Day 21 - Success in traveling and eating out

Day 21 HCG
Day 19 VLCD
191.8 lbs
-17.2 lbs

Yeah me!!! I'm down .4 lbs. I contribute that to walking around the mall for 2 hours yesterday, because I ate twice as much as I normally do. But it's also truly a testimony of how well this diet works. I was totally out of my norm, and I ATE OUT, and didn't gain a pound. I lost half of one.

So I ate my chicken and zucchini I brought with me for lunch with some OJ and did really well the rest of the day. I drank all my water early again to avoid having to stop on the way home. I got a little hungry in the after noon so I ate a Melba toast.

All was fine until we headed home and no one had had dinner. We stopped at Raising Cain's. If you have never had Raising Cain's, you've never had chicken fingers. They are awesome and so is their sauce. I was dying a little inside as the car filled with the aroma of Cain's sauce, Texas toast, french fries and yes...chicken fingers. I was about to cave when I remembered I had my leftover steak and broccoli in the ice chest!!! I grabbed it and ate the steak like a chicken finger. Yeah!!! That helped. But Cain's still beckoned. I opened the broccoli and then, then I cheated. I dipped my broccoli in Cain's sauce. Just a little! I also had a bite of a french fry with sauce on it. But I think I did quite well under the circumstances.

I made it home fine. I'm hoping for at least a .2 lb loss tomorrow. I can live with 0. But a gain would be a little depressing right now.

Day 20 - New and Challenging things

Day 20 HCG
Day 18 VLCD
192.2 lbs
-16.8 lbs

Well I called it! I'm up .2 lbs. I'm totally not worried, but I'm seriously going to work on my cheating!!! I think there are a couple of reasons for the gain. Namely, I'm supposed to start any day. I also had a 1/2 glass of OJ near midnight and I normally don't eat after 5:30 or so and that's been really good for me. AND, I drank all my water early in the day instead of spread out. I think my body really needed it spread out because of how thirsty I felt when I go to Dallas.

On top of traveling I'm also going to eat out tonight. I ate the tomato basil soup with scallops early, around 10:30, because I knew I would not be hungry for dinner otherwise. I knew I would eat at dinner one way or the other, so I was trying to be proactive. I got back from the mall around 4 and was a little hungry so I had my OJ and Melba toasts.

We were seated and ordering by 5:30 at Texas Road House. I had water with lemon and the others ordered a baby blossom. My little cheat for the day was ONE sliver of baby blossom dipped in the sauce. I told the waitress I was going to be her pain in the butt today, but that I had a good reason...not just being a pain in the butt. I told her I had lost 17 lbs in the last 20 days and I wasn't going to ruin it tonight and she was on board. I ordered the 6 oz steak with broccoli, and a sliced tomato for my sides. She was so helpful by telling me that they brushed the steak and tossed the broccoli with butter. I asked for no butter. I sprinkled salt and pepper on my tomatoes because they didn't have vinegar but it was delicious! When my meal came, I had already ordered a take home box for the broccoli and put it aside. Then I cut the steak in half and chowed down. It was soooooo goooood!!! I felt stuffed though and thought I probably won't be loosing today! Oh well. Weather I do or not, I'm proud of myself for sticking it out and staying strong in different circumstances. I have a steak and broccoli for lunch tomorrow too!!

Day 19 - Striking a balance

Day 19 HCG
Day 17 VLCD
192.0 lbs
-17.0 lbs

Hmmm....down 1.2 lbs!? I guess I'm learning something new. Something I've never considered before. "Just a taste is enough." I've been doing all this cheating but it's only been a taste here and a taste there, not a whole quesadilla, or a bowl of soup, or a piece of pizza. Not that I'm condoning cheating on this diet. But when I'm craving something I'm cooking (which is torture!!), I've been tasting it. I've learned over the last couple of days that tasting it usually relieves the craving!!! Except for the baked potato soup!!! I think this is something I'll take with me through maintenance and forward. If I really want a cookie, I can have a cookie. But one cookie is all I need to stem that craving. If I want pizza, I can have pizza, but one piece will be enough to get me through to the time I can have something better to eat. A cookie, or a piece of pizza, is not the end of the world. A BOX of cookies, or a PILE of pizza is. I don't think I would test this theory on baked potato soup though.

So when I made lunch today, I made steak and broccoli sauteed in Worcestershire sauce. I also made chicken encrusted with grissini sticks and zucchini sauteed in balsamic vinegar, and scallops to put into a tomato basil soup I made earlier. Why? Because I'm traveling this weekend and I wanted to prepare all the meals ahead of time.

I didn't have enough OJ for dinner so I only had a half a cup, and I had two Melba toasts with it. I also quite drinking water around 4 so I wouldn't pee all the way to Dallas (WEE, WEE, WEE all the way home!!! HA!).

