don't have to think so much about what I can wear or what I can't. I new self that is not reeling from the binge and weight gain I just can't stop.

This is incredible. Simply INCREDIBLE!

Building Self-Esteem

2008-12-10T11:15:00.000-08:00

About 15 years ago, my goodness has it been that long? Yes it has! Anyway, about 15 years ago I was in a situation as a student with a very challenging teacher. Now I did not personally like this person at all but I “sensed” that this person had something very valuable to teach me and I was right. The nugget of gold that I took from this relationship that has served me well is this:

Building self-esteem is doing something you thought you couldn’t’ do.

In the past fifteen years, this little nugget of golden wisdom has served me well whenever I am faced with a task or situation that I am afraid that I cannot do. And I have learned that I feel better, much better about myself, whenever I do those things I thought I could not do. Whether it’s just facing another day consciously and present, having that difficult and dreaded much needed conversation about boundaries with a relative, sticking with a task until I get it right or stringing along a bunch of green days on the No S Diet.

Each little success accumulates and so does my self-esteem. Now you might think I have self-esteem in abundance. But that’s just not so. I was harshly criticized, attacked, verbally abused, and ridiculed for a significant part of my early years and those experiences left their mark. I became riddled with self-doubt. Failure in all areas of my life became very familiar to me, and I became an “ace” at accepting it.

In fact, I was convinced that if I could just “accept” and “forgive” my failures and shortcomings, I would eventually succeed. But truthfully, accepting myself for my “failures” or “forgiving” my failures simply did not aid me in achieving anything that was meaningful or significant to me in the long run. My life really did not start to turn around and become enjoyable and worth getting up for until I started to encourage and allow for and “set myself up” for success.

If I have a failure today I don’t spend a lot of time trying to accept it or forgive myself. First I ask myself “Is this something I really want or need?” i.e., apparently achieving success in this arena is going to take a little or a lot more effort than I originally thought, am I willing to put in the extra effort?

If the answer is “NO”, then I accept that I was trying to achieve something superfluous in my life and let it go. No more discussions. No questions asked. No need to beat the dead horse.

But if the answer is “YES” then I ask myself, “What do I need to do to succeed?” I have already established with the first question that I am ready and prepared to make the extra effort. Now I just need to figure out what that extra effort is for me.

Although in his book, Reinhard says that it may take twelve attempts to make the No S Diet work for you, I decided that I didn’t want to waste my time with “false starts”. If I was going to do the No S Diet, I was going to “commit 100%” and do it. I decided after reading the book that I would commit my will power to keeping my N days green and I wouldn’t allow ANYTHING else to get in my way. Not weight loss or lack of it, not well-meaning food pushing friends or relatives, no more “Can’t work, too busy eating” and of course, I had to surrender one of my biggest beliefs right off the bat … “I am a sugar addict and I am powerless over food.”

From that point on Success was not necessarily easy but I honored my commitment to myself. I made the necessary changes in my life that it took for me to not snack, eat sweets or eat seconds on N days and limit each meal to one plate or one bowl. I was afraid, that like many other “plans” I would not last more than six months, but …

Building self-esteem is doing something you thought you couldn’t’ do.

And that is immensely more satisfying than any concoction that any chef, baker or food manufacturer can come up with.

And N Days are For Stopping ...

2008-12-08T20:57:00.000-08:00

Days like today are days that you gotta' love an N day. After way too many "holiday treats", waking up to the knowledge that fresh wholesome food would be the only thing to pass between my lips today was a great feeling.

It helped me not beat myself up for yesterday's food indiscretions and get on with the business of living.

No more "Can't work, too busy eating" for me. After eight plus months of green N days, I know on many levels that Monday means getting back to work and green N days. When I first started the NO S diet, EVERY Monday was kind of like hell.

Why? I simply wasn't used to stopping.

I beleived that I was powerless over sweets and if anything sugary passed between my lips I would be unable to stop myself from the gorging that would inevitably follow and would it go on ... well for days.

A pretty useful "belief" if you want to be "Can't work, too busy eating."

Or if you just like to indulge in the sugary stuff. Think about it. If I believe one bite and I can't stop ... think of all the times and all the ways I will be able to give myself license to indulge ... and NOT STOP.

The beauty of the NO S Diet is that on N days you stop. YOU JUST STOP. No matter what else you believe you can commit to no snacks, no sweets and no seconds on those N days. And if you are like me, you will learn something AMAZING.

That you have a lot more power over that sweet stuff than you realized. You just needed to apply your willpower to STOPPING not to CONVINCING yourself and other people that you have a problem you don't really have.

Now if you are like me and your inner two year old has been eating nonsensical amounts of the sweet stuff for years, its going to be TOUGH to STOP. But if you make up your mind you can do it, I beleive that you will. Cause after all, that's what N days are for ... stopping ...

Photo: Grilled Wild Mahi-Mahi, organic herb salad with EVOO, steamed broccoli with EVOO, Navel Orange

That's What S Days are For

2008-12-06T10:57:00.000-08:00

I feel like I have been blessed with my husband's attitude for S days. Especially in my first few months of NoSing when I was panciked and/or flogging myself for "overdoing it" on S days, he would say, constantly and repeatedly: THAT'S WHAT S DAYS ARE FOR.

I am so glad that I listened to him and beleived him.

While I beleive a certain amount of structure and limits are necessary and helpful, I am one that is especially senstive to the "galling limits" of too much discipline ...

One of the things I immediately loved about S days was the "no rules" quality to them. I really just "let go" and tried to help myself figure out what, when and how I wanted to eat. Of course I overdid it. Especially in the beginning, but I would be lying if I said that I did not thoroughly enjoy it.

Yes, it absolutely slowed my weight loss and maybe even stalled it for a few months. BUT REALLY, WHO CARES? Because there was much deeper work going on.

I was learning how to pleasure myself with food. I was learning my own food personality and tastes and quirks. I was learning what was special, a treat for me and what was not. I was learning that yes, overeating, anything, even mini-peanut butter cups and monster toll house cookies, really isn't fun.

I was learning that I can trust myself with food and eating and sweets.

No I wasn't perfect out of the gate. The beauty was I didn't need to be. In fact what I needed to do was exactly what I did, which is to learn that S days are the best days to be forgiving. S days are the best days to learn from my mistakes. S days are the best days to overdo it and experiment. THAT'S WHAT S DAYS ARE FOR.

I know it is popular to structure S days and add rules upon rules to protect ourselves from ourselves, our desires and our appetites. But I honestly don't think that will work in the long run. For me, eating three meals a day and one treat on an S day would have been a disaster. Where is the freedom in that?
Where is the fun?
Where is the je nai se quoi in that?

I mean, structure and 3 meals a day, or however many meals you have a day as habit (grin) is WHAT N DAYS ARE FOR.

S Days are for freedom. Fun. Pleasure. And learning for ourselves from the tips of our toes to the tops of our heads that glutting our selves with sweets FEELS AWFUL. But how will we learn that if we don't integrate it experientially?

To me, 3 meals a day and a treat, is not an S day, it's just another diet leaving your desires and your appetite, bound, gagged and full of resentment at now being allowed to express itself.

Trusting Yourself

2008-12-03T21:55:00.000-08:00

I believe one of the greatest psychological tasks in healing from an eating disorder is learning to trust yourself. I am not a doctor, this is not a medical opinion. I am not a psychologist or a psychiatrist, so this is also not a professional opinion. It is simply my opinion. Someone who has suffered with a binge eating disorder for over thirty years and been felled by it many times.

Felled into the deep dark hole of self-doubt.

In the end the only thing that gets me out of that dark hole is trusting myself. In the end, the only thing that keeps me out of that dark hole is trusting myself. In the end, the only thing that keeps me far enough away from that dark hole is trusting myself.

Trusting yourself is not such an easy task when you are unable to control something as basic as feeding yourself. IN such cases, self trust is like a little bird that flies out the window and refuses to return.

So how does one go about trusting oneself?

Some call it prayer. Some call it meditation. In the end what it is, is listening. Hearing. Heeding. Paying attention to the still small voice within that whispers your own particular truth. The rhythm of your own particular drum. The meaning of your own particular life.

You won't always get it right, epecially in the beginning. You might mistake impulse for intution or maybe you might mistake a voice from the past for your truth in the present. These things will happen. But they are worth the gold.

There is NOTHING no donut no brownie no chai tea latte that will fill the dark hole of not trusting yourself.

Peppermint Striped No S

2008-12-01T17:00:00.000-08:00

On the No S Diet bulletin boards we call the No S Diet with no modifications, "vanilla" NO S. And, being as we are all individuals, many of us, most of us? like do to "tweaks" every now and then ... to address our own little proclivities, idiosyncracies and lives.

I have been pretty much doing "vanilla" NO S for just over eight months with great success. And most people would say "why in the heck would you want to mess with success?"

Well, it could be better, for me, methinks.

On S days I tend to "drift" into two meals a day with snacks and sweets. And my husband is a "two meal a day" person by habit. As I have continued to do the NO S Diet, I have been struggling to keep my "three meals a day" on N days. There have been times I have used eight ounces of juice to "make" a meal. Maybe a piece of fruit. Something really small ... just to be legal. Which after a certain amount of time seems to be giving a bit too much emphasis on being "legalistic".

I have also been cutting down on my "cardio" exercise each week and this causes my appetite to significantly plummet. And I have been extremely challenged in creating "meaningful meals" in appropriate portions.

Let's face it when the portions get too small, and you are only cooking for one or two and you pretty much HATE leftovers, it gets to be honerous day in day out.

SO I am going to, for the month of December, see if I can transition to a "two meal a day" No S Habit. I'm certain I'll be drinking juice and coffee for "breakfast" but since this is not "techincally" a meal, all liquid, I am planning on EATING just lunch and dinner.

On the outside chance that I have grossly miscalculated I will allow myself the freedom to have a "third meal" if perchance I end up physically starving. But unless I decide to hike the ridgeline of the Rockies for Christmas or take up manual labor, highly unlikely.

Anyway, in honor of the holidays, I am naming this particular "flavor" of NO S "Peppermint Striped".

I'll keep my progress during this transtion month on my blog and Daily Check-In on the NO S boards. But nothing to report today, it was an NWS (non weekend special) day for me!

My First NO S Diet Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T09:30:00.001-08:00

The day began when we took our beautiful homemade pumpkin pies out of the refrigerator. After making them completely from scratch the night before, I must say we were pretty proud!

Next on the TO DO list ... walk over to Starbucks for a Triple Shot Grande Caramel Macchiato! Can you say YUM! YUM! Our neighborhood Starbucks was "in the season" and packed. The friendly staff put up festive decorations the night before and it looked like everyone within a five mile radius decided to start their Thanksgiving the same way we did. The line was long but everyone was friendly and in a good mood. Now it is time to go back home, turn on the stereo and fill the CD player with seasonal music and get to work.

Hmmm ... this turkey is taking longer than we thought it would to cook. GOODNESS we are hungry and doesn't that pie just look absolutely DELICIOUS! Yes, we had a delicious piece of our "Chai Pumpkin Pie" with plenty of whip cream for breakfast. You could just taste the fresh cinnamon that we wore our poor little fingers to a nub grating last night.

Ahhh.... Finally! The turkey is done. Let's do this in courses. Let's start with turkey, stuffing and plenty of turkey gravy.

OOPs! Now we are TOO FULL for the second course. Oh well, the sun is out and it's a beautiful day. Let's go and get some fresh air and walk back to get another coffee at Starbucks before they close. DARN! They are out of vanilla syrup for a Caramel Macchiato. Try one with sugar-free vanilla syrup. What a rotten aftertaste. How can anyone gag this stuff down? They remake us lattes with a swirl of caramel on top. I would have enjoyed a plain latte more. Note to self: Next time either a latte or a macchiato ... the twain don't mix. Enjoy a longer walk home.

Do the dishes. Clean the kitchen. Make the phone calls. Ahhhh ... a nice cup of licorice tea to settle the tummy and make room for ...

Yes, I did. I had two more pieces of pie. Each was just as yummy as the first. But I have to admit the second piece was eaten very SSSSLLLLOOOOWWWWLLLYYYY ... cause my tummy was a bit full.

It's getting late and I realize it just won't be THANKSGIVING without some sweet potatoes and cranberry sauce ... And now, this is exactly how we feel!

Hope that everyone had as HAPPY a THANKSGIVING as we did!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-27T21:38:00.000-08:00

Photo: Fairy Tale Pumpkins bought at the local Farmer's Market

Eight Month Results

2008-11-22T11:43:00.000-08:00

These are my eighth months results:

Pounds lost: 11.8 (from 134.6 to 122.8 - I am 5'3.5") (And remember, my original maintenance goal was 124.5 pounds)

Percent: 9%

BMI: 21.1 (was 23.7)

Current bodyfat: 19% (was 27.7% in December 2007) It looks like I am maintaining about 99 pounds of LBM (lean body mass.) That has been pretty consistent for several months. What I have been trying to do is peel off a little bit more fat ... which, honestly, for me has been quite challenging and slow. I have found "undereating" REALLY DOES pull off the muscle and overeating ... well, let's face it folks ... makes you "fluffy."

"Overtraining", especially long steady-state cardio sessions also don't seem to do much for me other than "costing" a lot of time AND then increasing appetite. Think I'll stay away from that.

What works best for me are weights and high intensity cardio sessions of about 20 minutes.

It has been really fun to use my own body as my own "laboratory" and test some of these conflicting "theories". I used to be a big walker. I walked almost everyday for about ten years. There are definitely "health benefits" especially as opposed to a completley sedentary lifestyle, but it appears that for me, short, intense cardio sessions are much more "mentally" and "physically" stimulating. That being said, we all have to start somewhere and walking is a great place to start.

