R3P2VLCD44 (Apr 5): Below PI-LIW and STILL LOSING! :)

Post VLCD 43/Post PI 4:  Loss 1.8  /  Current Weight:  142.0  /  Net Loss -22  / PI-LIW -1.6  / (Start 164.0)

 

i think i can… i think i can… i think i can… i think i can… i know i can… i know i can… i know i can… i know i can….

I’m down another 1.8 lbs today… (1.6 below my PI-LIW), bringing me to my lowest weight on this round with 3 more weigh-ins to go.  It feels SO GOOD to move my ticker again.   If I can keep this up, I should be able to get under 140 for LIW… and hope to drop another 1-2 lbs for wiggle room by Mon morning too.

Its the FINAL COUNTDOWN **key music** (Kagee… you with me??) 3… 2… 1 >>DONE!!

God willing, I will see my real goal of 135 sometime before the summer, after I finish P3 & P4, maybe even 130. :8  (I don’t really want to drop under 130) At this point, every 5lbs I lose makes a big difference in my overall appearance.

On another note… Boy, am I behind on my blog. I need to get to work on it. I haven’t updated it since I went on my PI.   … bad girl …

I can’t seem to decide what to eat today… to have an apple, or not have an apple… that is the question. (I had one yesterday with great results)

 

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Cod 320g, Asparagus 330g, Chicken Breast 100g , Coconut Oil 1tbls

TOTAL CALORIES:  660

R3P2VLCD43 (Apr 4): Still Coming Off Fast :D

Post VLCD 42/Post PI 3:  Loss 1.2  /  Current Weight:  143.8  /  Net Loss -20.2  / PI-LIW +0.2  / (Start 164.0)

 

I woke up this morning with leg cramps.  After 2 days of drowning myself in fluids, it was bound to happen, since I’ve only been eating chicken breast the past 2 days and not getting enough electrolytes and minerals.   I got up and tried hunting for my cal/pot/mag supplements, but half-asleep, the only thing I could find was some magnesium citrate because most of my stuff is still in boxes from my move to NY.   I took 2 capsules and went back to bed… then woke up and remembered where I had a packet of “ULTIMA”… a stevia sweetened electrolyte supplement (similar to Gatorade, but without the sugar).  I added it to my water bottle this morning. I’m being careful not to drink more than a gallon today.  I’ve been guzzling too much the past couple days.   The funny part is, now that I’ve slowed down a bit, I’m “releasing” often today, so another whoosh could be on it’s way tomorrow.

I’m down to 143.8 today… only 0.2 above my Planned Interruption LIW… so anymore losses from here will be NEW weight loss!!   I’m excited to know that I have 4 weigh-ins left to create a good FINAL LIW with lots of wiggle-room afterward.

I had an apple this morning, and plan to have a “normal” protocol day… but all I seem to want is chicken breast…though I can’t have as much today, since I had the apple.  With only 4 weigh-ins left… I’m tempted to stick with just chicken, but I don’t think it’s smart for my body. I might add some celery or an onion later if I feel hungry.   I’ve been satisfied eating 400g of chicken breast the last 2 days…(doubled servings to make up the calories for not having fruits/veg/melba).  Actually, I had 475g yesterday… but danced allot in church and went for short a walk/jog in the afternoon, so I felt like I needed a little more. (still only 520 calories)

Happy Losing Everyone!!  I’m looking forward to joining you all in P3 on Monday… but until then, I’m SO HAPPY that it looks promising that I’ll get a few MORE pounds off from this extension. **HAPPY DANCE** 130′s… Here I come!!

I can’t wait to move my ticker again too.

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Apple 230g, Chicken Breast 300g , Lettuce 280g

TOTAL CALORIES:  497

R3P2VLCD42 (Apr 3): ***WHOOSH***

Post VLCD 41/Post PI 2:  Loss 4.0  /  Current Weight:  145.0  /  Net Loss -19.0  / PI-LIW +1.4  / (Start 164.0)

Guess who showed up to visit? The WHOOSH FAIRY!!

I knew she was on her way… I’m down 4 POUNDS since yesterday! I’M DOING A HAPPY DANCE!! (… and repeating my menu from yesterday… just coffee w/milk, chicken breast and lots of fluids.)

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Chicken Breast 475g

TOTAL CALORIES:  520

R3P2VLCD41 (Apr 2): A Slow Re-Start

 

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Post VLCD 40/Post PI 1:  Loss 1.0  /  Current Weight:  149.0  /  Net Loss -15.0  / PI-LIW +5.4  / (Start 164.0)

I’m not a happy camper… I noticed that I didn’t pee anymore than usual yesterday, (the usual sign of an upcoming whoosh), so I got on the scale before bed to “guess” my morning weight, since wasn’t expecting a huge overnight drop.  My evening weight was 152, (+2 from AM weight), so I only estimated an expectation of a 0-2lb loss.  This morning, after my 1st day back on VLCD, as I expected, I only dropped 1lb of the huge gain and bloat from my Load. I KNOW that this is just water weight because I couldn’t have possibly eaten enough calories to put this on as real weight.   I’m praying that the whoosh comes tonight.   I’m going to make sure I drink more water and teas today, (I only drank a little over my minimum yesterday), and I’m going to have a high-protein day with chicken breast to see if I can release some of this carb-water-weight.

Go ahead with the… itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso… I should have listened and done a CLEAN RELOAD without carbs/sugars… and just stuck with protein/fat and I wouldn’t have gained so much water-weight.  Sometimes I really feel like an addict when it comes to food… **blushing**   I actually get excited to eat things that I know I won’t be allowed to eat after a certain time.

