Saturday, June 28

Phase 3, Day 20: Just 2 days away from Phase 4, which I will do for 5 weeks! Seems like forever since it's been "OK" for me to eat without some sort of restriction. That's not to say that I can just run out and eat starches and sweets at every meal - the lesson learned before was to Proceed with Caution!

Today is the first day that I've awakened with what I would call "Energy to Burn" in, literally, YEARS. I can't remember the last time I hopped out of bed and got up and ran errands on a Saturday morning, and looked forward to everything I wanted to do that day. And this is on just a few hours' sleep! I do believe that this is a byproduct of the weight loss - I think that long after the scale has hit the "right" number, we'll still continue to reap benefits and rewards in many, many other ways.

Also, I promise that I'll take my measurements this weekend and post them - my proportions have changed a lot. Today, I noticed that I actually have a waistline! There's a visit to the endocrinologist scheduled in a couple of weeks, so I'm anxious to see what he has to say about my thyroid and cholesterol levels, and the previously elevated liver enzymes.

Another new aspect of the day is that I actually exercised! For 30 full minutes, I did a vigorous exercise on the rebounder using my arms as well as my legs - doing it non-stop would have been really difficult before, and today was a piece of cake! I think it may be time to begin going out in the mornings and walking again. Walking, and racewalking in particular, has always been my exercise of choice. They're putting in a sidewalk on the main road down by my house, so I think that's a signal for me to get my tush outside! :)

Thanks for the compliments on the facial pics - I personally am amazed at the difference. I don't have any front and side photos from that time frame, but I do have those photos from when I first started the HCG Challenge. I'll post those and some current ones for comparison purposes, as well, and will try to do that in the next day or two. In the meantime, I hope you all have a great weekend!

What a difference 50 lbs makes!

As promised, here are some comparison photos.

The first one was taken December 23, 2007. This is one week before I started on my very first round of the HCG injections through my doctor, and before the HCG Challenge began in April.


The second one was taken 50 lbs later, today. I still have about 60 more lbs to lose.

Monday, June 23

Phase 3, Day 15: Hi everybody! Nothing exciting to report here, except that I'm still up over LIW. :( The good news, though, is that my body is really changing again. My size 18 pants are getting baggier each time I wear them, and I know my measurements have changed. Someone commented that my shoulders looked tiny, and that I must have a really small frame (which I do, underneath it all).

I promise to take measurements and new front/side view photos this week so that you can see the difference. In fact, I'd kind of like to see them, too, because the image that I see in the mirror is the same big gal I've been used to seeing for years.

The other day, though, I did catch a glimpse of the thinner me when I was walking up the sidewalk into the office. I unexpectedly saw my reflection in a window and thought, "Wow - I look GOOD!" Maybe it's because I wasn't expecting to see myself there because I'm usually either talking to people or so preoccupied with finding my building keys, etc. Funny how the mind plays tricks on us!

So - one more week of Phase 3, and then 5 weeks of Phase 4 - by that time, I'll be ready to start back on the injections again. In the meantime, I'll post periodically to let you know how things are going. And as always, thanks for reading - your comments keep me motivated!

Monday, June 16

Phase 3, Day 8: Wow, it feels good to be back home (except for the fact that my air conditioner isn't working)!

As I feared, I had gained during those first days of Phase 3 - it's amazing to me how quickly the weight will go on! The good news, though, is that I did a steak day yesterday, and lost 4 lbs. I've still got a few lbs to go before getting back to LIW, and a couple of days of dilligent effort should take care of those. The really good news is that I'm not feeling the extreme, nauseating hunger anymore!

Thanks to everyone for reading, and for the encouraging comments and positive reinforcement! I'll continue to blog periodically through these "in between" phases, and look forward to sharing the rest of this journey to my final goal with all of you. Hope you all have a great week!

Thursday, June 12

Phase 3, Day 4: Today begins the 4th day on the protein phase, and the hunger that I have been feeling is almost unbearable. Since I'm visiting my mother, and since many of our meals have been at her assisted living facility, I know I'm not getting enough food. I have stopped by Wendy's on the way back to the hotel the last couple of nights to get a salad with chicken to quell the hunger pangs, and so it has at least allowed me to sleep without the horrible pain in my gut. Have also kept some apples and milk in the little fridge in the room in order to have something to turn to in an emergency.

