"Before" Pics

Boy, nothing drives home the need to lose some weight like a full bodied picture of yourself! I swear, the way I see myself in the mirror does not match the way I look in pictures. I guess my mind likes to lie to me.

Anyhoo, I finally got some "before" pics up. They aren't true before pics as I have lost about 15 pounds since I've been blogging, but close enough. Fifteen pounds didn't make that much of a difference anywhere you could really tell except my face and neck (although I did go down a jeans size). My face is hidden so I can remain anonymous. For now.

Pictures...of food!^^

I've created an album and posted pics of my favorite Weight Watcher's (WW) recipes. I'll eventually add more, when I go back to eating WW style again. I'll also be posting some of my hCG Phase 2 meals, if they look appetizing enough. Recipes and point values are also included.

Just click where my "after" pics are supposed to be!

R2/P2/D2

So this is the 2nd day of my 2nd round of the hCG drops, and I'm off to a better start than I was in the first round! I am down 3.7 pounds since yesterday.

Technically, this would be day 4, however, I am taking my lead from other pro-hCG'ers who don't count the first 2 load days as part of the round. I think I am better prepared for this round as this time I know exactly what to expect, exactly which foods work with me and which don't and how to better handle the hunger. The first time was overwhelming but now I am much better at making a plan. The break in between was great, too. Also, this time around, I am taking a fat burner called 7-Keto to boost my loss. I've read how a bunch of hCG'ers take some kind of metabolism booster/fat burner and have optimized their losses. L-carnitine, chromium piccolonate, B12...all those were suggest. The 7-Keto is actually in Dexatrim Max, which I am taking. I had good results from the Dexatrim Max in conjunction with WW, so I am curious to see how well it does with this diet.

I am planning to cheat. Bad, right? Yeah, I know. I have a convention I am going to on the 30th and 31st and I know there is no way I can be there 2 days and not end up eating off protocol. I will try not to go overboard, but I know cheating is most likely going to be inevitable. The good thing is it will be after the 21 day of mandatory no cheating that the hCG diet recommends to reset your hypothalamus. It's odd, but knowing ahead of time that I am going to cheat is making me feel like I have no option but to NOT cheat until then. The good thing this time is that there are no activities or holidays coming up before then to worry about. During my last round I had Memorial Day, Fourth of July, end-of-the-school year parties and lots of birthdays. From here forward my calendar is blank!

So I'm off to start drinking water like a camel again. That part I didn't miss...getting up 20 times to go pee in the middle of the night. I need to stop drinking water by 9 PM I suppose. LOL. Okay y'all, have a great day!

What the water weight?!

It better be water weight, because I refuse to believe that I ate enough in 1 day to be up almost 6 pounds in fat! I'm weaned off my drops and have indulged in some more flavorful fare in P3. Last night was gyros...nom nom nom. I was true to P3, no carbs, I just ate the meat and smothered it with tzatziki (spelling?) sauce. I've also been having some hot dogs because I have REALLY missed hot dogs. And lotion...tons of lotion! My skin was so happy! Anyhoo, I've been downing the protein like I'm supposed to but I woke up this morning to my wedding band being so uncomfortably tight that I had to wet my finger to get it off. And my belly is so distended, it's uncomfortable. I'm thinking that my body has been so deprived of this kind of food that all it could do was react this way (I hope). I'm going to pound the water and drink some green tea and see if I can flush it out. I suppose I should also add that my AF is due any day now. I think I'll give myself a few days before getting back on the scale.

So, some discoveries. I had no idea that "homeopathic" hCG drops have little to no hCG in them at all. Knowing that, I wonder why we have to adhere to the same waiting and weaning as those on "real" hCG drops, pills, shots, etc... I don't question that the drops do something, because they do, but I am thinking that some of the rules can be relaxed a bit. So I'm going to experiment. A friend of mine, who is on the same drops as I am, started her second round with just a 2 week break in between, not a  6 week break. I think I may do the same. I'll wait until my period is over and restart, so I'm looking at a 10 day break in between. If I start and I feel like I'm not losing or that my body is suffering, I'll stop. But I just want to see what happens. I've been reading on other forums about others who have played with the protocol and had amazing results, so I feel that nothing ventured nothing gain. We'll see.