I made up two shots and put them, along with the alcohol pads in a Tupperware container padded by paper towels into an ice chest with ice. I also put the two dinners I made, a bag of Melba toasts and my potassium pills in an insulated bag with ice. I made sure my scales were in the suite case too. Boy this is a lot of trouble. But so worth it!!

The trip was ok, except that Jon didn't eat the dinner I made for him so half way there he decided he needed something. He went to McDonald's and ordered a big mac with fries and a coke. AAAGH!! I hate McDonald's, but all I could imagine was sinking my teeth into that velvet soft bun, and the warm pseudo-meat dripping on my tongue and the tang of the"special sauce tantalizing my taste buds. I made it though.

When we got to Rena's I was so thirsty and she had bought me OJ! I had another 1/2 cup to quench my thirst and I headed off to bed.

I'm pretty sure I won't loose anything tomorrow, or even possibly gain. There is no way I peed out all the water I drank. Plus I'm supposed to start on Monday or Tuesday so water weight is expected.

Day 18 - The price to pay...

Day 18 HCG
Day 16 VLCD
193.2 lbs
-15.8 lbs

I woke up FREEZING this morning. I was down another .6 lbs though. I bundled up and started my morning routine. My stomach started growling. I ignored it. I let the dogs out. I noticed I felt weird. I prepared my shot. Boy I was hungry. I went to fill up my litre water jug but someone had put the Brita back into the fridge empty. I went to fill it up and my arms didn't seem to want to work. The thing felt like it weighed a million pounds. My back started hurting like it just couldn't hold me up anymore. I finished my task and got a 10oz bottle of water from the cupboard, took my potassium and chugged it....instant stomach cramps...that was a bad choice. I let the dogs in, fed them, took my shot and with the amount of weakness I felt and the pain in my stomach I decided I better eat something. I poured my glass of OJ and grabbed a Melba toast. Moments later I felt much better. No more nausea and the fatigue was passing. Jon hit the nail on the head when I told him how I felt. He said I had tried to compensate for my cheating by not eating the rest of the good things I could for yesterday. I won't be doing that again. As simple as this diet is, and as easy as it is to loose weight, I still need to remember that this is pretty stressful on my body so I need to not push it further than I have too. Would a cup of OJ ruined me last night? or a Melba toast? Probably not, and my body would not have had to rebel this morning.

I tried something different for lunch. I put frozen broccoli in foil, put the fish on top then sprinkled the whole thing with lemon pepper, lemon juice and two slices of an orange. I sealed it up and cooked it for about 30 minutes. It was light, fresh and filling! I did cheat. While I was making turkey and bean quesadillas for the kids I ate some burnt cheese off the spatula, then I took a tiny bite of charis' because I wanted to see if it really tasted as good as they were saying. It did.

We had lots of leftovers in the fridge so I didn't cook dinner but I was really hungry so I ate the remainder of my Melba toasts for the day and another glass of OJ. Your not supposed to have the same fruit in a day but I did. I heated up pizza for Caedon and he sat in my lap and ate it. I picked at some cheese melted to the plate and ate a pineapple piece too. I'm so bad.

I just couldn't get warm so I took a long, HOT bath. I got too warm. Jon went to see a movie with his friend for his birthday so I went to bed early, dreading weighing in the morning. I cheated too much and ate too much for it to be a good outcome.

Day 17 - And NOT cheating prospers more!

Day 17 HCG
Day 15 VLCD
193.8 lbs
-15.2 lbs

Yesterday was the perfect diet day. I didn't cheat once, I ate my meal around noon, had my glass of OJ with the family for dinner, and drank all my water. All of that equals a 1.8lb loss!! Woo! Hoo! for me!!! If you click on my weight chart to the left (once your there,click "daily" and move the left date button to the point I started the diet), you can literally see how my body did not want to let go of 200. Once I broke free from that weight, it's been nothing but down hill from there...and in this case, down hill is good!

Today wasn't so perfect. I've vowed not to make baked potato soup until this is over. We all know I had issues with it the night I made it, but heating up the left overs for lunch for the kids was just disastrous. I HAD to test to see if it was warm enough. And I didn't see anything around to wipe my potato soup covered finger on.....within a millimeter of the bowl anyway. So I HAD to lick it off. I also HAD to make sure that Caedon's, my 3 year old, soup was the perfect temperature so I took a toddler spoonful taste. It was soooooooo goooooood! Later that afternoon, he hadn't finished his and it would be a horrible waste of the most wonderful soup invented if I just put it down the drain! For heaven's sake! There are children starving ALL OVER THE WORLD!!!!! I managed to have a change of heart after two toddler spoonfuls of it and chucked the rest in the sink before I blew the whole thing. I did have chicken and zucchini sauteed in balsamic vinegar for lunch so I wasn't hungry.....baked potato soup is just soooooo goooood!!!