Am kicking myself for running off and leaving my scales at home, and I'm curious as to what my weight is - I've heard of people gaining because they didn't get enough fat, and that scares me! In the meantime, I'm doing my best to make the best decisions I can with each bite, and I feel good about the choices that I've made thus far.

Saturday night when I get home, I'm going to have a great big steak!

Tuesday, June 10

Phase 3 Day 2: Just checking in for a few minutes while I have some time to gather my thoughts.

Made it to my Mom's, and was gratified to see how thrilled she was about my weight loss. She was reluctant to say too much until I actually mentioned it, but then has been effusive in her praise. I told her about the HCG injections, and she understood my desire to try something "off the beaten path", and was thrilled that it has worked so well.

On the other hand, I saw my brother last night, and he never said a word about noticing that I've lost any weight at all. Since he has been such a critic in the past, I guess I had things built up in my head that he would be as vocal about the loss as he has been about the fat - and I was wrong.

The lesson to be learned here is that I need to make sure that I'm getting my satisfaction from an internal source, and not from compliments from other people.

I ran off and left my scale sitting at home, so am having to "wing it". Have been trying to make good decisions as far as what to eat - we had Thai food last night for supper, and I had a salad from Panera yesterday for lunch. No snacking, but did go to the grocery store for some apples, and also for a couple of small containers of milk so that I would have something for breakfast. The hotel provides a "continental breakfast" (translated: starches and cereals!), so at least I'll have something on hand to tide me over until lunch. The thing I'm worried most about: am I eating enough to keep from gaining?

Moodwise, I've felt really, really irritable, but have managed to keep my feelings to myself, for the most part. Is it because the HCG is out of my system? Could it be the travel? Is it not being able to eat on my own routine? Is it feeling out of control? Is it because of family? Is it fear? Perhaps it's a little of everything rolled into one. I need to be aware of this feeling, get it reigned in, and figure out how to fix it. It's not going to do me any good to look good if I'm a witch to be around!

All in all, I would say that things are going "OK" - not great, but not bad either. Will be heading back home on Saturday, and will be able to resume normal schedule on Sunday. Will be able to step on the scale then to see how things are going, as well. In the meantime, will check in again when I can. Thanks for reading!

VLCD #26: -0.8

Injection Day #25, and Last Injection Day! Hurrah! Today is my last injection for 8 weeks, and I'm really ready for a break. Today's Last Injection Weight was a nice even 207 lbs, which brings my net loss on the HCG Challenge to 29.2 lbs, and my total net loss since beginning the HCG protocol early in the year to 51.8 lbs.

I'll be leaving on vacation this weekend, and will have limited internet access for posting in the blog, but will check in as I'm able. The job for next week (after completing the 72 hours of VLCD) is to stay the course with the protein and good fats, and to stay far far away from sugars and starchy foods. I've done it before, so I can do it again!

Hope you all have a great weekend, and I'll see you in a few days.

VLCD #25: -1.2

Injection Day #24: It always makes me feel particularly good to lose more than 0.4 lbs at a time, so was thrilled with a 1.2 lb loss this morning. That takes my weight to 207.8 this morning, which is now a net total of 51 lbs lost while on HCG. On the HCG Challenge, I've lost a net total of 28.4 lbs.

Tomorrow will be my last injection day out of this batch, which will be cutting it really close with the VLCDs on vacation. I'll be traveling in the car all day on Sunday, so shouldn't have any problem staying with it, and then can begin Phase 3 on Monday morning.

Funny - the extreme hunger that I was feeling last week is no longer around, so I suspect that it really was a hormonal thing. Still not getting a lot of sleep, but am becoming used to it. I'm ready for an omelet!

VLCD #24: -0.4

Injection Day #23: The scale is creeping downward ever so slowly, so I can see that the 100's aren't going to be easy to attain! But at least it's moving in the right direction! This is going to be an exercise in stick-to-it-iveness!

I think I said everything I had to say yesterday, so will just suffice it to say that I'm ready to end this round and get Phase 3 started. Today's weight was 209 lbs. Net total weight lost so far during the HCG Challenge is 27.2 lbs. Net total lost while on HCG is 49.8 lbs.

VLCD #23: .-0.4

No injection today: Well, the scale has started to budge a little bit, so I won't complain! Today's weight was 209.4 lbs, which makes my total net loss so far during the HCG Challenge 26.8 lbs. Total net loss so far while on HCG protocol since January is 49.4 lbs.

