Rogues and Alternatives, week of 11/21

[paulabob]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

I guess my Kicker is a little different than the one being discussed as I add vinegar to mine -- it is definitely a weird flavor, but I do like it --- I drink it hot like tea -- and I generally don't sweeten it .. I like it as is.

That's how I drank mine - 1/2 lemon, 1/2 acv. I drank the first one sweet but yeah, it didn't add much so drank the others plain. I'm out of lemons now...

[tay65]

hi all! i'm wayyyy up! Too much wine, linguine salad, pumpkin roll.....BUT I saw family we haven't seen in a while. No regrets.
Back on track and gonna get back to where I was soon.
Nice to read about everyone's thanksgiving.
Good night!

[CherylB]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

Hi All -- I say Cheryl, Disney, and I can all enter the new year at goal .. we are all close! Hexa, you're p3ing it, so I am going to predict that you enter the new year looking buff and gorgeous!

I did quite a bit of protein today -- calories are a bit higher than I wanted (probably in the 1200-1300 range) but I think the protein was needed, and it might help with the water retention.

I'm drinking "California Kickers" this afternoon -- water with lemon, apple cider vinegar, and lots of cayenne. There is a thread on here that calls them that, which I thought was funny... I've liked that concoction for years. My mom was on a fasting kick for a while when I was a kid, and drank that for weeks.... it'll generally knock a cold out in its tracks, especially if you add garlic or ginger to it. I drink that when I fast -- very cleansing. Plus, I think it tastes good.

I love, love spicy food, and I have no receptors left at all for cayenne, so I don't even feel the hot from it (bring on the habaneros, or even hotter chiles for me, please!) but the cayenne has a nice taste and a lot of health benefits.

I like the way you think, Mini! But you + DP are soooo close. I'm close only when you consider where I started from. There's a good chance I can end this next round in the 140's, but I wonder if I can actually go "all the way" in just 30 days.

I've never tried those "kickers" but I wish I'd tried one when I got sick a few weeks ago. I'll do that next time I get the feeling my health is taking a nose-dive.

I've got my alarm set to take my first dose of pellets in the morning! I hope I don't sleep right through it. Lately I haven't even woken up to take my Thyroid meds when the alarm goes off. Sometimes I don't take those until around noon. That doesn't help matters at all. I'm really out of whack right now. I'm not on any sort of routine and I need to get back into one. I hope I can adjust, rapidly. I also need to get back in the habit of taking my vitamins during the day.

I hope everyone has a lovely evening and a great weekend! Hugs to all! Kudos to all the losers!

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

Hi All -- I say Cheryl, Disney, and I can all enter the new year at goal .. we are all close! Hexa, you're p3ing it, so I am going to predict that you enter the new year looking buff and gorgeous!

You are too kind Thank you for the encouragement. I really appreciate that.

Hopefully, tomorrow my weight will be down from the 1.3 up today. I did not exercise yesterday and no exercise = some weight gain. I am continuing to experiment with the carbs in P3 and see if the exercise circumvent the carbs. She Mini, you encourage thinking outside of the box. That's what makes this thread so great. Everyone has something to give

[minimonkey]

LOL Hexa-- I'm not even sure where I *put* the box, I've been thinking outside it so long! I think I recycled it, along with some cans and some other stuff.

I am really hoping for some scale love in the morning ... my calories were a bit high today overall for losing, but hoping that shakes things up. I think tomorrow will be another very calorie controlled fat fast day.

Sorry to hear about the bumps up Tay and Hexa -- but my guess is that they are temporary and will drop off quickly.

I'm gonna do whatever I need to do to crank it up from here, so I can reach goal by the new year (hopefully my below-goal-goal ) and start next year in p3. Every pound is so hard to budge, this close to goal....but it also makes such a difference in how I look and feel, that it is worth it. I know that-- especially this late in the game-- I tend to lose in spurts, so the key is not to get discouraged by the stalls... when the losses happen, they are often significant.

I can tell my fat is getting squishy and soft, and that means a loss IS coming... it's just a matter of waiting it out.

[minimonkey]

I wish I lost with exercise, Hexa -- if I did, I'd be hitting the gym HARD right now! But no, exercise stalls me or makes me gain I think I can manage it in maintenance, but for now, I just stare longingly at the weights.... sigh.

I do fine with walking, though... and am wondering if I can maybe at least add in some barre work... I hope so!!!

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

LOL Hexa-- I'm not even sure where I *put* the box, I've been thinking outside it so long! I think I recycled it, along with some cans and some other stuff.