I hope you guys are having an amazing 4th of July weekend. I am so looking forward to some barbecue. I can't have the sauce but I can season the hell out of my meats, so yay!

Down a Bit

So I've lost 0.9 since my last weigh in. I've decided to go ahead a wean so I can do P3. But I've decided I'm going to do it a little differently. I'm going to do P3 total Atkins. It's already similar to Atkins where they encourage a lot of protein intake but there is a lot of leeway with fruits and veggies (no starches though). I think I am going to cut out the fruit and veggies and see if I can get my body into ketosis to burn fat. I know, the pro-hcg'ers will probably flame me for that but you know, I've talked to many other hcg'ers who have a lot to lose like me and they dieted in between rounds and still had great success on their rounds. I know my body...if I feel like it isn't working or it's too hard on me, I'll stop.

So my grand total lost since restarting the dieting and rejoining extra pounds is 14.6 pounds. That's in 45 days time. It is a little disappointing but I'm trying to rejoice in the fact that it's almost 15 pounds GONE and that I'm just a little bit healthier than before. =)

9 Days? Where have I been?

I didn't even realize it had been 9 days since I last posted. I made sure to sign on almost every morning to update my weight with the intention to sit down and post later, but I'd always get distracted.

So I am up 2.9 pounds. I cheated a few weeks ago and caused myself a horrid gain/stall that took a week and a half to recover from. I started losing again and what did I do this past weekend? Cheat! I hosted a kimchi making class for my Korean group but it was also a potluck and there were so many good Korean foods to eat! I'd be lying if I said this diet didn't have me burned out, and I just felt like eating all that carb/starch heavy food...especially RICE. Anyway, I skipped weighing in for fear of what the scale would say, but this morning I did and found myself up 2.9. I suppose I should be thankful that I'm not up 5 pounds, but still-- bad girl! As penance, I'm thinking of extending my round from 45 days to 60 days, which would take me until July 22. That way I could do my 6 weeks of maintenance and start my 2nd round of hCG in September, after the draw of all the summertime goodies is pretty much gone. Hopefully.

My oldest is out of school and with summer camp only going from 8-11 AM, I'll need to get creative with the activities for him and my youngest. They are 5 and 2 and need to burn off their energy or else they'll wake up in the middle of the night fully rested and ready to play (no joke!). So that means I'll need to not be lazy Mommy and get active. It'll be good for me and, hopefully, it will boost my weight loss efforts. Again, hopefully.

So today is actually R1/P2/D37. Let's see how I do by Sunday. I hope everyone else has a successful weight loss week!

Cheaters never prosper!

Well, this one sure didn't! It was a half day at my son's school so he had a playdate. Five hungry boys at my house, so I figured "Why not order pizza?!" I should have stuck to fruit and Goldfish crackers. Seeing and smelling that wonderful pizza was just too much for me to handle. I indulged. Two slices of large, greasy pan pizza. Cheesy melty goodness. Right before I ate it I went through the mental justification dance that a lot of dieters do before they cheat. I kept telling myself that I've been good for so long that "once wouldn't hurt". I rationalized that I am down about 14 pounds in a little over 3 weeks which was WAY more than I expected to lose on any diet and therefore I was ahead of the game and a little cheat would be okay. I told myself that if I didn't indulge then I'd end up trashing the whole diet, and that by eating this pizza I was fortifying my resolve to continue onward. I went through a plethora of reasons and excuses for my cheating. I think the only rational excuse I gave myself that hit the closest truth was this one: By cheating, I'd end up sabotaging my diet and the results of the sabotage would ensure that I wouldn't do it again, therefore giving me the willpower I need to never cheat again.

I am up 2.2 this morning. Although I am quite sure that a lot of that is due to water retention - my face and fingers are swollen and puffy this morning -- 2.2 up is a mind blower. Since I've only been averaging about a pound a day in the last week and a half, 2.2 pounds has set me back 2 days. Lesson learned. I won't be doing THAT any more. I originally was only going to do a 40 day round, ending on June 30th so I could wean and be able to eat on July 4th, but I've decided to do penance for my slip up by extending my round to 45 days instead. So no 4th of July food for me! That's 20 more days. I wanted to lose 20-25 pounds on this round and I think the only way I can do that is to extend the round. So I'm back to pounding the water and eating on protocol.

