HCG Diet Experiment Day 4

172.4 this morning. The scale is still going down. I royally stunk at getting all my water in today. I worked a 10 hour day and the area where I worked has water that is undrinkable. I brought a water bottle with me but in no way was it close to even 1 liter, let alone 2. Also, I ate Jennie O' turkey tonight. Yikes! I really thought turkey was considered a lean protein but my mistake, its NOT on the protocol. We will see how adversely that affects my loss in the morning. For lunch, I made a bowl of delicious Fat free cottage cheese with cinnamon and my 9 strawberries. Wow, that was goooood! I also ate a butt load of celery. I love celery but I was literally gagging on my last couple of spears. I need to improve my meals so that this isn't happening. I stumbled upon a PDF file on the internet that provides an amazing cookbook to do just that....so, here is the link: http://www.healthyhabitswellness.net/clients/204/documents/HCG_receipe_book.pdf
 I wish it wasn't 177 pages long or I would be printing it out for myself right now! Till next time!

HCG Diet Experiment Day 3

This mornings weigh in read 173.0 lbs. I was down .6lbs! So, not another 3 lbs but definitely a loss than a gain and I am happy with that. Today I felt more satisfied than yesterday. It is an absolute must that the drops be taken in the morning upon rising prior to drinking anything. I had a cup of tea 15 minutes later and a slice of Weight Watchers Points Plus Bread which has been substituted for the Melba toast by other HCG dieters. I will see if this throws the weight loss, since this was the only change I made during the day. Usually this is eaten for lunch but I need to have something in the morning. I think a peice of 40 calorie bread isn't pushing it. Oh, I know how crazy this all sounds, believe me. But again, I am part of this experiment. I criticized the ones I observed doing this a LOT prior to starting this myself. Now, I'm giving myself the opportunity to rightfully have an opinion.

So, my family had some errands to run today and we had coupons for free burgers at Ruby Tuesdays. Free is good when you are on a tight budget so we took advantage of the idea.  I love that place. The food is awesome! But before you lose all faith in me,  my husband and son were the only ones who enjoyed the freebies. I packed a lunch like a good girl and ate in the car. I know this sounds ridiculous but my determination to stick to my goal has intensified. Once I was finished, I joined them inside for a water with lemon. Granted it was challenging watching my husband eat his massive burger, dripping with ooey gooey goodness....cheese and bacon and fries....  but a voice in my head kept repeated a quote  I heard once, "You will never regret what you didn't eat." How appropriate for what I am embarking on! Later on, I told my husband that as much as looking good on the beach in a bathing suit is for me, more important is the reality of sticking to a goal that I made for myself. It is so much easier to be dependable for others. Why is it so challenging when it comes to ourselves?

Tomorrow, I am working a very long day so I want to let you all know that I PREPARED for tomorrow. My lunch is packed and ready to go. I got 1/2 cup of FAT FREE cottage cheese mixed in with 9 strawberries, melba toast and 2 cups of celery. I also used a bit of cinnamon to flavor my cottage cheese with. Hopefully this is not breaking the protocol. Cant wait to share my numbers with you tomorrow! So, until then my friends, have a pleasant day!! Keep on truckin :)

HCG Diet Experiment Day 2

Wow, wow, wow~!!! 173.6 LBS this morning at weigh in. That is 3 lbs in one day! I was delighted to see such an instant result. Prior to the weigh in though, have to say I was nervous. This diet asks you to drink at least 2 Liters of water per day and though I peed like a race horse most of the day yesterday, I thought there may be a chance of water retention. Looks like my notion was wrong. You actually retain more water when you don't drink enough! Sooooo, drink drink drink!! My meals followed the protocol for the whole day until it came to dinner. I baked tilapia and cabbage with lemon juice and pepper and some other salt free seasonings. However, when I put it in my mouth I gagged. It tasted like soil. God only knows why, but after a long day, the last thing I wanted to eat was something resembling the taste of dirt. 

Long story short it got tossed. So, then I was stuck wondering what to eat. I was very hungry and my patience was wearing. I had just cooked corn beef and veggies and Velveeta shells and cheese for my husband and son  (Nice temptations I put before myself, huh?) I chose to eat 3.5 oz of the leanest of the corn beef I could get and then I made 2 cups of steamed spinach. Corn beef has got to be one of the fattiest meats so I am a bit concerned about that throwing my weight loss results off for the morning but hey, after cooking yourself a meal and then a separate meal for your family, the last thing I wanted to do was spend an additional hour preparing something else.

Something I did today was put on a pair of very tight size 12 shorts, they left a mark around my stomach that hurt after awhile and I am anxious to see these fit me or rather, not fit me because they are too big, by the end of this program. One encouraging note is that my husband decided to go to the gym today out of the blue. He hasn't gone in quite a long time. He didn't say it, but could I possibly have been a motivating source behind his decision to go? They say attitudes are contagious. Is yours worth catching? I needed some encouragement myself, so I decided to explore the net for others participating on this program. 

