Crystal's HCG Fat Melt!

Starting again, and a site change :)

2009-07-28T16:05:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone.

My last round fizzled out because I wasn't following protocol, so I ended it, didn't want to waste HCG when I wasn't doing things right. :(

I have time to do one last round before we leave for our vacation in Sept so I'm going to get everything ready and get going on it. And its going to be a perfect round, no deviations, I want a repeat of my 1st round where I lost 20lbs!!

The way I did it the first time was to pre cook chicken and fish in the proper portion sizes and just a few out at a time to thaw and then heat them to eat each day. That way I always knew what I could have and didn't have to fuss with prep as much. I also portioned out my veggies (broccolli, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber) and put it into ziplock bags so I just had to pull those out and eat as well, except for the broccolli which I steamed first.

Then the fruit was easy, no need to pre portion for those at all.
I think thats why I did so well my first round, I made it so easy to just grab what I needed each day and I didn't have an excuse since it was all ready for me.

So thats the plan. I'm going to head to the grocery store tomorrow to pick up the fruits and veggies I need, and some fish. I already have the chicken I need.

I can do this! I can lose some more before our trip. I'd like to lose between 15-20 lbs before we leave. That give me a little over a month to do it! Here we go!

***Oh, and I'm moving my HCG blog over to wordpress since I find that a bit easier/nicer to use, here is the link for that: http://crystalshcgjourney.wordpress.com/ its empty right now, but I will start posting to it tomorrow (wednesday).***

2009-06-22T10:52:00.001-07:00

Monday 22nd,

I ended up having a couple cookies on the weekend while we were away, I guess thats what did it?
Either that or I wasn't drinking enough water....

I'll be loading up on water today to try to flush out that fat, lol.

2009-06-21T21:21:00.000-07:00

Wasn't able to record today or yesterdays weight because I was too busy getting ready to leave for our assembly this weekend (we drive 45 mins there each morning).

So I'm hoping that the scale is agreable with me in the morning :)

I'm planning to take Jacob to the park tomorrow for some play time and bubble blowing. It's funny how a 2.5yr old could play in the park forever and never get tired of it, lol. If the weather doesn't cooperate then we'll just play on the trampoline in the back yard or something :)

VLCD 3

2009-06-19T08:59:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone :)

I'm down to 175 today, love losing weight :) Great feeling!

Hoping to get down to the 160's soon, that will be an awesome feeling, been a while since I've been there!

Round 3 - VLCD 1

2009-06-17T10:20:00.001-07:00

VLCD 1 - 178lbs

Up 1.5lbs from my "load" days, even though I didn't really load, lol.
I did have some icecream and popcorn but nothing over the top, lol, just small amounts.
Oh well, today is that day that the VLCD starts so I should lose that 1.5lbs quickly I hope!

Update

2009-06-16T22:21:00.000-07:00

Well I missed posting about my last two injection days.

Things got busy, and the blog is always the first thing I fall behind in. Sorry guys/gals.

Here is the last 2 days that I missed:

05.29.09.....30.......174.0........+1.7..........-7.4........... Hmmm, well I've my TOM, could that be it

05.30.09.....31.......174.3........+0.3..........-7.1........... Up a little. Last dosage day also

----------------------------------------------------

I am now starting round 3. I did a mini break of about 2 weeks. Started 1st injection of round three yesterday (June 15th). And had my 2nd injection today for round 3.

I'm starting this round at 176.5. So up about 2lbs from last injection weight from round two. So not too bad. Better than my last P3 break.

My round two was more of a "rescue round" than anything. I had gained back about 9 or so lbs during my 1st P3 after round one, and so with my round two, I just lost the lbs that I had gained back.

So I'm at a pretty level playing field right now with what my LIW has been for the last two rounds.

This round will be all gold for me :) I'd love to lose another 15lbs or so this round, that would be wonderful! That would put me close to 160lbs. Then I'd only be 15 more lbs away from my goal weight of 145!!!!! It's pretty awesome to be thinking that after 2 more rounds I could be at my goal weight as long as I follow the rules and don't mess things up.

I will NOT be experimenting this time, thats how I ended up gaining back during my last P3 round, and probably why my round 2 was not as productive as my 1st. So this 3rd round needs to be Perfect with a capital P.

I really want to hit goal weight before our family vacation in September. We have decided to take our first trip to Florida and go on a 3-night Disney Cruise, and then 4 nights at Walt Disney World. How great would it be to be able to sport a bikini on the beach and feel good about it!!!

So just for fun, here is my motivation photo for today :)

VLCD 29

2009-05-28T09:45:00.000-07:00

Sorry about the lack of posts recently, I've had a bit of stress lately and just didn't have the energy to post everywhere, but here I am again.
Here is a little "catch up" and then todays comments:

Date----VLCD---Weight--Change--Total-----Comment

05.14.09.....15.......174.1........-2.4..........-7.5........... WOW! What a good way to start off a new week!
05.15.09.....16.......175.3........+1.2..........-6.3........... I just don't know!
05.16.09.....17.......176.5........+1.2..........-5.1........... Totally just erased my 2.4lbs loss from2 days ago
05.17.09.....18.......176.0........-0.5..........-5.6........... Coming down a little. Also missed HCG yesterday, had too much going on
05.xx.09.....19.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0........... Laptop crashed couldn't get on
05.xx.09.....20.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0........... Laptop crashed couldn't get on
05.20.09.....21.......176.0........-0.0..........-5.6........... Still no change since the 17th, but it may have gone up/down in between

Week 3 total loss: Only 0.4lbs lost this week.

