My HCG Journal. Looks like I need to start one!

[verbqueen]

Hi, Cheryl!

And Dessa, haven't seen you in ages! How's the little man?

Something for both of you to think about, and just take it for what it cost you, which was nothing, haha. You don't have to eat just because it's a holiday or something is a family event. You can do whatever YOU want to do. It's all in your very own hands. Just something to ponder.

Have a great day!

[CherylB]

I'm just not built that way, VQ. I feel like I'm not part of the celebration if i don't eat the food being offered. I'd rather not go! I wish I didn't feel that way, but I do. I've brought my own foods to Thanksgiving and to Christmas (when doing Atkins) and I felt good about myself, but seems I always went off plan on another day, soon after. I'd do it "in the closet" at home. I just can't feel left out or it spells disaster. Better to just plan to partake and then pick up where I left off. Life is too short.

[tay65]

I think if its planned, you can better control your eating. And you wont feel guilty or deprived. Thats how I felt saturday. No guilt here!

[CherylB]

That's good! No guilt allowed!

I'm down another 2.4 of the regain today. Marvelous! Still in the 170's, though. 173.0. I feel so HEAVY in this range. Going up stairs feels like it used to when I was well over 200 lbs. I still can't believe I let myself get so big, and can't fathom how I managed to function at the weight.

No more! I know what it feels like to be in the lower decades and I will never get that big again.

I hope everyone has a lovely Tuesday! It's bright and sunny and warmish here.

[tay65]

Its warm here...70*. I started my driops today. Being up over 3 lbs isn't working for me! I wonder if this is a preview of things to happen. I hope not!

[CherylB]

What did you eat on your interruption? Was it P3 foods? I remember you said you were eating bacon but couldn't have the chicken which had bbq sauce on it. Well, it will leave shortly. Hang tight!

I didn't eat until after 3 pm today (happens sometimes) and so I reweighed before eating and I was down another lb! So 172 and counting down.

It was 70 degrees here, too! Wild, fluctuating weather. I wish I lived farther south!

[tay65]

The only thing I can think that derailed my effort was the party Saturday. But I don't know why it kept creeping up! The rest of the days I stayed on the P3 foods. Now I am very worried for myself. How am I going to maintain my loss?
I feel better I have my drops again.

[CherylB]

Don't worry about it. Just restart P2 + when you begin P3 again, be very strict about what you eat + slowly build up your calories + fat over the first week.

Goodnight, ladies! Sleep tight.

[paulabob]

Originally Posted by tay65

The only thing I can think that derailed my effort was the party Saturday. But I don't know why it kept creeping up! The rest of the days I stayed on the P3 foods. Now I am very worried for myself. How am I going to maintain my loss?
I feel better I have my drops again.

I agree with Cheryl. It's par and normal for the course. During P2 you are literally just about starving, and it's normal for weight to regain rapidly when you transition out. But the P3 plan really works. I know for me, it took about 10 days to 3 weeks after each round before I could eat normally, but it did happen. In fact I could eat considerably more without gaining by the end of that time than I could before my first round. At 204 pounds, I was gaining weight if I ate more than 1500 calories a day - my metabolism was really messed up after years of trying to lose weight. After my first round, when I was down to 176 pounds, I could eat 1800-2000 calories a day.

[CherylB]

That's awesome, Paula! I'm glad someone agrees with me! So many believe that in order to reset your metabolism at your maximum calories that you need to dive right in and eat right up to that number. I don't think it's a good plan, personally. I was so used to eating little that it took me a while before I got over 1000 cals per day, and even then I was leery of things like butter and mayo. I was so used to the butter spray by then that it was just better to stick with that.

Also, doing Atkins, I used to love LWC in my coffee. With my first P2 I learned (was hard, but I did learn) to like coffee black. Even when I got back to P3 and fats were allowed, I decided to keep drinking my coffee black. Why go back when it's added calories and fat and you're already accustomed to it?

I just tried to put to use some of the things I learned in P2 and apply them to P3.

[TerriMM]

I'm glad to hear you guys talk about that. I have suspected that the diving right in and pushing the calories is one of the reasons for my rocky P3s. May work for some, but not so much for me. I'm hoping by just eating to satisfaction and progressing more slowly will make my P3 more successful this time.

[TerriMM]

And congrads Cheryl on the excellent losses!

[CherylB]

Thanks, Terri! I hope the slower approach to P3 works well for you next time. I mean, let's face it. We're going to be eating less and less as we grow older. Our bodies need less and less as we age. I'm 49 so I'm half way to the grave myself! (LOL)

I'm down another 1.2 today! This is amazing. But if this was a JUDDD plan, this would be a definite up day. I went shopping and caved to a quart of eggnog. I'm having glass after glass and it is just delightful! No solid food yet today but I'll eat something eventually. No shortage of calories in eggnog!

I can make eggnog on Atkins, which is going to be fun and nice for the holidays. I've made it before and it's very good!