When I was making dinner- I've been working on a recipe for refried beans. I've tried several, but I just haven't gotten the flavor or texture "I" want yet. So I tasted it several times to at least get it palatable for the family. Since I cheated so much I decided to skip my OJ for dinner and sipped on orange and passion fruit flavored green tea. When I went to bed my stomach was actually growling but I just drifted off into dream land instead of drifting down to the kitchen. Was it enough?

Day 16 - Who says cheaters never prosper?

Day 16 HCG

Day 14 VLCD

195.6 lbs

-13.4 lbs





Even after my two cheats yesterday and not drinking my all my water I lost 1.2 lbs!!! Yeah!!!! I'm such the pessimist though. I'm waiting for the inevitable shoe to drop. But until then I'm going to enjoy watching myself shrink!


This morning is different. To start, last night when I was cooking bacon for the baked potato soup, I got a wave of nausea. This morning I've been kind of queasy too. This is a possibility on HCG because in essence you are giving yourself morning sickness! I had horrible morning sickness for 9 months with all my pregnancies. I actually don't mind because then I won't have as many cravings. It got better through the day though.



So I feel like I've hit my stride. I'm eating lunch and then having a glass of orange juice for dinner. That way my cravings are cut back. Today I had scallops sauteed in garlic and Italian seasoning with some of the marinara sauce I made the other day. It was kind of like a Manhattan clam chowder! Yum!



Besides the nausea, I'm noticing a couple things. I can't get warm!!! It must be all the FAT I'm loosing. I'm usually a very hot natured person and keep the thermostat at 65, but I'm having to stay bundled up recently...NOT normal for me. Also my skin has gotten really dry on my hands. I don't usually have to use lotion on them because at some point in each day they get covered by olive oil. I was trying to ignore it but then I started developing a rash to go along withe the dryness so I broke down and put lotion on them today. Hopefully it won't affect my weight loss, because as I said before your body can absorb oil through the skin and lotion has oil.

Day 15 - It's all good.

Day 15 HCG
Day 13 VLCD
196.8 lbs
-12.2 lbs

I'm actually not concerned. I didn't loose anything today. I stayed the same. I told Jon yesterday that this wouldn't surprise me. The reason is, over the weekend I was weighing at 6:30, going back to bed, then weighing again when I got up and peed again. Believe me, your body can make a lot of pee in two hours! I'll start showing a consistent loss the rest of the week and probably big losses again on the weekend if I get up late. Or I can just weigh the once and keep consistent.....but I like the big losses! Especially on the weekend.

So I went grocery shopping today. I bought two weeks worth of groceries. the only thing in the buggy for me was Talapia, chicken, scallops, tomatoes, and broccoli. How depressing is that? When I got home around 1, I was starving and grumpy. I cheated. There was cream cheese icing left over in the fridge from the cupcakes the other day. I took a spoon and scraped the edge of the canister and probably accumulated 2 teaspoons of icing and I ate it....slowly...and enjoyed every luscious molecule. I'm going to pay for it. Almost immediately the glands (I guess their glands) started swelling under my tongue. They hurt like crazy! Anyway, I topped it off with the last of the crab bisque.

The afternoon was great, I made two loaves of homemade bread and started baked potato soup for dinner. I sat with the family and drank orange juice since I found out it's a substitute for the orange. Only 8 oz, but enough to keep me from devouring the baked potato soup! I did falter at the end and when I was putting the leftovers up I sipped a bit of the broth. I also had to stand firm when pizza showed up at Boy/Girl scouts. I just kept telling myself "I can have the top of the pizza in 25 days. I can have the top of the pizza in 25 days." I made it!

With my two cheats, not drinking all my water, and crumbling bacon with my hangs (sometimes getting oil on your skin can cause weight gain on HCG!!!), I'm pretty much resigned to a low loss, or possible gain tomorrow. It would suck, but I'll be ok. I'm following through with this until the end.

Day 14 - That's more like it!

Day 14 HCG
Day 12 VLCD
196.8 lbs
-12.2 lbs



Yes! Yes! Yes! I beat the cupcake...barely. I beat the bean burrito...marginally. I only ate when I was hungry yesterday....torture. The pay off? 1.6lb loss. I can do this. I CAN do this. I can do this!!!

I ate more today though. I got hungry early and had chicken and broccoli stir fry. I had dinner around 3:30 and had steak and tomato soup. I kind of had a little cheat when everyone else ate dinner around 5:30. I made them waffles and eggs. We had Orange juice to drink and since I'm allowed oranges I took two swallows. I hope I didn't ruin my streak. It totally felt like cheating. Another thing that might affect my loss in the morning is that I didn't nearly drink 2 liters of water today. We shall see.

Day 13 - How much does poo weigh?