I just hope that this whole planned interruption/extension/restart leaves me weighing LESS than I would have been if I didn’t just end my round on Mar 18th at my original LIW.  It would really stink to go through all this extra VLCD/shots (with its social calender struggles) without the added benefit of dropping a few more pounds.

My STRONG advice from here on out…

IF YOU MUST RELOAD, DO IT CLEAN WITH PROTEIN & FAT… or suffer the carb-bloat consequences for days afterward!!

If only I listened… **shrug**

It’s too late now to turn back the clock.   The only thing I can do is forgive myself and move forward.   If God can forgive me, I can forgive myself. Conviction causes us to gain wisdom, change our ways and allows us to have freedom and peace… condemnation just keeps us miserable, beating ourselves up over our mistakes.  Thank God that we live under grace and not the law.  I’d never live up to the perfection expected of the people in the old testament… and expecting myself to be unflawed is no different.  I’ll chalk this mistake up as something to remember when newbies ask for advice and want to reload after a PI.

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Chicken Breast 400g

TOTAL CALORIES:  446

R3P2VLCD41 (Apr 2): A Slow Re-Start

Post VLCD 40/Post PI 1:  Loss 1.0  /  Current Weight:  149.0  /  Net Loss -15.0  / PI-LIW +5.4  / (Start 164.0)

I’m not a happy camper… I noticed that I didn’t pee anymore than usual yesterday, (the usual sign of an upcoming whoosh), so I got on the scale before bed to “guess” my morning weight, since wasn’t expecting a huge overnight drop.  My evening weight was 152, (+2 from AM weight), so I only estimated an expectation of a 0-2lb loss.  This morning, after my 1st day back on VLCD, as I expected, I only dropped 1lb of the huge gain and bloat from my Load. I KNOW that this is just water weight because I couldn’t have possibly eaten enough calories to put this on as real weight.   I’m praying that the whoosh comes tonight.   I’m going to make sure I drink more water and teas today, (I only drank a little over my minimum yesterday), and I’m going to have a high-protein day with chicken breast to see if I can release some of this carb-water-weight.

Go ahead with the… itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso, itoldyaso… I should have listened and done a CLEAN RELOAD without carbs/sugars… and just stuck with protein/fat and I wouldn’t have gained so much water-weight.  Sometimes I really feel like an addict when it comes to food… **blushing**   I actually get excited to eat things that I know I won’t be allowed to eat after a certain time.

I just hope that this whole planned interruption/extension/restart leaves me weighing LESS than I would have been if I didn’t just end my round on Mar 18th at my original LIW.  It would really stink to go through all this extra VLCD/shots (with its social calender struggles) without the added benefit of dropping a few more pounds.

My STRONG advice from here on out…

IF YOU MUST RELOAD, DO IT CLEAN WITH PROTEIN & FAT… or suffer the carb-bloat consequences for days afterward!!

If only I listened… **shrug**

It’s too late now to turn back the clock.   The only thing I can do is forgive myself and move forward.   If God can forgive me, I can forgive myself.    Conviction causes us to gain wisdom, change our ways and allows us to have freedom and peace… condemnation just keeps us miserable, beating ourselves up over our mistakes.  Thank God that we live under grace and not the law.  I’d never live up to the perfection expected of the people in the old testament… and expecting myself to be unflawed is no different.  I’ll chalk this mistake up as something to remember when newbies ask for advice and want to reload after a PI.

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I’m doing great on my high-protein day. I had coffee w/milk this morning, and nothing but chicken breast since. It’s almost 6:30 and I drank my minimum fluids already… so from here till bedtime I can drink all my “extra” fluids. I have a feeling that I’ll be doing a happy dance on the scale tomorrow.

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I know I’ve been drinking and peeing allot today. I don’t normally weigh anytime other than the morning, naked, after I “go”… but I just got tempted to take a peek on my progress. I hopped on fully clothed at 9pm, and it looks like I’m going to have a GREAT morning with a visit from the **Whoosh Fairy** tonight!

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TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Chicken Breast 400g

TOTAL CALORIES:  446

R3P2VLCD40 (Apr 1): 1st of VLCD After Planned Interruption

Post RELOAD after PI:  GAIN 3.2  /  Current Weight:  150.0  /  Net Loss -14.0  / PI-LIW +6.4  / (Start 164.0)

I’m kinda FREAKING out!  This is NOT the kind of April Fool that I can smile about.  The scale said 150lbs today! I almost want to cry… but I’m trying to keep my game face on and avoid the cortisol surge.  I was aiming for anything below 140, so I’m really scared of this reload weight and don’t know how plausible that really is anymore.  After hovering at the top end of my allowable range all interruption, I was 1.4 above LIW before this started.  I gained 2 lbs from small pre-load/cheat (really didn’t have much)… then gained 3.2 lbs from my 1-day Load.  That’s 5.2 lbs in the last 2 days… and a total of 6.6 above LIW before my interruption.

My body actually HURTS from the water retention and I don’t even recognize my face in the mirror because it’s so bloated.

To transition back into VLCD today, I plan to have a mostly “normal” day with 1 fruit, no melba, since there’s not much HCG in my system yet, but if I’m not starving later, I may not even eat my veggies.  (It’s too late to skip my apple. I already ate it.)

For the rest of this round, I commit to doing either a High-Protein Day or a Mini-Steak Day EVERY DAY.   I will not even SNIFF something that’s potentially edible, even if it is allowed on protocol.

(I only have 7 days left, including today, before my Final LIW.)

