Weight Loss – Diet – The No S Diet

Monday I introduced you to the thinking of Reinhard Engels, author and creator of Everyday Systems. If you click on the link to his site, you will see a link to his book The No “S” Diet on the right side of your screen. This really isn’t a DIET book.  It is a book about how to have eating habits that will sustain you at your ideal body weight.  The idea is to have habits – patterns of behavior that are deeply ingrained so you do them without thinking – that are beneficial.  If you need to change and by that I mean like me need to lose excess fat and build a little muscle, then you need a habit different from the one that got you where you are.

I have written about the change process before.  Does the term “Pre-Contemplation” sound familiar?  If you read this and thought”I can’t make a new habit” or thought “I don’t want a new habit”, then you are in a stage of (non)behavior change called pre-contemplation.  If you accept the need to develop new habits but can not imagine when or how you will do it then you are in contemplation.  The most important thing to do is to decide what it is you want exactly and how you will benefit from having it. Write those benefits down!

Lets say you are like me and need to drop 15 pounds of fat. In addition I need to firm up my flabby muscles. Now my muscles are relatively strong. I easily lift my 200 lb. dead-lift weight and can move it around in the basement. What I can’t do is lift it more than 5 times and or pull it up past my upper thighs. I could not carry a back pack of 20-30 pounds on a trail all day and I can’t do more than 5 pull-ups which means I can’t climb a 20 foot rope. What do I do about both losing weight and getting stronger and having more endurance?

The first thing is to improve my diet. I don’t believe that there are inherently bad foods. I do believe that there are very wrong ratios of macro nutrients. Remember macro nutrients are in major categories like fats, proteins and carbohydrates (carbs). Since there are no “carbohydrate deficiency diseases” this is the least important macro nutrient. There are foods that contain carbs but they also contain important ingredients in a good diet like special plant based nutrients called phytochemicals and fiber. Most of the carbohydrate you eat should come from plants that can be eaten cooked or uncooked like tomatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, avacadoes, almonds, walnuts, cabbage, bocchoi, romain lettuce, beets, endive, kale, mustard greens, okra, etc… You get the idea. If you have to cook it before eating then eat less. This list includes grains, beans, legumes. Eat  these high carb containing foods sparingly.

Reinhard in his book distills down the the rules to the basic 3 No’s:

1. No Sugar

2. No seconds

3. No snacks

His book explains the reasons behind these and takes away excuses.  Excusitis is one of the major reasons people fail completely to accomplish most of what they want to do.  Instead of finding a way, they fail to try again.  By making it simple and not permanently removing the opportunity to have fun food or celebration food, Reinhard gives the follower of this habit formation program a st of guide lines that steers them away from the habits that have made most of us fat – eating between meals and drinking sweetened beverages.  One other contributing factor is lack of activity – living a passive life.  Spending too much time sitting and too little time on our feet.

I suggest you purchase the book and also join my Personal Empowerment Program (PEP). The first 100 memberships are free (10 are now taken). Just click on the link and sign up. It is free, safe and will help you become a person with great wellness habits. I can also help you lose up to 20 pounds in 8 weeks. I will be offering a course in September on this very topic. Watch for the opportunity to sign up. In the meantime, I welcome your comments and your participation in my PEP.

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