Tuesday, April 28

Down to 160.5 pounds today. The 150's are in sight!! I have found that if I stall, something that works is an apple and egg day. I eat as many apples as I want - usually three or four, and I have scrambled or hard boiled eggs for lunch and dinner, two for each meal. This results in a loss of at least 1 pound overnight - sometimes 2 pounds. I have also found that an occassional diet pop is a real treat. I know it's not good for me, but on this journey of deprivation I welcome any special treat that doesn't cause the pounds to hang on more tightly!

Saturday, April 25

162 today. I lost 1.5 pounds overnight. So far I have lost 13 pounds - I can tell the difference. But I have so much more to lose that it's frustrating. Also, I am fighting from being down about other things in my life. I read the most beautiful thing in my Tolle book this morning, about how when there is a loss in your life it feels like a death. This becomes a hole in your existence, because what was once there is now gone. And you shouldn't fight the sadness, just be with it. God shines his light through that emptiness, through that hole, and through this you can find real peace. I hope this is true.

Tuesday, April 22

164 today, same as yesterday. Actually I was thrilled to see that I hadn't gained. Yesterday I went off the diet for the very first time. I was spending the day with a dear friend, and it was so festive and fun...and we were at a restaurant that is FAMOUS for it's macaroni and cheese, which is my total downfall. So, I had a salad with grilled chicken, almonds, bleu cheese and dried cherries, with a side of mac and cheese. I ate it and thoroughly enjoyed it -- and then I was SICK. My stomach hurt so bad I didn't think I was going to make through the rest of the day!! It took almost two hours before I felt well again, and even then I was still feeling a bit icky. I was thrilled to be back on plan again today. No tummy hurting, no bathroom issues, no questions. However, tonight I have a big awards dinner to go to - I had nominated one of my students for an award, and she won - and this place has amazing food. Luckily, and this is ironic, I have a migraine. When I have a migraine I just can't eat much. So I am eating my chicken breast right now, and I'll go to the dinner full. And feeling nauseous from the headache. I'm not eating my veggies so I can eat those there, that way I'll still be 'social'. I'll post later regarding how I did!!

Saturday, April 18

Hooray!! I am done 2 whole pounds today, I weighed 165.5 this morning! Yesterday was most easier than I thought, but not exactly super fun. I ended up eating 3 apples and two eggs. I couldn't do only apples, and the eggs seemed to have worked out just fine. I made a mistake today and went to Zumba, my Latin dance class. I had NO energy. It was, unfortunately, the worst workout of all time, LOL! I worked up a sweat but it was a godsend that I got there late and had to be in the back. Usually I stand right up front next to the instructor, and I keep up with her move for move. But today I was just stumbling around, absolutely exhausted. I feel better now that I have eaten some more protein. I had an apple for breakfast and for lunch I had 3.5 ounces of grilled chicken with one slice of veggie cheese in place of the veggies. I am thrilled apple day is a thing of the past! And every day it becomes more and more clear just how addicted I was - am - to food. It's not like quitting smoking. With that, you throw out the cigs, stop going places where there is smoking, and have immediate rewards like more money, better breath, no more hiding. But food is EVERYWHERE, it is such a huge part of socializing, and no matter what I always have to eat several times a day. I feel that this addiction is much larger and pervasive than a drug addiction, or smoking. I have to eat. So this is a major paradigm shift. With all that said, it is getting easier and easier every day to stick to the diet and stay on track.

Friday, April 17, 2009

Ok, so I've been stuck at 167.5 for the past three days. Today I did an apple day, which is where you eat only apples (up to 6) for the whole day. My doctor recommends this whenever you have stayed at a certain weight for over two days. This afternoon, I found out why I stalled - my period! I actually couldn't do only apples, so I ate two scrambled eggs for dinner. Only fruit does NOT fill you up. Days 7 and 8 were so hard for me, I was unbelievably hungry. It isn't so bad now, much easier to stay on track. Here's hoping for a huge loss for tomorrow!!

Tuesday, April 14

168 today - one more pound off my body! I had my first meeting today with the nutritionist and she said I was doing everything right so far. And it seems so - seven pounds in seven days. I have stayed on track with the protocal - today it seems a little more difficult, I am missing comfort food. But my husband cooked me chicken stirfry tonight and it was truly delicious. Thank goodness someone in my family can cook!!

Monday, April 13

So today is day six, and I am down another .5 pounds - the scale said 169 even this morning. I was very concerned as this was my first day back at work - but it ended up being extremely easy. I gave myself my shot much earlier today, at 5:30 a.m. instead of 9 a.m. I had an apple after I got to work, and then had a grissini about 10:00. Then I forgot to eat lunch - wow, how often does that happen? And finally remembered at 1:30. I ate grilled chicken and mixed vegetables. Afterward I was full, but still jonesing for something chocolate, or bread, or something like that. I drank water instead. :^D I had another grissini at 3:30, and now I'm home, eating grilled chicken breast and organic broccoli. I have realized on this diet just how much emotional eating I do, and also how much I used to eat without even thinking about it. And it is a very strange sensation to be physically full, and yet still yearn for food. It's also weird to not really have food to think about. I mean, I plan my meals very carefully, but with so few choices it's not like there's a lot to think about. Before, I would think about food a lot - and always be on a mission to find the one food that will satisfy my cravings and make me feel good.