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 20oz, Milk 0.5oz, Apple 200g, Ground Turkey 100g, Fennel 300g, 95% Lean Ground Beef 100g, Onion 165g 

TOTAL CALORIES:  462

Planned Interruption Summary: Mar 20 – Mar 31st

PLANNED INTERRUPTION SUMMARY FOR MARCH 20th THRU MARCH 31st

LIW TO MAINTAIN 143.6 (Steak Day required at 145.8+)

(Re-Started HCG Mar 31 & and RE-loaded that day.  I will catch my blog back-up from from Apr 1st, to current, with separate posts.)

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Ok… ok… I’ve been MIA for a while.  Once I went on my Planned Interruption, I stopped tracking my food intake and stopped blogging for a while.  I didn’t behave as well as I should have on my last few days of VLCD without HCG.  I started celebrating my Birthday with different friends, (a bit early), while enjoying several adult beverages along with each celebration.  **whoops**

After cheating on the day of my last injection, I actually lost anyway… but after cheating again on the my 1st VLCD-Without-HCG-Day, I was already 1.2lbs above LIW… which should have been a day to create some extra-losses.  On the 2nd day without HCG, I didn’t misbehave as much and dropped 0.2 lbs.  Unlike most people, who do their last 72 hours PROPERLY, and have wiggle-room to start P3 with, instead, I was already 1lb ABOVE LIW by my first OFFICIAL day on P3. That was NOT a good place to start P3…though I can honestly say that I enjoyed myself, so I don’t have any regrets.  (my “cheats” wereP3 foods and wine)

I had a great time celebrating on my birthday (Mar 21) and luckily stayed within range the next day too… but cheated on P3 with a NYC Canolli (my first in many years) and gained BIG the next day.  By Mar 23, I was forced to do my first official Steak Day, (at no surprise to me), when I was 4.8 lbs above LIW.  Steak Day #1 dropped me 2.8 lbs, but I was still at the HIGHEST weight allowed on P3, (145.6).  I should have done a High-Protein the next day to help drop some more weight before I went back to a normal P3 day.  I stuck to P3 foods and didn’t drink that day… but I was back up to 146.6 (3lbs above LIW), the next morning.  THIS WAS MY WAKE UP CALL!! I realized that I really needed to track what I was eating to make sure that I wasn’t having a reaction to something I added back in too hastily… and to see what kind of caloric intake I was having.  I started logging my foods in www.FitDay.com again (see chart below for caloric P/C/F details).  Steak Day #2 dropped me 2lbs and I was back to LIW +1lb, feeling safe again…though it wasn’t long before I was back for my 3rd.

LESSONS LEARNED:

1. Make sure you do a PROPER 72 HOURS of VLCD from your Last Injection.  (Extra wiggle-room helps to avoid Steak Days.)
2. DO NOT BUY P3 FOODS while finishing VLCD… until you are allowed to eat them.  (Handy temptations make behaving difficult)
   
3. KEEP TRACKING FOOD INTAKE until weight stabilizes.  It keeps you conscious of your intake and helps you find intolerances.
   
4. Tell people you’re DONE drinking BEFORE you leave to use the Ladies Room.  (Drinks/Calories can magically refill themselves)
   

**I snuck that last one in because I would have stopped drinking (less calories) a few times… but they kept being poured… and the calories added up fast when I wasn’t paying attention, even though I was drinking low-carb beverages like wine, vodka and scotch.**

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LAST DAYS OF VLCD BEFORE PLANNED INTERRUPTION:

Mar 18:  Day 39 w/Shot: VLCD37- Weight 143.6  Gain 0.2 Net Loss -20.4  (PLANNED INTERRUPTION LIW)

Mar 19:  Day 40 NO Shot: VLCD39- Weight 143.2  LIW -0.4   (24 hrs w/o HCG)  …cheated last night & still dropped.

Mar 20:  Day 41 NO Shot: VLCD40- Weight 144.8  LIW +1.2  (48 hrs w/o HCG)  (…cheated bad again) 

BEGIN PHASE 3:  PLANNED INTERRUPTION FOR BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION WEEK: LIW 143.6

Goal is to MAINTAIN weight from 141.6 to 145.6 >>> STEAK DAY required @ 145.8 or above.

Mar 21:  Day 42 NO Shot: P3/PI1- Weight 144.6  LIW +1  **MY BIRTHDAY** (Start of P3)

Mar 22:  Day 43 NO Shot: P3/PI2- Weight 145.0  LIW +1.4

Mar 23:  Day 44 NO Shot: P3/PI3- Weight 148.4 LIW +4.8  (STEAK DAY)

Mar 24:  Day 45 NO Shot: P3/PI4- Weight 145.6  LIW +2.0

Mar 25:  Day 46 NO Shot: P3/PI5- Weight 146.6 LIW +3.0  (STEAK DAY) >>> CAL  1574  P  118g  C 29g  F  107g

Mar 26:  Day 47 NO Shot: P3/PI6- Weight 144.6  LIW +1.0  >>> CAL  2173  P 86g  C 71g  F 132g

Mar 27:  Day 48 NO Shot: P3/PI7- Weight 145.6  LIW +2.0  >>> CAL  1908  P 139g  C 67g  F 121g

Mar 28:  Day 49 NO Shot: P3/PI8- Weight 145.8 LIW +2.2  (STEAK DAY) >>> CAL  1133  P 96g  C 15g  F 75g

Mar 29:  Day 50 NO Shot: P3/PI9- Weight 145.0  LIW +1.4  >>> CAL  1979  P 162g  C 72g  F 122g

Mar 30:  Day 51 NO Shot: P3/PI10- Weight 144.8  LIW +1.2  (MINI-Reload/Cheat)  >>> CAL  2248  P 175g  C 68g  F 139g

RELOAD

Mar 31:  Day 52 w/Shot1: VLCD41- Weight 146.8  GAIN 2.0 PI-LIW +3.2 Net Loss  -17.2 (RELOAD)… didn’t track food intake

Here are some of my Forum Posts During my Planned Interruption

MAR 17th

Oh well…. another 0.2 lb drop. Today is my last day to lose before Birthday Week Break. (BWB) I would love to see a nice drop tomorrow, but it really doesn’t matter at this point anyway, other than a present from the Whoosh Fairy for my Birthday. 

