Phase 3 Day 14

Good Morning Readers....It's another busy day for me. Headed out at 8am, bank, doctors (to order my kit for my next round, yay), then at meeting at our headquarters, then to work at 2:20 until 10:30.
Bummed a little because I don't know if I will have time to work out this morning. Might take my walking shoes to work and do that on my breaks. Working out is addicting for me.

I think my Doc will be pleasantly surprised. She is a wonderful doc and has been so thrilled with my success so far that she is giving me 20% off my next round. Yippee for my wallet! I was also entered into a biggest loser contest at her office. Last time I saw here, she said I just might be able to win this!

What do I get? 6 free visits for nutritiional counseling and some supplements!

Well Lets go jump on the scale! urggghh.. lost andother .6 for a total of 41.4 lost. And this puts me 5.2lbs below LIDW.

Phase 3 Day 13

It's a good morning. But it will be a busy one. Lot's of house stuff to do, beginning with mowing the yard. A horrible wind storm shredded my patio canopy (It was on it's last leg anyway). So I need to purchase a new one. I'm still waiting on my 30 bags of mulch to be delivered so that I can spread that.

Some domestic duties are on the to-do list also. Then I'm off to work.

Speaking of work, I am reading in a lot of posts on HCG Facebook pages of folks struggling in the evenings. One girl even said that "she feels like chewing her arm off:. I tried to think back and remember if I had that feeling. Nope, never did. But I realize that ZI don't experience that because I work 2nd shift, 230pm to 1030pm. Work is busy (Fire/Rescue Deispatcher) so I guess I just don't have time to think about being hungry or being bored and wanting to eat. So this shift is really a godsend for me. Besides, I am able to get a good workout in the mornings, because I'm not tired from working all day. So if you feel "hungry" or just think you are hungry but are really just bored, find something to do!

Now on to todays scale results. Drumroll Please!
Aaaaaack! I actually LOST 2.4 lbs, putting me 4.6 BELOW my LIDW. Yikes! I can't believe I need to eat MORE.

Now I have heard different trains of thought on continuing to lose weight on P3. Some say.....don't do it because you wont stabilize correctly, but I'm really not trying to stabilize at this weight. I am eating pleanty of calories so that the next round of VLCD will create as deficit.

The second train of thought is, you can continue to lose weight in P3 IF AND ONLY IF YOU PLAN ON DOING ADDITIONAL ROUNDS, WHICH I DO. This is okay as long as you are really upping your calories. So I'm not going to worry about it too awful much.

I'm working out pretty hard. My only fear is that when I go back on P2, that if I don't exercise like I am now, that the weight will not come off as easily.
We'll just have to see. I get really disturbed when people believe that every single body is the same. We all burn and metabolize at different rates. Different foods affect different people in different ways.

It's all about knowing your own body and what works for you. I have a gluten sensativity. Borderline Celiac. Eating wheat wont kill me, but it sure does make me uncomfortable.

Okay...gotta run. Busy day. Heres todays menue.

Breakfast: Protein shake
Lunch: Pan seared bay scallops over a bed of shredded lettuce with avocado, grated egg whites, tomatos, and crumbled bacon, the dressing was dukes mayo, vinegar, packet of truvia and the pan drippings from the scallops. OMG, it was delicious
Dinner: Salmon and green beans with almonds
Snack: Protein shake.

Halfway though Round 1 Phase 3 and Holding Steady

Good morning. It's day 12 of Phase 3 on the HCG diet protocal. Down .8 lbs, 2.1 lbs below LIDW. I'm halfway through this phase and frankly cant wait to get round 2 started. I'm working out hard, so I hope that, after Phase 3, I am left with more muscle mass. More muscle mass burns more calories. So I am betting that round 2 will be a little bit better.

My kayaking adventure yesterday was a bust. I woke up in the am and it was quite windy with a forecast of thunderstorms mid-day. I wasn't too worried about it so I collected my things and was ready to go. Then I got a call from the person I was suppose to go with. Too much birthday celebration for her and she was paying for it. She cancelled on me. So ther I sat ready to go. What to do? Well, I dressed for walking, but took along kayaking clothes. I headed over to the park anyway. By myself. I got to the kayak rental and they said that it was too windy and that the wind was also blowing in a bad direction. Meaning that it would be pushing me away from shore and getting back would be a bitch.

So I am glad I had plan B. I grasbbed my ipod and water and took off walking. This is a very old beautiful park.

I did 4.7 miles when that thunderstorm finally came through. The sky completely opened up.

No worries, I'd already gotten quite a workout. Left there and went to Whole Foods to pick up a few groceries.

I have to make sure that I concentrate my menus on P3 only foods. I don't really want any P3 leftovers in the ridge when I start round 2 on the 17th.

I am really anxious to start. I leave for my sons Basic Military Training Graduation on April 11th. I've got it timed so that R2P3 starts on that day. I figure that it will be easier to do P3 out of town than P2. I will be gone for 5 days. I will do 3-4 weeks of P3 after that and then a scond short round.

My goal.......to lose an additional 20-25 lbs by the time I go to see my son graduate. That will be a total of 60 lbs and will put me under 200lb (hven't seen that in about 9 years)

Hoping to make myself and my son proud.

I'm off to walk at the neighborhood park, another beautiful place to walk and closer to home.