I have my first follow up appointment tomorrow - I'm anxious to see how I am doing! Yesterday I ended up not eating my second apple because I had some coffee, which killed my craving for it. So I figured, why waste the calories if I don't really want it? Now there's a new concept for me!!

Sunday, April 12, 2009

169.5 pounds this morning - I am down 5.5 pounds in a grand total of 5 days. Hooray, under 170!! Now that’s a number I NEVER want to see again. Yesterday was hard at the end of the day, I was feeling hungry – or at least it seemed like it. I actually wasn’t physically hungry, but emotionally I sure wanted some comfort food. I did 30 minutes on the treadmill yesterday – I am hoping it get nice enough today so that I can walk outside.

I have some big bruises on my right thigh from my first few shots. I think I hit a vein or something. Now, I can give myself a shot in either thigh and it doesn’t even leave a mark. Getting easier and easier. Yesterday I cooked chicken in the crock pot, and have about three or four meals with that. I tried the apple dip and it was ok, nothing I’ll make again. I am going to Whole Foods today to get all the things Meijer didn’t have, plus some more apples. One whole apple seems to me to be far more filling than 5 or 6 strawberries. So far, I’ve gone with green beans, bell pepper, broccoli and cauliflower for my veggies. This morning we went to breakfast with mom and dad, and I just brought one grissini. I had that and some tea. Everyone thought that was pretty hysterical. My husband had ordered me some diet pop, which you are not supposed to drink on this diet, and I drank about half of it anyway. I hope it doesn’t have an adverse effect. I had no problems watching them all scarf down pancakes and bacon and biscuits with gravy – shocker!! I love going to bed on this diet – it’s so exciting to think about how much less I’ll weigh the next day. Before I would go to bed vowing that I would actually eat well the next day – and it seems like I would think this EVERY night. I would eat well for breakfast, lunch, snacks – and then at dinner I would totally go off the wagon. So far on this diet, I have followed the protocol exactly without much of an issue – well, except for that diet pop today! I do find that I need to really space out the food so I am eating every few hours. While I don’t feel hunger pangs, I do get my hypoglycemic symptoms if I go too long without eating – shaking, grumpy, that sort of thing.

What I need at the store: liquid stevia, Herbamare, spinach, apples, more chicken, more steamable veggie bags, Yerba Mate Tea.

How am I going to do this at work tomorrow? Being at home seems easy – I have total control of when I eat, my kitchen is right here, etc. Let’s see....

Apple right after I get to work

Grissini around 9:30

Chicken and veggies for lunch

Grissini at 2:30

My son has play practice until 6:00, so I think I will need to bring my dinner. Eat more chicken and veggies at 5:00.

Apple at 7:30.

Ok, so there’s my plan. I will buy some yummy organic apples today, and will make my cooler tonight.

Later -- back from Whole Foods. I found everything on my list. I bought four different kinds of organic apples for some variety. I am now enjoying a wonderful drink - I steeped one bag of Yerba Mate tea in ice water, then added 12 drops of English Toffee flavored liquid Stevia. Really yummy!! I had a grissini for breakfast today, chicken and broccoli and cauliflower for lunch, and an apple later for a snack. Tonight I am going to make Lemony Spinach and Chicken Soup. If it turns out well, I'll make another pot for lunch for tomorrow.

Friday, April 10, 2009

Today is day three. Yesterday was my second gorging day, and I didn’t do so well – we ended up having to go to my brother-in-law’s graduation, which was awesome – but I was without food until about 5:00 pm! I ate as much as I could until bedtime.

Today is the first day of the 500 calorie diet. I am so anxious! Afraid I will fail, afraid I’ll be so hungry, afraid it just isn’t going to work for me. I had no problems injecting myself this morning. My right leg is bruised from the previous injections, buy my left leg seems to take it just fine.

Food-wise, it’s been ok. I had an apple and a grissini at about 9:30. Lunch was a hamburger and steamed green beans and orange bell pepper. I had that at 1:30, and I feel nicely full. Prior to that, I wasn’t super hungry, but I sure was grumpy! I have to make sure that I eat every few hours or my blood sugar goes down and I get MEAN. I made more hamburgers and veggies for later.

I weighed 175 this morning. This makes me ill just to think about it. I even have a double chin. They say the pounds you gained during the gorge will come right off, but man it was hard to see that number. I keep telling myself that 40 days of no ‘fun with food’ is very much worth losing 40 pounds!! I just can’t wait until that scale shows a number under 170. Then I will know that all this is working. Who am I kidding – I need it to show 140 before I will really feel like it’s working!!!

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

My name is Lisa, and this is one girl's HCG Diet Diary. I have been overweight ever since the birth of my daughter 4 years ago. Prior to that, I weighed between 115 and 130 - when I got to 130 I quickly lost five pounds or so to get to where I felt comfortable again. Since my daughter's birth, I have struggled to lose my pregnancy weight - and have not been successful. Today, I weigh 173 pounds. Ugh. I tried everything - but honestly, I simply did not have the willpower to stick with anything for very long. I was moaning about this to my doctor, and she told me she was going to be offering the HCG diet. I was intrigued - she sent me on my way to do my own research, and then I decided to sign up.