05.21.09.....22.......175.5........-0.5..........-6.1........... Comming down
05.xx.09.....23.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0...........
05.xx.09.....24.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0...........
05.xx.09.....25.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0...........
05.xx.09.....26.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0...........
05.26.09.....27.......174.5........-1.0..........-7.1........... Missed a few days, but I'm back. Still only down 1lb from the last entry. I'm having a lot of trouble this time, I think it has a lot to do with stress that I'm having lately with things going on in everyday life. I'm working on it though.
05.27.09.....28.......173.8........-0.7..........-7.8........... Down down down it comes! I think I might make this a continuous round...

Week 4 total loss: 2.2lbs lost!

05.28.09.....29.......172.3........-1.5..........-9.3........... Well what do ya know! I still had some loss left in me!

Lost 1.5lbs this morning!!!I'm so happy right now!!!!!I'm almost done my HCG, maybe a couple days left it looks like. Then I'll be taking a short break (maybe 2 weeks or so) and then start back up

VLCD 15 - Whoosh!

2009-05-14T10:27:00.001-07:00

Wow! Talk about a whoosh! My body must have been holding tight to those couple of lbs! But I knocked them loose!

Happy to say I am now BELOW my LIW, too bad I didn't maintain between rounds, but oh well, thats behind me now.

LIW was 174.4, and I'm 0.3 less than that today!

I hope this week is filled with big losses! I need to catch up, wasted those 1st 2 weeks getting back to LIW!

VLCD 12

2009-05-11T10:02:00.000-07:00

Another small loss today, but so much better than a gain or no loss at all!
I think I may have missed my HCG yesterday morning though... we were busy getting ready for our Sunday service that I forgot, or at least I'm pretty sure I did, I don't remember taking it

Hopefully that doesn't screw things up too much!
But we're back on track today!

VLCD 11

2009-05-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

Still losing, may be a small amount (0.5lbs) but its still a loss and I will certainly take it!

I helped DH stain our fence yesterday :) Wasn't to active otherwise, lol, but all in all it was a good day :)

I'm hoping maybe I can convince my DH to go on a DisneyWorld/Cruise trip in September.....I'd love to have that as motivation for losing this weight and then that can be a big reward for me. I'd love to be at my goal weight by then!

VLCD 10

2009-05-09T07:54:00.000-07:00

Down another 0.7lbs, putting my total loss so far at 5.3lbs in 10 days :)
I had a meal replacement for my lunch yesterday, and even had a pickle, and it seems to have been ok for me, but I'll keep the pickle count low because of the sodium.

Oh my, and I goofed up BIG time last night and I didn't even realize it! DH grabbed a beer and my son brought me one too and I didn't even think about it and started drinking it! I only got in a few sips before I realized what I was doing and then I handed it over to DH to finish.
Can't believe I did that, good thing I caught myself before I drank any more of it though!

A minor setback

2009-05-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday was a small gain :( Not sure why, but I gained 1.2lbs.

BUT...

Today I lost .5 of that gain, so I'm working it off, maybe some treadmill time to speed it up?
I'd go outside for a walk, but its pretty windy and miserable out there right now!

Anyways, I'm still trucking along, at least the weight is going down again!

Back to losing!

2009-05-05T09:01:00.000-07:00

TOM has gone and took 0.7lbs with it too!
I think it must have been TOM that was causing the slow loss/stall. Hopefully now that its gone I can have a couple of bigger losses since I didn't get them at the beginning like usual.

Still no gains, so I'm loving that!

I think I need to pull out the treadmill today too, I think today should be a light exercise day :)

Another day :)

2009-05-04T08:36:00.000-07:00

Was 177.8 two days ao
was 177.7 yesterday
and I'm 177.7 today

VLCD 5

Well TOM is just ending, could that be causing the stall?
Otherwise I have no idea what it would be.
Yesterday I had coffee with splenda and the allowed amount of milk in it, 100g shrimp, 1cup of broccoli, an apple, 100g lean ground beef with an 1/8 cup of tomato sauce mixed in, a small cucumber with fat free dressing to dip in (small amount) and a couple of melbas

May 2nd

2009-05-02T08:32:00.000-07:00

VLCD 3
Another loss today, not a full pound, but still good
I'm quite happy about not feeling hungry, I need to pop buy the P2 recipe section though and spruce up my meal choices, lol. Its been pretty plain so far, my best meal has been lettuce, cucumber, tomatoe and lean ground beef with tex mex spice. Almost like a taco salad

Day 2

2009-05-01T08:49:00.001-07:00

VLCD 2

Down another 1.3lbs this morning
Losing weight makes me happy, lol.
Wouldn't it be awesome to not gain once for the whole round? I know that's asking a lot, but it sure would be great!

Had lean ground beef and then shrimp yesterday (along with my veggies, coffee, water and an apple, oh and melba toast)

Didn't feel hungry yesterday either, so things are going good.
I think I'll take my 2yr old for a nice walk today, either that or use the treadmill for a while.

Thursday April 30th

2009-04-30T07:48:00.000-07:00

VLCD 1

Had a loss of 1.4 this morning! Wow!
Didn't expect to lose so fast after load days thats for sure!

AF also showed up yesterday, that happened on my 1st round too, lol, I have really bad timing I guess. But it didn't seem to affect anything last time, so it should be ok this time too I would think.

Round 2 - Day 2

2009-04-29T08:28:00.000-07:00

Yesterday went well, I didn't really load too much though.
I felt like I over did it a bit last time, so I don't want to go too crazy this time.

Today is my last day of "regular" foods, and tomorrow I'll be switching to the VLC diet.
I'm looking forward to seeing some of those pesky lbs drop!
Abrnormal fat: BE GONE!

Update to the post below

2009-04-28T19:45:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to come on here and update from the post below.

Today is still my day 1 (1st load day and 1st injection) of round two.
But I weighed myself this evening (the whole family was doing it for fun, so I did too, and it said 179.7!

I don't think its the HCG though, since that shouldn't kick in for 48-72 hours after the first shot.
But I did put my 2yr old in the bick trailer and go for a bike ride across town today, probably about 15 mins each way, and it was windy so I was peddling hard too. May be that was it?