As far as my eating goes, doing weights and HIT (high intensity cardio) seems to give me the best balance between hunger and activity. I eat less and do not feel "starved".

The No S Diet has been critical in achieving my current and what I consider "very mainatainable" success. By letting go of external guidelines stipulating what or how much to eat I have found a new found freedom and connection to my own body.

In the long run (and let's not forget "the long run" IS what we are talking about here) with all the stresses and strains of modern life, being able to simplify a weight maintenance program pays huge dividends in time and energy. I love having the excess time and energy that I used to spend meddling with my weight and eating issues to focus on other things.

All and all I have to continue my "rah rah" for the No S Diet. Its simple approach to moderation is sheer genius!

"the Moderation Revolution"

2008-11-19T20:21:00.001-08:00

On the back cover of the NO S Diet is a blurb: Join the Moderation Revolution!

The question for most of us "what in the heck is moderation" and "how in the heck do we apply it in our daily lives"?

According to the dictionary moderate means things like: kept or keeping within reasonable or proper limits, not extreme, excessive or intense ... even :mediocre or fair. That being said why in the heck is it just so impossible for so many of us to practice "moderation" before we come to the No S Diet?

Interesting question.

Interestingly enough, the inability to eat moderately seems to "birth" the inablity to keep our "approach" to eating in moderation either. Ridiculous amounts of time, money and energy are spent TRYING to "CONTROL" a "perfect" food intake, whether its reaching that "perfect number of calories each day" or "perfectly avoiding offending food substances" our approach to eating is anything BUT moderate.

And this is where the No S Diet excels. No fancy calorie counting PDA required, no pre-packaged boil in the pouch meals, no points, nothing really at all required other than the plate that you put your food on.

Completely unobtrusive to the untrained eye, the NO S Diet is all about moderation.

I am starting to deeply suspect that "moderation" and the learning of it on just about all fronts of life is the only key to lasting, permanant weight loss and a peaceful and enjoyable relationship with food. VIVA LA REVOLUCION!

Too Little, Too Much

2008-11-18T18:46:00.000-08:00

One if the things that I am loving about the No S Diet is my increasing ability to calibrate my meals according to my hunger on a daily and meal by meal basis. Since I don't work out or move the same amount every day, it would make sense that my needs for fuel would need to be modified accordingly.

Let's face it ... some days, Sundays, I am a slug and other days I am in high gear and hardly sitting down or still. With the only unit of measure on the No S Diet being one plate or one bowl, it has become a huge learning process to figure out how much I need to put on that one plate or in that one bowl.

Why has this been such a huge learning process? As an ex-dieter, binger, I was either relying on an external authority ... i.e. calories, menus, food plans, to define how much food I should eat or I was pretty much in binge mode. Now into my eighth month on the NO S Diet, I have shifted to the internal authority of my own daily cues of hunger to help me sort it all out.

This is something akin to finally growing up. And I love it. I love being physically aware of too little and too much. No other process or method or diet for that matter has gotten me this close to consistently listening to and learning to rely on the natural method of weight control ... my very own appestat.

Consistency is the Key to Results

2008-11-17T17:04:00.000-08:00

Years ago I used to do the original Firm workout videos. They had an abs video with about five ab segments. There was an adorable italian guy in the videos who at the end of one of the segments said "Consistency is the key to results."

That particular phrase has struck with me through the years as the truth of it is proved over and over again in my life. And following the No S Diet it has been proved true once again.

Consistently keeping my N days green, pretty much no matter what I eat or how much I eat on my S/NWS days has been the key to my results on the No S diet. Consistently eating only three one plate/bowl meals every N day and not eating snacks, sweets or seconds has paid huge dividends for me.

Sometimes I fret that I "ate too much" on an S/NWS day. But the truth really is "consistency is the key to results." As long as I have kept my N days green, the weight has slowly but steadily come off and now it is staying off.

Once again I am truly learning, it is consistency over the long term that is the key to permanent and lasting results.

... Nothing You Can't Comfortably Do Without

2008-11-15T11:47:00.000-08:00

By cutting out [snacks, sweets, and seconds] during the week, you cut out plenty, but nothing you can't comfortably do without.
p.5 The No S Diet by Reinhard Engels

The "nothing you can't comfortably do without" is probably what is debatable for some of us, especially at the beginning. In a culture, where "well-known" fitness gurus are telling us to eat every five minutes to keep our metabolism up and so ... god forbid, we won't get hungry ... many of, especially in the beginning wonder ... can we, in fact, comfortably do without snacks?

The truth of the matter is that in the first few weeks, it might not be so "comfortable" to forego snacking. But it is truly amazing how quickly our body adapts when we are strict with our N days.

Others, of us, sugar babies that we are, fret. No chocolate? No soda? No snagging a handful of jelly beans when we cruise by the receptionist's desk? And HOW WILL we say "no" to the rest of the ubiquitous sweets that are offered, pushed, insisted upon? Perhaps in the beginning we are not so comfortable with "no sweets" either.

Our "no thank you's" are rusty and flimsy, perhaps even a bit wimpy from atrophy and little use. But, once again, it is truly amazing how quickly we can adapt when we are strict on our N Days.

And let's not neglect "no seconds". In a world where our eyes are much bigger than our stomachs, the concept of "no more" may seem daunting. But, once again, by keeping those N days green, in what is almost no more than a blink of the eye, you just might learn that "hunger" actually feels good and "less really is more."

So that, in not too long, perhaps in just the amount of time it takes to join the "21 day club" we have arrived at a point, where No Snacks, No Sweets, and No Seconds are something we can comfortably do without on our N Days and look forward to on our S days.

Photo: Yummy Lunch of Grilled Albacore, Sauted Spinach with Loads of Garlic and EVOO and Spiced Yams

Hexagram 61: Limitation

2008-11-13T20:49:00.000-08:00

Through the years I have dabbled in studying different religions and philosophies. One of my favorite "soothing" books is the I Ching. I am very fond of the "taoist" strain in its teachings, not so much the "confucianist."

Since I have been on the NO S Diet, I have often thought of Hexagram 61: Limitation and how enlightening it was the first time I read it. In a culture where "more" is never enough and "too much" hardly seems like a respectable amount, the wisdom of "limitation" is like good medicine.

Let's look at some excerpts from the Wilhelm translation below:

The Judgement

Limitation. Success.
Galling limitation must not be persevered in.

The Image

A lake is something limited. Water is inexhaustible. A lake can only contain a definite amount of the infinite quantity of water; this is its peculiarity. In human life too the individual achieves signficance through the discrimination and setting of limits ... Unlimited possibilites are not suited to man; if they existed his life would only dissolve in the boundless. To become strong, a man's life needs the limitations ordained by duty and voluntarily accepted. The individual attains significance as a free spirit only by surrounding himself with these limitations and by determining for himself what his duty is.

To me traditional diets are a "galling limitation", i.e. limits that lead to the "misfortune" of failure if "persevered" in. The"diet backlash" or binge that follows every diet is a good example of such "misfortune". The No S Diet, on the other hand, gives us just enough limits to be appropriately discriminating in our daily eating lives.

The No S Diet is definitely NOT a "galling limitation." It is just the right amount of limits to help us acheive "success" and get on with the business of living our otherwise fascinating lives.

Anxiety

2008-11-12T19:59:00.000-08:00

One of the many reasons I used to overeat and binge was to handle anxiety. I am not necessarily talking about huge or crippling anxiety, I am talking more about the "garden variety" kind of anxiety of living a "normal" life in the "modern world." The somewhat ongoing background tensions caused by interruptions, miscommunications, minor daily frustrations and obstructions.

This morning I accompanied a loved one to the hospital for an outpatient procedure. Hospitals, Parking Lots, Doctors, Consent Forms and basically the realm of the "unknown" loomed before me and my loved one. In the past, I might have been completely "unaware" of my anxiety, moving like shifting sands just below the surface of my consciousness, and used the experience to be "really hungry" all of a sudden.

But let's see, yesterday and today were N days. Hmmmmmmmm ... not a lot of room their for "food" subterfuge.

I began to realize last night that I was bit worried, just because anytime someone goes under anesthesia there is always THAT RISK. Small, but present. Curiously, I focused on how would I handle breakfast which was actually concrete and helpful. After much back and forth I decided the best bet would be to pack it and take it with me.

That is what I did this morning. Packed my healthy one bowl breakfast and threw it in my purse with a spoon. SO there I was in the waiting room ... tick tock tick tock ... the time was past when they were supposed to call me. Other patients "drivers" had already been called. I got to feel all my anxiety. Not mind bending. Not extremely high level. Just enough that prior to No S I might have ended up with some unwanted pastry from the coffee cart or some unsatisfying fare from the hospital cafe ... both reasons to indulge MORE when it was all over and I was free to leave the hospital, discharge my loved one, and then be free to ... well ... eat.

But that's just not how it went to day. I ate my one bowl. Satisfying as it always is. Lived through the anxiety. Tended to my loved one. Had a nice one plate lunch and got to work when it was all said and done. A "normal" day.

HALLELUJAH!

Who would have thought that I would have ever chosen anxiety over a donut?

Best Weekend Ever!

2008-11-10T17:42:00.001-08:00

First of all, a housekeeping item.

After an emotionally tumultuous process I have decided to continue blogging about my No S Diet journey, however because of the time consuming nature of taking and preparing pictures I am going to start today, doing my week day posts without photos and save the pics for "weekend features". For right now this seems like a better balance than either continuing as I have been or totally stopping the blog. Okay. We shall see how it goes!

As far as being the "Best Weekend Ever!" this one was definitely it.

Why?

Simple reason.

I actually woke up grrrrrrrr .... HUNGRY this morning. "So what," you say. OH NO. This is the first Monday since I have been on the No S Diet that I actually woke up MONDAY MORNING - well, hungry.

What is the significance of that?

Well it means that I did not overeat this weekend. At all. AMAZING. I had my delicious caramel macchiatos, a dark chocolate/coffee bar from Starbucks, a lovely Italian meal and even ... GASP a peice of Von's birthday cake. What can I say, I was in the mood.

Anyway I also ate salmon, artichoke, healthy beans and lentils, an organic free range turkey burger, plain organic yogurt .... blah blah blah. BUT the thing is it is becoming more effortless and I am becoming more skillful at keeping to the right size portions for my body by "eyeballing" things and sensing how my body is "feeling."

Yes, I am somewhat delirious with this progress. I suppose you can tell!

Trick or Treat

2008-10-31T07:18:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween all of you NOSers!

Bwahahhahahhahahhhhhhaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!

This can definitely be a HAPPY Halloween for all of us. Myself, I am taking Halloween as an official NWS day. A couple of weeks ago I stacked up on my stash for the trick or treaters who will come by tonight, but because of my "time" on NO S they have been "safely" stashed in the closet untouched.

TRICK OR TREAT?

It is your choice.

Call it an NWS day and have a Treat or pass and go for the Trick.

It is your choice!

Me ... my treats today will be fresh donuts from our local donut shop, vegan nachos and a wickedly delicious Caramel Machiatto! Teeheeeheeee!

Photo: Halloween TREATS!

"Glass Ceilings"

2008-10-29T20:23:00.001-07:00

"Glass Ceiling" is a concept Reinhard uses for "containing" alcohol consumption. I have been using it for the past two months to contain caffiene/coffee consumption and it has been working really well. I quit drinking coffee over four years ago because I could not stick with reasonable amounts. After nosing for six month I decided to experiment with using the "glass ceiling" concept for caffiene/coffee.

Works like a charm. Now I can enjoy my coffees twice a day, once after breakfast and another, usually after lunch. Then that's it I am done. I have only "broken" the "glass ceiling" once ... and that was an S day.

Reinhard has come up with so many useful ideas for managing our habits and disciplining our appetites. I am so glad I stumbled upon his book The No S Diet in Barnes and Noble this past March. It has changed my life and had an impact that the gazillion diet books that I bought before cannot even touch!

I love being "normal" and I love my "drinky" things. I am so glad that I get to MAXIMIZE my ENJOYment of them by using No S Diet concepts like "S days" and "glass ceilings"

Photos: Two Starbucks Coffees

I Love Veggies

2008-10-28T17:28:00.000-07:00

I suppose I am fortunate because I love veggies. No broccoli haters here. ANY vegetable steamed or sauteed with a generous dollop of EVOO (extra virgin olive oil), salt and/or pepper is yummy to me.

I know! I know! We all talk about eating protien and making protien the central part of meals, but for me, my only "rule of thumb" is this:

I try to make sure that not a day goes by without a nice serving of GREEN!

The No S Diet is great for getting in your veggies because they are a GREAT way to fill up your plate. Without the higher natural sugars of fruit and loaded with even MORE MINERALS, veggies are the road to exuberant good health.

Like I said, I suppose I am fortunate, I have loved veggies since I was a kid. The simpler the better. Great tasting, fresh vegetables don't need to be drowned in heavy sauces, cheesy toppings, or fried and breaded. BLEYCH! is what I say to drowning all that natural goodness!

For today, try filling up your plate with nice, fresh veggies.

Photo: Mesquite Grilled Halibut, Steamed Green Beans and Carrots with EVOO and Celtic Sea Salt

Just Looking

2008-10-26T12:27:00.001-07:00

I use to LOVE LOVE LOVE Von's Cake. It was my "big deal" for such a long time. Years. Sweet. Secret. Forbidden.

Now sometimes on S days, I think - Von's cake! Wouldn'cha love it? I go to the store and I stand at the case and I look at my favorites ... white birthday cake, carrot cake and ...

chocolate birthday cake. Then after a few minutes I realize that I really don't WANT any Von's cake and that JUST LOOKING is enough!

WOW!

That is CERTAINLY an UNEXPECTED result of the NO S Diet!