Day 13 HCG
Day 11 VLCD
198.4 lbs
-10.6 lbs


I was up before my alarm and went potty and weighed when it went off. It said only 198.8 which was a .2lb loss. Since it was Saturday I went back to bed and dreamed of my breakfast cupcake since I didn't reach my goal. When I got up later I went to the bathroom again and this time I went poo. I realized I haven't been going #2. I weighed again and it said 198.4 which was a .6 lb loss! And this wasn't a lot of poo. I know a bunch of poo when I see it and this wasn't it. So I'm wondering....How much does poo weigh? Apparently it's quite a bit. So here's my worries. Tomorrow I'm going to show a gain because I'm not going. I guess I'm going to have to be ok with that and understand that I'll have big losses when I do go. I'll be consulting with my HCG group about possible was to rectify this situating though. The problem is, I'm no stranger to bowl problems. I was diagnosed with Irritable Bowl Syndrome when I was 18 and I've had it since I was 10. Although I believe the diagnosis to be wrong and my symptoms simply an adverse reaction to preservatives, additives and specifically high fructose corn syrup. I'm not sure there is much to be done about it until I can have a wider variety of food that agrees with my system....namely carbs. The only time I've ever been "normal" is when I cook completely from scratch and eat mainly homemade bread and pasta with little meat and roughage.

Another thing I'm going to try is to eliminate my melba toasts and grissini since I was loosing more consistently when I kept them to a minimum. I'm also going to stop eating earlier in the day. We'll see how this affects my weight loss on a consistent level.

So today I made it with only eating one bowl of crab bisque. I just wasn't hungry. But I was tempted to eat. There were still cupcakes left over and Jon literally wrestled one out of my hand. There is also a bean burrito starring at me right now from across the room giving me a come hither look. Can I last with it stalking me like the Geico money?

Day 12 - Oh Well.....

Day 12 HCG
Day 10 VLCD
199.0 lbs
-10 lbs

Well I've reached another goal. 10 lbs lost. I was hoping it happened sooner, and I was hoping this was my big drop day. I guess in the big picture, since I started the VLCD, I've lost 10 pounds in 10 days. That's not shabby.

Again I was awake before the alarm and I went to bed closer to 1am because we had overnight guests come in. I got up and make homemade English muffins with Canadian bacon, cheese and fried (in lard) eggs. Also available was cream cheese and homemade strawberry preserves and grape jelly. This...again...is one of my favorite meals. Didn't touch it. It wasn't very hard either. It would have been murder last week.

I really, REALLY need to see 198 on that scale tomorrow though. Even if it's 198.8...of course I would like better.

Even though I'm not loosing much, one of the bonuses of HCG is body reshaping. Jon says he can really tell I'm changing and I can tell somewhat. The premise is that since ALL fat is available for consumption, it's also available to MOVE. Since we have normal fat and abnormal fat (and the normal fat is the first burned) then the abnormal fat is free to move to the normal fat spaces or just even itself out. Once I've reached my goal weight, it's probable that if i gain, I gain over all and not just in my stomach where I have previously. I can already tell my stomach is going down. It's really weird to look down after only a little over a week and see half of what I used to see! All this drama is just my personality. I need to see calculable results, concrete results and those are in the form of the numbers on the scale.

I made homemade pasta for the kids and our kid guests for lunch and snacked on apples chips while I cooked it. I also made chicken Parmesan (chicken coated in a crushed grissini) for myself with the marinara I made the other day.

For dinner I ordered pizza for everyone and made myself steak and sauteed zucchini. I snaked on the rest of the apple chips from earlier. The hardest part of my day was when I made cupcakes with the kids. I've had an idea for a mock apple pie floating in my head for a few days so I tried to make it to curb my cravings. It was a lot to be desired. The only way I got through it was to promise myself if I didn't loose at least .4lbs tomorrow I would have one in the morning. We'll see what tomorrow brings.

Day 11 - Soldering On

Day 11 HCG
Day 9 VLCD
199.2 lbs
-9.8 lbs

Well, .6 lbs, wouldn't say that was a success. I'm only .2 lbs down from before the gain. I only ate 3 apples yesterday too. Since I wasn't eating I made a lot of stuff for the rest of the week. I made apples chips all day long so I have bags of them sitting around. Don't think I'll be wanting them after yesterday though. Here's the recipe if you want to give it a shot. I made tomato basil soup and marinara sauce to use on some chicken dishes and maybe meatballs if the meat grinder gets here soon that Rena got me/Jon for our birthdays.

Though I'm not satisfied with my current results, I'm going to carry on. Firstly, I spent too much money on this to quit and waste it. That's pretty much against everything in me. Secondly, I think I've moved on to a new stage. I'm past "cravings valley" and now I'm on "stubborn hill". I've begun to embrace the cravings as an assault and I fight back with determination. I lay on the couch last night quietly satisfied with the rumblings in my stomach that were no longer a sign of deprivation but of triumph.

