A Matter of Record Keeping

Don't get excited, I have nothing THAT noteworthy to say. I just want to tie the bow on the box of Round 2.

I originally planned to do a 35 day round. Then my sister asked me to watch her 4 kids along with my 3 for 4 days while she went on vacation. I knew I would not have the energy for that on VLC. I know Dr. Simmeon says you should be able to maintain your normal activities, but I find that a load of crap. (No offense). I am able to do what I need to do in my normal life, but just barely. I knew adding 4 more kids into the mix was not going to fly, so I cut the round short. I felt okay about doing it because my goal was to lose 15 lbs this round and I did.

So that's that. Starting weight in January 198.

Maintenance weight now: 166-168.

Feeling good. Loooking good. No steak days yet!

Dreading/looking forward to Round 3.

Celebrities and Back Fat

I've heard people say round two is hard. I privately thought wah, wah, wah, you wimpy weaklings, just get a grip. Bragging alert: I was such a rock star on round one. Willpower of steel. Well, round two has been another story. Had a couple of buck wild, lose my mind, crazy days. Here's the deal, traveling plus weddings plus a cheater pants spouse does not a rock star HCGer make. Nic made me do it!! (Oh, if only I could blame in all on him). I don't like marring my perfect record, but whatever. I'm not going to freak out over it.

My thoughts on weight over the past few days:
1. Watched the Oprah re-run with Valerie Bertinelli and Marie Osmond. I pretty much felt like dog doo. It was all about their weight loss and they showed their "before" pictures. Pictures where they described themselves as unhealthy, out of control and the heaviest they had ever been. Marie's was 165 lbs. Felt SUPER to know that at my 167 lbs I am chillin' in the repulsive zone. Knocked me off my high horse really quick. Nic made me feel better though, he said, "It's their job to be super skinny and awesome. 165 for a celebrity is a big deal." He's right. And I have to just stop comparing myself to anyone else. Er...especially celebrities on Oprah.

2. Met a friend of my husband's. I felt really cute in my clothes that night. My size 14 jeans (I wore an 18-20 in back in January) were falling off and I had a cute top on that I THOUGHT showed off my waist. Apparently I appeared quite pregnant, because I was congratulated on expecting a fourth child. I was so mortified. I wanted to cry. I was proud of myself because I didn't. I didn't play that drama card. I just smiled and dealt with it.

You know what made me feel better though? COMPARING MYSELF TO CELEBRITIES! :) We were given amazing 3rd row center seats to the Garth show at the Wynn and when his wife Trisha Yearwood came out, she was magnificent. She exuded warmth and love and talent. Garth loved her. We all loved her. And she had back fat. Yes she did. Who cares? It was a great wake-up call though. I need to remind myself constantly that my sum total is how I treat people and make them feel. And if I love people and make them feel great in a size 10...all the better, but if not, I'm still as valuable and fantastic.

So, Yes, I have broken the 170 plateau in spite of the alleged taco salad shell and complete wedding buffet dinner I ate. Alleged. The chocolate cake and Fettuccine Alfredo are also Alleged.

I love me. I love others. I'll keep on truckin'.

Where's the JUSTICE?!

Brutal. I am so frustrated and mad. Stuck. Just stuck at 170.4 for four days. Before that I was stuck at 172.8 for four days. It just feels like I'm wasting time. I know I can drink more and sleep more. My husband is eating the exact thing I am and he is cruisin' at about 3/4 lb a day. I am so happy for him, but it is hard to see me just hanging there with no loss. I'd much rather have him in this with me than not, though. Guhhhhhhh....

Barely hanging in there and so MAD!

Leveled Out

The grumpies are receding. I don't feel hungry anymore, in fact I'm reminding myself to eat. This morning's weigh in was 172.8. Starting weight back in January was 198. Starting weight of Round Two was 181.4. I will be so happy to be back in the 160's. I can't wait! I'm guessing I'll lose about 15 lbs on this 35 day round. That would put me about 10 lbs over my wedding weight. Wouldn't that be crazy if I fit back into my wedding dress this year? Now that will be a photo op!

Round 2 P2 Day 4

The second time around is not so bad. I find a lot of comfort in "the known". The known is that this is worth it, I will lose a good chunk of weight and I will be able to keep it off with a pretty normal lifestyle afterwards. During the first round, these were all unknowns. I am delighted that I can eat plenty of delicious and satisfying foods after HCG.