Photos: Von's White Birthday Cake, Von's Carrot Cake, Von's Chocolate Birthday Cake

Pre-disapproved

2008-10-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

I love this little gem from the No S Diet book ...

"You're pre-disapproved, so forget it and move onto something else." p119

Being pre-disapproved definitely keeps things simple.

Someone stands in front of me with a sweety thing and/or a snacky thing and a big smile on their face.

"Here I brought this specially for you cause I KNOW it's your favorite."

Quick internal reconnoitering - is this an N day? Yes? Hmmm ... that means I am PRE-DISAPPROVED for ANYTHING sweety and anything snacky I can't or don't want to put on my one plate. Do I want to put THAT particular SNACKY THING on my one plate today? Heaven's no.

"Gee, that was so nice of you to think of me. I'll just take it and wrap it up for later."

Person's smile fades as I swipe it from their hands and quickly disappear.

On the way to lunch I make three points free-throwing it into the garabage. Better in the waste can than on my waist band.

Pre-disapproved.

Keeping life simple on the No S Diet.

... when you are not not not

2008-10-18T12:08:00.000-07:00

WOW!

What a productive week! This is what I love about No S, all of that healthy structure and effective discipline spilling over into all of the other areas of my life.

Reading my blog or daily check-ins on the No S boards this week you know I was SAD! But you also know I kept my N days green. The results ... I felt the sadness AND kept on moving forward. And now I turn around and look behind me and what an AMAZING week.

Not only did I feel, dip into, absorb, integrate, accept all of that sadness, but I also KICKED BUTT in getting organized and facing down some fears so I could COMPLETE some very significant and necessary tasks in my life. Hmmmmm....

Now it is Saturday and I feel good!

Don't let anyone tell you that getting the stuff done that you need to get done does NOT feel great. GETTING the stuff done that you need to get done FEEL'S GREAT!!!!!!!!!

So does being genuine and not PRETENDING to be happy happy happy when you are just not not not.

Photo: Grilled Salmon Salad with Avocado, Tomato, Shredded Carrot, Arugula, Romaine and EVOO

Implicit Memories

2008-10-14T16:55:00.000-07:00

It is uncanny, but getting well into October I have had up to four episodes where I pretty much JUST WANT TO EAT.

Thank goodness that my No S Habit is holding me in good stead and I have lots of practice in ... "how can I handle this without food?"

I was listening to an interesting audio recording the other day called the Neurobiology of We. The guy was talking about implicit v. explicit memories. Implicit memories, as I understand it being memories that are encoded into our bodies but because we have not integrated them through our hippocampus we may not have verbal or "conscious" recall of them.

This can happen when either we are too young and the hippocampus has not developed or under the stress of trauma, the hippocampus shuts down.

I had a particularly traumatic experience in October in my early years. Inevitably, inexplicable waves of sadness wash over me in October. Usually, I find a way to eat them away.

This year I am allowing myself to be sad. This is not brain numbing tear spilling sadness, it is just something deep within that at this time of the year simmers beneath the surface.

The relief and "safety" of the NO S Diet is that as far as my food goes, all I have to do is just have three one plate/bowl meals today. Nothing less and nothing more.

Then I get the opportunity to accept whatever washes up as just something I need to deal with in ways other than eating.

I think this is going to work.

Photo: Homemade Tuna Salad Sandwich on Ezekiel Bread, White Peach

Sushi

2008-10-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

A new sushi restaurant opened up in our neighborhood recently, Wonderful Sushi, and we decided to walk over to dinner last night and try it.

IT WAS TRULY WONDERFUL!

We started with tuna ...

Then we moved on to salmon ...

Next up was shrimp tempura hand rolls ...

A spanish roll, this one was a new one for me, and absolutely delicious ...

The sushi chef gave us this fancy shrimp complimentary ... tasty ...

We ended the meal with a Wonderful High Crab Roll, yum! yum! it's been years since I had sushi, it was truly wonderful, fresh and as you can see very beautiful!

Another way to spend your S day meals when you ARE NOT limited by just one plate!

Photos: SUSHI!

Bad Ass

2008-10-11T12:43:00.000-07:00

If you have been following my blog for any length of time, then you might remember that I took some of the $aving$ from following the No S Diet and hired a personal trainer at my gym in May.

Let's see that was four-and-a-half months ago.

IN the beginning the training manager gave me five complimentary sessions and trained me himself. VERY GOOD. And very nice. Then I was assigned another trainer. Pretty tuff on me, but that is what I asked for.

Yesterday I went in for my session and that trainer was no longer with the gym. Sigh. So they assigned me to another trainer. Young. Nordic. Uh huh.

I decided to take it in stride. We discussed my goals for the day and settled on some circuit training. He wanted to assess my fitness level.

So he had me start with 25 pushups, 25 deadlifts and 25 pull-ups. Now let me remind you that I used to not be able to do even one full body push-up. KNEES PLEASE!

Well, I dropped down and pumped out 25 perfect form full-body pushups and he was ... wide-eyed (probably not more so than myself) and said I was "bad ass". We continued through the circuit and he was apparently sufficiently impressed.

He took me to the other side of the gym and had be do another circuit of squat press things (not sure what they were exactly) and then these squat jumps and chin pull up things, in circuits of 21, 18, 15, 12 and 9.

He basically told me that most of the other people coming in for training weren't up to doing this ... COOL! When I was dying at the end, he said with a smile on his face, "That is what you get for being a bad ass."

As a forty-six year old female, who has in the past year-and-a-half been on a passionate journey to claim her inner IRON WOMAN - big smile - I felt like being able to pump out those 25 full body pushups and have this twenty-something jock call me a "bad ass" was pretty much a testament to not only the body reshaping that I have accomplished, but the development of FUNCTIONAL STRENGTH as well.

VERY COOL! I LOVE THIS STUFF! AND I LOVE BEING A "BAD ASS"!

Photo: One Bowl of Watermelon, definitely think this fits into the "maximize your real estate" category

'Tis the Season

2008-10-09T08:43:00.000-07:00

It's October 9th today and I realize that for me, 'tis the season.

My personal "binging season" is the beginning of October through the end of February.

NOTE: This does not mean I do not binge throughout the year, I do. It simply escalates significantly during this time of the year.

For me, my personal "binging season" has more to do with a series of events that happened during this time of the year in my early childhood, than the season per say, but the coupling of my own personal "anniversary season" with the culture's "food free for all" time of year can have pretty nasty consequences.

I think there has only been one year in my adult life I have not gone through a fairly significant weight gain in this time period, for example, last year I managed to put on about eleven pounds.

I remember ten years ago when my weight had dropped to 107 pounds and I beleive it was the first of October, walking through the grocery store and spying a pumpkin pie, I could FEEL the tidal wave coming. I didn't buy the pie that night but by November 30, I had eaten many pies, and pieces of cornbread with lots of honey butter on them, if I remember correctly.

So I have successfully passed my six month No S Diet anniversary and am settling into maintenance and here comes "the season".

I know that the last six-and-a-half months of building HABIT will probably hold me in good stead. Besides, I do not have to "forego" pie altogether now, I can have as much as I want on my S days and NWS days. That knowledge and trust within myself is a bulwark against binging in itself.

So even though I am AWARE that 'tis the season, my personal "binging season" as it were, I am feeling pretty comfortable with the No S Diet. There have already been two nights I basically just wanted to keep on eating, clean out the fridge, just not stop.

But I did. Stop. When I was done with my one plate/bowl meal.

Last night, it was get to bed early.

Another green N day.

A little bit deeper groove in my habit structure.

One meal at a time, one day at a time, I really BELEIVE this is going to be a DIFFERENT season.

Photo: Hickory Smoked Turkey Burger, Steamed Green Beans with EVOO, Peach

Fast Food

2008-10-05T11:46:00.000-07:00

Friday afternoon I was in a hurry and did not have much time for lunch. I had two doctor's appointments (just routine), a session with my personal trainer at the gym and just my "basic work" to do.

I stopped by Jimbo's our local health food store and picked up some fresh wild salmon and a bag of pre-washed organic baby spinach.

I got home and put our metal grill on the oven and let it start heating up. A few minutes later I came back and washed the fish, doused it with EVOO from my Misto and rubbed it down with some Celtic Sea Salt and Black Pepper on both sides, oh and I cut off almost all of the nasty fatty stuff I don't like. I threw it on the grill and set the timer for 5 minutes. I went off and did another couple of things then came back and put our saute pan on the flame. I opened the bag of spinach and flipped the fish when that timer went off. I set the timer again for five minutes. I put 2 teaspoons of EVOO in the saute pan and let that heat a minute are two. Then I threw in the whole bag of spinach and a little bit of Celtic Sea Salt. By the time the fish was done so was the spinach.

WHAT A LOVELY FAST FOOD LUNCH!

I would have sat longer in the drive-thru!

I did take a few minutes afterwards to trot over to Starbucks for my tall Cafe Misto.

Afterwards I was feeling really good and satisfied and got back to work. I had a great afternoon!

Who says "fast food" has to be "bad food" or even "sad food" for that matter!

Photo: Grilled Wild Salmon, Baby Spinach sauteed with EVOO

Happy Friday

2008-10-03T18:50:00.000-07:00

I love Fridays!

I know, I am not the only one, most of us do.

What I love about Friday's on No S are this. Almost each and every Friday I get to look back over the week and see how much more productive I am and how much more of an even keel I am on as I get things done in my life. It feels wonderful week after week to be living insteaf of binging.

Sure! Now I have to deal with stuff more straight up, but the point is I deal with it. And then it's done. When I used to binge I would procrastinate and hesitate and make things worse.

I also am able to appreciate my weekends even more on NO S. Why? Because on the weekends my eating is not ever restrictive ... at all. I can eat whateever I want, whenever I want, and as much of it I want as long as I am ENJOYING it.

Funny how that last qualification, ENJOYING it, changes everything.

Ladeedah Ladeedah Ladeedah

Photo: Ingredients for my "MV Pudding", Plain Organic Yogurt, Peaceful Planet Soy Protien Powder and Mona Vie Active Functional Beverage

Sunday Bar B Q

2008-09-30T07:44:00.001-07:00

Sunday we barbecued. I guess that is a pretty official end to my veganism, SOB!

WHAT HAPPENED?

When I first started the NO S Diet we had just been to the Indian Cooking Classes and I was making delicious homemade dal several nights a week. Finally my husband spoke and said this stuff is giving me indigestion.

I was stumped. Years ago I had done the Blood Type Diet and I was pretty sure that lentils were "beneficial" for both of our blood types. The Blood Type Diet is ONE of the "diet" books I have hung onto through the years because I actually liked being on it, but found it too rigid.

ANYWAY, I pulled out the book and wa-lah ... lentils were actually an "avoid" for my poor type O husband. He stopped eating them and started doing research slowly over the months on the blood type diet. As an O he is a "red meat eater" of all things.

It seems that since I had tried the diet, Dr. Adamo had added a variation to the blood type called the secretor status. We decided to do the mail order tests in August.

WALAH! I am a non-secretor! About 20% of the population are non-secretors and all of the information about being a non-secretor fits me to a "T". The bummer was this, being a non-secretor A takes me from being a vegetarian as optimal diet to being a "fish eater" SOB!

Since then I have been making the adjustments and am SO GRATEFUL that JIMBO'S our local health food store is a totally "cruelty-free" animal products. It is tough. My husband thought becoming a meat-eater would make his lunches at work easier. But actually it makes it tougher because so few restaurants serve free-range, organic meats and non-farmed fish products.

Thus, the trip to Jimbo's on Sunday to get some acceptable fish and meats and the Bar B Q.

Damn, that hickory smoked wild salmon was good!

Photo: Hickory smoked wild salmon and steam sauted broccoli with EVOO and red pepper flakes.

MAINTENANCE HAS OFFICIALLY ARRIVED

2008-09-28T16:54:00.001-07:00

Well that was quick! BIG HUGE GRIN!

When I posted my six months results yesterday, Saturday, the actual results were from Tuesday, September 24, my OFFICIAL six month date. I hadn't had a chance to get on and blog them before Saturday.

ANYWAY, I knew I was getting ready to break through a plateau, I could just FEEL it! Last week I scheduled two personal training sessions with my personal trainer at the gym (usually I just have one) because I wanted to reach my goals by November and the coming month, October, is going to be the most flexible in my work schedule. Doing even two thirty minute sessions a week with my personal trainer is VERY demanding, cause lets face it he's a youngster, about 22, and in about 10 of my 30 minutes I am usually drenched.

Well the week before my vacation he had kicked my butt, and that started a shift. Apparently with my two sessions last week and two very intense strength training sessions, I did one upper and one lower body split with five sets each, NEVER DONE THAT before, looks like I was able to let go of some more body fat.

SO this morning I am happy to report that I have reached my six month goal with my personal trainer in about 4 months and 1 week, using the No S Diet as my food plan.

WIth my current weight of 124.3 and 19.6225 body fat, my body fat is about 24.4 pounds and my lean body mass is about 99.9 pounds. That is right on target with my original goals.

I am going to go on and keep my next 5 weeks with my trainer AS IS and experience the pure bliss of just having fun and completely not worrying about results or meeting my goal. I am already there!

So now, this blog will become my record of my life on MAINTENANCE on the NO S DIET!!!

If I have anything to say about all this it's this:

DOES THE NO S DIET WORK?

ABSOLUTELY!!!!!!!

Photo: Me on the Scale Monster at MAINTENANCE

Six Month Anniversary and Results

2008-09-27T12:09:00.001-07:00

On Tuesday, I "celebrated" my six month No S Diet anniversary ... that is six months of green N days on the No S Diet.

Although my results are not stunning, they are significant.

I started on March 24, 2008.
I weighed 134.6 pounds. I don't know what my bodyfat was, although in December of 2007 when I joined my health club it was 27.7%.
I suspect by March it was higher as I had gained approximately ten pounds between December and March.