Anyways, just needed to post it since I've been trying hard to gid rid of the lbs I gained back from round one, but wasn't able to do it until today, still not at LIW, but getting closer!

Round 2 starts today!

2009-04-28T09:10:00.000-07:00

I am starting round two today!

Sad to report that I ended up gaining back 7.2 of the 21.1lbs that I lost during round 1 :(
I'm going to attribute it to the fact that I'd been a bit stressed lately with trying to sell our home...

But today is a new round, and a step closer to a new me!
I am also planning to use my treadmill for 30 mins, at least 3 times a week. And/or I will go for a bike ride while pulling my 2yr old in the bike trailer.

So stay tuned for more updates and hopefully a perfect round of losses!

Getting ready to start a new round!

2009-04-21T23:40:00.000-07:00

Time is approaching to start Round Two!

Hoping for another 20lbs!
I'll be doing an egg day tomorrow just to get off the couple of lbs I gained back from my Last injection weigth from round 1. (I've had a few indulgences this last week, lol).
So after my egg day I'll mix up my HCG and get things ready to go and start posting regularly for round 2 :)

I'm Back!

2009-04-01T14:34:00.000-07:00

My poor laptop bit the dust last week :(
I've had it less than 5 months, and thankfully still had warrenty on it, so I sent it back to Dell's repair center and they fixed it up. Just got it back today!!
No more borrowing DH's computer, lol, yay!

So I'm maintaining not to badly right now. My last injection weight was 174.5 and right niw I'm 175.6 today. Doing an egg day today to keep things under control (I had gotten to 180 the other day but I think it may have just been because "Aunt Flow" came to town).

I'm at day 21 of Phase 3 and so I can now do another Phase 2 round (the injection phase) when I'm ready. But I'm going to wait for AF to leave and then get started. I'm hoping for another 20lb loss this time. I'm ready to see some big changes!

Oh and I took some before and after photos of my last injection round that I thought I'd share with you all here. I'm a little embarrased showing them, but I know that it helped me to see photos of others when I was getting started, so hopefully mine can help you too.

There is a 20lb difference between the before and after photos, but to mee its hard to see the difference. But I know there IS a difference. Another 20lbs should make it more visible noticeable from my before pics :)

Here ya go:

P3 Day 8 Check in

2009-03-21T09:41:00.000-07:00

So I've been bad at keeping up with this blog lately!
So here I am, on day 8 of P3 checking in with you all.
Yesterday I was more than 2lbs over my last injection weight, so I did an egg day and it worked! It brought me back down to where I need to be. Now I just need to maintain where I'm at for a few weeks more before going back to P2 again.

Saturday March 21 Checkin
P3 DAY: 8LIW : 174.4
Date of LIW: Mar 11th
Today' weight: 174.8
Lbs above/below LIW: +0.4
Lbs gain/loss from yesterday: -2.8!!!!!!

The egg day worked!!! I'm so relieved, I don't want to have to do that again. I'm going to really watch the ingredient lists on the foods I eat now so that no starch/sugars are sneeking in!

So yesterday I had my 2 cups of coffee, then it was eggs eggs eggs, lol (snuck in a little turkey bacon and an apple with PB, because I was going to get sick if I had another egg, lol)
All in all, I had about 9 eggs I think throught the day.

Ok, now lets maintain!

Thanks for reading :)

I've started Phase 3!!

2009-03-15T09:23:00.000-07:00

I've stopped my injections for this round, and went through my 72hrs of staying on the 500cal diet without the HCG (since the hcg stays in your system for that long after your last shot).

Now I'm on Phase 3, which is basically no starches or sugars, up your calories to a level that you can maintain your weight. For me its about 2000 cals.

I'll be posting dialy about my weight and any loss or gain from me LIW (last injection weight) and what I've eaten the day before in order to look at it and see what may have caused a gain/loss.
The point of this phase is NOT to keep lossing, but to maintain my new weight (174.4) in order for my hypothalamus to reset at this new weight.

So here is todays report:

P3 DAY: 2
LIW : 174.4
Date of LIW: Mar 11th
Today' weight: 175.1
# above/below LIW: +0.7
# gain/loss from yesterday: -0.5

Yesterdays Menu

B - 2 cups of Coffee with splenda (DH put a bit of 2% milk in one cup)
- 1 1/4 cup corn flakes with 1/2 cup milk (this was before I learned that cornflakes are a no no)
S - A chunk of cheddar cheese, small cucumber with italian dressing
L - Cauliflower pizza crust (recipe from here), pepperoni slices, mushrooms, tomato sauce and mozzerella
S - Hot Smoothie from Tim Hortons (maybe shouldn't have had this I think there was sugar in it)
D- Apple

Calories - 1424 (calculated that I need 2000cals if I did it right)
Fat - 45%
Protein - 20%
Carbs - 35%

I think the percents are supposed to be 60, 25, 15 ideally.
Obviously I'm a little off and need to work on that.

2009-03-14T17:29:00.000-07:00

2009-03-09T12:33:00.000-07:00

Date------- Day ---- Weight ---- +/- ----- Difference ------- Comment
03.08.09.....31.......???.?........???...........? ??........... Didn't get a proper weigh (in pj's) this morning, but I was 175.9 naked before my shower, lol. But I won't count it because I normally weigh in my PJ's. Tomorrow will tell more.
03.09.09.....32.......175.2.......-1.8.........-20.3......... YAY!!!! I've gotten to 175 and the 20lbs lost mark all in the first round!!

Little update

2009-03-07T09:39:00.000-08:00

Date------- Day ---- Weight ---- +/- ----- Difference ------- Comment
03.04.09.....27.......178.0........-0.0..........-17.5........... Stayed the same today, TOM came last night
03.05.09.....28.......177.6........-0.4..........-17.9........... Little bit here, little bit there.