What has worked for my husband and I was to eat a lot less simple carbs. I don't eat white bread or sugar cereals. I don't drink much fruit juice except for a small glass of o.j. once a week or so. I don't eat full blown sweets on a regular basis. I'll have a little piece of cake at a party or something and honey you know I ate me a Reese's PB egg or two during easter! But as a rule, I wasn't a sweet eater after HCG. HOW CAN THIS BE ACCOMPLISHED?!! For me, it's because I eat lots of other super satisfying things like eggs and cheese and ranch dressing:) I make sugar free pudding with one cup of unsweetened almond milk and one cup whole cream. It's pretty darn good. And I didn't gain back a single pound. It isn't fat that makes me fat. It's sugar and white flour. I still eat cereal and bread in small amounts (1-2 servings a day) but they are always whole grain. Real whole grain, not the lying cheezy Nabisco type of "whole grain". So, eating real fats, real grains, veggies in large amounts etc, I feel full, I eat less and don't have wild swings of overwhelming cravings for ice cream and sugar and other pop tarty type junk. This experience and knowledge has comforted me during this VLC phase.

There are still hard things, like last night I made my homemade Italian meatballs and simmered them in from-scratch tomato sauce. Sigh...watching my kids dip their buttery, crisp garlic bread in that goodness was brutal! Cooking it, rolling the meatballs, cleaning up the dishes and then being NO PART of that meal was emotionally hard. I'm such a weirdo, I know, but cooking and eating is a big joy in my life. Taking that out for 35 days is hard. HCG food has no soul:) I've tried so many recipes and it's just not good. Sorry. So, we eat it to stay alive and to loose the weight.

I know this is such a long post, but I'm determined to record all of these thoughts and realizations. I look at this second round as not only a time to lose weight, but as a refresher course in portion size and a reminder of how good it feels to be off of sugars and junk.

Speaking of sugars and junk...MY CRUISE! Holy cow. My stable weight after Round 1 P4 was about 174-176 lbs. I maintained that easily for two months. Then came the cruise. I remember sitting down to my first breakfast and feeling so crazy eating french toast with a pastry on the side and drinking o.j. and milk and piles of this and that covering my tray. It didn't take long to get back into that style of eating and it didn't take long to reflect on my body. My stomach swelled up, my pants got tight and I could see my face puffing up as the days went on. I didn't worry about it too much because ...IT'S A CRUISE!! But when I got home I weighed 184. Some of it came off before I even started Round 2 on Saturday. My body was just crying uncle. So this morning's weigh in was 175.6. I'm back in my stabilized range and can now make some real progress!

Now it is just patience and eating a whole bunch of boring food for the next month. Looking forward to peanut butter again!

Gearing up

I just ordered fresh drops. I lovingly said my goodbyes to cheese and ketchup during my morning omelet. I will buy load food tonight including Stouffer's mac and cheese and the fixings for my absurdly delicious chimichangas. Round Two Phase Two Day One begins on Saturday. Oh, and I'm down two pounds from my cruise craziness. Phew...that saves me a few days of pain.

Pay up!

It was a long walk to the scale this morning. I got back from my cruise last night. Oh mercy, mercy me the food on that boat. I didn't go hog wild per say....but I didn't restrict one single thing. Okay fine, I ate til I hurt. It was pretty epic. So just so you know, I kept all my weight off this whole time until the DAY I left for the cruise. I'm pretty proud of that. I was 176 when I left. I gained about 7 lbs over the last nine days. Holy cow!

It was the lava cake. And the 24 hour pizza bar. And the french toast with blueberry sauce. Pretty sure the daily pina coladas weren't doing me any favors either! But we had a blast and my chubby fanny had a great time snorkeling through the reefs, tubing through caves and rain forests, hiking, shopping, sun bathing, paddling in canoes, and kanoodling with the sting rays. I rocked what I had ladies...that's what matters eh? So, as soon as I can get myself together, huz and I are starting another round. Oh HCG...I love you and I hate you. Time to play the fiddler y'all.

They've Staged a Coup D'etat

"Just because you are on a fat people diet doesn't mean we are!" Those were the words spoken from my four year old son.

Then my daughter defended me, "Mom's not fat!"

"Yes she is!"

"No she's NOT!"

That was the discussion when the kids found out they were having yet another P3 friendly dinner. I figured since they eat crap most of the day in the form of cereal, tortillas, PB and J and the like, it wouldn't kill them to eat P3 for dinner. Apparently they miss my old dinners. (So do I, but I don't miss weighing almost 200 lbs enough to go back to them.)

That being said, I still find the need to shake things up. I can only eat a chicken and spinach BBQ ranch salad so many times...delicious as it is. I'm sure you run into the same issue. So, I'm sharing my menu for the next week. It's all pretty easy stuff to make.