YES I can do THAT quite easily when I am BINGING!

Two months later in May, my weight was 126.3 pounds and I was at 24.17% body fat with 30.575 pounds of fat and 95.925 pounds of lean body mass.

The following month, June, I weighed 125.2 pounds.

Then in July I was back "up" to 126.5 pounds.

In August, I was on hiatus and did not post my results.

NOW, in September after six months on the No S diet my weight is 125.6 pounds and my body fat is 20.76% That calculates out to 26 pounds of body fat and 99.3 pounds of lean body mass.

So although there has been basically no change in my weight over the past four months, there has been a SIGNIFICANT change in my body composition from May to September.

My original goal with my personal trainer is to reach 124.5 and 20% body fat by November. It is quite possible that I will acheive that goal by gaining about 0.3 more pounds of muscle and losing 1.1 more pounds of body fat.

I have two more months, I am delighted with my progress so far and I am going to go for it!

I will post my results again in November, wish me luck!

Photo: Me on the Scale Monster!!!!!!!!!!!! Bwahahhhhh!

REAL SUCCESS

2008-09-23T20:01:00.000-07:00

Let's see what do I want to blog about today?

My lack of topic is directly attributable to the No S Diet. Keeping my N days green and enjoying my S days AND OF COURSE my NWS days really smooths out the highs and lows in my life. Most often these days I am on an even keel and focussing on the projects or folks or kitties in front of me and just doing what ever needs to get done, or whatever I want to do, or nothing at all.

Nope. No big emotional highs and lows just smooth, steady sailing.

What is wonderful is that as the days go on I slowly forget ... all of that "diet stuff". I swear sometimes I don't even KNOW how many calories is in whatever I am eating.

ISN'T THAT FABULOUS? I think that is REAL SUCCESS and I am excited as more and more "diet mentality" falls away and I am left with just a natural healthy joyous pleasure with food and eating and enough energy and time to do the rest of the things that I want to do in this lifetime ...

Hmmmmmm.... so what shall I title today's blog?

REAL SUCCESS sounds good.

Photo: Kitty being curious about my one bowl of Cottage Cheese with Cinnamon and Vanilla and Pineapple

Shrink Yourself

2008-09-20T16:42:00.000-07:00

Often when the subject of emotional eating comes up on the No S Diet boards I mention the Shrink Yourself program www.shrinkyourself.com

Why?

It works. It can be painful, difficult, frustrating and dig a little bit deeper than you really want or think you need to go, but it works to get to the roots of emotional eating.

Years of conventional types of therapy and overeaters anonymous and intuitive eating, etc., etc. did not reach the roots of my emotional eating but the Shrink Yourself program did.

It was painful, difficult and frustrating, but I do not regret the three months that it took to get through the on-line program which I did between November 2007 and February 2008. In the process I gained ten pounds, but if I had the No S Diet I might not have. It is hard to say.

What I can definitely say for sure is that the work I did with the Shrink Yourself on-line program prior to discovering the No S Diet has been a big part of my SUCCESS on the NO S Diet.

If you find yourself having a problem keeping your N days GREEN, check out the online program and see if it is a "missing ingredient" that might help you make it over the hump.

Compared to traditional therapy it is highly affordable and I loved the self-paced approach.

Although you could just read the book, I am not sure it would be as effective as the on-line program.

Photo: Cover of the Shrink Yourself Book by Robert Gould

"Self-Denial is a Great Sweetener of Pleasure"

2008-09-18T18:30:00.000-07:00

"Self-Denial is a Great Sweetner of Pleasure" ... this is a lovely quote that I pulled from the No S diet boards, thank you Jammin' Jam.

I have found this concept to be true, especially as I adhere to the No S Diet. Where I used to beleive that binging was a pleasurable experience I am finding that a well-timed and limited treat is MUCH more satisfying and therefore much more pleasurable!

Why is this? I will guess.

First of all, no matter how much very temporary satisfaction binging brings, it is ALWAYS followed by the uncomfortable physical sensations of overeating and it is most always accompanied by the natural emotional guilt of eating more than our fair share and/or more than what is an appropriate portion for our body ... i.e. our inner sense of shame at our own greed.

Secondly when you eat whatever "treat" you want whenever you "want" to eat it, it by default becomes a commonplace experience and thus its specialness is diminished and it is no longer EXPERIENCED as a treat, thus reducing its capacity to provide pleasure.

Finally, when we do eat our treats in appropriate and/or limited portions the sense of pleasure is actually heightened by the lack of guilt and uncomfortable physical sensations of overeating. So the pleasure is almost doubled because it is not linked with ANY negative associations.

So by denying our selves unlimited treats in quanitity and frequency we are GREATLY SWEETENING OUR PLEASURES when we do partake!

I like it!

Photo: Organic Free Range Turkey Meatballs, Steamed Green Beans with EVOO, Celtic Sea Salt and Fresh Ground Black Pepper and Figs

Yummy Kale Salad

2008-09-14T12:21:00.000-07:00

One of the things I love to eat in late summer when the Reed avocados are in season and the tomatoes are colorful and ripe is a yummy kale salad.

Several years ago I went raw for about four months. I discovered many new ways to eat and prepare food. One of my favorite dishes was a Kale Salad by Chad Sarno. This recipe is now all over the web with different "creators" but here it is and it is YUMMY!

2 cups finely shredded or torn kale

1 cup diced tomato

1 cup avocado in chunks

juice of 1/2 large lemon

1 TBSP Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 teaspoon Celtic Sea Salt

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

In a mixing bowl toss all ingredients together, squeezing as you mix to "wilt" the kale and cream the avocado. Serve immediately.

So when the Reed avocados are in season and the tomatos look like this:

Whip up a very fresh and very yummy kale salad and ENJOY!

Photos: Kale Salad with Figs, Russian Heirloom Tomatoes

Regaining Your Self

2008-09-10T11:48:00.000-07:00

This is a great book. For anyone like me who has had a long term eating disorder. For me it has not been anorexia or bulimia, but simply binge eating disorder.

This book was a big help. It basically sets forth that the best or maybe the only way to heal from an eating disorder is to find something else in your life that you are equally or more passionate about than eating/dieting.

I read this book last year and it really got me to thinking.

For me, there has always been a HUGE emotional component to my overeating. The No S Diet is the perfect eating structure for healing binge eating disorders. What I learned from reading Regaining Your Self reminds me that when I am feeling "rebellious" on N Days, I really just need to focus on the things in my life that I am passionate about.

Its amazing the difference that makes.

For me, I could not be where I am today without following the No S diet AND what I read in this book, Regaining Your Identity.

Photo: Book Cover - Regaining Your Self by Ira Sacker

Watermelon Flower

2008-09-08T13:47:00.000-07:00

Watermelon has been in season and we have been enjoying it for breakfast on the weekends. YUM! YUM!

My husband made these nice little watermelon flowers for us. They were petite delicious organic melons and we enjoyed every bite.

My S days have really "settled" down.

As my six month No S Diet anniversary approaches I really want to say that I am loving the No S Diet even more now than when I started, if that is even possible!

It feels so good to be letting go of all the "dieting" garbage that has filled my mind for so many years.

I am enjoying my N Days and my S Days more than ever. And of course NWS days are great!

Before No S I could never acheive moderation. I was either too rigid or too indulgent. The No S Diet is the ONLY thing that has helped me acheive the right balance of freedom and discipline.

Thank you again Reinhard!

Photo: Watermelon Flower

Life is Good on the No S Diet

2008-09-05T07:36:00.000-07:00

Life is good on the No S Diet. The past five plus months have marked huge shifts in my pschological and emotional relationship with food.

One of the things that I did when I was on my August hiatus from the No S Diet Boards was I got rid of all of my diet books. But before I gave them away I wrote the No S website clearly onto all of the table of contents.

When I first started the No S Diet, I believe it was Lily, that brought this great idea up on the boards. I had wanted to do it for months but never got around to it because I just didn't have the time.

But when I was taking my hiatus I had some extra moments and used them to do some "housec cleaning" things like this. It felt great to write the No S Diet website in all of those books and get them out of my house.

I am so glad that I will not be buying anymore diet books because, for me, life is good on the No S Diet.

Photo: Organic Free Range Turkey Bacon Lettuce and Tomato Sandwich, Carrot Sticks and Figs

The Right Balance of Freedom and Discipline

2008-09-03T20:55:00.000-07:00

The right balance of freedom and discipline. Seems to me this is what you need for success in any endeavor. Enough freedom to allow for individuality, creativity and variety and enough discipline to stay the course through to see sustainable and permanent results.

The No S Diet definitely provides my eating with the right balance of freedom and discipline.
The lovely and remarkable thing is that the right balance of freedom and discipline then spreads out through my entire life.

Now that I have been doing No S for five months plus, this is having a really nice effect (as opposed to the really awful effect of binging, dieting and restricting) throughout my entire life.

I love it love it love it. And as I said in my last blog, I am looking forward to a really productive Fall/Winter end of year, rather than the falling into that sinkhole of binging!

Photo: Turkey Chili, Swiss Chard sauted in EVOO with a splash of Balsalmic Vinegar, Figs

New Furry Friends

2008-09-01T15:24:00.000-07:00

After our dear kitty Lola departed, I thought I would enjoy a period of time ... months? a year or two? without the responsibility of a pet.

Was a surprised that I just could not "quell" the desire to "adopt" a few days after Lola passed and I had cleaned up her towels and toys and bowls, etc. With a nice size home and several cat "trees" I just couldn't deny that we are pretty much a "premium" home for kitties.

There is a wonderful local petstore in our neighborhood that we pass by going to grocery store, and dry cleanres. Last week they had some adorable kittens. I went by last Monday and they pretty much "grabbed" my heart.

I slept on it, and Tuesday after lunch I had to go by and see if they were still there. They got adopted that afternoon. The store owner gave them shots, washed them up, and clipped their nails and we brought them home early that evening.

They are now nine weeks old and you can see they are precious. They are brothers and they get along famously. They are adjusting to their new home and I simply love having them around. They are fun to play with and fun to watch play and sleep with one another.

It is really fun to have healthy, happy kitties underfoot. No one will ever take the place of our Lola, but I have learned that I really love having the "animal energy" of furry freinds in the house. For me, spending time with them is relaxing, centering and nurturing.

I have wondered if I was not on NO S would I have started Binging when Lola passed and denied my heartfelt desire to adopt again? Since I was not binging I had many good cries over Lola in the weeks before she passed and then as she was leaving us. In the past I might have turned to food to crush the part of my heart that was ready and able, not to replace Lola, but to provide a new home for two lovely little creatures who are very unique and different in their own right.

I was hoping to blog more in August, but my life interrupted.

I am hoping to continue my blogging and talk more about some of the tools I have used to help alleviate my emotional eating in September.

Thank you to all of you who come by and visit and have hung in through August. I did not post my five month results in August because I forgot and there was no signficant change. I think for the rest of this first year I will report my results every two months. I am so close to maintenance, that for me things are moving very slowly.

I have continued to stay "green" on N days throughout August and took one NWS day.

In September I will take four NWS days, today - Labor Day, two birthdays and another for my husband's vacation.

NO S continues to alter my relationship with food DRAMATICALLY and have deep and far-reaching effects in my life.

HAPPY LABOR DAY!

I am looking for a happy, joyous and productive Fall!

Photo: Two Brothers!

Death in the Family

2008-08-22T17:39:00.000-07:00

Sadly we had a death in the family this week.

Our little kitty passed away in our arms on Wednesday morning. She was the sweetest little kitty and there have been lots of tears and smiles as we remember all the joy and love that she brought us.

She was a shelter cat. We adopted her just over six years ago. She came from a home of thirty-one cats and we always believed she loved finally being an "only child".

Before she left us, I told her that she was well loved and thanked her for all that she gave us and taught us.

Photo: Kitty's empty box that she slept in for past two weeks.

Figs, Tea and Dark Chocolate

2008-08-16T14:12:00.001-07:00

Looks like another great S day for me!

Figs are in season and the ones that I got at the Farmer's Market this morning are absolutely DELICIOUS. Top that off with a chai tea latte and a little bit of dark chocolate and all I have to say is what a satsifying treat!

Just wanted to make a note that after my first week off the boards, the "chatter" has utterly died away. i.e. those crazy thoughts of ... why not just ... eat this or that and rack up lots of red days.

Apparently HABIT really is a strong creature and the more ingrained it is the less you have to think about it and the less energy you have to commit to eat.

But isn't that exactly what Reinhard has been trying to tell us all along!

I am getting amazing things done this month, staying green on NO S and thoroughly enjoying myself along the way!

Photo: Figs, Starbucks Chai Tea Latte, Yummy Dark Chocolate Bar!

Sob!

2008-08-14T09:56:00.000-07:00

Sob! I had to quit drinking green tea. I am so sensitive to caffiene that even the supposedly reduced caffiene was too much for me.... interrupting my sleep cycle and ending up with those AWFUL headaches that I am OH SO HAPPY to live without when I am MOSTLY caffiene free.

Apparently limiting my chai tea lattes and chocolate keeps me in an an acceptable range but my green teas throw me over ...

BUT it is not all a sad story today.
In search of SOMETHING else i have discovered the two delicious, out of this world, mind bogglingly wonderful flavors of Mexican Sweet Chili and Egyptian Licorice Caffiene Free Yogi Teas www.yogitea.com

I love them! Love them! Love them! And with no caffiene and a nice cup of Bedtime Yogi Tea before I hit the pillow at night, I am sleeping peacefully, restfully, and deeply once again.

AHhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Photo: Boxes of Mexican Sweet Chili, Egyptian Licorice, and Bedtime Caffiene Free Yogi Teas

Best S Day Ever

2008-08-12T20:36:00.000-07:00

Sunday was my best S day ever. I really enjoyed it. I had a chai tea latte, some yogurt with honey, fruit and walnuts, a little bit of dark chocolate, a salad from Z pizza, baked tofu and a few dried figs.

What was so great about that?

Well, I will tell you.

When the day was over, I felt really good and I thoroughly enjoyed my treats. I have realized I prefer to drink my chai tea latte solo and have gotten tired of eating donuts.

Yes I have gotten tired of eating donuts, which is a very different reason to forego the donuts than because they are fattening, or fried, or junk, or too many calories, or for any other reason I tell myself that I "can't" have them.

THAT IS THE PSYCHOLOGICAL DEBRIS.

I have realized that I have just as many "shoulds" for eating junky food as I have for eating healthy food.

By following NO S diet I am getting more and more in touch with what I want to eat regardless of how healthy or unhealthy it is, no matter how many or how few calories it has.

This is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO important for long term weight maintenance. To really make choices according to your desires. Because lets face it, if you thwart your desires, you either won't keep the weight off or you will become a complete and total pill doing so!

Photo: New Tree Dark Chocolate Bar with Ginger, Tin of Wine Lover's Chocolate

"Non-Foodie" Friday Nights

2008-08-09T12:03:00.001-07:00

Friday afternoon I swung by our local Trader Joes to pick up one of my favorite treats -some mini peanut butter cups.

Gettting home and portioning them out in my little baggies for my S days got me to thinking about how incredible it was that I was actually doing what I was doing. In the past, I would have probably already opened the container and started chomping on those babies before I even got home because, let's face it, Friday was just another exuse for eating!

Although it can be emotionally difficult to stick with my healthy N day structures on Fridays and especially on Friday nights , I have come to beleive that this is one of the most powerful times for me to adhere.

It is like when I am in the gym trying to push a heavier weight. Yes it is hard. Yes it is uncomfortable. Yes it is stressful. And yes, it makes me stronger! When I stay "green" on Friday's I get the opportunity to separate "pleasure, relaxation, joy, freedom, and celebration" from "what am I going to eat".

This is powerful and profound. It forces me to find other ways to EXPRESS THE UTTER DELIGHT I always experience at the weeks end with something other than food. Like building my muscles in the gym, it makes me stronger.

It also does not take away at all from the pleasure that I can get from eating. It just means that eating is not my only source of pleasure. So interesting enough, I have come to REALLY enjoy the peace and satisfaction of my "Non-Foodie" Friday Nights!

WHO KNEW!

Photo: Trader Joes Mini Peanut Butter Cups

The Power of Just Stopping

2008-08-07T19:38:00.000-07:00

One of the many great things about practicing the No S Diet is the power of just stopping. Coming from the BED (Binge Eating Disorder) spectrum of disordered eating, just stopping is one of the things that I have found really hard to do in the past. But with the healthy structure of no snacks, no sweets and no seconds, that "just stopping" muscle gets worked out at least a little bit every N day.

Which means that when those time comes up when it is simple, but not easy to "just stop" eating I have the habit, the will, the strength to do so.

Last night was a case in point. Lying in bed I wanted to JUST GET UP AND EAT A BOWL OF YOGURT. Odd, since getting out of bed to eat is NOT one of my things, but yesterday from the time I got up to about the time I went to bed the news, the answers, the outcomes, were pretty much not what I wanted to hear, no, and not now.

Needless to say by the time my head hit the pillow I was feeling pretty frustrated. Nothing that a nice little bowl of yogurt with some fruit and walnuts wouldn't distract me from. But because I have been nosing for about four-and-a-half months an inner war raged between HABIT and just wanting to drown out my frustrations with a little bit of food.

Of course, HABIT won.
And of course, when I woke up this morning I was glad I had not sacrificed all of my "greens" for my first "red".
I also realized in the past I would have had the yogurt and justified it by saying, oh thats ok, it was "healthy food".
Yes, you can use "healthy food" to appease emotional eating just as easily as you can use junk food.

Regardless, last night I definitely got to reap the benefits of the Power of Just Stopping!

Photo: Pinto Beans, Sauteed Chard, Mixed Grains, and Salad of Romaine Lettuce

My New and Funky Little Breakfast

2008-08-05T20:15:00.000-07:00

I have been trying for several days to get a good photo of my new and funky little breakfast, i.e. one that makes it "look" as good as it tastes, but NO LUCK!

My new mix of grains is Quinoa, Amaranth and Buckwheat. I switched the Teff for Amaranth and I must say I like it better. I add about a teaspoon of Earth Balance (a very yummy vegan alternative to butter) and throw one or two eggs scrambled in extra virgin olive oil on it.

It is so yummy and really sets me up to have a wonderful day!
I love it!

Photo: Grain Mix of Amaranth, Quinoa and Buckwheat with Scrambled Eggs

Von's Birthday Cake

2008-08-02T19:47:00.000-07:00

I used to binge on Von's Birthday Cake. I am embarassed to say that I used to be able to eat up to three pieces at one time.

AMAZING!

Curiously, I have not had ANY Von's Birthday Cake since I started No S in March. I have had their carrot cake and their german chocolate cake but not their white birthday cake with white icing and a pink flower.

The first few bites were good.

Then it was too sweet.

Then my tummy hurt.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm......

No S is very interesting the way that it alters my relationship with food.

As long as I keep my N Days clean,

my relationship with food changes at subterranean levels in my mind.

This is possibly why the weight loss is slow but permanant.

REAL CHANGES are being made.

I really, really, really like that.

Photo: Von's Birthday Cake

Out of My Food Rut

2008-08-01T19:21:00.000-07:00

Today and yesterday I ventured a little bit ouf of my current food rut.

On Wednesday I picked up my usual Z Pizza Arugula salad and found out they had given me the Italian dressing and not the Balsalmic Vinagrette.

UGH! I was not happy.

But perhaps it was a good thing. I went to Jimbo's on Thursday morning and picked up some new vegan/vegetarian entrees. They are from Helen's kitchen. I am getting tired of ANYTHING even mildly processed but they are not bad in a pinch. And hey ! They got me out of my food rut.

Yesteday I had the Mac and Cheese with Asagio Cheese and Broccoli and today I had the Hearty Bean Chili with Vegetable and Tofu Steaks. I ate them with romaine and EVOO salad and mini blue cornmeal spelt muffins.

I have to admit it was a nice change!

Photo: Helen's Kitchen www.helensfoods.com Hearty Bean Chili wiht Vegetable and Tofu Steaks, Romaine Salad with EVOO and Celtic Sea Salt and Mini Blue Cornmeal Spelt Muffins

Hiatus

2008-07-31T20:09:00.001-07:00

This is the middle of my first week of hiatus from the No S Diet boards.

I am not EXACTLY sure why I feel compelled to take such a hiatus, probably several reasons.

Searching for my own undiluted responses and reactions.

Privacy.

Need for stronger boundaries around my time and how I spend it.

Becoming more self-reliant in my No S habits.

I am sure a bit of all of these things are entwined.

Today is Thursdays and I remain, as I have for past 130 amazing days, staunchly GREEN on my N days.

What has been curious is the increase in "mind chatter" this week. Like because I am not doing my daily "check-in" I can now ditch the whole No S diet scheme.

Apparently not so.

Apparently these No S habits are becoming ingrained deep.

In spite of the intensity of certain moments of said "mind chatter" I find myself automatically reaching for and thinking in terms of my one plate or one bowl meals.

It just seems like what's natural.

WOW!

Photo: Peaches and Plums are in season and what I use to fill any extra space on my plate these days!

My Teas!

2008-07-28T09:58:00.001-07:00

It is odd I suppose, or maybe not,but what it is coming down to, is that these are my treats - my teas! These are the things that I get most "upset" about giving up when I try to "kick" sugar. That as what I am finding out on my No S journey.

As I move through my S days and proactively plan to give myself whatever I want I have found that I am kind of burned out on chocolate and ... oh my gosh ... DONUTS!

I had moved donuts to Sunday's only last weekend and did the same this weekend. What I found was that when I was finished, I was much to my shock and amazement - totally unsatisfied.

So I went home and had my organic plain yogut, raw, unfiltered honey with walnuts and blackberries.

Ahhhhhhhh! Much better.

But I ALSO noticed that when I drank my chai tea latte www.starbucks.com ALONE (i.e. without donuts), I REALLY enjoyed it and savored it! DELICIOUS. And YES it DOES have as much sugar as a can of coke, but this I am not giving up. This I am starting to understand is what MY S days are for. Some people may swoon over chocolate ... ok, a lot of people do. Other's swoon over their particular tasty treat, for me it's my chai tea lattes.

I suspect I won't have donuts next weekend.
But I know I will have my chai tea lattes and THOROUGHLY ENJOY them.

The other thing I really love is Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf www.coffeebean.com machine brewed iced green teas in the summer. I drink them straight up with no sugar, artificial sweeteners, soymilk, etc. NADA. And I just love them. BUT caffiene is a HUGE issue for me so at the most I can only enjoy one day. On Sunday I tried Japanese Cherry for the first time and surprise! surprise! it was delicious too!

Photos: Starbucks Grande 3 Pump Chai Tea Latte with Soymilk Extra Hot, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf Machine Brewed Iced Japanese Cherry Green Tea

I Guess This is What They Mean By Throw Away the Scales!

2008-07-26T09:04:00.001-07:00

These are my four month No S Results and my two month working with a Personal Trainer results.

My weight increased this month by 1.3 pounds.
My body fat percentage decreased by .95%
My body fat decreased by 0.9 pounds
My lean body mass increased by 2.2 pounds.

Overall in the two months of training I have lost a total of 11.75 inches. We did the measurments yesterday at the gym.

My two pairs of size 6 pants are on the verge of being unwearable ... to the point that I probably won't wear them because they are too baggy.

Now only 1 pair of skinny jeans and my pencil skirt don't fit.

Hmmmmm..... I am trying to wrap my head around the truth that my weight can go up and my size really can go down.

I guess this is what they mean by throw away the scales!

Photo: Me on the Scale Monster Bwahaaahahhhaaa

Juicy Goodness

2008-07-24T20:43:00.000-07:00

I don't really have anything brazilliant to say today.
Not that I have anything brazilliant to say on other days.
I don't have anything compelling to say today.

Perhaps that is it.
Maybe just at four months with no red days, No S is really becoming pure habit and since I don't have to think about it a lot. Maybe I don't have a lot to say about it either.

Rambling, I know.

I wanted to post my picture. I just thought it was so pretty.
The salad and the plums.
Which dripped with juicy goodness.

Photo: Z Pizza Pear and Gorgonzola Salad add Avocado and Plums

Tofu is a Lot Like Chicken

2008-07-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

Many people eat chicken as a staple of their diet.

I eat tofu. Tofu is a lot like chicken.

Whether or not it is fresh, and how you prepare it, will have a lot to do with whether or not you like it.

I mean who likes boiled chicken? Get my point?

There are as many ways to prepare and season tofu as there are to cook chicken.
One of my favorite kinds of tofu is Wildwood tofu www.wildwoodfoods.com. They have many flavors, Savory and Aloha are my all time favorites.

I like Savory in and with Salads. (See Above Photo)

And I love the Aloha Tofu with fresh fruit. As you can see in the above photo, I ate it with plums tonight for a very satisfying dinner.

Last night I ate it with the last of our Bing Cherries!

Photos: Z pizza Arugula Salad with Baked Tofu, Baked Tofu with Plums, Baked Tofu with Bing Cherries

Vegan Cheat!

2008-07-22T10:28:00.001-07:00

When we went out to eat on Saturday night, our waiter recommended the sole and the bluenose seabass. My husband decided he wanted some. So we went back on Sunday night, it was the last night of the Sardegna regional menu, thus it was the last night for the sole and the sea bass.

I admit, it sounded like something maybe I would like so I started with the Zimino all'Aragosta e Granchio - Crab and Vegetable soup made with fresh Maine lobster stock and my husband had the Insalata de Mare Tiepeda - Warm Seafood salad tossed with fresh lemon juice, extra virgin olive oil and pane Carasatu.

Have to admit I only had a few bites of each. BUT I forgot to take pictures. OH WELL.

My main course, pictured above was the Sogliola all Sassarese - Griddled petrale sole with chopped tomato and lemon sauce served with grilled eggplant and yukon gold potatoes.

My husband had the Branzino al Vermentino - Bluenose seabass sauteed with green colossal olives, tomatoes and tarragon on a bed of fregola.

I wish I could say it was great, I loved it.

But the truth was I preferred my vegetarian meal the night before. I always wonder about fish. But the few times I have eaten it the past few years I have just not enjoyed it as much as I thought I would.

OH WELL. Sunday was another good S day, i.e. I was definitely not an idiot!

Photos: Sogliola all Sassarese, Branzino al Vermentino

Definitely Not an Idiot!

2008-07-20T11:07:00.001-07:00

Apparently my vacation was very informative!

I took two 3 day weekends in a row with an NWS day in the middle of that. By last Sunday evening I was pretty well stuffed and I don't think I felt hungry again until sometime on Tuesday.

Apparently something registered in the deep inner recesses of my mind, because the last thing I wanted to do this weekend was to revisit that stuffed, bloated, yicky feeling.

For all of you who follow my blog and/or daily check-in thread you know my husband and I go get donuts and tea just about every S day morning.

Last week, after almost four months on NO S I realized I was ready to cut back to just Sundays. I was actually going to start this in August, but apparently I was ready to implement this change this weekend.

So no donuts on Saturday.

Instead I had a machine brewed Jasmine Dragon Phoenix Pearl Iced Tea from the Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf www.coffeebean.com BEFORE I went to the Farmer's Market and did all my other errands and THEN when I got home, I walked over to Starbucks to get my chai.