It dawned on me that the day I’m planning to re-start happens to fall within the same time-frame that I expect TOM back again. LOL I learned my lesson last time. I’m not going to fall for that drama nonsense twice!! I will re-start Phase 2 as soon as TOM‘s gone. Luckily for me, it’s usually a short visit, and he’ll be gone in plenty of time for me to get the rest of Phase 2 completed before my Miami trip.

(To be 100% honest… I can’t seem to remember my weight this morning, and it’s too late to re-weigh. I either lost 0.2 or 0.0).

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Ha ha… I want a veggie scramble for breakfast and MUG CAKE on my Birthday! (in 4 days)   (coconut flour version, of course)

I’m trying so hard to make today a HP day, but I’m struggling with cravings and a little hunger today… probably because I know I’m SO close to doing P3. Either that, or TOM is on his way early. Just a few more days…

I don’t plan to ever do another round of HCG again, but if I ever do, I have decided that I will start post-TOM and either do a short 20-inj round… or if I need to lose more, I will do a Planned Interruption to be in P3 for TOM week… then do re-start once he leaves for another 20 injections. Personally, 6-7 consecutive weeks of P2 has been a challenge for me. I think it would keep my stress levels lower and make P2 seem more manageable in smaller chunks. Regardless… I pray that I NEVER have to do HCG again anyway!! 

MAR 18th

Between getting a slight sunburn at the tanning salon yesterday (feels fine today), doing some rollerblading since the weather was finally nice enough to be outdoors, no “output” this morning, a small cheat with 1 tbls of almond butter *guilty* and possibly something slowing me down in the current oil-free lotion I’m using, I gained 0.2 lbs for my LIW before my PI. Unlike usual, I’m not stressing out about it… because once my Planned Interruption is over, I have 9 injections left to see how much of these last 8.6 lbs I can melt off of me before my Miami trip.

I’m really looking forward to this P3 break and I’m prepared for whatever yo-yo’ing my weight may do between Mon and Sun and promise to do a steak-day immediately, if needed. No matter what happens… once I’m in P3 for good, although I will NOT cut calories at all, I will start exercising regularly again, so even if I don’t reach my weight goal by my Final LIW, I expect that the last few pounds will come off on their own anyway…as well as continued loss of inches from the HCG & from building muscle again.

Today is the warmest and sunniest (is that a word?) day that we have had since I moved back to NY in Nov. I’m heading out soon to see if I can find a park to take a walk to enjoy some fresh air… and maybe find a great spot to catch up on some of my bible reading and pray that I can make it through the next 72 hours of VLCD without my injections.

MAR 19th

I went out last night and mis-behaved a bit with some cheating that included several adult beverages. I was scared to get on the scale this morning, expecting a gain. To my surprise, I was down 0.4 lbs!!   That’s more than I’ve lost on most of the last 7 days… after the biggest cheat I’ve had all round. Sometimes life is stranger than fiction. **shrug** Maybe it was all the **Happy Dancing** I was doing last night.

**HAPPY DANCE** I stayed within LIW range… at 144.6 (dropped 0.2 since yesterday). I already had my big veggie scramble that I’ve been dreaming about all week long… with coffee and real cream. Yippie!! (A great sign: I couldn’t even eat it all… saved part for tomorrow.)

MAR 20th

I was stressing out yesterday, after embarrassing myself a bit Friday night, and had the stupid idea in my head that I was ok to keep cheating on VLCD, since it didn’t hurt me the day before…. BAD IDEA!! Without even keeping track of all the small P3 things that I was grazing on between proper meals, (like nuts and NFSF & low carb frozen yogurt), before I’m supposed to, I’m up a whopping 1.6 lbs today(1.2 above LIW)… and I deserve it.   I sure learned my lesson!!

Today is the last day I’m supposed to eat VLCD to clear the HCG out of my system. I’m throwing all cockiness aside and making sure that I behave today. I think I’m going to do a High Protein day today to clear my system after yesterday’s bad behavior. I would hate for another gain to force me into doing a real Steak Day and stop me from being able to enjoy my birthday tomorrow… or the party I plan to attend Tues night.

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I didn’t do as well as I hoped. It was a dramatic day for me… but I’m trying to make it the last few hours before bed without any more mistakes. I’m really anxious to start eating P3 tomorrow morning and already loaded the house with a few favorite items and staples.

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Weird question… If you’re on P3 and you gain over 2.2 above LIW during your normal TOM bloat, do you still do a Steak Day??

My TOM is really close… which might have been at least a small part of my gain today. I pray that I don’t gain again tomorrow, or my birthday will be a Steak Day.

MAR 21st:  MY BIRTHDAY!! 

**HAPPY DANCE** I stayed within LIW range… at 144.6 (dropped 0.2 since yesterday). I already had my big veggie scramble that I’ve been dreaming about all week long… with coffee and real cream.   Yippie!! (A great sign: I couldn’t even eat it all… saved part for tomorrow.)