I will say...that pizza was so good! =)

Treating myself to a HUGE steak for lunch!^^

100 grams (pre-cooking weight) just for me! My TOM has me really worn down so I figured the best thing for this anemic girl to do is to get some beef and spinach in her gullet. I have been staying away from beef because I usually have a gain after eating it BUT this time, I'm eating it for lunch and I hope that makes a difference. I guess time (and the scale) will tell. Too offset any extra bloat, I'm skipping salt until TOM is over so this steak isn't as delish as I wish it could be. Oh well, only 20 more days to go until Phase 3! I can do this!

Aunt Flo, One relative I can do without. =(

I don't know if it's the fact I'm on hCG or what, but AF decided to come early, and boy did that mess me up. I woke up to a 0.4 gain yesterday and then today, when it actually started, a 1.1 gain! After 3 weeks on hCG I am only down about 12 when I was so hoping to be down at least 16. Oh well, what can I do. I guess I'll have to work extra hard this week as I've heard from other women on hCG that weight is nearly impossible to move during that TOM. I can't imagine almost a week of stalling/gaining so I'll do what I have to do to get it down. We aren't allowed to take OTC diuretics so no Midol or Pamprin, but we can drink the juice of 1 lemon daily and teas. I think I'm headed out to the store today to buy some of that organic tea just for the TOM. I believe it's supposed to help with bloating, the main source of my gains.

I suppose part of my gain from yesterday is due to a crappy day of eating. Not cheating, I just ate all wrong. I took my kid to the movies and that started at noon, when I usually eat my first protocol meal, so I had to hold off until after 2. That pushed dinner to after 7. I also didn't drink all my water, just about a liter plus a couple glasses of tea. The most important step I missed? No laxative tea! For me, that's is crucial part of the hCG program. So I'll kick it up a notch this week since I have to work extra hard against nature. Here's hoping to better weigh ins this week!

Shouldn't deviate from the plan, LOL.

So, although my "formula" for eating was working, I noticed that each day the weight coming off would be a little bit less. Not by much, but just by ounces. Worried that maybe my body was rebelling against me eating for only 6 hours and fasting for 18, I decided to switch it up and eat earlier in the day and save a snack for later in the evening. Guess that idea sucked because I woke to a 0.4 lb gain. So back to my previous way of eating. Also, thanks to a new Extrapounds friend (you know who you are), I was advised to start taking B12 to boost my metabolism. I was taking it before starting the protocol but was advised by my supplier to quit all supplements. I'm going to put B12 back in my life and see if it makes a difference. I wouldn't be surprised, though. I know people on other weight loss programs where a high dose B12 shot is given to them weekly, so there must be some weight loss property to it.

I need to get some "before" shots up. I took a few when I started but wore baggy clothes so, although you an see I am chunky, you can't see the definitive chunkiness, LOL. Maybe I can look through my photo archives and find one of myself. As you can guess, I rarely allowed myself in front of the camera. I actually did recently for family photos, and it was so sobering to hear someone say "Wow, you've lost weight!" when they saw it while you are looking at the same picture thinking "Jesus, I'm so freaking fat!" What did I look like before the 10 pound loss? Yikes.

Speaking of, someone did mention my weight loss yesterday. I was talking to some Moms at my son's school yesterday when one mom stopped in mid-conversation and said "K! You've lost weight!" That made me feel good. I was wearing a pair of jeans that I actually didn't have to fight to get into for once. Today's challenge...I'm taking Bubba, my 5 year old, to the movies today. I am going to try and sneak in some sliced cukes for my crunchy snack and resist the temptation to nibble on his popcorn. Feeding Bubba and Squish, my 2 year old, has been a hard challenge to overcome because they are funny eaters and some days they'll leave a lot of food on their plates and I really want to finish their food...but I force myself to wrap it up or toss it.

I hope everyone has had a great weigh in today. Keep up the great work, friends!