Week 4 total loss: -2.4 lost + 0.6 gained = -1.8lbs (slow week)

03.06.09.....29.......177.4........-0.2..........-18.1........... ok...
03.07.09.....30.......177........-0.4..........-18.5........... Yay! Getting closer to 175, and almost done shots!

March 3rd Day 26

2009-03-03T11:16:00.000-08:00

Date---------- Day ---- Weight ------ +/- -------- difference -------- Comment
03.03.09.....26.......178.0........-0.6..........-17.5........... Getting closer and closer to pre-baby weight everyday!

Still losing! As long as its in the green we're good!

A little update

2009-03-02T13:06:00.000-08:00

I forgot to post the past few days, so here is an update from my journal.

Date---------- Day ---- Weight ------ +/- -------- difference -------- Comment
02.27.09.....22.......180........+0.6..........-15.5........... What the heck happened?? Ok, lets turn this around, aiming for a 1+ lb loss tomorrow. Guess yesterdays loss was just too much, lol.
02.28.09.....23.......179.6........-0.4..........-15.9........... Ok, back into the 170's, and I better stay here! (or lower, lol)
03.01.09.....24.......178.9........-0.7..........-16.6........... Thats better Keep it comming!
03.02.09.....25.......178.6........-0.3..........-16.9........... Ok, at least we're going in the right direction

VLC day 21 (23 injections)

2009-02-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

Date---------- Day ---- Weight ------ +/- -------- difference -------- Comment
02.26.09.....21.......179.4........-2.2..........-16.1........... WOW! I love this diet, lol. Made my mini goal of being in the 170's!!

I DID IT!
I made my mini goal of being in the 170's! I'm really excited about this! Its been quite some time since I've been here, since before I was pregnant with my 2yr old....

I had a good day yesterday, didn't even have my last fruit, and when I felt hungry during the afternoon, I just had a small bowl of salad and it curbed my hunger.

Hey guess what!?! It snowed all day yesterday and now it looks like the middle of winter again outside, lol. Too bad I can't have hot chocolate right now, its the perfect setting for sipping cocoa in front of the window looking at the snow, lol.

I have plans to get on the treadmill for some light exercise during my sons nap today, that and some housework

I hope everyone else is having a wonderful day!

Wednesday the 25th

2009-02-25T11:04:00.000-08:00

Date ___ Day __Weight __ +/- __ Round Total __ Comments/Information
02.25.09.....20.......181.6........-0.4..........-13.9........... Now that's better. Common 170's

Ok, back on track.
I reallllly want to get into the 170's this round and make my 15lbs mini goal!

2009-02-24T11:20:00.000-08:00

02.23.09.....18.......181.5........-1.4..........-14.0............ Lets keep it up!
02.24.09.....19.......182........+0.5..........-13.5........... Well either the scale was wrong yesterday, or it could be that I caved and had a bagel with cream cheese last night

VLCD 19

I have a confession to make about yesterday....
Last night I was feeling really hungry, and there were "everything" bagels and vegetable flavored cream cheese calling my name

I know, I know! Why can't I just be GOOD for 1 round of protocol? It shouldn't be that hard, its a month! Seriously!

Obviously I'm starting to see how much control food has had over me. I mean, I could have chose to just have a salad, but instead I went with a calorie filled bagel and cream cheese!
What is wrong with me?!?

It's really hard having "normal" foods in the house when I'm dieting. But with a skinny hubby and a 2 yr old, they need the regular food ya know? Hubby likes his cereal, 2yr old likes nutrigrain bars, etc.

I really need a kick in the butt!
I have lost weight, but if I could just be completely 100% good, it could be more!

Oh, I also tried brussel sprouts yesterday too. I love brussel sprouts, and they are of the cabbage family right? I've heard others have done well with them.

Its time to tighten the belt and put the pressure on myself. Maybe I need to stick signs everywhere that say "do not eat" and "have a salad" or "think thin"

ugh, today is a new day though, hopefully my behavior yesterday won't affect my losses for long.

Another Update

2009-02-22T10:10:00.000-08:00

Date---------- Day ---- Weight ------ +/- -------- difference -------- Comment
02.20.09.....15.......184.0........+0.4..........-11.5........... Oh man!! Forgot HCG today!
02.21.09.....16.......184.1........+0.1..........-11.4........... Another gain? Better be a good loss tomorrow!
02.22.09.....17.......182.9........-1.2..........-12.6............ YAY! Thats more like it!

I had a few gains there, but I wasn't following the diet EXACTLY, so its my fault. But I have stopped my "substitutions" of foods, and now I'm back to losing!

Update :)

2009-02-19T09:58:00.000-08:00

I know I've missed a few days, things have just been busy.
I'll catch you up on the last couple of days so you can see where I'm at. I've kind of hit a stall I think, hopefully tomorrow will bring on a new week of losses for me!

02.17.09.....12.......183.9........-0.0..........-11.6........... Ah phooey! What is this all about? I guess we have to have a few of these right? Well as long as it doesn't turn into a gain, I'll be ok. Lets go for a big loss tomorrow to make up for it!
02.18.09.....13.......183.7........-0.2..........-11.8........... Better than yesterday...
02.19.09.....14.......183.6........-0.1..........-11.9........... Man this is annoying, do I need an apple day? I hope it picks up for week 3!