I FELT REALLY INDULGED!

When we got home I tried with putting some protien powder in my Monavie. That was pretty much REALLY GROSS! To say it tasted awful was putting it mildly so I won't be naming any names.

Later in the day when I was REALLY HUNGRY I had some Wild Wood baked tofu and cherries. Yes we still have some leftover!

THen I went out with my husband for a delicious Italian dinner at Il Fornaio. They do these regional menus that we really enjoy. You can check it out at www.ilfornaio.com This month the region was Sardegna.

I started with the Insalata al Balsamico - Organic baby lettuces with balsalmic vinagrette pictured above from their regular menu.

My husband started with the Tamata cun Casu - Sardinian Tomato Salad with Heirloom Tomatoes, Spring Onions, and Sardinian Pecorino from the regional menu.

Then we both enjoyed the Culingiones - Fresh Ricotta, potato and mint ravioli with tomatoes and Sardinian Pecorino from the regional menu. Unfortunately the picture above does not do it justice.

I so enjoyed my yogurts, honey, fruit and nuts last Sunday evening, I was craving this for my treat. So that is what I had for dessert.

It was wonderful to wake up Sunday morning and be hungry. So I have to say that at least for this Saturday I was definitely NOT and idiot!

Photos: Insalata al Balsimico, Tamatta con Cusu, Culingiones, Yogurt with Honey, Fruit and Walnuts

Post Vacation Success

2008-07-17T20:54:00.001-07:00

I have to say that for me I was very nervous coming off an eleven day vacation which included 4 regular S days and 3 planned NWS (Non Weekend S) days. Do the math. That left 4 N days out of the entire eleven!

But almost four months of habit made the "transition" back into the real world seamless and pretty much effortless as well.

I am shocked.

Usually after such escapades and episodes there are tragic downward spirals.

Apparently the No S Diet is really different.

Reinhard Engels, the creator of the No S Diet, says that keeping strict with N days is the key.

I would say my direct experience supports this.

The "hard work" you do at the beginning to JUST SAY NO to seconds, sweets, and snacks NO MATTER WHAT really pays huge dividends down the road and I am reaping them BIG TIME.

I am really loving this!

Photo: scrambled eggs and tofu sausage

WHOLE GRAINS plus

2008-07-16T18:46:00.000-07:00

I think whole grains are an important part of our diet.

That being said, wheat does not much agree with me. Although I refuse to remove wheat completely from my diet, I do try as often as I can to not eat it and to choose other grains. I will go through periods where I eat a lot of brown rice, corn chips and corn tortillas.

But lately I have been starting eating something for breakfast that I call WHOLE GRAINS plus. It is a mixture of quinoa, teff, and buckwheat. None of these grains have gluten. And I really enjoy it.

This is how I make it:

2 Tbsp Quinoa
2 Tbsp Teff
2 Tbsp Buckwheat
2 pinces of salt
1 cup of water

I place all this in my small Procter Silex Automatic Rice Cooker. I put on the lid, push the cook button and go about my business.

Within thirty minutes the warm button is lit up and I have cooked grains.

I like to eat them with soymilk, fresh fruit and ground flaxseeds. Tonight, I actually ate it for dinner and I made a mix of ground flaxseeds, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds.

These whole grains have many health benefits and the less processed they are the better they are for us.

I am really glad that I discovered this easy way to make WHOLE GRAINS and now I have it as part of my repertoire.

The most difficult part is figuring out how much water to use in your rice cooker so it doesn't bubble over!

Photo: Quinoa, Teff, Buckwheat mix with Soymilk, Peaches, Blueberry and Ground Flaxseed

Cherry Pie

2008-07-14T21:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend we made a cherry pie.

It was not as excellent as our blueberry pie, but I felt kind of proud, pitting the cherries and all.

Tonight our vacation and my bunch of NWS days are over.
I was amazed at how sad I felt and there was this idea of eating, that somehow eating more would prolong it.

I sat on the bench outside of Von's and Starbucks and just felt sad. I knew a piece of cake that I didn't even really want and another chai tea latte was not going to make the vacation last longer.

When I realized it wouldn't I just had to feel the sadness that it was coming to an end and tomorrow all will be back to routine and HABIT, I just went home and had some yogurt. My tummy probably feels a lot better tonight because I had that realization and made that choice.

Vacations are nice.
Much needed breaks.

Hopefully this one has rejuventated me and I can get back into the swing of things tomorrow and just look forward to whenever our next one will be.

Bur right now I just feel kind of sad.

Photos: Homemade Cherry Pie, Slice of Cherry Pie

Maximizing the Real Estate on My Plate

2008-07-11T16:51:00.000-07:00

Sometimes on the No S Diet bulletin boards we get into discussions on the size of our plates and how we should stack or not stack things and whether or not we should put fruits and/or salads on our plates. These two pictures show how I use my own plates.

For the most part I use the same size large plate. As you can see in the above picture there is a lot of room/empty space on my plate.

I liken this to a "gourmet dining experience". Often you go to a nice restaurant and a small portion of food is "presented" in the midst of rather large plate. Often the empty space is drizzled with a sauce creating both a tasteful and aesthetic experience.

I forgo the sauce drizzling and enjoy the aesthetics - the clean lines - if you will of the open space.

Other times, I completely MAXIMIZE THE REAL ESTATE ON MY PLATE as in the phote above. Not much more room for anything. It mostly depends on what, when, I am eating and how hungry I am.

This is why I love NO S.
I get to eat as much or as little as I need for that particular meal!

Photos: Baked Tofu with Plums and Z Pizza Pear and Gorgonzola Salad www.zpizza.com , Baked Tofu and Cherries

Life is a Bowl of Cherries

2008-07-09T21:16:00.001-07:00

Life is a bowl of cherries.
What does that mean?
That life is ripe and juicy?
That there are pits?
That can be planted?
That life is delicious?
That it is sweet?
Sour?
Tart?
Tangy?

All I know is cherry season is almost over and we have thoroughly enjoyed it this year!

Photo: Bowl of Bing Cherries

Somewhat of an Idiot

2008-07-07T10:35:00.001-07:00

I have to say that I was somewhat of an idiot for my Saturday and Sunday S days. We made a homemade blueberry pie. Have never made any pie before. Would not win any contests for beauty but it was delicious beyond belief.

FRESH! Not too sweet. It did not last long and we ended up with tummy aches.

I have to say it was worth it.

I will probably never be able to eat another store bought/restaurant blueberry pie again.

You really just can't beat fresh and homemade.

Vegan Pizza last night for dinner.

Beauty of it all is that today is an N day and I am right back on track.
All of this gives me a greater and deeper appreciation for the No S Diet.

Just wanted to let folks know my blogging slowed way down last week cause we had pet trauma in our home. But now all is healing and getting better.
We are on STAYcation this week, so another week off routine,
BUT NOT OFF HABIT!

My plans are to ENJOY all of it!

Photos: Homemade Blueberry Pie, Blueberry Pie Slice, California Soy Berkeley Veggie Pizza from Z pizza www.zpizza.com

Veggies and Fruit

2008-07-03T20:45:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago I said that I was going to take advantage of the abundance of fresh veggies and fruit at our local farmer's market. I think this particular one plate meal is pretty much a good example of my doing just that.

I have been really enjoying my steamed veggie plates. I was curious how much EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil) I was using with my Misto. I tested it earlier this week and three sprays, which is what I put on my veggie plate, is less than a teaspoon.

Pretty good.

The cherries have been delicious too. They usually run through July 4th, so there is a good chance this is the last week.

But now the peaches, nectarines, and grapes are out. There are still strawberries and blueberries.

I'll probably stick with my steamed veggie plates for awhile. They are fun, satisfying and delicious.

Veggies and fruit add up to beautiful one plate meals.

Photo: Steamed Corn, Potato, Green Beans, Carrots, Squash and Red Onion with EVOO, Celtic Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper and a side bowl of Bing Cherries

Whole Grains

2008-07-02T18:22:00.000-07:00

I wanted to blog about Whole Grains.

My "new breakfast" is a mix of teff, quinoa, buckwheat, barley, and steel cut oats. I have added in yogurt, ground up flax seeds and fruit.

I like it.

It is satisfying.

At www.whfoods.com World's Healthiest Foods they have a list of the world's healthiest foods and details as to different health properties of each. Many of these alterantive grains are quite impressive.

I bought a little automatic rice cooker this weekend and have been finetuning the water levels so the grains are cooked right and the water doesn't boil over.

I think I am going to stick with this breakfast for a little while.

Photo: Teff, Quinoa, Buckwheat, Barley and Steel Cut Oats with Yogurt, Doughnut Peaches, Blueberries and Ground Flax Seeds

User Error

2008-06-29T20:37:00.000-07:00

Not surprised to find out the problem with my camera was USER ERROR!

My husband showed me how to use the camera properly for about the fifth time yesterday and I think I have finally got it. So here are some new pictures. YAY! The first few of our lunch yesteday. First I had the Garden Salad above with Italian Salad, not so exciting.!

Then I had a Big Wave Vegetarian Burger. This was scrumptious. Mustard, pickles, onion, lettuce, tomato, and a toasted bun.

Had to get a picture of the above even though I didn't eat any. Cheese fries are not my thing but I thought they would look good! My husband said they were very good and he is french fry picky!

My treat last night was popcorn and junior mints. Not nearly as delicious as last week, hmmm ... so I topped off with some frozen peanut butter cups!

This is the spinach curry that I made for lunch today. It was really good.

Well camera is fixed -USER ERROR - life is back to normal.

Photo: Garden Salad, Vegetarian Burger, Cheese Fries, Spinach Curry

BUMMER!

2008-06-27T20:34:00.000-07:00

Repeat! Sorry, I was soooooooooooooo disappointed. I took my trusty camera with me to lunch today but the photos did not come out. BUMMER!

I had such a nice lunch too!

I wento Ranchos and had the steamed vegetable plate ... wait I am detecting a trend here!

It is served with black beans, brown rice, avocado, corn tortillas and of course fresh salsa and tons of veggies. It is one of my favorites and I wanted to share it with you but I got home and took out the memory stick and there was nothing but a bunch of little dark black squares.

BUMMER!

Since I had my veggie plate for dinner, I put up that. Hmmmm.... apparently right now I am CRAVING veggies.

I do this ... I go in cycles ... I eat this for a while and then I get tired of it and then I want that for awhile ... and then I have had it with that .... and ooooooooh that sounds good for the time being ... on and on ... kind of like life.

WHICH IS WHY I AM LOVING THE NO S DIET, I have total latitude to go through all my cravings and desires on N days as long as its not sweet and fits on my plate.

SO COOL!

Photo: Steamed Corn, Carrot, Squash, Green Beans, Potatos and Corn on the Cob with EVOO, Celtic Sea Salt and Freshly Ground Pepper

Zero NWS Days This Month

2008-06-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

This has been the longest month!

This is my first month on No S when I have not taken any NWS (non weekend) S days. But there are no special days for our family or holidays to celebrate, thus zero NWS days for June.

Since we are taking our vacation next month, and I am planning THREE NWS days, I thought why not?

Go a little light on the NWS days this month and make up for them next month.

I actually think in the long run it is going to work.

I also KNOW that I would not EVER have zero NWS days every month of every day of every year.

That would be entirely too stressful, too rigid and not much fun.

I am so glad that the NO S Diet has NWS days, although in the VERY beginning I wasn't at all sure that I was going to use them!

Photo: Amy's Blackeyed Pea Bowl www.amys.com with Fresh Peaches

Steamed Veggies Plate

2008-06-25T18:43:00.000-07:00

Today I had a steamed veggie plate for lunch.

It was funny, on Saturday morning at the Farmer's Market I thought, what a great idea! Surrounded by pretty much fresh everything I loaded up on corn, yukon gold potatos, green beans, carrots, squash and red onion.

Then it was Monday and I just thought "What if it's not good?"

"What if it doesn't satisfy me?"

"WHat if ..."

WHat if ..."

I ate something else.

Pretty much the same thing happened on Tuesday.

So today, I was like "Try it, maybe you'll like it"

I shucked the corn and washed and cut up the potato and threw those in one steamer bag and threw it in the microwave for seven minutes.

I peeled the carrots, washed and snapped the green beans, washed the squash and cut up the onions. I had so much I had to use two more steamer bags.

When the potatoes and corn were done I threw them in my large stainless steel all clad bowl. I put the other two bags of veggies in the microwave for I think 8 minutes. When they were done I threw those in the big bowl.

I tossed it all with a few squirts of my EVOO Extra Virgin Olive Oil Misto, celtic sea salt and freshly ground paper and then dumped it all on my one plate!

I will definitely have this again!

Photo: Steamed corn on the cob, potatos, green beans, carrots, squash and red onion with EVOO

A Good Kind of Boring

2008-06-24T19:53:00.001-07:00

Today was another good day.

Gee I am so boring on this No S diet.
But I guess it is a good kind of boring.
I get up early, I do what needs to be done, I eat my three plate meals, I work out ...
Yeah, I will take that kind of boring any day!

This has probably been one of my best summer's in a long time, maybe ever.
I don't know.
It's been pretty good.

I know it's because I am not binging.
I know that's why everything is going so well.
And if you think about, it just makes sense.
Binging is absorbing.
It's not just the moments that you are cramming food in your mouth.
No, then a whole chain of events follow:

you feel numb and sated, and they you start "waking up" and then the negative self-talk starts, and then you have gotten behind on something you dont' want to deal with, and then you get behind on something else you don't want to deal with and then you just say screw it, I'll have a cookie or a latte or whatever your "gateway" drug is and then there you are binging. And then you start gaining weight, and then you start looking for a new diet, and then you start planning for the new diet and then you start shopping for the new diet, but you have to have few more binges before you start the diet ...

uh-huh
I'll take the good kind of boring ANY DAY!