MAR 24th  (skipped a few days of posts while I was celebrating)

Hey Everyone… I haven’t had the time to read up on what’s happened since I’ve been gone, but I’m back home from all the parties in Manhattan and might go to Atlantic City this Saturday… although that part in not stone yet. It depends on whether or not we can get tickets to a show before they sell out.

My weight didn’t fluctuate much for the first 2 days on P3, but by the 3rd day of parties, I had too many adult beverages and not enough protein… and chose to have a birthday cannoli. The following morning, the scale slapped me HARD. I jumped up 3.4lbs overnight… did a steak day and got just under my highest safe-weight the following morning, (today). I’m behaving on P3 again now and expect to lose a bit more tomorrow. If I don’t see another big drop tomorrow, I will do a high protein day. I don’t like staying so close to my high number…. but it’s my fault. I haven’t gotten TOM either yet… expected VERY soon. Adult beverages are clearly not “choice” calories… but I planned to celebrate my birthday with my best friend… and I had a great time.

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I wanted to add that I learned a lesson from my transition period from P2 to P3 that I will NOT repeat again. By allowing myself some P3 cheating while I was still finishing off my VLCD w/o HCG, I was already on the higher-side of my allowable range, instead of having the usual wiggle-room that I should have had. I think I could have avoided yesterday’s steak day if I behaved myself during those last 72 hours. Once I complete my Planned Interruption/Extension, I will make sure not to cheat even one tiny bite until the 72 hours are completed… so when I leave for Miami, I have plenty of wiggle room for my vacation, so I can enjoy some wine. (BTW… it seems that wine didn’t make me gain much, but vodka added up pounds fast!)

MAR 25th

Well… my High Protein day didn’t go as planned …but I’m not stressing over it. I’m 3lbs over LIW at 146.6 today. I don’t think I did it right, (ate too much cheese & nuts with it)… and gained again above my safe-zone. It’s another “Steak Day” for me… which kinda stinks because I have to cancel birthday-lunch plans with a childhood friend because I must get back within range before my plans for Sat. I’m hoping that we can reschedule for next week, since I’m not going to be able to restart P2 on this Mon anyway because TOM hasn’t arrived yet… and it usually sticks around for about 4 days. I really want to get through TOM before I restart my P2 Extension. TOM could be a small part of my stabilizing-trouble too….although most of my issue is due to user-errors during birthday celebration week.  …especially due to the inclusion of adult beverages. I’m not really a drinker, nor do I usually go to parties often… so I’m not worried about socializing effecting my long-term results.

My weight is what it is… and it just re-confirms my last post, knowing that when I make my last transition into P3, it will require STRICT VLCD for 72 hours to have lots of wiggle-room to stabilize…and much less drinking. (For the record… in case I sound like a lush or something, I rarely drink enough to ever get drunk…but alcohol is still bad calories, no matter how you slice it.)

I still have about 4-5 days of wiggle-room on my re-start date to make sure I’m in P3 before I leave for Miami. I’m planning to go there alone… so I won’t have the added pressure to eat off of my own schedule or plan… and I already have all my P3 meals planned out & and pre-paid, (I LOVE GROUPON & LIVING SOCIAL!). I researched the menus and all the restaurants I chose have lots of P3 friendly fare.

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Just finished my HUGE ribeye and apple… uuuuuooooooohhh…. **green faced smiley icon here**

First I was starving… and now I’m so stuffed that I can’t move!! LOL I couldn’t even force down the last few bites, (gave them away). I hope this rock-in-my-tummy feeling holds me over until bed.

I’ve been forcing down the fluids all day (because I was hungry) and peeing every 3 minutes all day.   I’m praying for a big post-steak-day-loss tomorrow morning. I make my coffee and most of my teas in a one of my HUGE 20-24oz mugs… (using just 1 teabag for teas).

Today, I had:

2 MUGS coffee today, both with heavy cream…total of 4tbls cream. (48oz? yikes)
16oz cup of Mint Medly Herbal Tea. (16oz)
I’m almost done with my 4th 24oz bottle of water now…& may have more. (96oz)
I may have a MUG of Ginger Tea if my tummy doesn’t settle soon. (24oz)
I plan to have a MUG of Senna Tea right before bed to help “MOVE” this steak out. (24oz)

If I finish my water and the last 2 mugs of tea, that will be 208oz of fluids… or 160 oz, if you don’t include the coffee, (which I usually don’t count). No wonder why I feel like I’m going to float away. The only thing holding me down is the HUGE ribeye and apple in my belly. LOL

Maybe I can get to bed early for a change. This “Steak Day” messed up my plans for today, but I was able to reschedule them for next week. I guess I’m spending Friday night at home… oh well. Tomorrow will be worth it.

MAR 26th

I dropped 2.0 lbs from my Steak Day, so I’m back down to 144.6 (+1.0 above LIW). My cat woke me up early today, (she’s not happy with her toilet training seat). After my happy weigh-in, I had greek yogurt and blueberries with coffee and heavy cream for breakfast. I told myself I would avoid cheeses and nuts today to try to drop below LIW, but late morning, a friend invited me over for a late home-cooked breakfast, (really my lunch), and I was in the mood to be pampered, (it’s still my extended-birthday, right??). I made sure they knew “no starch or sugar”… but when they started making kitchen magic and kicked me out of the kitchen, I didn’t have the heart to stop them from making scrambled eggs w/feta & fresh coffee, along with a beautiful display of tomatoes, fresh imported feta, fresh mozzarella, swiss & olives. I felt like I was in the Mediterranean, having breakfast in a room full of windows, overlooking the Long Island Sound. I ate it all like a gracious guest… and it was Mmmmm Good!   I plan to go out to dinner tonight.  I will make sure they have low-carb options… and will probably have a glass or two of red wine with my meal too.
I managed to avoid nuts today… and made sure to add some fat, by having some cocoa crack this afternoon… and cooked up a fresh batch of chicken breast to make sure I don’t slip on my protein intake. OH MY GOSH! I just realized, after drowning myself yesterday, that I haven’t had much water today. It’s 4:30pm… I better start drinking NOW!!