Todays and Yesterdays update :)

2009-02-16T12:07:00.000-08:00

Date...........Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.15.09.....10.......184.6........-0.1..........-10.9........... A slow down is to be expected in the 2nd week right? At least its a loss and not a gain Could it be because I forgot my HCG the other day?
02.16.09.....11.......183.9........-0.7..........-11.6........... Ah, yes, I like that! Almost a lb Yestday was a good day, but I've got a cold though

VLCD 9 (11 days of HCG)

2009-02-14T09:03:00.000-08:00

Date...........Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.14.09.....09.......184.7........-1.0..........-10.8........... A WHOLE pound today! YES! And I've hit the 10lbs down mark! Where do I get that blinky? lol **I think I forgot to take my HCG yesterday though **

VLCD 9

I think I forgot to take my HCG yesterday. It was the first day this week that DH was home when I got up (he's been on 5am shift all week) and so I think that threw off my routine.
Anyone know how this will effect me? Will it come into effect 72 hours later? or will it be ok as long as I don't forget again?

I skipped my dinner and fruits yesterday and had pinto beans and cornbread again instead (I know bad). But it seems to be ok for my body though, I even lost 1lb since yesterday mornings weight. I had it again as a test. I shouldn't be experimenting so early, but I did, lol.

On a + note, I have reached 10lbs down now! Yippee!

I'm about to take my HCG for today, I'm NOT going to forget again!

VLCD 8 (10 days with HCG)

2009-02-13T09:03:00.000-08:00

Date...........Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.xx.09.....08.......185.7........-0.2..........-0.0........... I TOTALLY thought this was going to be a gain because I deviated and had a small bit of pinto beans and cornbread for dinner yesterday! So I'm totally happy with the small loss!

Yesterday was a good day. I had coffee fore breakfast, then for lunch I had iceburg lettuce, extra lean ground beef with Tex Mex seasoning, it was like having a plain taco salad. Then later I had my melba toasts. Had an orange for my fruit mid-afternoon.

Then for dinner I had made DH a dinner of pinto beans and cornbread....

My stomach had been growling on and off all day, so I decided that I could live with a gain, and pinto beans can't be that bad for me can they? So I had a SMALL portion of pintobeans and even threw on a small slice of homemade cornbread too!

And guess what?!? No gain today! I actually lost .2lbs this morning. Who knows if it may have been more if I hadn't cheated, but I was just really hundry and really wanted some because it looked so good.
And I know I should have held off, but this time I slipped.
Even though I didn't have a gain (not yet anyways) I wouldn't suggest that anyone just starting out try what I did by deviating, expecially so soon. Because it very well could have been a gain of 3lbs or something and that would have taken me back a few days worth of losses!

So all in all, yesterday was a good day, and I'm happy about how my weight responded this morning. I don't think I'll need to cheat again now that I got that out of my system.

VLCD 7 (9 days with HCG)

2009-02-12T09:31:00.000-08:00

Date...........Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.12.09.....07.......185.9........-0.8..........-9.6........... Well its not a full pound but I will definately take it! I was a little nervous that it might be a stall or another gain after yesterdays slight gain! .4 away from a 10lbs down happy dance! lol

Week 1 total loss: -9.6 (from highest load weight)

Yesterday went alright, I started getting a little hungry in the afternoon though (I had my lunch protein early as "brunch"). So I had my dinner early, and then an apple later to keep me going.

Oh but guess what I did! My DS wanted a granola bar (the kind the has a chocolate coating) so I gave it to him, and when he got near the end he needed me to open the package the rest of the way for him so he could get the last piece, well when I did that I got a TINY amount of chocolate (it had melted a bit on the granola bar) on my finger, and what did I do?!?! I LICKED my finger without even thinking!!!
Mid lick I realized what I had done, lol. Good thing it was just a tiny dot of chocolate! It was funny though, I felt stupid half way through the lick when I realized what I was doing.

I never realized how much I'd miss 'normal' foods. I had to go to Walmart yesterday to get some diapers for my son and we went through the food isles too (to see what I could pick up for DH for his meals since he doesn't need to diet with me, lol) and I couldn't help but feel weird amongst all that food.
I almost didn't even want to look at the shelves, as if I felt ashamed or something, lol. Is that totally weird?
Food sure has a strong hold over us! Its not like I'm starving and must eat it or anything, but when I look over and see some cookies, or even a block of cheese, lol, I can't help but think "oh, I wish I could eat that!".
But don't worry, I'm strong, and I didn't give in.

I'm almost at 10lbs down, looking forward to the day I can say that I've reached my ultimate goal of 140-145 .

Link to my Fitday

2009-02-11T18:14:00.000-08:00

For anyone who is curious about what I've been eating on this diet to still keep me full and not starving while only on 500cals (plus what the HCG is getting from my fat cells) then check out this like to my fitday daily food journal

http://fitday.com/fitness/PublicJournals.html?Owner=Stellercrys

VLCD 6 (day 8 of HCG)

2009-02-11T09:37:00.000-08:00

Date.............Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.11.09.....06.......186.7........+0.2..........-8.8........... Aw man, my first gain after losses I think its from the P2 recipe for "chocolate cake and syrup" maybe I shouldn't have tried it.....

Well it was bound to happen after all those full lb losses, lol.
I went up .2 today
It may have been the chocolate cake and syrup recipe I found in the P2 section. Or it may have been from the beef. Nothing else was different yesterday. (well I did have iceburg lettuce, but I doubt its that). I was also 11cals over 500.... maybe that did it?

Today will be a super strict day, nothing "new" no more "too good to be true" P2 recipes......it wasn't even that great, so I gained for nothing

Today will be different, I hope to see another loss tomorrow to at least make up for today, but hopefully a full lb if possible!

For you Syndibee :)

2009-02-10T09:47:00.000-08:00

This is in response to a question asked in one of the recent comments made:

After each Round of HCG injections, there is a "phase 3" which consists of a special diet, where you can add in more things than you were allowed on the injection phase, but there are certain things that you must not have.
Phase 3 should be done for a min of 3weeks, this is the phase where you are resetting your hypothalamus. And if your weight goes above or below your last injection weight by 2lbs or more than you have to do a special day of eating (they call it steak day, or something equivilent for vegitarians) This is to get you back to where you should be so that you hypothalamus will reset properly.