Photo: Soy Bologna and Soy Cheese Sandwich on Sprouted Wheat Bread with Mustard, Lettuce and Red Onion, Carrot Sticks, Dill Pickle and Roasted Garlic Potato Chips

Popcorn, Junior Mints and Ninety Day Results

2008-06-22T10:27:00.001-07:00

This is what I love about the No S Diet. Yesterday was my "ninety days". It was an S Day. Yes I got up in the morning and went on our now weekly Saturday morning walk over to the donut shop and Starbucks for a glazed twist and chai tea latte.

For my S Day Lunch/Dinner we went to Sipz www.sipz.com and I had a bowl of Lemon Grass Delite Tofu, my absolute FAVORITE with Brown Rice and a side of Steamed Broccoli and Bok Choy. Yum Yum!

Then to continue our "date night" we watched videos and had popcorn with Junior Mints. One of my old FAVORITES that I really haven't thought about until sometime last week - so I got a couple of boxes of junior mints. YUMYUMYUMYUM! What a treat and oh how I enjoyed it.

What was even MORE enjoyable was when I got on the scale monster this morning and I weighed ...

Yup! 125.2 I am down 1.1 MORE pounds YAY!

So let's look at how my body has TRANSFORMED:

1. NOsing for past NINETY DAYS, and

2. Decreasing the frequency and duration of my workouts, while increasing the intensity for the past FIVE WEEKS.

March 24, 2oo8 I weighed 134.6 and my BMI was 23.8 I don't know what my bodyfat was then. But on May 15 my bodyfat was 27.7%

TODAY I weight 125.2, my BMI is 22.2, and my body fat is 23.6%

THAT MEANS I have lost 9.4 pounds AND decreased my BMI by 1.6 AND in the past five weeks of Nosing combined with the stated changes in my workout routine have decreased my body fat by 4.1%.

I am REALLY pleased.

My goal is 20% bodyfat. My personal trainer thought I could get there in six months, so that would be in a little over four months.

I am right on target, I am shrinking, and I feel great!

This is what I love about the NO S Diet!

Photo: Popcorn and Junior Mints, my ninety day results on the Scale Monster

Weekly Menus

2008-06-20T21:41:00.000-07:00

It's Friday night and it's a bit late for me to be blogging, but I wanted to get up the lovely photo of my lunch.

I have been eating pretty much the same thing all week and it has been FABULOUS!

Those cherries are out of this world!

I am finding as I go along that I like planning weekly menus. This probably works well for me since I go to the Farmer's Market every Saturday morning to buy produce. I kind of go there and figure out what the week is going to be like from there.

Last weekend the fruit was ABUNDANT.

I suspect it will be for a few more months.

I have decided I am going to eat as much as I can get on my plates this summer.

WHY NOT?!?!?!?

Tomorrow I want to get some of the corn and more veggies. I think I am going to do steamed veggie platters for dinner with new potatoes and corn (hopefully they will still have those tomorrow). I am probably going to keep up with the "lunch plates" in the photo. They are so satisfying and I really liked the Amy's Tofu and Brown Rice Bowls for breakfast, although for one or two days the scrambled eggs are nice.

I am a little done with yogurt for a while.

That is why I love No S, it just makes it so easy to go with the flow, the season, my tastebuds, my hankerings, my cravings, and my desires.

I think this is how its supposed to be!

Photo: Z pizza arugula salad www.zpizza.com with Baked Tofu and Bing Cherries

The Journey Continues

2008-06-19T18:50:00.000-07:00

Cherries are in season and I the ones I had today were the best! Deep red, firm, and just the right amount of sweet tartness.

YUM!!!!!!!!

I wish I had something really deep to say today but I don't.

Being on the NO S Diet as opposed to the binging/restricting/i don't care lifestyle I was on before is so different. All of the energy I spent trying to control my weight and food intake has been released to deal with other things. This makes my days and my life more organized, more productive and more effective.

Sometimes it is embarassing when I think of all the time and energy I have devoted through the years to food/dieting/how much I weigh. But there is absolutely nothing that I can do about that now.

But I can do a LOT about the present and the future.

And my commitment to my self and to my husband and to all those I love and care about is to continue my No S journey.

Hey! THAT was kind of deep!

Photo: Scrambled Eggs and Tofu Sausage

Absolutely Ingenious

2008-06-18T18:05:00.000-07:00

I was looking at my Habitcal the other day and I realized, this will be the longest period I have gone without any NWS days.

That is Non Weekend S days in No S Diet speak.

I began the NO S diet midafternoon on a Monday - March 24. I counted that as NWS day. That was my one for March. Then I had one in April for a "luncheon" I had planned pre-No S.
I had two for May, one for my wedding anniversary and the second one for Memorial Day.

But none for June. Not one.

When I first started No S I did not want to do S days. I was really skeptical that they might actually help me stay on the diet in the long run. I have found out since then, that Reinhard was right about this. The criticalness of S days on the No S Diet.

Then there were NWS days. And I thought. I don't want those. But then I tried one and I liked it. Now in the middle of my longest stretch of no NWS days, I am understanding that Reinhard is right about them too. You should take them. I can see now how S days and NWS days REALLY DO make the NO S Diet absolutely SUSTAINABLE for the long haul.

Ingenious.
The No S Diet is absolutely ingenious!

Photo: Ingredients for my homemade Curry Dal ... Brown Lentils, Chili Powder, Coriander Powder, Turmeric Powder, Garlic, Serrano Chili (not pictured Ginger) and Unfiltered Olive Oil

I Could Get Used to This

2008-06-17T17:48:00.000-07:00

I tried another Rice Bowl with fruit for breakfast this morning. This one was the blackeyed pea bowl with a peach. Although the peach was beautiful and smelled delicious it was not so good.

WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT.

And the blackeyed pea bowl wasn't as satisfying as the tofu brown rice bowl.

VERY INTERESTING.

I might try it one more time to make sure it was not just the weather.

Otherwise I had a pretty good day.
My life on NO S is so even-keeled.

I used to live on a roller coaster of emotions, swinging and swirling, but now ...

NOT SO MUCH.

I could get use to this.

Photo: Amy's Blackeyed Pea Bowl www.amys.com and Peach

Fabulous Monday!

2008-06-16T19:21:00.000-07:00

I have to say that I am shocked to report that I had a pretty fabulous Monday. Now that it's all said and done I have to ask myself ... was it my breakfast?

As some of you know I am pretty "up" on www.amys.com. They have frozen, canned and other prepared foods BUT they do not use ingredients that we cannot pronounce, a lot of their ingredients are organic and they have great vegan AND gluten free options.

For about twelve years I have been wondering if wheat and I REALLY get along! A couple of years ago I even went and had several tests done at my doctor's. Nothing showed up in the number's but I notice I do feel better and think better when I reduce/limit my wheat.

For the past, I don't know how many weeks I have been eating a wheat based cereal for breakfast, granted it was sprouted wheat which is supposed to destroy the gluten, which is supposed to be what causes the problem for some people.

I finally got tired of my yogurt, berry, cereal breakfast last week and decided to try something different for breakfast. Several months ago, or maybe it was last year, I don't remember exactly, just that it was a while back, that AMY's dad eats one of her rice bowls for breakfast. I remember thinking ...

Hmmmm... I'll try that someday.

TODAY WAS THAT DAY.

For breakfast I had an Amy's tofu and rice bowl with three plums, fruit season is in HIGH SWING and I found it thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying and then I went on to just kind of float throught the rest of my day.

Was it a coincidence?
Or was it the rice bowl?

I really don't know.

But I am having another one for breakfast tomorrow with a peach.

My new intelligent dietary default breakfast ... Amy's brown rice bowls.

WHO KNEW?

Photo: Amy's Tofu and Brown Rice Bowl www.amys.com and three plums

Pizza for Giants and 2 Pump Lattes

2008-06-15T19:31:00.001-07:00

This weekend seemed to be all about what we ordered. On Saturday morning, learned how to order my Starbucks Grande Chai Tea Lattes with 2 Pumps or 3, depending on how much sugar and flavor intensity I wanted. The "standard" Grande has 4 pumps. I decided I like the "3" best.

Then after ordering a Z10 Pizza for our late afternoon/evening meal, they had a Z18 when we showed up to pick it up. I have to admit that I have never seen such a huge pizza in my entire life, hence the "Pizza for Giants" epithet.

It ended up making two full meals, (Saturday and Sunday - Lunch/Dinner) for the two not so giant people who took it home. Saturday the meal was enhanced with the yummy Pear and Gorgonzola Salad.

Whew! What an interesting weekend.

Otherwise it was very RELAXING!

Sad to see it end.

Photos: Vegan Pizza for Giants, Z18, www.zpizza.com, Half of Large Pear and Gorgonzola Salad

T.G.I.F.

2008-06-13T17:18:00.000-07:00

Thank God Its Friday!

That is about where I am at right now. I worked really hard this week and made a lot of progress, but I am so ready for the weekend and my chai tea latte tommorrow morning.

YES!

I won't lie. There were several times I thought today ... oh it would be just so nice to skip out to Starbucks RIGHT NOW!

But I just listened, didn't act and got back to work, to much good effect.

Now it is Friday evening I have finished my third one meal plate of the day and I know I can relax and that I am DONE until tomorrow morning.

That feels good.

REALLY GOOD!

Photo: Homemade Curry Dal

Intelligent Dietary Default

2008-06-12T18:46:00.000-07:00

"Intelligent Dietary Default" is a term and a section that Reinhard Engel's has in his book, the NO S diet.

We all have dietary defaults. The things that we eat, every day for breakfast or every day for lunch, or every day for dinner.

Things that we eat that are "automatic" to us.

An intelligent dietary, Reinhard says in his book, would assure that "the convenient thing we unthinkingly reach for - the default - is reasonably healthy."

I have unwittingly created such "defaults" along the way on my journey on No S. Whether its the curried egg salad sandwich that I always eat with carrot sticks, or the repetitive breakfast of organic plain yogury, fresh blueberries and ezekiel cereal.

Another way I use "intelligent dietary defaults" is portion control. Whether its sticking with a regularly consumed portion of food or pulling my little pre-measured frozen goody bags out of the freezer on an S day. I just don't have to think.

And let's face it, sometimes when it comes to food I just don't want to think. I have other things on my mind, I don't have much time, whatever.

Tofu sausage and peas has been an intelligent dietary default in my world, even before I knew what it was. Quick to prepare, Convenient - cause I always keep the ingredients on hand. When I don't know what to eat, or just don't want to go to the trouble, I eat my little bowl of sausage and peas and I am always satisfied.

Intelligent Dietary Default.

Makes sense!

Photo: Tofu Sausage and Steamed Peas with EVOO, salt and pepper

Day 80

2008-06-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

Another day has hurried by.

It was a good day,but I am noticing that I don't have any NWS days planned for the month of June.

I am planning to make up for that with three in July, but I can see now why Reinhard recommends that we take them.

I had a really good food day, which basically means that I thoroughly enjoyed every single bite of food that I ate.

Nothing big or exciting. Just another day of nosing and being free of all of things that got in the way of having so many good days before I started No S.

I guess I can report that today is day 80. I suppose there is some signficance to that.

Photo: Arugula salad from Z pizza www.zpizza.com with Baked Tofu and Bing Cherries

Nature Really Does Abhor a Vaccum

2008-06-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

Today turned out to be just a really good day.

I thought it was going to be overwhelmed and hectic, but somehow it was not.
Rather it was focussed and highly productive.
I LOVE THAT!

I also had two curried egg salad sandwiches, one for lunch and one for dinner.
Obviously, I LOVE THOSE TOO!

To top it all off I had a little Monavie "nightcap". Monavie, in case you were wondering is a "functional beverage". Which means that it is a whole fruit juice with acai berry and it claims health and nutrtitive benefits. I simply LOVE the way it tastes. But since the acai berry has something like 100 times more antioxidants than blueberries, I also get to feel very virtuous when I am drinking it.

I love it when my life feels organized and things flow.
Does not happen often when you are binging and restricting.
Things are jerky, chaotic, often unpleasant.

I am well into my third month of nosing.

The longest I have lasted on any diet/food plan is six months.

I still have thoughts ... about binging.
The other day I noticed I felt sad when I noticed binging was gone.

With S days there just don't seem any real compelling reasons to binge.

I suspect like smoking, coffee and alcohol, I will want to ...
but now I know I don't have to.
I know I am not some powerless addict who has no control over what I put in my mouth.
I know I have had some really bad habits when it comes to food and eating for most of my life.

But what No S has given e is some REALLY GOOD HABITS to replace them.

And that apparently is what I needed, because, after all, nature really does abhor a vacuum.

Photo: Eight ounce shot of Monavie

M-m-m-m-monday

2008-06-09T19:59:00.000-07:00

Another M-m-m-m-monday is done. Thank goodness!

For me Monday is almost always the toughest day of the week, not only am I right off the weekend, but it is most often the busiest, most intense and most demanding day of the week for me so I am always glad when monday's are done and I have gotten through the bulk of my to do list and still gotten greens on my HabitCals.

Of which now I have three.

One for No S.

One for my PROJECT.

And one for Oxycise.

Oxycise www.oxycise.com is a a deep breathing/stretching exercise that I love to do and feels great but since I learned of it several years ago I have never been able to string together a very long stretch of doing it daily.

Thus the creation of a HabitCal for Oxycise.

I got my first red square yesterday.

I didn't want to do ANYTHING ...

including breathe deeply.

But I got greens across the board today and the to do list is done and I am going to bed early as I like to be able to do on Mondays.

Apologize for the fact that the photo today includes a big thumbprint on the camera lense.

It is all wiped up so won't be seeing that again!