It's a little chilly this morning so warming up will be very important. Even with the chill in the air, I was able to walk 6.15 miles

Todays Menu:

Breakfast: skipped (I know, bad)

Lunch: Protein shake and a salad made with lettuce, avocado, tomato, onion, w/ olive oil and lemon juice

Snack: Apple w almond butter

Dinner: lean boneless pork chops, 170g with grilled onion. Spinach cooked with 1 slice bacon

Snack: Fage yogurt

Good Morning. I'm up at 5am again. I'm not sure whay this is happening. I busted my behind in the yard yesterday for about 4 hours. Raking, bagging, mowing. You'd think I would have slept like a baby. I'm going to have to talk to my doctor about this. I know that good sleep is important to your weight and overall well being.

My plans today, if the weather cooperates, is to go Kayaking with one of my friends. However, the forecast for the day shows thunderstorms and an 80% chance of rain. grrrrr. I've really been looking forward to it. I think it will be a great upper body workout too!. If it rains and the kayaking is cancelled, the bike will be out (it's supposed to be windy) I guess I will be on the elliptical machine today and do some weight training.

I found a recipe for carrot bars but didn't want to use carrots, so I used organic unsweetened coconut flakes. I used cocoa powder instead of the cinnamon called for in the recipe. They came out all right and kinda feel like I'm eating a brownie. (wished I'd used more cocoa and less coconut though.) But it was a nice treat.

I am maintaning my weight within the allowable limits. +/- 2lb from my LIDW of 219.8. This morning I am  218.5, up 1.5 but still 1.3 below LIDW

But I am looking forward to starting my next round on March 17th.

Menu for the day

Breakfast:egg salad
Snack: cheese stick and canteloupe
Lunch: salmon mushrooms
Snack: fake coconut brownie
Dinner: sauteed seafood mix on bed of lettuce and avocado, dressed with lemon juice and olive oil
Snack: Cheese stick

Chugging Along

Phase 3 Day 10. I'm moving along in phase 3. Down .7 this morning,  1.7lb below LIDW. Still within the 4 lb window. Getting easier every day, but I really can't wait to start round 2. This business of not being able to lose weight is killing me. It's like slamming on the brakes. You're losing weight, on a roll and the momentum is in full swing and then all of a sudden. BAM! The brakes are forced to be put on.

I understand the reasoning. The purpose of phase 3, or stabilization, is to reset the hypothamus. Meaning that you are trying to convince the hypothalmus that your weight after phase 2, is your "normal" weight.

It's just very frustrating. I mean, I never thought that I would be so damn ready to go back to a VLCD and only eat 500 calories a day. Maybe that's part of the psychological aspect of the diet. I read the forums and facebook pages and everyone feels the same way. Ready to jump back in to phase 2 and keep losing.

March 17th I load for my next round. woohoo!

I have a busy day today. Errands, housework and lots of yardwork. I will also try to get a bike ride in or work out on the elliptical.

Menu for the day

Breakfast: Egg Salad (1 whole egg, 4 egg white, dukes mayo, 4 chopped green olives
Snack: Grapefruit
Lunch: protein shake(isopure protein powder, coconut milk, cocnut oil, chocolate stevia)
Sanck: Apple with gouda cheese
Dinner: lean boneless pork chop, spaghetti squash
Snack: fage yogurt

Phase 3 Day 9

Well. I am day 9 into phase 3 on the HCG Diet Protocol. I have remained within the 2 lb +/- window of my last injection day weight. I was up .1 today. I am beginning to get comfortable with my meal planning and am enjoying new combinations of foods.

I have also started incorporating a lot of exercise into my day. Today I walked 5.3 miles at the park. Very quick pace and always swinging my arms. I stop at the fitness spot and do crunches, reverse crunches and push ups. Further into the walk, I do Step ups on an 18" step, 2 sets of 10 on each leg and 1 set of 10 on each leg on the 24" step. I also walk up and down a ramp and stairs on an elevated platform. I do this everytime I make a round. Half of my walk is on a paved walking path and the other half in on a natural ground.

Other days, I will ride my mountain bike or hop on my elliptical machine for 45 minutes.

I am really enjoying working out.

I have developed a pretty serious rash on my arms and legs. Not related at all to the diet (I'm no longer taking the HCG) I self-treated for a few days with no relief. The doctor seems to think I came in contact with something. So she has put me on Steroids. I just hope that they don't affect my diet.

Menu for the day

Breakfast: Protein shake w coconut milk, isopure protein powder, 1 tsp of coconut oil and chocolate stevia

Lunch: Cajun BBQ shrimp and avocado over a bed of angel hair cabbage (I use the cabbage instead of lettuce, it has mor crunch and is more nutritious) I used olive oil and fresh lemon juice as a dressing.

Dinner: Porterhouse steak and onions sauteed in Irish garlic butter and spaghetti squash

Snack: apple with fage yogurt

Fat                        50%) Carbs                        16%) Protein                        34%) Alcohol                        0%)

Still Holding

It's Day 8 of Phase 3. I lost .1 and am 1.9lbs below my LIDW. Yay! So I must be doing something right.

Today I may go for a bike ride, if I can install my new seat. I have other things to take care of this morning before work, You know...domestic responsibilities.


Here's the menu for the day

Braeakfast: 1 wh egg + 3 egg white, handfull of spinach, 1 tbsp black olives, 1/4 c cheddar cheese
Snack: Protein Shake (isopure with coconut milk, water, ice, chocolate stevia dn 1 tdp coconut oil)
Lunch: Cauliflower Pizza
Snack:
Dinenr: Tilapia, green beans, avocado