I've also noticed a new phenomenon in my life since about the third day of HCG: Energy. I have to admit before the HCG I was going to bed around 10 and was dragging myself out of bed at 8, or whenever the kids forced me up. Now, I'm staying up to at least 11 and I'm usually laying in bed awake when Jon's alarm goes of at 6:30. Last night I even stayed up until 12:30 planning on sleeping in. However, I was wide awake by 7 and couldn't go back to sleep, though I tried. It could just be the fact that I'm anxious to weigh each morning, but I think it goes beyond that. I'm finding my attitude is much lighter, more playful and forgiving because I don't feel so tired. I think HCG plays a huge part in that, but also the pronounced lack of preservatives, additives, food coloring, high fructose corn syrup, and the like in the food I have to eat on this diet. Plus I'm not carrying around a 9.8 lb load all the time.

I was hungry by 9 so I had tomato basil soup with a grissini. I had herb encrusted talapia for lunch and chicken fajitas for dinner. Let's see what the morrow brings.

Day 10- Apple Day

Day 10 HCG
Day 8 VLCD
199.8 lbs
-9.2 lbs

I gained. I don't know how. I don't know why. I haven't cheated. I've done exactly what I was supposed to. This is a big blow. I just don't know what to say. I'm considering this a HUGE plateau. It can happen when you get to a weight you were at for some time. I was around 200 for 10 years. My weight ballooned when I got the depo shot in 1999 and the only time it's come down was when I was pregnant. I lost 20 lbs with each of my kids only to gain it back within a few months of their births. I guess my body just doesn't want to let go of 200. It's comfortable there. It knows it can sustain there. So I have to convince it to move on....let go of the past...and move forward into a brighter, lighter future. Thus apple day.

On apple day I can have up to 6 apples a minimum of 2 hours apart. I also need to sip my 2 ltr of water and not chug it. I think for good measure I'll increase my water intake too. Until tomorrow.

Day Nine - The air down here!

Day 9 HCG
Day 7 VLCD
199.4 lbs
-9.6 lbs



1.4 lb loss!!! Yes!! I haven't been under 200 lbs (though it be only by .2 lbs) since Caedon was born 3 years ago. This feels nice....real nice. I do believe I can carry on today. This is the kind of losses that will keep me going.



I dropped the dog I found off at his vet today so I won't have that to keep me occupied today. But Jon and I have an consultation with the vasectomy doctor. I'll be with him all day with out the kids. Kind of sucks we can't go out. I made him promise to take me to a German restaurant when my 3 weeks maintenance is over though. For some reason I'm really craving that though it's something I eat very rarely. My "Waggoner" roots are showing...that's my Papa's last name.


Anyway, I had an early lunch of steak and a tomato, with melba toasts and took six strawberries with me to the doctor. We didn't get home until around 6:30 and I was starving so I made some chicken soup with celery. It wasn't the best, so I'll spare you the recipe. I also made another batch of apple chips. I'm almost there on perfecting them. All in all a pretty good day.....it sure is sweet under the 200 mark.

Day Eight - Really Discouraged

Day 8 HCG
Day 6 VLCD
200.8 lbs
-8.2 lbs



Only a .4 lb loss. Normally, on any other diet, you would expect this kind of loss per week. This is why I can't do other diets I suppose. Having only eaten one meal and an apple yesterday, this is really disappointing and discouraging. It's not that I feel starving. I'm not hungry at all. I just feel deprived. The candy, the chocolate, the succotash (dinner last night); I could have had it all and enjoyed it. I could have enjoyed yesterday but I didn't. Why? Why is food so important to me that I can't enjoy an entire day without excess? Why couldn't I just enjoy a day with my husband and kids at the movies and a visit from a dear friend? Why?!



One thing I know is that I derive some of my self worth from my cooking. If I can feed my family GOOD, I feel good. If people are clambering for one of my recipes, I feel loved. I also like to eat what I cook. So I guess in a distorted sense, good food=love. But I don't think this is the whole answer. I think this diet is harder psychologically than it is physically. I think that's good. That's the whole challenge here. Figuring out why you NEED to eat the things you eat.

I had sort of a balsamic vinegar stir fry with chicken and onions. Not one of the better things I've made. I also had two Melba toasts. On the up side, I found a dog outside this morning. It just so happens that he is a full blood Pembroke Welsh Corgi like my other dogs. It's kept me busy at least, trying to find his owners.

Had some "Karen's Apples" for a snack and tried not to die as I made the family homemade pizza (dough and everything from scratch). I just feel like I need to reiterate that I'm not hungry. I just want to eat.