After phase 3 is complete, you can either do another round of P2 (injection round) or if your where you'd like to be you can move to Phase 4, which is basically maintaining for life.
In phase 4, you follow P3's diet, and then slowly (very slowly, one at a time) start adding in other foods while taking track of any effect they may have on you. Some people shouldn't/can't eat certain foods because their bodies don't process it well (thus some may gain weight from those foods), so they would be best to avoid those foods once they see that they have a negative reaction to it in that way.

If you read Pounds & Inches thoroughly you will learn about all the phases and what they are for and what you are to do in each phase. Pounds and Inches is basically the diet manual we all follow. Some people have experimented with different food combos for the phases, deviating from the "manual". And while some have done ok doing that, most will not. So it is best to follow the manual to a T your first time so that you can start off with good results, and then if you want to experiment the next round, only do one thing differently each day so that you can tell the next day if its caused you to gain, or stall on the weight loss.

Day 5 of my 500 cal diet (day 7 of injections)

2009-02-10T09:18:00.000-08:00

Date.............Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.10.09.....05.......186.5........-1.0..........-0.0........... A pound is a pound! Almost to 10lbs total lost. I'll be happy when I get below 180 since I haven't been that low since before I got pregnant with my now 2yo son.

VLCD 5

Yesterday went well. I ate all my allowed foods. Tried strawberries instead of one of my apples this time. They were GOOD, but I'm not sure how filling they were, I think I feel more full with the apples, but the strawberries are really nice taste wise. So I think I'll stick with an apple for my morning fruit, and then for my afternoon fruit it will depend on how hungry I feel whether I choose an apple or strawberries. (or if I just need a sweet taste of strawberries, lol)

Today should be fine too, I don't foresee anything happening today to throw me off course or anything. I think for lunch I might try some extra lean ground beef with seasonings over lettuce as a "taco" salad. Sounds good.

2009-02-09T09:24:00.000-08:00

Date.............Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.09.09.....04.......187.5........-1.1..........-8.0........... A little lower than the last few losses, but a full pound is still awesome! Getting close to 10lbs total loss! So far so good, not too much hunger, the food is getting boring though, lol.

So far I'm liking this diet, other than the lack of food choices, but I've read of some Phase 2 friendly chili and taco salad recipes if you make them yourself. So once I figure out which foods for the day it will be equivalent to and how many calories then I'm going to try those just to shake things up again :)

2009-02-08T08:45:00.000-08:00

Date.............Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments
02.08.09.....03.......188.6........-3.2..........-6.9........... Oh my! I'm loving the losses! I even used EggBeaters in place of a protein yesterday. Things are looking great

Progress so far :)

2009-02-07T09:18:00.000-08:00

Here is a copy and paste of the entries I've made in my journal over at HappilyThinnerAfter.com (an HCG diet forum).

Date.............Day.........Weight.......+/-.......Round Total.....Comments

02.04.09...LOAD.......191.9........-0.0...........0.0........... LOAD 1 - First injection went really well! Didn't even feel it! Going to try to load up on fatty foods today. I'll be positing videos in my blog also so if anyone wants to follow along I think I have a link in my siggy for it.
02.05.09...LOAD.......195.5........+3.6..........-0.0........... LOAD 2 - Ouch, that's a rough gain to see! Bad news though, TOM has started today (found out AFTER I took today's injection. Not sure how to proceed with this....
02.06.09.....01.......194.3........-1.2...........-1.2........... Starting to lose that load weight, although I think the scale may have been wrong the first load day.... either way, its nice to see some loss starting! Yippee!
02.07.09.....02.......191.8........-2.5..........-3.7........... I'm JUST below start weight now! Would be awesome if my losses could stay this good the whole round
02.xx.09.....03.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0........... Comment
02.xx.09.....04.......???.?........-0.0..........-0.0........... Comment

Load Day 1

Well my first load day wasn't as "wild" as I thought it'd be, lol
I had coffee and a bagel loaded with cream cheese, for lunch I had McDonalds, yuck I know but we were out and needed lunch.
I had a southwestern chicken sandwich with large fries and a med fruitopia.
Then when we got home I had a snack of a coconut cream cake thing (like a twinkie, just a bit different) and I also had a couple bites of my sons twinkie, lol.
Then lasagna for dinner (two large helpings).
I also had a can of sprite too, gotta get in my last pop/soda before VLCD starts!

I might go have another coconut cake thing in a minute, those are GOOD, oh and a glass of milk to go with it.

Tomorrow I'll focus on the high fats and have a tuna sandwich loaded with mayo, and make breakfast smothered in butter and have veggies for dinner also dripping in butter, lol. That should do it!

Load day 2

wow, I gained 3.6 from yesterdays load.... but I also forgot to weight until after I had already had a bannana, twinkie and a pop/soda.....

Bad news is that I started TOM today. I didn't think it was due for a week or so. Now I'm not sure how to proceed, do I just continue shots as normal since I'm just starting VLCD tomorrow? or should I just stop altogether and hope that yesterday and today's shots just void themselves out? I don't want to have to load again after TOM just because of this silly mistake. I would like to just take the shots as normal through TOM and just keep that in mind since I probably wont have great losses because of it?
Hmm, well see, the jury is still out.

VLCD 1 (very low calorie diet)

I think the scale may have been wrong on Load day one (I think it should have been a couple lbs higher, but oh well.
My weight has dropped since yesterday, so that makes me happy, the weight is starting to go down and thats always a good thing regardless of how much or how little it is!
Today is day one of VLCD for me, on my load days I took the time to portion out and cook my meats (chicken breast and sole) as well as portion out some veggies too. I also prefilled all of my syringes and put them in the freezer to hopefully prolong their potency. So when I need one I can either take one out the night before to thaw in the fridge, or I'll just grab it out in the morning and hold it under my arm for 5 minutes or so while I wait for my coffee/tea to be ready.
Question for anyone who freezes theirs, do you ever find that the amount left in the syringe is less than what you put in? Thats what this mornings shot looks like, maybe my eyes are off, lol. It doesn't look off by much.