Ahhh… I’m really enjoying P3 and all the meal options, especially for eating out.   I pray that I stay within range for the rest of my interruption, so I can continue enjoying it. I don’t want to do another SD again if I can avoid it. I admit that returning to P2 again doesn’t sound like fun, but I definitely want to lose these last 8-10 pounds before Miami… and bikini/beach season… so suffering through another 10 days of it won’t kill me. As soon as “TOM” comes & goes, I will restart P2…(expected in 24-48 hrs). It will be nice to see how much of this bloat leaves along with it too.

MAR 27th

I have a new pet peeve. Why do people order (or pour) you another drink when you’re in the bathroom? I know they are just trying to be nice, but HEY!!…I’m trying to count calories here!! (…and do NOT want to get drunk) Do I have to “hold it” all night to keep my wine glass from being refilled?… or just stop hanging out with people who have an aversion to empty glasses. LOL Hence… I’m back up to my borderline weight again 145.6… and it’s not because I’m having trouble stabilizing for any normal reasons. It’s because everyone who wants to celebrate my birthday with me seems to insist that celebrations must include a few drinks. Hmmm… maybe I should just start telling people that I’m an alcoholic, just so they’re not so pushy….just kidding…  LOL
(I know I can say no… I’m just trying to make light of it. Once I’m done with this round, I will NOT be “celebrating” all the time. This week has been too much for me already. I rarely have more than 1-2 glasses of wine a WEEK… and that and more seems like a daily intake this week.)

Sigh… I’m going to be late to church. Gotta run….

MAR 28th

Oh well… I behaved myself yesterday, but looks like another Steak Day for me… and I’m actually HAPPY about it this time.   I only gained 0.2 lbs, but I was already at the height of my allowable range yesterday and didn’t drink enough fluids, nor did I think to take any Senna Tea last night. Either one would have been all it would have taken to avoid a SD today. TOM still hasn’t arrived yet either, although it’s really close, so it might be causing me some bloating too.

If I can avoid it, timing-wise, I would prefer if I was not stuck eating VLCD while driving to Miami, but I will do whatever it takes to make sure I end this round with strict VLCD until 72 hours past my LIW. I have 9 injections left, which would have been 11 days on VLCD, but since TOM is taking so long to arrive, (and I’m trying to avoid being on VLCD during TOM), it looks like I may have to load again…although I’m not sure if I will do a full 2-day load. Today is day 10 without HCG already. Technically, 4/1/11 would be exactly 2 weeks without injections… and from reading here, it seems like most people who have taken long interruptions have a hard time eating VLCD their first day back on injections, so I’m planning at least a 1-day Load. P&I recommends a FULL 2 day load if I have to wait until 4/1 to re-start…but with only 9 injections left, I’m not sure if I want to load for 2 days again. Either way, I will probably skip 1 injection during my last 9, just to have an extra day of VLCD, since I will have to re-load a bit. I wonder if it might even be a good idea to Re-start & Load DURING TOM…once it lightens up. Opinions??

BTW…If you’re wondering why I would be happy about doing a SD today…
The last couple times I had to do a Steak Day, I was +5 and +3 lbs above LIW. My SD got me back within range, but I have been hovering on the higher end of my Safety Zone during my whole Planned Interruption. THIS TIME, only 2.2 above LIW, I’m looking forward to this SD getting me to my LIW or even below it… giving me some wiggle room until I can start P2 again. When I haven’t done anything “wrong” the day before, it will be nice to wake up in the morning, without stressing if it will be another SD. (If I misbehave, I just expect it and deal with it.)

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BTW… I’m doing a **happy dance** for seeing the first signs of TOM‘s arrival.  YEAH!! Now my schedule should work out perfectly… even with 1-2 load days.

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CHANGE OF PLANS: Please help me decide.

Before I decided to do a planned extension, I was sloppy when drawing my HCG and wasn’t concerned about losing a little while I was pushing out air bubbles, as long as I got my full dose. I drew the rest of my vial today to see how many shots I have left. I thought I had 9 doses left… but I only have 7 1/2 shots left. I might get hungry sooner, but I’m thinking about using the 1/2 shot as my last shot to stretch it out to 8 injection days.

My goal is to have as many VLCDs as possible to finish R3 to get as close to my goal as possible… yet not make it impossible on myself either. From what I’ve read about other people’s experiences with Planned Interruptions, I don’t think I can re-start without at least 1 load day because people seem to have a really hard time with hunger when they have been off HCG as long as I have. (I will have gone 12 days without HCG by the time I restart… and 14 days off requires 2 full load days)

I’m thinking about doing 1 load day… 4 injections, skip 1 day, then 4 injections (last is a 1/2 dose)… which would give me 7 days on VLCD w/shots before LIW. Afterward, I’ll make sure to do the 72 hours of of VLCD w/o shots to create some wiggle room to avoid future Steak Days a little easier than this time.

It’s decision time…

What would you do?

Would you try to finish up with only 1 Load day? … or attempt to restart without any?

Would you use or toss the last 1/2 dose?