I decided not to go to Girl Scouts with Charis because they were having a Valentines Party with everything I can't have to eat. I didn't want to put myself through that. Jon went though. I'm feeling pretty miserable right now. If I don't see a major loss tomorrow I'm going to do an apple day. I'll explain tomorrow.

Day Seven - This Sucks!

Day 7 HCG
Day 5 VLCD
201.2 lbs.
-7.8 lbs.

Man! Only .2 lbs lost today. That really sucks because I really wanted to cheat yesterday and I didn't. I know it's supposed to loose stair step but come on! Well, I'm just going to redouble my efforts today and ONLY eat when I'm hungry, cravings or not.

We went as a family to the movies for Valentines. I knew the kids and Jon would get candy, so I was proactive. I made Apple Chips! They were soooooooooooo good! I'm going to make up a huge batch to snack on when I get sugar cravings. I'll post the recipe when I perfect it. I made it through the movies unphased.

I didn't get hungry until around 4. It is really odd to skip two meals and not feel even a little light headed. I had some Herb Encrusted Talapia and zucchini sauteed in apple cider vinegar and Natures seasoning. It was the perfect combination. I didn't have to put any lemon juice on the fish.

Our friend Anne came over and brought chocolates for Valentines. I made the kids eat them all immediately so I made it trough the evening with nothing but water and a grissini. I'm still not hungry and I think the cravings are getting better. I made one of my favorite meals for the family tonight. I wanted to eat it, but I didn't!

Day Six - Stupid Truffle!

Day 6 HCG
Day 4 VLCD
201.4 lbs.
-7.6 lbs.

Stupid Truffle!!!

Only a 1.4 lb. loss. Actually I don't think that's too bad. 7.6 lbs in 3 days of dieting is nothing to sneeze at. Almost 1 1/2 lbs is enough to keep me going.

I'm not hungry this morning. I'd love to eat. But I'm not hungry. I was hoping I'd be a little nauseated by now, like morning sickness, but I'm not. If I was nauseated than I wouldn't even WANT to eat and have to deal with cravings. I guess this is a little harder than I thought. But way less hard than other diets.

It is a weird feeling in my tummy though. It's almost like I'm about to be hungry then it just fades away. I'm imagining my body needing sustenance and just as it's about to signal me, it releases fat into my blood stream to burn.

I did get hungry at lunch and stir fried chicken and broccoli in soy sauce with a bit of ginger and curry. I got REAL hungry in the after noon and had half an orange. I know I can have a whole Orange but the ones I got are the size of grapefruit.


Jon saved me from an another truffle. I was feeling a little stressed and really, REALLY wanted one. But he took them away from me. I GUESS I'm glad he did.

I've also had pretty much constant diarrhea today. I know you really wanted to hear that. I'm curious if this is normal. I've been told that this diet has a cleansing effect on your system. I wonder if this is what their talking about?

I had a late dinner of the most awesome crab bisque! Then we all made bets on how much I will be down in the morning.

Jon - 1.5
Me - 1
Eythan - 2
Charis - 3


Drum roll please........

Day Five

Day 5 HCG
Day 3 VLCD
202.8 lbs
-6.2 lbs

WA................................?

Thank you Jesus!!! I'm so glad I didn't eat birthday cake!!! That's 3.4 lbs lost in a day. 6.2 lbs in 2 days. I know things will slow down a bit but this is AWESOME!!! I can totally do today. This is about the time I quite Atkins. I felt so sick and tired. I had a migraine that wouldn't go away and I finally ate a piece of bread and the whole world was fine again. I quite only having lost 2 lbs. This diet is different. I do get some carbs. Just enough to keep the migraines at bay. I also get two pieces of fruit a day if I need them. Yesterday I didn't. All in all I think this is a more well rounded approach to loosing weight AND keeping it off.


I had bruccetta chicken for lunch (see the recipe here). As I was cleaning in the kitchen during the afternoon I came across Caeden's valentine from Rena. It was a Hershey's Pot of Gold box of chocolates. For shame....I ate a truffle. But I vowed not to eat any fruit or another bread stick!

For dinner I had beef fajitas (see recipe here) with out tortillas of course! I managed to make it with out any fruit or the bread stick!!! Let's hope the truffle didn't ruin me.

I'm amazed though at how hungry I'm not. I still have cravings, though I think their lessening. Of course it could just be I ATE THE TRUFFLE!

Day Four

Day 4 HCG
Day 2 VLCD
206.2 lbs
-2.8 lbs

WOOOOOO! HOOOOO! Go me. Go me. It's your birthday. It's your birthday.

It really is my birthday today, and what a present. 2.8 lbs lost in ONE day. That's nice. Real nice. I know I can keep going another day.


I'm having my first real issues this morning though. I woke up to a migraine and had to take Advil. I hope that doesn't interrupt things. Also, when I took my shot I accidentally did it catiwampus and hit a nerve or something. It still hurts.