-Taco Salad

-Baked Turkey Breast with mashed cauliflower and Heinz jarred gravy

-Spaghetti squash with meat sauce and Parmesan

-Mini Meat loafs from sugarfreesheila.com

-Pizza with flourless crust: The crust looks like a big ol pain in the butt to make, but eating pizza and not gaining weight from it? Worth the extra work now and then.

-Steak and steamed veggies

-Chicken Cordon Bleu: This was a hit with the fam. Easy too! Pound out some chicken breasts to about 1/4 inch thick. Roll two slices of sugar free ham (I get mine at Trader Joe's) and two slices of swiss cheese up in the chicken and secure with a toothpick or skewer. Season generously with Lawry's seasoning salt and pepper. Bake on 375 for about 30 minutes. Check it at 25 for doneness. So good! If you are feeling fancy, you can dip the whole thing in an egg wash and dredge in a mixture of Parmesan cheese and almond flour for a pretty breading.

Dinners on Deck:

Beanless chili with onions, cheese and sour cream

Fajitas minus the tortillas

Creamy tomato soup with cheese chips

When the time comes, (5 more days) to add in starches slowly, I'm having me some Truscuits and hummus baby! I miss crunch. I also want tortilla chips and salsa.

I had to buy a belt today because I can't keep any of my pants up! That's a great feeling.

I was hovering at 176.00 this morning which means if I gain even a fairy's fart worth of weight I have to do another steak day. Wah! I wish I were more regular and I doubt it would be much of a problem. BM's every five or so days...sheesh! No wonder the pounds creep back...it's not going anywhere. Is that a P3 thing?

Check Mate

Okay, I'm crying uncle here. I went to Cheesecake Factory last night and I was so good. I ate the avocado filling out of an avocado egg roll. Then I had the California Omelet which was totally P3 kosher and a diet coke. I had about 1/2 of a low carb slice of cheesecake made with Splenda - NO CRUST! Then I was blessed with the awesomeness of food poisoning. I will never eat eggs again.

Okay, that's probably dramatic, but ugh...I don't know what in the heck to eat. I guess I gotta just pull my head out of HCG la-la land and eat a darn bowl of chicken noodle soup or a piece of toast. I'm so queasy that I seriously doubt I should try dairy or meat right now. Somehow a pile of veggies or and apple aren't sounding safe either. I hate when circumstances force me me to go off protocol, but such is live eh?

Well, at least after emptying my body of every fluid possible I don't have to worry about a steak day after eating out! (Look at me all positive and junk!)

Moo!

This past weekend has proven to me that there is a lot going on in our bodies that I don't fully understand. After being somewhat flippant with my eating on Saturday night, I woke up to see I had gained three pounds! Now, we all know that wasn't three pounds of fat. However, my body did not appreciate the things I put in it after not eating it for almost three months, i.e. - sugar. I've had natural sugars in the form of apples and oranges and other fruits and vegetables, but I haven't eaten straight up refined sugar since early January.

So, what did it was chowing down on a broccoli salad that had a sugary dressing and then eating a very small portion of this creamy banana pudding dessert with ( I know, what was I doing??!!) an oreo crust and topping. I never eat that kind of stuff at home. I went to a dinner with friends and I thought, oh, it's just a little dab, it won't be a big deal I'm sure. Well, the next morning, it WAS a big deal. A big ol' three pound deal. So, I drank lots of water as prescribed in the correction day, and then ate my weight in beef with an apple. That sure tasted good after fasting all day. I forgot what HUNGER felt like. It made me realize what I was feeling during the low cal portion of Phase 2 was NOT hunger, it was dissatisfaction with food. Hunger feels much worse than craving. It makes me so stoked to do another round in May. It really is doable.

So, my weight after the splurge was 178.4. I performed a steak day and the next morning was 175.00. This morning I was 174.4 which is right around where I should be, near my Last Dosed weight of 174.0. Phew. Thank goodness the protocol works. Lesson learned!

Has anyone contemplated or attempted staying on P3 forever? It's pretty darn easy for the most part. I don't trust myself on P4. YIKES!

Are you seeing what I'm seeing?

It makes no sense. Yesterday I ate in a manner that I wasn't so proud of. I had a really sick demanding kid. It frayed on my nerves and every time I went to the kitchen to get her a drink or another dose of medicine I grabbed a chocolate almond bark thingie I made earlier in the day. I think I ate five of them by the time the day was over. In addition, I just grazed like a lazy cow...all the day long.