I bought some things today that are unusual for me to buy. I bought some new makeup and two pairs of pantyhose (buy 1 get 1!). I also bought some new hair clips and hair bands. I never buy stuff like that. But I want to start wearing more makeup again. I look so much better with some paint. I'm a rather bland individual without it and I've gotten lazy over the years. I think it's time to start putting more effort into it.

I'm sort of getting jazzed about doing Atkins for a while. It will be a nice change. I even bought a spiral-cut ham at the store and stuck it in the freezer! Yummy. I'll skip the glaze, though.

That's about all. I am going to try and get caught up on my other threads now. Catch ya later!

[TerriMM]

I'm a firm believer in living your life, not just struggling through it (enough of that without trying). My sister likes to sign her emails "Make it a great day or not, it's your choice".

Choosing Living!

[CherylB]

Amen! I love that. I remember eons ago, there was a nice young man who was a morning news show host. He always used to end the program with the words, "Make it a good day today." It was a great saying then and it STILL is!

I have a bookmark that has a saying by Abraham Lincoln: "Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be." Good 'ol Abe!

Clothes are washing, towels are folded and put away. Video camera is ready and both batteries are fully charged. Charging camera battery now. Bought the card for the happy couple and got the cash to put inside. I think I'm on schedule for this party! Now if the rain will just blow away, we'll be just perfect.

[TerriMM]

Have a wonderful time Cheryl!

[tay65]

Cheryl, have fun at the party! I don't know what a jack and jill party is, but it sounds fun.
Guess what I lost 3.4 lbs! Now I'm in virgin territory! Its exciting. Maybe the party and my attempt at P3ing helped me out.

[CherylB]

Great Whoosh, Tammy! A Jack & Jill is a wedding shower for both the man and woman. It is my nephew and his fiance that are living and working in Indiana right now. They are not close to each other even though in the same state finally. But they can see each other much more often now.

I'll report how it all went later on. It doesn't start until 5 so we'll see how long it lasts. I have no idea but it's a big deal.

I'm down another 0.4 which is a shocker after drinking all that eggnog yesterday. I thought I'd be up for sure. It was sooooo gooooood.

TTYL, ladies. I'll check back after the party, unless it runs very late. Have a great day!

[CherylB]

Forcing myself to post here because I'm running on fumes. The party was great. Very loud and many people; maybe a 1/3 of whom I didn't know. I met a few of them and the rest stayed strangers to me. I got tons of compliments and admiration from all who know me well and it felt great. I actually couldn't resist saying, "Well, I'm still up 10 lbs from September 2, but thank you!" I could have just said thank you because they wouldn't have known, but it seemed like I needed to confess or something.

I took tons of pics and videos. I'm now having trouble uploading the pics from the camera to the computer. It always was so easy! Hook up the usb cord, turn on the camera and the program would just open and the new pics would show up on the screen and you'd highlight them to download them and I'd be off to the races. I'll upload them on my little-used, newer desktop computer upstairs. It has room and the little old laptop is nearly full. I wish I knew things to delete and just clean house a little!

I have an appointment to see an apartment in Morris, CT. It's in the same county I live in now but it is very close to Bantam Lake. It would be all new, unfamiliar territory for me (us) but it might be a nice change. I'll see what there is for shopping centers and stuff. That's important. There needs to be pizza delivery places, too. Sometimes you just need to order pizza in your PJ's!

I'm up 3 lbs from the party but I didn't pig out. I ate very sensibly but when I came back home I ate the small amount of "doggy bag" food I took home with me. Tomorrow morning is day one on Atkins and I'm happy and excited for the change! I've been off Atkins for months and months so the novelty is great!

Have a super night tonight! Hugs to all! Peace and safety to you.

[CherylB]

Don't know if anyone is still here but I'm very sick today. I woke up with a terrible cold and I am not well at all. I didn't start Atkins today as I had planned. Instead I broke down and ordered Chinese food to be delivered so I could have an assortment of soups without cooking. I hope this isn't a long-lasting cold but I fear it may be. Hope everyone else is well! Healthy and happy, enjoying your weekend.

[privatediva]

enjoy your soup, Cheryl and hope you feel better quickly. I'm going to bed

[tay65]

I hope you feel better tomorrow. Enjoy those soups! Get well !
Its been my experience that the forst couple days are always the worst. I hate getting those never ending runny noses too! Get some soft Kleenex soon before your nose turns red.

[verbqueen]

Golly, you can sure tell it's cold and flu season again...sorry you are sick. Hallie has had that thing Deb has: high fever, aches and pains and unbearably sore throat. She missed several days of work last week. She started feeling better today.

Hope yours goes away fast. Take vitamins and sleep a lot!

[paulabob]

Hope you woke up feeling better. I hate colds! DH & DS have been coughing for almost two weeks now, poor things!

[CherylB]

Thanks, everyone. So nice to see so many well-wishes on my journal this morning! Unfortunately this one is settling in for a long while. It's moved down into my chest overnight. I just took my first dose of Robitussin. Thankfully I had some of that left over.

In a short while I'm going to take my echinacea, vitos and some motrin. Will drink as much water as feels right. I think I will have a productive cough very soon. It's no biggee. Just wish I had someone to nurse me back to health right now.