Would you do 4 injection days, skip 1 injection, then take the last 3 1/2 injections over the next 4 days… or would you just take them 8 days in a row and end your round?

ADDED: Whatever happens… I promise not to throw a hissy fit or a pity party if I don’t reach my goal of 135lbs. I expect to get very close to it, even if it becomes out of reach due to having less days on VLCD. If I’m lucky, I might just lose the last couple pounds during P3, unintentionally.

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I SKIPPED A BUNCH OF POSTS HERE WHERE I WAS ASKING OTHERS FOR ADVICE AND THEIR EXPERIENCES WITH A SIMILAR SITUATION.  THIS POST IS LONG ENOUGH NOT TO INCLUDE THEM TOO… TOO MUCH ALREADY.  YOU CAN FIND THE WHOLE DISCUSSION HERE IF YOU ARE INTERESTED:  http://hcgdietinfo.com/hcgdietforums/f40/superbowl-losers-new-round-game-17560/index22.html

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MAR 29th

My decision has been made. Due to TOM, I’m going to wait until Thursday to restart my HCG and will do 1-Load Day, of mostly protein/fat. To extend it as long as I can, I will take 4 doses, skip 1 dose, then take 3 full doses and my last 1/2 dose… so I have a total of 8 days on VLCD w/HCG… before my 72 hours begins. Even though I’m only getting a 1/2 dose on my last day, I am determined to stick to the FULL 72 hour rule… to do everything I can to create wiggle room for better stabilization success. I will be leaving NY to drive to Miami on the 2nd day of P3, and packing a cooler of P2/P3 goodies for the road… along with my scale.

Ahhhh… I feel better now. I operate best when I have a game plan.

MAR 30th

After all that planning and plotting, I admit to doing a little bit of pre-loading tonight. I bought a few favorites (italian pastries) that I’ve missed and won’t be able to touch for the next few months (after P4). I guess my load won’t be very “clean” after all. I expect a small gain tomorrow… and a bigger gain after my Injection/Load tomorrow, but I know that by Sunday, I will weigh less than today… and expect it to be all downhill from there until I get as close as I can to my goal by my last injection.

Although 135 has been my goal this whole time, as long as I’m under 140 at LIW, I will be VERY happy… and will likely see the last few pounds fall off unintentionally as soon as I start exercising again anyway. Unlike my normal self, I’ve been mostly a couch/desk potato for the past 7+ weeks, partly because of the weather here and partly because of the VLCD… and I can’t wait to exercise again. The weather is finally starting to get warm enough to walk again… maybe even run or doing some rollerblading. I plan to start lifting again soon too… as soon as I get my weight stabilized in P3 without the threat of regular steak days.

When I return to P3 again, I will try to listen to my body, instead of just trying to eat “enough” calories… and see how my appetite controls my weight, instead of “making” myself eat, just to get my calories up. I think that could help me maintain too. (Only time and daily weighing will tell how well that works… and I will continue to track my food until my weight stabilizes well for several weeks, to see if it works.)

MAR 31st

Yikes… I expected to have some bloat today, from my mini-pre-load cheat last night (italian pastries)… but 2lbs overnight? I know its water retention and will disappear fast, along with whatever I put on from today’s reLoad… but I was kinda surprised that I gained so much. I usually don’t gain much when I load…. although I tend NOT to eat anything resembling healthy food before starting any new diet, so that’s probably the reason.

Sometimes I forget that carbohydrates require 3 molecules of water to carry them through your body, so eating carbs when you’ve been living in a lyposis-state for so long will always make the scale jump. That’s why people drop so fast on their first week of Atkins or even on HCG, (losing water weight… before they start losing fat at a slower rate).

No worries… whatever I gain from now until tomorrow morning should be gone after 1-2 days on VLCD… so I’m going to enjoy Loading while I can and try not to eat too many more carbs.

As for me today… **HAPPY DANCE** I stayed within LIW range… at 144.6 (dropped 0.2 since yesterday). I already had my big veggie scramble that I’ve been dreaming about all week long… with coffee and real cream. Yippie!! (A great sign: I couldn’t even eat it all… saved part for tomorrow.)

R3P2VLCD38 (Mar 19): I Actually LOST after a Big Cheat

Post VLCD37:  Loss 0.4 -  Current Weight:  143.2  -  Net Loss -20.8   (Start 164.0)

Yesterday (3-18-11), was my last injection.  I’m supposed to be eating VLCD for the next 72 hours… then I will go to Phase 3 for the next 7-14 days before I complete the rest of R3P2.

I went out last night and mis-behaved a bit with some cheating that included several adult beverages. I was scared to get on the scale this morning, expecting a gain.  To my surprise, I was down 0.4 lbs!!    That’s more than I’ve lost on most of the last 7 days… after the biggest cheat I’ve had all round.  Sometimes life is stranger than fiction. **shrug**  Maybe it was all the **Happy Dancing** I was doing last night.

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TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 16oz, Milk .5 oz, Chicken 250g, Cabbage 200g, Lean Ground Beef 100g, Ground Turkey 100g, Almond Butter 2tbls, Melba x2… TOTAL CALORIES 811

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This blog was for Mar 19th:  I forgot to post it on the 20th… then disappeared for my Planned Interruption/Birthday Week.  I know I’m WAY behind on my blog.  I haven’t been tracking my food intake for the past several days on my Planned Interruption, but I will put together a blog post to cover my ups and downs.  I should be re-starting P2 by this Thurs or Fri, (I’m waiting for TOM to come and go).

NOTE: You can usually visit my Blog and click on the “Weight Tracker R3″ at the top of the page to see how my weight has been doing… even when my blog posts slow down.