Granted, I "limited" myself to allowed foods. I ate a spinach salad with ranch, chicken, and calorie free bbq sauce for breakfast. I ate another handful of chicken later. I lost count of how many handfuls of cashews I ate while making the chocolate thingies. I think there was an apple and peanut butter somewhere in there. Another salad. Then some steamed broccoli with a small bowl of cream (and I mean CREAM) of chicken soup. I was so stuffed by the end of the day. I just kept eating because my hair was greasy and I hadn't changed my clothes in two days nor seen the light of day. I ate because it sounded fun. It was a scary reminder of how I got in this mess in the first place. Soothe, soothe, soothe. Maybe I need a binky. A chocolate dipped binky.

So the part that doesn't make sense is getting on the scale this morning and to my amazement...losing a little weight. I was floored. I still keep thinking it's going to bite me in the patootie really soon. It may. But I continue to be amazed at the way HCG is keeping its promises to me if I keep mine. (For the most part) Definitely in the pounds lost department.

I feel so naughty on this phase. But I still haven't gained! This morning I had a delicious blueberry and strawberry shake made with unsweetened almond milk, truvia, and cream. It was holy cow delish. Oh, and on the side I had a 2 egg omelet with bacon, a fat slice of swiss and chives. Dipped it in sugar free ketchup. The whole thing seems too good to be true. I'm so darn satisfied. I hope it keeps working.

Fine Line

I know it is really dumb to think I will get through this without a steak day. (For the newbie or lay person: Steak day is when you have gained more than two pounds from your lowest dosed weight and now must pay the fiddler by drinking water all day and having a mega steak for dinner with an apple or tomato. Refer to Dr. Simeon's protocol for the scientific explanation for this of which I am too lazy to outline here.)

I do not have to do a steak day, YET. But I am dancing that line and I don't want to! Okay, so perhaps liberally throwing some heavy cream and butter into my mashed cauliflower wasn't totally the best idea. :) I have a hard time eating allowed food in MODERATION! That is a beast I still wrestle with...MODERATION. When things are delicious, it's like that word doesn't even exist. It was easy to have moderation on phase two. For one thing the food was pretty nasty. For another thing the rules were so safe and clear. No room for interpretation.

Good news though, my hiney has a reprieve from turbo poo. I can leave the house once more. Aren't you glad you read my blog today?

Wooo Doggy!

I am enjoying Phase three y'all. I cannot believe what a sunny outlook I have on life now! It is amazing what some calories will do for your psyche and energy.

I'm sorry to report a downside of HCG. The Low calorie part sucked my energy and made me cranky as heck. It did. I felt no clarity of mind, extra energy or added sense of well being. It stunk. The entire 41 days were a test on me big time. But it was worth it. My muscle strength is back now and I realize how weak I was during Phase 2. I can run up the stairs to grab the phone and everything works right! I'm excited to start exercising. So, the jury is still out as to how much I buy in to the efficacy of homeopathic HCG. I think there is something to it. I think Dr. Simeon was genuine. I don't think it is a hoax. But I don't think it does all it claims to do either. Not for me it didn't.

Anyhoo, LOVIN' phase 3 so far. This is the third day and I am so satisfied with my food and I eat so much less than I used to. I just think simple white flours and sugars throw your body out of whack. Why would I pig out on them and two or three hours later be hungry and craving? Now, I eat a very reasonable amount of food and I am mentally and physically content for hours and hours. It is amazing to me. I've never felt this in control. It is so liberating and gives me such hope that I can do this.

Granted, it's only day three, I'm sure the scale will do some roller coasting, but as for now, I am at 173.4. That's LOWER than my Last Dose of HCG weight. So, I'm okay for now.

Plus, oh my goodness I'm poopin' like a goose. Holy Mylanta. That part is proving inconvenient thus far. I hope that goes away as I can't leave the house for more than 45 minutes!

Food, glorious food. I've missed you. Eggs, cream cheese, mayo, avocados, oil, butter, oh my. Clarification: I'm not eating spoonfulls of butter, but it sure tastes good on squash!

On the Edge

Interesting day. Tomorrow I start Phase Three. Translation: I get to eat food again. Kind of freaked out about it.

The last few days have been so...annoying. I've been winding down and ready to just eat already. Plus I made pumpkin spice cake for book club with honey cream cheese frosting. Cheatiness: a little lick of batter, a little lick of frosting. Then I made smores treats for Afton's class. Cheat: Tiny lick of melted marshmallow. Then I made a birthday cake for Afton's birthday. Cheat: A tiny lick of batter. Phew! Barely made it through that weekend. But I did.