I made it to lunch with out eating anything or even feeling very hungry. I had Herb Encrusted Talapia again with zuccini sauteed in Worcestershire sauce and Italian herbs. I had a grissini stick in the afternoon, and chicken with onions marinated in balsamic vinegar for dinner. Again, I'm not hungry....I just want to EAT!!! But I made it through the evening without making myself a cake for my birthday. That was kind of depressing, but I'll survive. I kept reminding myself that in a year I won't remember not having cake, but I will look HOT at my goal weight!

Day Three

Day 3 HCG
Day 1 Very Low Calorie Diet (VLCD)
209.0

Today's gain is not as bad as I thought it would be. I'm not feeling as miserably as I did last night. I'm definitely not hungry. I'm only supposed to eat when I am hungry, and only up to 500 calories a day. Why? How? The HCG! So what is HCG? Human Chorionic Gonadotropin. Oh, What's that? Well, HCG is only produced naturally when a woman is pregnant. Although only women produce it, it is not a reproductive hormone. It is a metabolic hormone. HCG Tells your metabolism that all your fat reserves need to be released. For a pregnant woman this is important because a growing baby needs nourishment continuously, not just when the mommy eats. For the dieter, all fat reserves are released and available for consumption by cells. More on this later. But if you can't wait, you can download the free book, "Pounds and Inches" by Dr. Simmons that explains the entire diet, here.

I got hungry about 10 an ate an apple. I started working on my first litre of water. For lunch I made Herb Encrusted Talapia (see the recipe here) and sauteed some zuccini with Natures Seasoning. I finished off my first litre of water too. I felt stuffed after that.

I had another melba toast for snack and then broccoli beef stir fry for dinner. Everyone wanted ice cream later so I put my 6 strawberries in a blender with ice, a tablespoon of milk, and a packet of stevia and had sort of a strawberry milk shake.

It's not that I feel really hungry, but I just want to eat more. I wanted the chicken and rice I made the family for dinner. I wanted the PB&J I made the kids for lunch. I wanted the ice cream and m&ms they snacked on. I wanted chocolate milk. But I was never hungry. The biggest thing keeping me from cheating at this point is the fact that I spent so much money on the HCG and that I'm poking myself every morning. I don't want that to be in vane. I really hope I see a significant loss tomorrow to keep me going. I've peed enough to loose at least a pound!

Day Two

Day 2 HCG
Loading Day 2
208.6 lbs

Yes...that's right. I gained over two pounds yesterday. Lordy, Lordy! This better Freakin' work!

The injection went without a hitch. Just a little itchy-er than yesterday. I just need to figure out how to not get squirt in the eye when I pull the needle out of the vial!

I had a bowl of coco pebbles for breakfast and then a bowl of lucky charms for good measure. I NEVER buy this stuff. The kids are in hog heaven! It really just did not taste good to me. I'm trying to keep it down. It feels like it's just sitting right at the back of my throat. Again I'm wondering if it's the HCG or my imagination. If my meatloaf doesn't taste good tonight, I'll be certain it's the HCG. I love, LOVE my meatloaf. (see the recipe here. Good for maintenance!)I would marry my meatloaf except that it's an inanimate object and I'm pretty sure God does not smile on that sort of thing. Not to mention I'm already married to the most wonderful man in the world! But I digress.

I had a bowl of Blue Bell homemade vanilla ice cream with Hershey's chocolate syrup for snack. I love Blue Bell vanilla ice cream with Hershey's chocolate syrup. It didn't taste good to me. I had a bowl of Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. I love Kraft Macaroni and Cheese. It didn't taste good either. As a matter of fact I had to force myself to eat as much of it as I normally do. I polished off the rest of the chocolate covered cherries for dessert. Not good. I'm practically convinced at this point it has to be the HCG. I'm getting kind of nervous about dinner. I want my meatloaf to taste good.


Later I had a box of Samoas. Yes....a box. I had meatloaf,mashed potatoes, and peas with chocolate milk for dinner. It was good, but not as appetizing as I would have hoped. I literally sat with my hand over my mouth trying to keep it down though. I succeeded but I feel stuffed, nauseated, and crummy. I"m actually looking forward to NOT eating tomorrow!

This is what It feels like to be on loading days. (caution: a little language, gratuitous vomit, and kookiness)

Monty Python's Mr. Creosote

Day One

Day 1 HCG
Loading Day 1
206.4

I got up, peed, weighed, showered, let the dogs out, drew my .25 cc HCG solution and put it on the counter, took my potassium pill (apparently it will help with possible nausea), fed the dogs, and prepared the needle and my tummy for injection with the alcohol pad. The actual injection had been causing me the most anxiety of this whole process. But after having found the video last night of the lady showing how to inject I was a little more confident. I touched the needle to my skin and it hurt, so I chose a second spot in the general area, it hurt too and my confidence was diminishing. I touched the needle to a third spot close by and low and behold I couldn't feel it! So quickly, before I changed my mind, I stuck it in and injected the solution. I didn't feel a thing. I kept feeling around to make sure I really just didn't inject the stuff ON my stomach instead of INTO the skin. But there wasn't any dripping. I really didn't hurt at all!