VLCD 2

Yesterday wasn't too bad, it was kind sad to see such small portions, lol, but my chicken for dinner was really good! I had lemon pepper seasoning on it
I was feeling hungry off and on through the day, but when that happened I just ate one of my fruits or melba for the day, and had a glass of water. After dinner I didn't even feel hungry anymore!

Still have TOM, but it doesn't seem to be causing any problems so that's good to see
I hope today goes well.
I take my 2yr old son to the pool today for a half hour swimming lesson, his first time. Is the chlorine a problem? I never thought about that when I signed him up for it.....

Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear anyones comments

Day One - First Injection! (plus videos!)

2009-02-04T09:22:00.000-08:00

Yay!

I started my HCG diet today. I decided to just go ahead and start, a lot of people have said they don't use the ampoule breaker, they just break by "hand" so I figured I should be able to too, lol.

I took videos of mixing the HCG and of the injection process. So feel free to watch those :)

The mixing:
**I forgot to mention in the video that I have a "Sharps" container provided my my Walmart Pharmacy that I place my needles into. Once its full I bring it into them and they dispose of them properly for me (free)**
I had a little trouble snapping open the glass amp the HCG comes in, so don't laugh, lol. I guess I'm not that strong? haha.
Everything went smoothly after that though.
Oh and if your wondering what that sound is, it's the water filter running in the fish tank, its not that loud, really, I think the camera just picked it up easier.

The Injection:
For my dose I want to use 125iu, that is what Dr.S recommends. I've mixed it with 10cc (or 10ml) of B-Water so that it would be easy to change my dosage later if need be. It works out that .25cc will equal my 125iu dose. So its actually a pretty small amount to have to inject, big plus for me! The injection itself was actually no problem at all! I was really nervous about it, but then I just went for it, lol. In all honesty it was painless. I felt it, but it was just like something was touching my skin, no pinch, no stinging or anything, I was pleasantly surprised, I thought it would at least sting a little, but nope!

So now that the mixing and injection is done, it's time to load!
Today and tomorrow will be my load days. The reason for loading, if I'm getting this right, is because the HCG takes 2-3 days to actually start working, so the first 2 days your loading up on high fat foods so that your fat stores will be 'plentiful', lol. If you don't load up on your first 2 days then you might start to feel exceptionally hungry and that wouldn't be very fun at all!
This morning I had an "everything" bagel with vegetable flavored cream cheese. Not sure what else I'll eat today, but I've heard that using a lot of butter is a good idea, and mayo is high fat too, so maybe a tuna sandwich later :)

Thanks for reading.

An Enema Experience.... And HCG Arrived!

2009-02-02T15:27:00.000-08:00

Well let me just start of by saying that it wasn't that bad, lol

I have been reading that some people do the optional Phase One of the HCG diet which is a cleansing phase. You can do colon cleanses and such, and one thing I read about was doing a cleansing enema.

So today, as embarrassing as it was, I walked into the local Pharmacy and asked for a kit, and thankfully she didn't look at me like I was some weirdo, lol!

I gave it a go this afternoon, and aside from forgetting to put the clip into the OFF position while I filled the bag it went well. You can feel it going in of course, but it wasn't uncomfortable for me. I didn't leave it "in" long though before I expelled the liquid though. I think I will try it again and try to keep it in longer. I need DS to take a LONG nap in order for me to be able to do that though, lol. And there is no way I'm doing it when DH is home, thats just embarrassing, lol.

Soooo, hopefully the next one I can keep it in longer and have better results :)

Oh and I got my HCG today! But they sent the wrong type. I had ordered the HuCoG type since it comes in a vial with a rubber stopper. But instead they sent me the Lupi type which is in a glass vial that you have to BREAK the glass top off.
I'm trying to get it fixed;...

2009-02-01T09:07:00.001-08:00

While I wait I keep looking through the forum I belong to for HCG dieters. (Last link on the left hand side; Happily Thinner After)

I keep re-reading the protocal steps and "rules" so that I will be really familiar with it when I start.
I'm also trying to do some cleansing as well before I start because I have heard and think that it will give me a bit of a boost. When I take the HCG and it starts using up my fat cells, if there are any toxins in them, they will need to be expelled, and I think if I do some cleanses before this happens, then my body will be able to deal with those toxins fast and easier.

I'm also a knitter, lol, so that takes up some of my time and takes my mind of the wait. And of course, my biggest distraction would be my 2yr old son, lol!

So if anyone is wanting to start this diet I'd suggest buying everything you need as soon as you can (but after you've done your research so that you'll know what all you need to get).
And then just put it out of your mind for a bit, and then when it shows up you'll be happily surprised :)

And doing some cleansing in the meantime couldn't hurt either. It can be called Phase 1, since Phase two it the actual injections/sublingual doses.

Three weeks tomorrow...

2009-01-26T19:07:00.000-08:00

Well the HCG still isn't here.
But I guess its only been three weeks tomorrow. I'll give it another week I guess before I inquire about it with the company.
So just a fair warning to any of you wanting to start this protocol, make sure you order at least a month in advance of when you want to start.
Some people get it within a week, but others, it takes a month or more. But the company (the one in my link bar anyways) will resend the order if customs seizes it or anything so at least its "insured" :)

I'm stalking the mailbox!

2009-01-20T17:34:00.000-08:00

No mail today, at all actually!
I thought I'd at least get a flyer or something, lol.

Still waiting on that darn HCG. It's annoying to have everything I need except the actual HCG itself! I'm sure as soon as I get on that HCG P2 restricted diet I will wish it had waited a little longer to come, lol.