So, now I'm not sure what in the heck to eat from here on out. How much? Do I count calories or just eat when I'm hungry? Seems to be lots of opinions on the matter from different HCG'ers. Plus, I start my period ANY day now. That will mess with the scale I'm sure. This should be an interesting three weeks.

Sort of anxious to start another round after my cruise in May. I will be so happy to fit into normal sizes again. Although, I don't have one single pair of jeans that aren't too big now. I have achieved pre-baby weight and all of my summer clothes that I've been saving for "someday" now fit. Yay!

So, the FINAL weigh in until I can do another low calorie round is...drum roll please...

Starting weight: 198.6

Today's weight: 174.4

Total loss: 24.2 pounds in 41 days.

P.S. Nic lost 39 pounds in 41 days. What in the??? No fair but KUDOS to him!!

I'll be checking in with Phase three. For the interested: Phase three is not intended to be a time to lose any weight. Only a time to stabilize my new lower weight. After Phase three I do 6 weeks of normal eating.

Wish me luck! (No really, wish me luck!) I don't hate comments all you blog stalkers out there:)

Phew! That was a close one!

On President's Day morning, I crawled out of bed around nine. Nic and I were hanging out talking about what we might want to do for the day since the kids had no school and he had work off. The movies? A hike at Red Rock? We settled on an 8 hr round trip to Corona Del Mar:) By 10 am we were loaded in the car and on our way.

Perhaps this wasn't the wisest choice while doing HCG. Perhaps we shouldn't have left the house when I was seriously...clean out of HCG groceries. But, what ev, we did it.

On the way we ordered asada tacos from Del Taco and dumped out the delicious contents on paper plates, discarding the tortillas. Oh heavenly smudges of guacamole. So bad, I know, but it was sort of the best we could do on the road. I comforted myself in the fact that Dr. Simeon said if you have to attend an event or travel, to just eat a small amount of the best thing that is available. So, that's what we did. It was really good. It was the first morsel of food I had eaten in over 30 days not prepared by my own hands. That was at noon.

On the way home at 9 pm, we got a steak Caesar salad at El Pollo Loco. Little evil niblits in there included some corn and little fried strips of tortilla. Nic ate none of the dressing, but I must confess I ate a small dab while he was in the bathroom at Chevron. The sneakiness of it and the 5 year old guilt that ensued wasn't worth the taste of it! Oh well. Oh, I also partook in the Nectar of the Gods - Diet Coke. Dang good. I kept having hiccup attacks from not being used to soda.

So, understandably, I was not really excited to weigh after my adventure. So I didn't. Then I was out of food yesterday morning and had to eat cottage cheese and pears. Then I got back on track after the grocery trip.

So I weighed today to assess the damage. I lost more in two days than I have in weeks! What in the????

Starting weight: 198.6

Today's weight: 176.0

Total Loss: 22.6 lbs

I don't get it, but I'll take it!

Light at the end of the tunnel

Well, round one phase two is drawing to a close. Eleven more days of the low calorie part and then we are off to the three weeks of phase three which is intended to stabilize the new weight. After that we move on to six weeks of eating normally (and by normally, I mean NORMALLY, not how I used to eat!) while slowly re-introducing carbs and sugars. After the six weeks we plan on doing another round of the low calorie part. I will miss losing weight for the next nine weeks, but I surely see the necessity of taking a break from this stuff. My body is all funned out.

I seem to be taking 3-4 days to lose a pound whereas before I lost nearly a pound a day. It has really slowed. I hope to lose at least a few more in the next eleven days.

Phase three is sort of like the Atkins diet in that you avoid starch and sugar, but you are allowed fruits and don't eat an unlimited amount of fat like on Atkins. I am looking forward to meat with a little more fat on it! Scrambled eggs with cheese and bacon. Avocados, salsa, bacon and did I mention bacon? Oh yeah, I'm also looking forward to bacon.

I could use a little mayo in my life as well. Chicken salad on lettuce cups with chopped nuts and mustard. Please...I could live on that for life after this torture! I'm a little nervous to be let out of the cage of this regimen, but semi-confident I won't want to blow all of this effort. (Until I come face to face with the obscene smorgasbord of my cruise that is.) Oh heaven help me!

Weigh in:

Starting Weight: 198.6

Today's Weight: 178.2

Total Loss: 20.4 lbs

P.S. Friends came in town who hadn't seen us since October and they were really surprised at our weight loss. I wanted to cry. It was awesome. Oh, and Nic has lost 31 lbs. He looks great. And his bootie has shrunken to little hamburger buns and it's hilarious.

I've got a baby shower to attend today and am not looking forward to all of the yummies that will call my name. FUN!