 

R3P2VLCD37 (Mar 18): LIW Before Planned Interruption

Post VLCD36:  Gain 0.2 -  Current Weight:  143.6  -  Net Loss -20.4   (Start 164.0)

Between getting a slight sunburn at the tanning salon yesterday (feels fine today), doing some rollerblading since the weather was finally nice enough to be outdoors, no “output” this morning, a small cheat with 1 tbls of almond butter *guilty* and possibly something slowing me down in the current oil-free lotion I’m using, I gained 0.2 lbs for my LIW before my PI.  Unlike usual, I’m not stressing out about it… because once my Planned Interruption is over, I have 9 injections left to see how much of these last 8.6 lbs I can melt off of me before my Miami trip.

I’m really looking forward to this P3 break and I’m prepared for whatever yo-yo’ing my weight may do between Mon and Sun and promise to do a steak-day immediately, if needed.  No matter what happens… once I’m in P3 for good, although I will NOT cut calories at all, I will start exercising regularly again, so even if I don’t reach my weight goal by my Final LIW, I expect that the last few pounds will come off on their own anyway…as well as continued loss of inches from the HCG & from building muscle again.

Today is the warmest and sunniest (is that a word?) day that we have had since I moved back to NY in Nov.  I’m heading out soon to see if I can find a park to take a walk to enjoy some fresh air… and maybe find a great spot to catch up on some of my bible reading and pray that I can make it through the next 72 hours of VLCD without my injections.

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 16oz, Milk .5 oz, Orange 225g, Chicken 133g, Miso Soup, Mixed Sashimi 5oz, Saki & Red Wine (??), NFSF Frozen Yogurt … TOTAL CALORIES:  1400??  (I’ve been naughty… cheated.)

R3P2VLCD36 (Mar 17): I guess I’m a Tortoise, not a Hare *shrug*

Post VLCD35:  Loss 0.2 -  Current Weight:  143.4  -  Net Loss -20.6   (Start 164.0)

Oh well…. another 0.2 lb drop.  Today is my last day to lose before Birthday Week Break.  (BWB)   I would love to see a nice drop tomorrow, but it really doesn’t matter at this point anyway, other than a present from the Whoosh Fairy for my Birthday. 

It dawned on me that the day I’m planning to re-start happens to fall within the same time-frame that I expect TOM back again.   LOL  I learned my lesson last time.  I’m not going to fall for that drama nonsense twice!!  I will re-start Phase 2 as soon as TOM’s gone.  Luckily for me, it’s usually a short visit, and he’ll be gone in plenty of time for me to get the rest of Phase 2 completed before my Miami trip.

(To be 100% honest… I can’t seem to remember my weight this morning, and it’s too late to re-weigh. I either lost 0.2 or 0.0).

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I did a little food shopping today and picked up some freshly ground Almond Butter for my P3 break.  It was too much for me to handle, and I ended up cheating by eating 1tbls of it.  Just knowing that P3 is coming up, my cravings have been getting out of hand and some hunger has been sneaking in too.  I ended up doing some unplanned protocol eating of some cucumbers and a melba toast too.

 

TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 16oz, Milk .5 oz, Apple 200g, Chicken 133g, Greek Yogurt 1 cup, Egg Whites 1 cup, Almond Butter 1tbls, Melba 1, Cucumbers 270g… TOTAL CALORIES:  658

R3P2VLCD35 (Mar 16): Slow but steady…

Post VLCD34:  Loss 0.2 -  Current Weight:  143.6  -  Net Loss -20.4   (Start 164.0)

 

After a normal protocol day (w/1 fruit & no melba), I’m down 0.2 again, for the 3rd time this week. At least .2 + .2 + .2 = .6, right??  **rolleyes**  I’ve given up the dream that I will hit 140 before I go on my birthday week break, with 3.6 lbs to go and only 2 weigh-ins left.  With 9 more days of injections coming up before the end of my round, 135 seems like it’s still within reach before Round 3 ends.  Maybe a break is what I need to shake things up inside this body and mentally get back into this full force to finish up strong.  I’ve read great things about what a Planned Interruption can do for some people.

Looking back on my week, I noticed something:
The day before I lost 1.0 lbs, I had a chicken breast and greek yogurt day.
The day before I lost 0.6 lbs, I had a greek yogurt and egg white day.

Both of these days, I didn’t have any beef, which I was purposely trying to eat MORE of lately, doing MS days.  Noticing this, it made me look back and see how well I lost after my mini-steak days.  I see that I lost 1.2 lbs after doing 2 of them in a row on Mar 8 & 9, but the next two times I tried MS days (Mar 12 & 13), I only dropped 0.2 lbs the next day.   Maybe my body doesn’t like to have beef so often, but only to stir things up.

I already ate an apple this morning while typing this up, but now that I’ve analyzed things, for the rest of the day, I’m going to do a high-protein day WITHOUT beef and see what happens.   I would really LOVE a visit from the **Whoosh Fairy** before my interruption, but if it doesn’t happen, I won’t stress over it.  I’m already feeling good about how my body looks… and I don’t have to be seen publicly in a bikini until after I finish the rest of this round anyway.

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I ended up going out to dinner at a sushi restaurant and chose green tea, yellowtail tuna sashimi and miso soup.   Of my options, it was the best I could find, although I know tuna is not allowed on protocol.

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TODAY I ATE:

Coffee 16oz, Milk .5 oz, Apple 200g, Chicken 133g, Tuna Sashimi 1.5oz, Miso Soup 1 cup, Greek Yogurt 1 cup… TOTAL CALORIES:  506