Actually, as long as the HCG is doing what its supposed to I think it won't be too bad. The thing that I'm most worried about right now is that needle, but I had a look at the needles I'll be using (like insulin needles) and they look pretty short and thin so I will probably hardly even feel it.

I think I'll take a video of the first injection so that others can see what the first one is like and get an honest reaction from me. Then hopefully it can ease the minds of others that might be nervous about it like me.
I was also thinking of starting video posts through youtube.com too once I get started. And then I can just post them here when I do them. You know for those days I just don't feel like typing. :)

Thanks for reading today, see you next time, hopefully with HCG in hand!

Cleansing and my supplies are here!

2009-01-16T13:33:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I decided to pick up a cleanse kit from the Walmart pharmacy to help me get ready for the HCG protocol. I grabbed the cleansing kit by Hydroxycut. You take 5 pill things twice a day for 7 days.
I took the first five with brunch today, and will take the 2nd five with dinner. I figured it couldn't hurt to do a gentle cleanse before starting the HCG, might help things along a bit too.

ALSO!
I got a little box in the mail today, its my HCG supplies! Yay! Its all the needles, B-Water, mixing vials and syringes and alcohol wipes and stuff. Still waiting on the HCG itself, but I'm assuming it shouldn't be too far behind since they were both shipped on the same day from each company.

I've been thinging that I should also go get a box of rubber gloves to use while mixing/injecting and when I'm preparing any foods for the rest of the family that may have fats and oils in/on them. I've heard that some people have had a stall or slight gain the next day from preparing a fatty meat for the family and the fattiness has been absorbed through the skin a bit. So I think I should get some for that very reason, who knows what I might be making for the rest of the family, I don't want anything to cause a stall/gain for me if its something I can help!

Well thats in for today's post. I'll let you know later how the cleanse is going and if the HCG shows up soon.
Thanks for reading :)

Lost already?

2009-01-13T14:35:00.000-08:00

I've lost 3lbs and I haven't even gotten my HCG and supplies yet!?!
How could this be?

lol, its cuz I posted my weight just before 'aunt flow' came to visit, lol.
I tend to hold onto weight a little bit just before and during, and now that "she" is gone, those 3lbs left with her, lol

Impatiently Waiting

2009-01-10T18:34:00.000-08:00

I am feeling very impatient while waiting for my HCG and supplies to show up, lol.

I'm hoping it doesn't take too long, especially since I'm feeling overly fat right now after having a turkey dinner today! I feel so full, at least I'll probably sleep good tonight, turkey is good for that at least, lol.

I've had a headache for the past couple hours tonight, I'm not really sure why, could be that I need to get some more sleep, not sure. Either way I'm looking forward to a nice warm bath and then slipping into bed :)

My HCG method

2009-01-08T11:12:00.000-08:00

I just thought I'd share with you which method I was planning on using with the HCG protocol.

There are 3 options for administering the HCG:
a) Subcutaneous Injections - injecting it into the fatty tissue, usually on the stomach or thigh using .5" insulin needles.
b) Intramuscular Injections - injecting it into the muscle, usually using a 1.5" insulin needle.
c) Sublingual - you mix the hcg differently than you do for injections. Then you place the dose under your tongue for about 10-15 minutes while it absorbs into your system. This method requires a higher dose than with injections.

For me, I opted to use method 'a', the Subcutaneous Injections. I chose to do injections because I think it may work a bit better than the under the tongue option, and it will be cheaper because I don't need double the dose that you need for sublingual.
And I went with subcutaneous instead of intramuscular because the needles are a whole inch shorter! I'm not particularly fond of needles, so the shorter the better, lol. I think I should be able to handle it, the first few shots may make me nervous, but I'll get over it when I think about the life changing affect it will have on me when I lose weight! I'm aiming for 45lbs or so.

I just keep thinking about how nice it will be to look in the mirror and not see a lump anymore! And I want to look 'sexier' for my hubby too! ;) I don't know about any of you, but for me, because I'm overweight, my body tends to stay warmer than if I were skinny. So at night, I can't really cuddle for too long with my hubby or I will get to hot and even start to sweat, even in the winter, unless it is a particularly cold night. So I'm really hoping that losing some weight will change that for me so I can be closer to my hubby. I like to cuddle, lol!

Well I think thats it for my blog entry today, look for more tomorrow :)

Beginning my journey and a bit about me.

2009-01-06T16:52:00.001-08:00

Hi everyone!

I've started this blog to track my journey on the HCG diet. I have a hard time losing weight and after having my son (now 2 yrs old), I've been stuck at my current weight and can't budge it.

A little about me:
I'm 23yrs old, 5'9'' and 190lbs. Straight out of highschool I was about 130, then through college I bumped up to 140, by the time I was married, 150. I slowly worked my way up to 175 in the first 2 yrs of marriage, then I got pregnant and my highest weight during pregnancy was 210. After giving birth I got back down to 185 and was stuck there. I seem to fluctuate between 180 and 190 depending on the time of month and my eating habits.

A little about the HCG diet:
Here is a place you can read up on the HCG diet, there is too much info to post it all here!
http://www.thecntr.com/POUNDS&INCHES.pdf

I will also be posting links to where you can get supplies for the HCG diet, and links to forums and groups for those looking to join the HCG diet and want some support from other who have been successful with the diet protocol.

Some more info:
I have already ordered my HCG and supplies, enough for 3 rounds. I'm just waiting for them to get here. I will start as soon as it all gets here, probably in a few weeks or so. Until then I will keep adding more info to this blog, and some more about my weight loss journey up until this point.
I look forward to sharing my progress with you and making some new friends.

Please feel free to comment on this blog and send me messages, I'd love to hear from you, I'm always looking for new people to chat with. Come share this journey with me.

Thanks for reading.