Hello Alligator, May I stick my head in your mouth?

Today was crazy. I went to a Valentine's Day party for my kids. It was great. There were so many moms I loved to see again from my old 'hood. There were fun things to do and oodles of valentines for the kids to trade. There was also a complete buffet of nibblies I wanted to eat. Brownies with pink cream cheese frosting. Cupcakes with crunchy sprinkles. Deviled eggs (which I can have on P#3 WOOO!). Peanut butter cookies with Hershey kisses. Ranch dip and veggies. The worst though...a cookie pie. Don't ask me how it's done, but it was a pie with a soft gooey looking chocolate chip center and a crispy top. I cringe with unrequited craving. It was like waggling my head into an alligator's mouth. Dangerous craving y'all!

P.S. Isn't it majorly creepy how I remember all of the food there?

Well, the good news is I didn't eat any of if. So I was free to watch other people eat it. I never really payed attention to the eating habits of others. I was usually to busy eating myself to notice. But the skinny girls had...wait for it...a cookie. The chubby girls had more. A month ago, I would have eaten half of the buffet. Without hesitation or apology, half the buffet. I had the control not to this time, but what is it that makes me want to and the skinny girls are cool with a cookie? That's the million dollar question right there.

Oh, and Nic and my morbid obsession with Man V. Food marches on. Last night I cussed out loud when I saw the bacon cheeseburger served on Krispy Cream Donut buns. I cussed people. I don't cuss.

After a gain yesterday I was bummed and swore off my juicy nemesis : red meat for a couple of days. It worked.

Starting Weight: 198.6

Today's Weight : 180.4

Total Loss: 18.2 lbs Wow.

I can't wait to have someone who doesn't know I'm dieting say, "Hey, you are losing weight!"

Big fear: Cruise for my anniversary is coming up in May. I don't know if I can/should/will resist the midnight chocolate buffet. EVIL!

I'm Convinced (day 18 of R1 P2)

I'm convinced a chimichanga would make it all better. I really am. Maybe that is my problem. When things get hard, when kids scream longer than normal, when Nic works late, when anything remotely disappointing or uncomfortable happens, I seem to find some comfort in delicious food.

And why, why, why has Nic and my favorite show become Man vs. Food? Have you ever watched the obscene gluttony of that show? Why do we torture ourselves? All I am saying is there was an episode on county fair food and they dipped a slice of cheesecake in batter and deep fried it and I was nearly brought to tears. It seemed to symbolize in one large blob on a stick all of the things I want to eat!

In other news. I have a cool new trick. I can make my calf muscles spasm and cramp all the day long. Isn't that awesome? HCG...you are quite the experience. In my super legit and professional research (Googling it a few times) I found that loosing weight quickly depletes you of potassium. That is from an old lady who gives her non medical opinions on an e magazine. So...don't know if that is true or not. Other more credible sources say a diet low in potassium and calcium can cause issues. I'd say this diet is low on just about everything so...that's a possibility. Maybe a combo of both? I'll take some supps and see what happens.

Batter dipped deep fried cheesecake....THAT IS JUST EVIL!

Weigh in:

Starting weight: 198.6

Today's weight: 183.2

Total loss: 15.4 lbs.

(p.s. I totally ate a sugarfree Werther's Original today. My first cheat!)

I would have eaten...

It's amazing to me to see all the things I would have eaten if I were still out of control. I know I would have eaten a big bowl of Cinnamon Toast Crunch for Breakfast. I know I would have eaten at least four or five of the Girl Scout Cookies Nic brought home. The chewy caramel ones with chocolate stripes and coconut. Sigh. I would have eaten white chocolate popcorn instead of sending it to school for Afton's class party. I would have eaten Mickey Mouse chicken nuggets with ranch or ketchup, macaroni and cheese and chocolate milk. I would have picked off a couple of chocolate chip cookies at my sister's house.

No wonder I got so fat! I better start feeding my kids differently if I don't want them to suffer the same fate!

I went and looked at my friend's before and after pictures today. She lost 50 lbs in in four months. Such a stud. Gives me strength...yes it does.

So, I would have eaten all of that, but instead I ate:

1/2 a grapefruit, 2 melba toasts, two roma tomatoes, 100 gr. chicken, an apple, 5 shrimp. I still have a veggie and a fruit to eat tonight. Spinach smoothie anyone? Guh.

Weigh in:

Starting weight: 198.6

Today's weight: 184.6

Total loss: 14 lbs even. WOO!

Round 1 Phase 2 Day 14!

