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.