Have a good one!

Photo: Raneir Cherries and Pear and Gorgonzola Salad from Z Pizza www.zpizza.com

Lovely Italian Dinner

2008-06-08T11:52:00.000-07:00

One of the wonderful things about S days is being able to go out with my husband on Saturday night and have a lovely multi-course italian dinner at Il Fornaio http://www.ilfornaio.com/!

First course for me was the Minestra alla Siciliana Swiss chard and root vegetable soup. Yum!

First course for him was Pumaroru cu Piacintinu Ennese Heirloom tomatoes, Piacintinu cheese, onions, caperberries, olives and Sicilian extra-virgin olive oil. I myself cannot speak directly to the deliciousness of this dish, but my husband raved about it.

Next up for me was the Risotto cu Formaggi di Piecura Caranoli rice with asparagus, artichokes, fava beans, peas and pecorino cheese. This was good. But the BEST risotto I ever had was the risotto we had the last night we were in Rome, in a little restaurant on the outskirts of the city. Unfortunatley, since it was so good, ANY risotto I have had since then has not quite measured up. Oh. Well. It seems that risotto really is an art! I ate about half of it. It was VERY rich!

My husband's second course was Barilotti au Fornu Barrel Shaped pasta with fried eggplant and tomato-basil sauce, baked with scamorza and caciocavallo cheese. He also liked this dish very much.

For DOLCI my husband enjoyed the Cosi Duci. Cannoli and profiteroles with chocolate-hazelnut gelato. Sorry did not get a picture and I had a couple of pieces of Godiva chocolate and three squares of my bittersweet almond bar from Trader Joes. VERY RICH INDEED!

I just love S days!

CIAO!

Photos: Italian dinner, see blog for details

Smooth Sailing upon the Stormy Seas of Life

2008-06-06T21:47:00.000-07:00

Another good No S day.

Smooth sailing. Somehow all this nosing keeps me on an incredibly even keel.

How does that work?

I don't know.

All I know is that it does.

With food in its proper place and having a proper place, it seems like its easier for everything else to find and have its proper place as well.

There must be something metaphysical

Or holistic about this.

Possibly both.

The inner peace of food and eating now permeates my life rather than the inner chaos of binging, restricting and obsessing.

I would love to give this to everyone I meet.

Smooth Sailing upon the Stormy Seas of Life.

Photo: Arugula Salad from www.zpizza.com and Baked Tofu

Another Good, Busy, Productive No S Day

2008-06-05T20:18:00.000-07:00

Another good, busy, productive No S day.

It never ceases to amaze me how eating my three one plate meals a day with nothing in between keeps the rest of my day on track.

Had a chance to spend time with a good friend AND get my work done on my PROJECT and will probably also manage to get to bed at a decent hour!

It's looking like tomorrow will be a more slowed down day, so after this hectic week, that will be a nice way to end it!

I got out of my food rut today.
May fall back in tomorrow, but that is OK!

My training sessions with my personal trainer are going really well. I have dropped down to exercising three to four times a week and I like that A LOT!

Photo: Lemongrass Delite Tofu with Brown Rice and Steamed Vegetables ... from www.sipz.com

I Think They Call It Life

2008-06-04T20:06:00.000-07:00

This is my sweet kitty!
And she is so pretty.

She keeps me company when I work on my PROJECT!

Sometimes when I want to snack I get down on the floor with her and pet her and play with her.
It does me a world of good.

She seems to like it too!

I ate the same thing today that I did yesterday.
That would be leftovers and a food rut.

I am so stuck on that curried egg salad sandwich. I finish eating that and I feel like I have been completely nourished. I feel so good. Hard to explain.

I am also stuck on my ezekiel cereal, with fresh blueberries and organic plain yogurt. YUM!

The past three nights I have been drinking a large glass of Monavie for dinner. I started Monday a bit nauseous and then my husband joined me. I am not sure I will keep doing that although it is so nice to have no dishes and no clean up.

I have been sleeping pretty good.

This has been ANOTHER full week.
WHEN WILL THINGS SLOW DOWN?
Hopefully next week. But I said that last week.
I think they call it life.

Photo: my sweet little kitty!

THIS IS YUM!

2008-06-03T17:47:00.000-07:00

Today for lunch I had my Curried Egg Salad Sandwich with Carrot Sticks.

The recipe is from the book Cook Right For Your Type, by Peter A'damo and Catherine Whitney, with a few of my own personal embellishments. It is DELICIOUS!

Curried Egg Salad Sandwich

4 hard boiled eggs

2 Tbsp Vegannaise (allright you can use mayo if you prefer!)

1 tsp. good curry powder

1 tsp. salt (preferably celtic sea salt)

sprouted whole wheat bread

romaine lettuce leaves

slices of red onion

Crumble the hard boiled eggs and mix and mash with Vegannaise, curry powder and salt.

If you have time allow to chill.

Serve on toasted sprouted wheat bread with romaine lettuce leaves and red onion slices.

THIS IS YUM!

Photo: Curried Egg Salad Sandwich with Carrot Sticks

Still Yakking About Mondays

2008-06-02T18:17:00.000-07:00

It was Monday. Certainly not the worst Monday I have had on No S. But I did have to ease up on my expectations for myself to get through the day without going NUTS!

I had quite a bit to do and yesterday's eating left my tummy not feeling too good this morning.

But I it has defintely turned out to be a good day and a success.

It is weird how the rhythm that NO S creates with food and eating spills over into your life. Well, at least spills over into mine.

Before No S I was like on accelerate to high or hitting the brick wall. Somehow with NO S it has become simpler, easier, more natural? more apparent that I need to? modulate my activities and appointments so that they are more manageable.

It's this rhythm it creates.

Like today, Monday, my least favorite day of the week. I would experience severe spillage if I had indulged over the weekend before No S. Why? Well, who really wants to deal with Monday morning every Monday morning?

Sometimes would just rather not leave that relaxed weekend groove. But No S doesn't let me fool myself. NOW if I want to use food to stay in the weekend groove it is VERY APPARENT.

So I don't. And that puts me in a whole other space.

A good one.

Photo: Pear and Gorgonzola Salad from Z Pizza www.zpizza.com

"unremarkable"

2008-05-31T21:11:00.000-07:00

It seems I turned a page in my No S journey sometime this past week.

Unbeleiveably I have been doing No S for ten weeks.
Somewhere between last Monday and Today, something remarkable happened.

Doing No S became incredibly "unremarkable".
That is a good thing.

It became unremarkable in that very little conscious time or effort was put forth into maintaining my No S habits for the week.

I just kind of did it.
Cause that's now just kind of what I do.

I enjoyed my chai tea latte and ONE DONUT this morning. THOROUGHLY.
But there weren't the original fireworks that occurred when I first let my poor abused mistreated "sugar animal" out of its cage.

Abused and mistreated by either complete and total deprivation or torrential floods. Nothing mildy resembling "in between" ever occurring.

Hmmmmmm....

I enjoyed my vegan nachos later in the day. Thoroughly.

That was about it. I really didn't WANT anymore sweets or treats so I just really didn't HAVE anymore sweets or treats.

I'll have my donut and chai tomorrow.

I am learning to trust myself.

Photo: Vegan Nachos

It's Just Been a Really Good Week

2008-05-30T18:18:00.000-07:00

I have to say that this was my "easiest" week on NO S.

I say that because I probably thought less about upcoming S days through the week.
I was focussed on my work.
I had a lot of appointments and was able to keep them all.
I had a good report at the dentist.

IT was just "easier".
There was not really any of that "struggle" to not eat between meals for emotional reasons.
I suppose as I am developing NO S habit I am unconsciously also developing subconscious ways to deal with "stuff" other than eating.

I tend to find myself thinking more,
"How am I going to handle this" than
"What am I going to eat."

For the first time I was glad to not "have to" drink my chai tea lattes during the week. It was like yay, back to my nice simple N day meals.

My workouts are going well.

I am looking forward to S days tomorrow but it is all not so intense.

It's just been a really good week.

Photo: Amy's No Chicken Noodle Soup, Peanut Butter on whole grain crackers, mixed greens salad with cucumber and EVOO

Life is a Bowl of Cherries

2008-05-29T19:44:00.001-07:00

Life is a bowl of cherries ... especially when they are in season.

This week has FLOWN by.

It has actually been really wonderful.

It is interesting to notice the subtle and not so subtle change in my relationship with food as time goes on in the NO S diet.

The first month all of the changes were BIG. FAST. INEXPLICABLE.

The next month it was kind of like ... yeah, I am grooving and finding my rhythm now.

SO FAR, for this month it is kind of like, LIVING is front and center and food and eating is yes, exiting center stage.

As I unwind and emotionally detach from my food and eating, as I start to gain some distance,

I start to get an idea of exactly HOW MUCH emotion time energy expense were all tied up in food and eating.

Suffice it to say. A LOT.

So the changes are slowing down.

I am less aware on a daily basis.

I suppose I am more in habit.

This is a very good thing.

Photo: tofu sausage, peas, and cherries

The Dentist

2008-05-28T20:06:00.000-07:00

from page 48 of the No S Diet Book:

Snacking is Bad For Your Teeth! ... snacking also increases your risk for tooth decay... According to the American Dental association: Not only what you eat but when you eat makes a big difference in your dental health. Eat a balanced diet and limit between-meal snacks ... Foods that are part of a meal cause less harm. More saliva is released during a meal, which helps wash foods from the mouth and helps lesen the effects of acids."

I went to the dentist today.

I cannot tell you how much I dislike going to the dentist.

I hate it.

IMMENSELY!

Over the past two years I have had a lot of old dental work redone and plenty of new work done.

My dentist has done a beautiful job.

No more mercury in my mouth!

I still don't like to go though!

BUT TODAY ...

drum roll please!

NO DECAY

AND

I was told my oral hygeine was great!

The only difference in the last two months - I have been doing NO S and basically not snacking.

THIS IS VERY GOOD!

Photo: PBJ, mixed greens salad with cucumber and EVOO

Pizza and Chocolate

2008-05-26T21:52:00.000-07:00

I have to say it was a lovely Memorial Day Weekend!

Really needed the slower pace and some downtime. Enjoyed lot's of good food.

Yesterday we had dinner at P.F. Chang's China Bistro http://www.pfchangs.com/.

I took my camera but did not even think about taking pictures until we were sitting there looking at the leftovers.

The meal was beautiful. Crispy Fried Green Beans, Vegetarian Ma Po Tofu, and Sichuan Style Asparagus with Brown Rice.

The gym was packed this morning.

Tonight we had vegan pizza and arugula salad from Z Pizza http://www.zpizza.com/ the only restaurant that is not at least twenty miles away that has vegan options.

Finished off my three day weekend with some Godiva chocolates... Hazelnut Truffle, Dark Chocolate Truffle, Cappucino Truffle and an Open Oyster.

Yes I delighted in eating each one of them.

Photos: Z Pizza Create Your Own Vegan Pizza with Jalepenos and Godiva Chocolates

Frozen Mini Peanut Butter Cups

2008-05-24T22:08:00.000-07:00

It's late.

I am tired.

Today my evening treat was frozen mini peanut butter cups!

There were delicious.

Tomorrow ....

photo: frozen mini peanut butter cups

Sixty Day Results

2008-05-23T07:33:00.000-07:00

I have been on the No S Diet for sixty days and faced the scale monster today! And I must say with results that I am very pleased with!

Well I couldn't get a chart going in this here blog so let me try to get the results up without one as clearly as possibly.

Today I weight 126.3 pounds and my BMI is 22.4

In the past thirty days, I have lost 3.1 pounds, 2.4% of my total body weight and my BMI has dropped by 0.5.

Since I have been on NO S, I have lost 8.3 pounds, 6.2% of my total body weight and my BMI has dropped by 1.4.

As I blogged last week I started working with a personal trainer at my gym, as I do check-ins I will include my measurments and body fat percentage. As of last Friday, May 16 my body fat was 26.4%.

It seems like No S is going to be a critical factor in helping me acheive a stable and desirable body weight. My percantage of body fat goal is 20% within about six months.

WHEW! Glad that's over!

Everyone have a great day and remember, NO SNACKS, SWEETS, AND NO SECONDS until TOMORROW!

photo: me on the scale monster this morning!

Lindsay's Orchard

2008-05-22T20:13:00.000-07:00

About two years ago I read a book called THE WORLD PEACE DIET. I have read different books through the years promoting a vegan and/or vegetarian diet but I had to say that this particular book had the most dramatic impact on me.

I immediately stopped eating all animal products because I did not want to "vote with my dollars" to support the horrendous, unbeleivable, mistreatment that occurs in the animal farm industry these days.

After being vegan for twenty-two months I felt like I needed to supplement my diet. I began eating organic yogurt and free range chicken eggs.

The eggs I buy are very special.

I do not buy them at any store.

I only buy them at the Farmer's Market form Lindsay's Orchard.

I only buy eggs there because often even though eggs at stores are marketed as free range the poor chickens still have very little chance to move around and are raised in less than ideal conditions.

Since I beleive eating an animal that has been tortured and tormented from the moment it has been born and has not known a day of joy on this planet is a needless thing to do I am happy that Lindsay's Orchard exists.

Earlier this month chicks were born.

Aren't they adorable?
They will have a chance to scratch in the dirt, eat insects and worms and feel the sun upon their little faces. They won't be debeaked and stuffed into cages that are so small they cannot even turn around. Stacked one on top of the other so feces drops on their heads. They will not be forced to abnormally produce eggs year round with artificial lighting.

These things are so important not only for our bodies, but also for our consicousness and our souls!

In honor of the curried egg salad sandwich that I ate for lunch today, I am sharing the joy of these cuties with you on my blog today!

Photo: Newborn chicks courtesy of Lindsay's Orchard