Patience, patience, patience. Lots of self control and sacrifice every day. I like waking up and weighing to see if it is paying off. So hard when it doesn't. Patience.

My parents came to visit. My dad is a worrier. I get it. He loves me. He worries. It's hard when people are aghast at how little you eat on this thing. I have kind of gotten used to it, but my dad was shaking his head. I think the worst part is I think he may be right. I don't know for sure. I can never know for sure I guess. I can just do my best to educate myself and be honest with how I'm feeling. I've had a few good days in a row as far as having good energy.

Nic wants to do 40 days. I'm leaning more into like 25-ish. :)

Hard. My mom left restaurant leftovers in my fridge. The Costco oatmeal cookies are calling my name. But I ate and apple.

Weigh in:

Starting wieght: 198. 6 (still kills me to put that in writing. Maybe it's a good wakeup call)

Today's weight: 185.8

Total Loss: 12.8 lbs.

Time please pass faster!

Round One Phase Two Day 12

I need to grow a fourth stomach y'all. Cuz all this cud is getting old!

Stalled for two days due to TOM. Back to losing and it is the ONLY thing that keeps me going. I visited my sister last night and she had just made batches upon batches of white chocolate popcorn. Tinfoil dinners were in the oven and served up with creamy sauce and ketchup. I saw a Snickers resting on the counter top. It stunk. It really did. There was nothing to be said and nothing to be done but just privately think how much I would have eaten that stuff on any other day. Probably, no definitely would have eaten way too much of it. I was sad. Food still has a huge hold on me. What ever.

Nic is doing great. He is down over 16 lbs. He even lost two pounds the day after he ate out with a client! He's superman! (I'm hatin')

My weigh in:

Starting weight 198.6

Today's weight: 186.8

Total loss: 11.8 lbs

Can I tell you how every single night I dream of blowing my diet in a big way? Real big.

Round One Phase Two Day Nine

Well, I said I would be totally honest on how this diet makes me feel. Yesterday wasn't the greatest day. I'm wondering I just waited too long to eat. I didn't snack in the morning and I waited til noon to eat. By the afternoon I felt yucky. Dizzy, nauseous and sort of faint. Dr. Simeon recommends taking two teaspoons of sugar if you have a low blood sugar episode. Another source said that this type of feeling on HCG is called reactive hypoglycemia and is better treated with a combination of a small amount of protein with the sugar. So, I took a few swigs of o.j. and ate a little bit of lunch meat and a bit of cheese. The second source recommended lunch meat as it is a "sugary meat".

I had mixed feelings about doing it. Very quickly I have become invested in all the effort I have put in. I had no desire to cheat. I had no craving or want to eat something not on the diet. I felt conflicted. But I'm also going to listen to my body. It isn't worth feeling that way to me. If at any point I am not able to carry on my duties I won't be continuing. I think it will be okay. 7 out of eight of my friends say they got through it just fine. One friend said to keep some hard candy on hand and if that feeling comes to have one and rest for a bit.

The last two days I have felt like a person recovering from a stomach bug. Sort of weak in the knees and a bit run down. I'm hoping that feeling will change. Almost all the people I've spoken with said the first ten days are the hardest. I'm feeling okay in the hunger department. I'd sure like to nibble on the food I make for the kids, but other than that, I'm okay. I don't have an empty growly feeling at all. That is surprising to me. I don't get that HUNGER feeling. But I do feel unsatisfied with the food. I feel half queasy a lot of the time. Many times the thought of what I have to eat next sort of grosses me out.

The extra food I ate yesterday did not reflect on the scale today. My time of the month (TOM) is approaching and I've heard that can be frustrating as women tend to hold water weight and you miss waking up and seeing that loss on the scale. I'll try to hang tight for the next few days and remember that is what's going on.

Food Record:

Handful of strawberries warmed with vanilla stevia, Grissini bread stick, 100 gr. shrimp grilled with one onion, 100 gr. tuna on a bowl of spinach with a.c. vinegar and stevia, Grissini bread stick, one apple and 2 liters of water with lemon and stevia.

Weigh in:

Starting Weight

198.4

Today's Weight

188.2

Total loss of

10.2 lbs

NOT BAD!

This is a place for me to hash out my feelings about HCG. I'm trying it. I've always been a hard core skeptic. But I can't ignore the great results I've seen family and friends get from the protocol. I personally know eight people who have tried it. 7 of them lost substantial amounts of weight. Two of them gained quite a bit back and one of them had a hard time with messed up periods and little weight loss. Still pretty good odds.

This is a place for me to track my feelings, food, progress, doubts and hopes. This is not a place for nay sayers. Trust me, I've nay sayed plenty of times!