On YouTube I found a very helpful video diary from a woman named Kalli. I listened to each day of her HCG diet experience and after all was said and done, she lost 26lbs and has maintained it for the last 11 months. I was inspired by her story, her honesty and even her admittance to mistakes she made along the way. We are human, we have inherited imperfection within us...inevitably, we will fail at times but we also have the ability to get up and move forward. I am pressing on too regardless of the obvious mistakes I have made so early in the program. But I am celebrating the success I have had so far!

 One great piece of advice she gave was to PREPARE. When we are hungry, we do not want to wait. We all love instant gratification and on this program, you need it. So, this is one thing I will be improving on.

 Thanks for taking the time to hear my experience and for cheering me on. If you are starting this program or are thinking of it, good for you! I wish you only the best! Comments appreciated!!!

 

HCG Diet Experiment: HCG Diet Experiment Day 1

HCG Diet Experiment: HCG Diet Experiment Day 1: " I have struggled with weight all my life... isn't that how all these blogs begin? I'm not going to attempt variations. It is what it is. ..."

HCG Diet Experiment Day 1

 I have struggled with weight all my life... isn't that how all these blogs begin? I'm not going to attempt variations. It is what it is. I was always called the fat kid while growing up. Signs on my back were quite visible when exiting my school bus, children would draw pictures of me and pass them around the classroom. Typically, a fat pig with the title of "butterball" as a heading. I recall that in 8th grade a boy told me, "You're too fat for me" after I had finally gained the courage to ask him out. Sweatpants or elastic jeans were a regular part of my wardrobe. Thank god they were at least in style at the time!

  I enjoyed swiss cake rolls, twinkies, and chocolate milk like any other kid but I don't recall gorging myself in sweets. I was very active, believe it or not. I loved to ride my bike, do gymnastics, dance with my friends, go exploring in the 38 acre woods we had around us. But for some reason, I just couldn't seem to lose the pudge and believe me, no one, including myself, would let me forget. In high school, my prom date,  told me I looked pregnant right before our pictures were about to be taken. And the drama continued.....

Much has changed since High school. I no longer spend time with those merely interested in outside appearances and my confidence has boosted simply from not being reminded 24/7 of how large I seem to  appear to others...whether legitimately or not. But I do stand naked before myself every day like all other humans on this planet. I see the imperfections and the robust form I have. I am a woman of substance.

 I got married when I was 24 and at that time I genuinely felt comfortable in my skin. I had been working out each day, eating well balanced meals and then God gave me an amazing inheritance. A beautiful baby boy. He is now 3 1/2  and like most moms, I haven't devoted the time and attention I need to shape my shapely figure. But my day has come and I think I have chosen a very good day to start. Today, I am 29 years old. I am on the cusp of a new decade in life and I want to see visible changes. I want to fit in the clothing that I worked so hard to fit in just 5 years ago. 

 So, how I chose to achieve this has not been optimistically accepted by the majority. It is the HCG diet.  Look it up if you want to know more. This blog is not intended to explain every little detail about the diet. I only assume you know a little something about it already if you found this blog, so congratulations!! There is a LOT of criticism out there about it being a quick fix, not something maintainable ect.But let me just say, Its not meant to be maintainable. Why am I okay with that? Haven't you just complained about how fat you have been all your life, you may say.... (actually I think you did just say that...I heard you!) It is to provide the dieter....ahem, ME.... with incentive. If I lose 30 to 40 lbs, will I be in a hurry to put them back on? Some may do such things unwittingly. However, I am done being that girl in the commercial who is so bloated she has to lay on the bed to pull her zipper up. I have tried many things out there and really, nothing is maintainable unless you CHOOSE to maintain or stick to whatever regimen you have decided to do. 

Sooooo, this is an experiment. And I am willing to give it 110%. I purchased oral drops at my local CVS on sale for $19.99 for a 1 fl oz bottle. As instructed you are to take the drops 3 times a day and I'm following a very strict low calorie diet. I am skeptical, a bit nervous and scared. But others have conducted this experiment before me and I have seen some of these individuals first hands be extremely successful on this program and their results have left me good naturedly envious.

 As far as DAY 1, I have had some hunger pangs today but for the most part, I have felt satisfied and I have to give the drops credit for that. I plan on sticking to this for the next 3 weeks as encouraged by the program. So, August 13th will be my last day and then it is encouraged to gradually increase your calories. I will update this blog and keep all the curious minds informed of my progress.

As of today, I am 176.6lbs and excited to see where I stand 3 weeks from now. If anything, this will definitely provide an opportunity for me to work on self control...and couldn't we all improve in that area?