It's 'DIE' with a T on the end!

I never go on diets.  Really.  Hard to believe if you are aware that I've been using the HCG protocol to lose fat quickly, but it's true. 

I want to change my lifestyle. 

The term "diet" to me means some sort of harmful fad - the Cabbage Soup Diet, the Dolly Parton Diet, the Atkins Diet, the Diet Du Jour.

So what makes the difference for me?

The HCG protocol is done in short "rounds".  21 days is the minimum round. 40 days is the max. It is followed by another 21 days of stabilizing, and 21 days of maintenence.  Ideally (and I recommend) you use this time to shake the McDonald's and sugar addictions.  For 21 - 40 days you release weight, and then you replenish your body. 

The protocol is also supplemented with a hormone shown to be efficacious in helping the body release fat.  Ihad previously noticed that I lost a lot of weight immediately after a miscarriage - 60 pounds in a summer.  The grief from the miscarriage killed my appetite, I avoided McD's (fast food is one of my weaknesses), I walked around the block at lunchtime.  I'd been doing those things for a long time and didn't lose - when my body was flooded with HCG I did.

When I first heard about HCG, I thought, "I can do anything for 21 days!"

If you follow the protocol exactly, you'll release the weight quickly.  I believe it is vital to follow up with good health, fitness, and nutrition habits. 

This isn't a "quick fix" or a "magic bullet."  It's simple, but not easy.  But in conjunction with all the other things I'm sure you've been doing to lose weight, it can certainly seem like the answer to a prayer.

Not doing so well this weekend....

I fell off the wagon a little this weekend - weighed in this morning at 159.0 pounds!  I've got to get my head straight or I'm going to have an awful time getting this weight off.

I am convinced that a lot of weight gain is emotional.  It's so easy to do a lot of emotional eating when you're not really hungry, and that's where I've been the past week or so.  Time to straighten myself out!

Water! Do you drink enough?

Most people don't.  In fact, water is one of the most important nutrients we can consume!  It's so easy for me to drink copious amounts of Diet Coke and forget all about water.

Our bodies are about 70% water.  We can survive for quite some time without food, but only a day or so without water.  Water lubricates our joints, keeps our skin soft and youthful, and carries waste products out of our bodies.  Like, you know, extra fat.

Some people dislike drinking water because they don't want the "water weight."  If you haven't been drinking enough water, some annoying side effects will develop, like the need to pee every few minutes and some water retention or bloat.  The great thing, though, is that as your body realizes it's finally getting - and staying - hydrated, those side effects go away.

If you like coffee, tea, or sodas, water becomes more important. Caffeine is a diuretic, so the water you lose to drinking caffeinated drinks must be replaced.  If you enjoy alcoholic beverages, you can avoid a hangover by drinking plenty of water with them (as well as after your binge).

So sip on water throughout the day.  If you really hate your water plain, float some lemon slices in it.

Your body will thank you.

Accountability and Weight Loss

My first round on HCG, I did lose an average of a pound a day.  My boyfriend, Tim Boone, was a huge support at that time.  He'd ask me what I was permitted on the protocol and took me to restaurants that would cater to my needs.  He travels a lot for work, so I'd text him every morning with my loss of the day. 

Accountability is important for any venture.  If I don't show up for boot camp, Mat texts me to let me know that he noticed, and he checks with me to see if I've done my cardio. 

That's really part of the reason for this blog.  I need to hold myself accountable - to the entire Internet, if need be! - so that this next round will be as successful as the first one was. 

I actually *want* to run!

This is exciting to me!

I've hated running since I hit puberty.  Loved it as a kid - I remember running all over the playground in elementary school, enjoying my body.

Then puberty hit.  Running started to hurt.  (No sports bras in the early 80s.  No good ones for women who need them in the 21st century, for that matter.)  And it became a job.

You know, once something becomes an obligation, the fun runs right out of it.

Well, since I've been working out regularly, Mat makes us do some running.  Not a lot.  Not distance.  But some.

I started doing wind sprints with my kids.  I run as hard as I can from my driveway to the next one, and then walk to the next one, then run, etc.

You know what?

It's fun!

It feels good to use my body again!

It feels good to outrun my kids - regularly!  Except Jared.  He's 7.  He cheats by running back and forth in front of me so I can't pass him. We end up laughing so hard, that's a workout all by itself.

Trouble stabilizing

I came off my last round about 2 1/2 weeks ago, and I'm having trouble stabilizing my weight.  I think a lot of it is due to extra stress plus failure to work out, plus emotional eating.  I'm doing a steak day today, but I also desperately want sweets.  Even straight sugar would fix the craving.  I keep telling myself that all I have to do is get to bedtime.  

I've gained back about 5 pounds since ending my round, which is disappointing.  I plan to begin loading for a new round on the 4th of July, This past shot I cheated all the time - a Pop Tart here, a cookie there - and I'm finding that it does make things much harder to stabilize now.  Hopefully holding myself accountable will help.

Where I Started in My Weightloss Journey

I started working with EXL Fitness back in August of 2009.  At that time, I was pushing 200 pounds. Not quite there, but close enough to make me nervous.  My size 14 clothes were getting to small.  I didn't have the idea that I was grossly overweight - but I also knew my health was on the line.

That first boot camp work out kicked butt - mostly mine.  I worked with Pam Gover, and was startled to see how weak I had become over the 8 years of my now-ended marriage.

When I was single, I worked out all the time, sometimes twice a day, every day, and was very active and athletic.  With 2 kids born during my 30s, I didn't have the stamina to do what I had done in my 20s.  I was unhappy in my marriage, and ended up sleeping all the time, dragging around the house, and choking down my misery with Bavarian creme eclairs.

After working out a couple of months, I was getting stronger, but I didn't feel like I was losing pounds like I wanted to.  So on October 24, I began using a homeopathic HCG.

When I started the drops, I was 190 pounds, size 14, and had a waist measurement of 34" (and that was with my gut sucked in as hard as I could manage).  I remember being just devestated when I took my measurements because when I was younger, my CHEST measured 34", not my waist!  I knew I had a tummy, but I kept excusing myself saying it was from having kids (I have 5, 4 by c-section).

As of today, my waist measures 28", and I am 155.  I'm so excited about my success (yes, I still have 20 - 30 pounds to go) that I want to share it with you....what I did, what I'm doing, and how you can achieve the same thing. 

It's entirely doable.  It isn't an easy fix.  But if I can do it, you can too.