Onward and downward! :)

Lessons Learned (Part I)

I'm inspired by Meredith's post, where she shares some of the things that she's learned so far in the challenge. It made me start thinking about what I've done right, what I've done wrong, and how I want to proceed going forward.

In a very few days, I'll be ending my second 23-day round while on the HCG Challenge. This used the contents of a 10,000 IU vial of HCG that I had ordered before being chosen for the Challenge. I feel that, while this certainly hasn't been a waste of time and HCG, I've done some experimenting that has made me gain and lose the same weight a few times. My net loss for the Challenge is 26.4 lbs which is certainly nothing to complain about, but if I hadn't gained/stalled, I most likely would have lost closer to 40 lbs. On my first 46-day round of HCG, before the Challenge, and done under the supervision of a medical professional, I lost 32 lbs.

Here's what I think happened: For my first round, I followed the protocol exactly to the letter. I did everything exactly according to Kevin Trudeau's outline, and did not deviate. Phase 3 came along, and I continued to do well and stayed within my LIW with no problems for the 3 weeks. Then came Phase 4 - this is where things began to go downhill. I took it literally when they said that I could eat anything I wanted - I didn't hear the "within reason" part, and went right back to my old habits. In Phase 4, I didn't wait to reintroduce those starches and sugars that had been forbidden before. I'll admit - I went to IHOP and to Sonic the first weekend after I got back into Phase 4, and that's when things started to get rocky. I was on Phase 4 for about 2 months, and ended up gaining about 9 pounds. I think part of it was knowing that I would be starting another Phase 2 soon, so didn't worry about it (not a good way to approach things!)

So then, I became aware of a whole new world out here with people who have other experience with HCG, but they always stayed within Dr. S's guidelines. I think I fooled myself into thinking that I could play around with the rules, and this is where things really began to get messed up. For me, it was a HUGE mistake doing the "Short Round". It appears that only one week on Phase 3 was not enough time to reset the hypothalmus. I used the 2 Loading Days for the next short round as an excuse to eat a lot of stuff that should have waited until late into Phase 4. So I gained almost 7 lbs as I went into the next injection phase, and it took a week to get that off. After that, it seemed like it was one slip-up after another: a binge from a potluck, a business trip, a holiday weekend, etc. So now, here I am stalled again, and just feel like I'm never going to lose any more weight.

After consulting with the original doctor who got me started on this protocol, I've decided that when I finish this series of injections this week, I will be taking the full 3 weeks of Phase 3, and then at least a full 5 weeks of Phase 4. She suggested that with the crazy timing, that I could be setting myself up for early immunity if I only do 6 weeks total. She actually recommended going a total of 12 weeks without injections - we'll have to see about that. Hopefully, this will help me to "reboot" and get back into the right mindset. During this time, I'll have another appointment with my Endocrinologist, who is going to be floored at my progress - I've lost over 25 lbs since he's seen me last!

The next round will be the full 46 days of injections, and I'm hoping that will take me to within 15 or 20 lbs of my goal weight. Then another 23 round should get me to where I want to be. And you know what? I never, in all my dreams, ever thought that I would get this weight off so quickly.

For those of you who are reading and deciding whether to do this: This protocol is not for the faint of heart. Even those of us who start out with the best of intentions, but who have a long way to go can slip up. This is definitely not an easy way out, and the penalties for messing up are great. The rewards for hanging in there, though....ah, those rewards! This is so definitely worth the time, money and effort!

As you've probably figured out by now, I'm going to be doing this for a while, and will continue to blog regularly along the way even while on Phases 3 and 4. I'm looking forward to the 8-week respite from the VLCD, and then bouncing back with renewed determination and enthusiasm into the next round of injections sometime in August.

So there we have it - my conscience is clear, I have been totally truthful with you all about how things have gone, and I'm looking forward to a fresh start very soon. In the meantime, I just need to get through this last week, and then get ready to go on vacation!

VLCD #22: +/- 0

No injection today: Nothing new to report, so today is going to be a quickie. Weight is on a plateau, which hopefully will end when injections resume in a couple of days.

Stats today remain the same: Today's weight of 209.8, makes a net total of 26.4 lbs lost during the HCG Challenge, with a grand total of 49 lbs lost on the HCG protocol in total.

VLCD #21: +/- 0

No Injection today: Finally! Once this cycle is done, I'll take 3 more injections, and hopefully the weight will go down a few more pounds. After that, then I'll do the 72 hours of VLCD without injections while the HCG gets out of the system, and then will begin Phase 3.

That's about it - have a great day!