So I'm in a bit of a predicament. Today I'm supposed to be eating A LOT and high fat. But, I haven't been able to go grocery shopping because my van is out of commission. So I'm stuck with loading using what I have in the house. This is the problem. We eat what I call "healthy". My version of healthy is only eating real food. So my pantry consists of things like flour, sugar, butter, meat, whole grains, rice, beans, yeast, spices, herbs, milk, eggs, and cheese. You get the picture. Only things you can pronounce all the ingredients or identify as coming from nature. What I really would have liked was Krispy Kreme doughnuts for breakfast, but what I had was eggs with butter and cheese, oatmeal with butter and sugar, and whole milk. I ate until I was on the verge of being sick. I hope it will be enough. Oh, and a chocolate covered cherry. Rena (Mother in law) gave them to me for Valentine's.

For Lunch I made two loaves of homemade bread and ate a piece hot out of the oven slathered in butter. Then I ate two more pieces. (see the easy and oh, so yummy recipe here, after your three weeks maintenance of course!) I was going to make a pbj sandwich with my homemade peanut butter and jelly, but I just loaded up with the butter instead. I followed lunch up with a couple more chocolate covered cherries. Then I thought I might be sick. I'm just not used to eating this much. I've eaten twice as much as I normally eat by this time in the day and there is still dinner to go.

And dinner....oh my. We went to Ted's Cafe Escondido. This is our favorite place in the entire world. It is the best Tex Mex restaurant EVER! And we've been to a lot of Tex Mex places. I loaded up on complimentary queso, salsa, chips, and tortillas before my LITE portion sour cream chicken enchiladas came out with rice and beans. I forced myself to eat the entire thing and top it off with a complimentary cinnamon sugar sopapilla. By the time I went to bed I was still miserable. I told Jon I was never going to eat again as long as I live. Is this the HCG working already or just overindulgence. I had a little night cap of Tums and dreamed of HCG injections.

Let's Begin

Pre HCG
Not Dieting
206.4 lbs.

I finally got home from a sad, emotionally and physically draining weekend from Dallas. Jon and I sent the kids to bed and relaxed in front of the TV. After we watched the news and found out we would be snowed in...again...tomorrow we headed off to bed. I had just started to change when I remembered my big day tomorrow. I needed to mix my HCG!!! I put my clothes back on and wearily headed down stairs. It should be easy...I've been told. I got all my supplies together and flipped open my handy dandy Blackberry and opened the email with the instructions. About half way through the first directions something seemed really wrong. It wasn't going to work! The water wasn't going to fit into the vial, much less the HCG. So at the risk of destroying a precious friendship I called Karen at 11:45pm to ask questions and try not to cry. My brain was so fried I couldn't even understand what she was trying to say. I just needed it to work and work easily. So like any 32 year old I turned to the one that I knew would always give me the answers I needed....The Internet. Actually, I just went to the website Karen ordered the supplies from and they had a perfectly understandable video (click hear to see the video) on how to do the mixing...AND the injecting (which was what I was most nervous about). I finally got it all mixed...it may not be exactly correct, but it will work. It really is easy...when your awake....and not in mourning...and not frustrated from everything that can go wrong going wrong...and your three year old is still awake at midnight.......

Dilemma

Pre HCG
Not Dieting
207.6

Well I was planning on starting Saturday. I have everything I need, but I lost something important. I got a call today and my Aunt Tootsy died. She was one of the most important people in my life. As a middle child I never felt special (although I really was treated so). But SHE made me feel special. She listened to me and talked to me and told me the truth and I actually listened when she said it. She prayed for me and believed in the supernatural. The rest of my family thought she was probably a little crazy....now they think I'm a little crazy. Go figure. The funeral will be this weekend in east Texas. I would have to take the HCG with me and keep it refridgerated. And since I"m trying to keep this a secret so I don't have to deal with nay sayers, I'm probably going to have to wait until Monday. What's two more days. I have the flu right now too. It's been a real sucky day.

For Real?

Pre HCG
No Dieting
207.6

I've been waiting....and waiting for my HCG to come in the mail. It's been over a month I think. There was some hold up in customs because the package was coming from India. My biggest concern over this is that the lack of regulations that allow me to get this stuff also pose the questions of purity and source. Oh well. You do what you have too. I got the package today.








It was covered in a muslin type cloth and had no identifying marks. Kind of creepy don't you think? I bet I'm some kind of list now. Sheesh!