So, you may want some information on what the HCG Diet actually is. I am doing this diet through a doctor - I did not feel comfortable doing it without medical supervision. There are a lot of sites out there that give information about the diet, but my doctor only recommends these sites: www.hcgdietinfo.com , which has Dr. Simeons "Pounds and Inches" manuscript available online. Also, www.hcgrecipes.com has an e book called "The HCG Dieter Gourmet Cookbook" by Tammy Skye - this is what I use, it's amazing what you can do with so little food.

The basics of the diet are as follows: You begin the diet with two days of gorging, or eating everything fattening you can get your hands on. After that, you are on a very low calorie diet - only 500 calories per day. The entire process takes 43 days, and people lose up to 40 pounds in this time period. You give yourself an injection of HCG every morning. The HCG makes you feel full, so you can be successful on a very low calorie diet. You have to eat VERY specific foods - 2 grissini or melba toasts, 2 fruit (apple, orange, 6 strawberries, or 1/2 grapefruit), 3.5 ounces (before cooking) of skinless chicken breast, beef, buffalo, veal, white fish, lobster, crab or shrimp twice a day, and 2 cups of veggies twice a day. Legal veggies include spinach, asparagus, green beans, lettuce, etc. That's the short version - now here's the long version:

My doctor said that when she had a client come back from Europe and tell her about the HCG Diet, she was intrigued, but skeptical. My doctor is always very conservative and researches programs intensely before offering them to patients. She looked at the existing research and said it was CRAP. However, she had worked with HCG quite a bit and knew what it could do, and also knew it had no side effects. She had used HCG in the past to medically treat men and women for many different conditions like infertility and hormone regulation. So she did her own trial, and was thrilled with the results. The amount of HCG you are given is miniscule compared to what a pregnant woman makes - this does not fool your body into thinking it's pregnant. What it does is make your body use fat stores for fuel, and give you a full feeling so you can be on a low calorie diet with ease. It also prevents the bad side effects of a low calorie diet - muscle atrophy, skin and hair problems, etc.

My doctor's version of the diet, the one I am following, is different from the original one. She said there is no issue regarding hand lotions, makeup, things like that. Average weight loss is 1/2 to 1 pound per day. This is for people who want to lose 20 pounds or more. The course of therapy takes 9 weeks. It starts with the first injection (which you give to yourself in your mid-thigh) and a 'forced feeding', consuming as much fattening food as you can for two days to increase the body's fat reserves. This will be lost in the first three days. Patients will be able to continue normal activities and their energy levels remain as if they are eating normally. The injections are given daily for 23 to 40 days, depending on how much weight patients want to lose. The diet must be continues for 3 days past the last injection (there is still HCG in the body at this point). During the injection period, patients are closely monitored with Bio-impedance analysis (BIA), body composition tests, lab tests and weekly visits with a nutritionist. At the end of week 6, patients are instructed on a low-carb diet which they follow for 3 weeks. Patients then begin a maintenance program to help maintain ideal body weight throughout a lifetime. Common side effects are: pain at the site of injection and bruising. Headache, irritability and restlessness are the next most common and shortlived, if they occur at all. Fluid retention, breast tenderness and depression may occur infrequently. Allergic reactions are possible but very rare.

I think this diet is extremely affordable, as the cost is $695 and includes: a 60 minute RN (registered nurse) consultation and instruction on injection technique. Six 30 minute visits with the nutritionist, one vial of HCG and supplies (will last for entire course), physician review of lab tests at week 3 & 6, four BIA's (Bio-impedance analysis), patient information booklet and weight loss log, and various handouts.

I went in on April 7th and had a BIA - this measured many things, including how much fat I had verses muscle. Through my doctor, I have this done every two weeks to make sure that I am not losing muscle. Right now, my body is made up of 111 pounds of bone and muscle, and 62 pounds of fat. I was trained on how to do my own injections, and started the diet the very next day. Today was my first injection of HCG. This was a gorging day. I had no problems with the injection this morning – I guess years of having a diabetic cat helped me become pretty handy with a needle. But I did have problems gorging – total surprise!!! I ate a few cookies, then later forced down a Whopper. I only ate ¼ of my fries. Then I had two cheesesticks, and then got pretzel sticks at the mall. Then I got a Wendy’s frosty shake. I truly had to choke down everything – the longer the day went on, the fuller I felt. Truly amazing.

I weighed a whopping 173 this morning. At 5'4, that is most definitely overweight. Here are my measurements:

Bust: 43

Arm: 11.5

Waist: 37

Hips: 44.5

Upper thigh: 24

Calf: 14

I am so anxious to get started on the low calorie diet, as strange as that sounds!! I just REALLY want to get back to my fighting weight. I hope I drop a lot right away so I can fit into some clothes again – right now I have a closet full of clothes, and I can only fit into about three outfits.