I'm on day 9 of Phase two. I've lost nine pounds so far. I know that I would have lost as much without HCG while following the 500 calorie diet. I've read plenty of studies that say HCG makes little difference in pounds lost. The debate is, how long you keep it off, whether or not you lose muscle and bone tissue, whether or not your body slows it's metabolism etc... Factors I can't really measure and test with my Walmart scale. So, I've decided to give it an honest go...and be honest with myself on how I feel. I don't know for sure if this is the real deal. I'm doing the homeopathic version because from what I've been able to study, it's more gentle on your body.

But let me say, the more "homeopathic" believers I talk to...the more freaked out I get. I don't believe in the hocus pocus of many of their methods. It's quite discouraging actually because it really mows down the credibility factor for me. I truly don't know if I am glad I chose the homeopathic method as opposed to the other ones. That's my biggest fear in this whole journey so far.

Some encouraging things I've learned from reading scientific studies are: Those treated with HCG tend to keep weight off more successfully than those not treated. In addition, those treated with HCG lose body fat and not muscle and bone tissue as compared to those on only a strict low calorie diet. I also was pleased to read a study about how preemie babies are treated with fatty ointments rubbed on their skin to help them increase the fatty acids in their blood. I was glad to read that because I was so ticked about not being able to use lotions and products with fats while on the Low Cal part. I thought it was totally bogus that your body could absorb fats in some form through the skin until I read the preemie study. Still learning. (I'm thinking of going to get some strips to pee on to see if I have a lot of ketones in my urine. I'm guessing that might help me know if I'm eating through too much muscle tissue which would NOT be cool.)

I know it's early. I have a long way to go. I'm feeling frustrated so far in some ways. I keep reading what a feeling of well being I'll have and how much energy I'll have. Maybe it's too early, but so far NOT HAPPENING! I feel pretty ticked off most of the time actually. My patience is short. It's harder to carry a baby up the stairs. My hands feel really weak and cold all of the time. What's up with that?

But I am surprised that I only had mild headaches the first two days of the low cal diet. Haven't had a problem with that since then which surprising because before this diet, I often got pretty bad headaches if I got the least bit hungry. I could count on it like clockwork that I'd get a headache after the four hours of church with no eating.

The hunger factor was awful the first day. I went to bed so discouraged because I felt starving and knew I wasn't going to get a meal until lunch the next day. But I can honestly say, that I feel a lot better in the hunger department. If I eat on time and spread my two meals and two snacks out I feel like there is enough food. Enough for this six weeks that is...I couldn't nor should anyone eat like this for life. The fact that it's only six weeks gives me a lot of encouragement. I've been awesome so far. No cheating at all.

I miss the foods I used to love. It's hard to cook them for my kids. Pancakes with butter, bacon, spaghetti with creamy marinara and Parmesan....Gah! It's hard! But I rock. Not one nibble.

I have a little problem with food fatigue. I'm so sick of vegetables already. Not good. I have a hard time getting them all down. Pretty darn sick of apples and oranges too. Warming up frozen strawberries seems to taste good lately.

That's all for now. Just want to keep a record of how things are going. Now, here goes. So embarrassing, but my starting weight:

198.4

Today's Weight:

189.6

I can say that amount of weight loss would have taken me at least two months to accomplish on my other weight loss methods. I tried Body for life. With religious adherence, I lost 11 pounds in two months. And it did take almost a year to put it back on. I think it's a great program for single people. But the gym time was too much for me once I started having kids. I tried the Dr. OZ You on a Diet thing. It was pretty good. I lost 2 inches from my waist in 10 days. There was plenty of food, but the problem was that I was a slave to the kitchen. I cooked literally, hours a day between meals for my kids and the diet food. It was too hard to keep up and I was sick of standing at the stove all day. But I plan on eating a lot of the sorts of foods I learned about on that plan when I reach my normal eating time again. They really did have tons of nutrients, helped me feel great and kept me satisfied. Learning, learning, learning.... I also tried running. So many people including my dad have had success losing weight that way. I ran for six months, three to four times a week while trying to eat more sensibly. Amount lost: zero pounds. I felt great though, had a ton of accomplishment including running a 5k. I also toned up and my legs looked better. But no fat loss. My sister jumped on the band wagon with me and trained for a Ragnar race. She actually gained weight! I still have the dream of being a runner. I just know it will be so much easier when I'm not carrying 60 extra pounds. That's more than a bag of cement people! Oh boy....what a mystery weight loss is. One I have not conquered so far. Keep trying.

More later!