The delivery folks will have to be my stand-ins for that. I wish I could get someone to delivery from the pharmacy and grocery store. I'm not going out into the world being this sick. I'd have to pack my nostrils and put on a surgical mask to hide the packing. Then I'd be paranoid about everything I touched, worrying I'd be causing someone else to become ill.

I ate the chicken and rice soup yesterday and today I can either have the eggdrop, the wonton or the hot and sour. I ordered all four, knowing it would do me the most good. I will try and sleep as much as I can. That's always the best way to get through something tough. Sleep your life away! Well, that's my theory anyway.

I'm sorry so many have been infected with this bug. Seems like it's coast to coast. How do you know if it's a cold or the flu? I haven't gotten a flu shot in a number of years and I've always been fine. My time was up!

I am achey and a bit chilled this morning but it's back to being cold here overnight and so I don't know if it's internal or external. Keeping the thermostat a little lower than usual to conserve heating oil. I have the hot pad on high and it's in my bed, warming my lower legs. Seems if my feet are warm, the rest of me benefits.

I checked my temp first thing and it's only 97.7. But I'm hypothyroid and that's my usual temp. If I ever get near 99, that's my 102 degree equivalent. Over 100 and I'm really sick! (Oops. 99.8 just now.)

Stay well today! Use your Purell!!! (Any brand will do.) Keep some in your car and use it after every shopping trip. Carry a little one in your purse, too. If you already touched your keys and steering wheel, wipe some on those things, too. Keep your hands away from your face! And do air kisses when you greet people.

That's my advice for the day. Off to see how many threads I can weed my way through before I need to sleep. I hope I can nap!

Deb, I hope you are indeed feeling better today, as Jessica said. Tammy, I really hope you're right about the first few days! Be well today.

[tay65]

Well, starting to not feel "right". I have a headache and I'm having to blow my nose once in a while! Ok Cheryl.....you gave it to me! LOL Nah, probably the casino machines! As much as I wash my hands I shouldn't get sick. I formed that habit as a nurses aid. And now with the baby I use hand sanitizer and wash hands very often! This will be my second cold this year.
Sounds like you have the flu Cheryl. Colds are more manageable I think. But I'm not a dr! And really, it takes going to the dr to confirm the flu.
Relax and eat your soup. get well.

[CherylB]

Tammy, I really hope you aren't coming down with it too. It does seem to be very pervasive right now. Glad to hear you are aware of hand cleansing. I've been in people's homes and I'm shocked to see how many don't have soap in the bathroom or by their kitchen sink. Creeps me out.

I am feeling a bit better. I seem to be morphing through the various phases every couple of hours. I'm thinking it won't last too much longer. I'm going to keep taking care of myself and popping pills and drinking fluids and hoping for the best.

Didn't need a nap this afternoon. Feel better than yesterday, just different symptoms. I hope everyone has a wonderful Sunday Eve!

[CherylB]

I feel good enough (cold-wise) to venture into Atkins. I still have a couple quarts of soup from the Chinese place but I think they'll freeze well. I just weighed (wasn't first thing in the morning or fasting) but I was 173.2. I am going to be back to my lowest weight (that was probably just a figment of my imagination for one day) of 159.6 very soon.

Enjoying having cream in my coffee again! Been since March since I drank it that way. Had my first meal of 2 HB eggs (nuked the way I've learned recently how to do) and 4 strips of bacon (also nuked. I'm a pro at that.) Didn't dirty a single pan and I am full.

When my weight gets under 170 again, I'll repost my ticker. I don't like to post it now, knowing where I've been. But I'm not ashamed. I made my choices and I am living with them. At the time, they were the right choices.

Marie, isn't it getting close to Cruise or surgery time? I wish my memory was better! I hope wherever you are that you are having a great time or at least on lots of pain meds. (That didn't come out right. On lots of pain meds with the flattest tummy ever?) Please check in when you can and give us an update.

Terri, Tammy, Jessica, Dessa, Paula, Deb, Dazy, Nicole (whatver became of you??), I hope you are all doing well today! How are you?

[paulabob]

Originally Posted by CherylB

Terri, Tammy, Jessica, Dessa, Paula, Deb, Dazy, Nicole (whatver became of you??), I hope you are all doing well today! How are you?

Doing well! Everyone's healthy here (other than lingering night time coughs) and I'm on a 500 calorie day. Tomorrow will be 1600. I can handle it - one day at a time.

I'm loving the soup weather - been having egg drop soup on my down days. So easy to throw together.

[tay65]

Hi Cheryl! My son has had my phone since his was stolen. so for the next wk or so I'll be sharing mine. I don't mind.
I'm still having the periodic runny nose, but its not getting worse.
Glad you're feeling good enough to start Atkins. I have to watch fat intake....heart disease runs rampant in my family. Dr says I should keep it down. I have to make sure to eat healthy fats, much as I can!
Now, confession......I caved today & ate 2, yes 2!, cherry cheese danishes and some ice cream!!!! Now I feel awful, physically. Thats all I've eaten too! UGH!!!!