I am really hoping for some scale love in the morning ... my calories were a bit high today overall for losing, but hoping that shakes things up. I think tomorrow will be another very calorie controlled fat fast day.

Sorry to hear about the bumps up Tay and Hexa -- but my guess is that they are temporary and will drop off quickly.

I'm gonna do whatever I need to do to crank it up from here, so I can reach goal by the new year (hopefully my below-goal-goal ) and start next year in p3. Every pound is so hard to budge, this close to goal....but it also makes such a difference in how I look and feel, that it is worth it. I know that-- especially this late in the game-- I tend to lose in spurts, so the key is not to get discouraged by the stalls... when the losses happen, they are often significant.

I can tell my fat is getting squishy and soft, and that means a loss IS coming... it's just a matter of waiting it out.

I like that. Well, as for the bump up I knew that I would have something but not so huge. I'll see what I get in the morning. I know the workouts killed some of those calories. I am making sure that I eat enough clean protein to maintain my muscle and reset my metabolism at a higher rate. I am going to need that. I am going to be determined like you so that my body follows my lead and not Melonie's lead. You know, Melonie the b****. Oh yes, I did call her that. Humph...

Any advice on the P3 thing? My other P3's were a failure and this time I want to succeed.

Minimo, I am positive you will get to where you need to go. Hopefully, you can start working out again and we can compare notes. Today I dead lifted 35 pounds. I was soooo happy. Funny, but HCG protocol and weight lifting can be really painful. Hummm and I love both. Do you think I need therapy or somethin'

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

I wish I lost with exercise, Hexa -- if I did, I'd be hitting the gym HARD right now! But no, exercise stalls me or makes me gain I think I can manage it in maintenance, but for now, I just stare longingly at the weights.... sigh.

I do fine with walking, though... and am wondering if I can maybe at least add in some barre work... I hope so!!!

Too bad we don't live closer you could teach me how to rebound. I talked with my cousin about it and she just gave me this look. It was like, don't even think about it. And then she made some off remark about my coordination Humph, what the heck did she mean by that?? Oh, wait a minute... I just fell of my chair. I am good...

[HexaTheAmazon]

By the way Mini, since you like the hot stuff try some Spicy Miso Kale Chips. They are awesome.

[minimonkey]

The Kale Chips sound awesome, Hexa -- I will give them a try! Excellent on the deadlifting!!

I was up to a 55 lb deadlift when I stopped lifting and started p2... I hope I can get that back soon (Nola, on the other hand, can lift like 200 lbs!!!!!)

I definitely don't have a lot of strength on p2... I look forward to regaining my strength!!

My only advice on p3 is to be DILIGENT about the correction days! Don't let a couple of pounds turn into 15 or 20, even if you are building muscle -- that is where I went wrong this last time.

p3's pretty much straight-up low carb -- but if there is a certain food that seems to cause gains, even if it is "legal," limit or eliminate it. I know I need to limit nut butters and flours... I can have them, but not in big quantities, or I start gaining. Seems that most of us have some food sensitivities, and going into p3 is a good time to identify them.

I wish that you, Nola, and I all lived near one another, and could be workout buddies! We would be one buff crew!

Oh, and speaking of buff... if you want some inspiration, check out the muscle matters thread on the exercise board... Twyla (WatchMeShrink) has pics up from her first figure competition, and she looks utterly awesome!!!

[DisneyPrincess]

Good morning. Well I ended up with a tad more food last night, and a few vanilla wafers which were NOT intended. hopefully calories were still low enough. I didn't weigh again but will tomorrow no matter what. I just hope I'm close to siggy weight so I can hit some new numbers this week.

Starting back with the exercise today so hopefully that will pick things up a little. I'm going to aim for 3-4 days while I'm dieting. Running and 1 weight day to start. Once I'm at goal I'll pick up the weight trainng more

Hope everyone sees some nice losses today.

[paulabob]

Okay, down all but .4 of the weight. Weight lost in past 3 weeks, nothing.

Inches lost, 1 1/2 inches in 3 weeks. I am 3 1/2 inches down from last week, since my inches were going up the last couple of weeks (bloating probably). My waist is down 1/2 an inch this week. I am pleased with that. 2 1/2 inches to go to reach my final waist goal.

I might go all roguey the next couple weeks and do Monday Tuesdays as down days, Wednesday as Up, Thursday Friday as Down, weekends Up, and see if I can't get some actual weight loss accomplished without having to do another hcg round.

[DisneyPrincess]

Oh! Was just talking to Dh and he said I looked a lot thinner. Amazing what a few pounds can do. Made my day

I'm going to try an EFGT day since they seem to provide a good loss for you all. I'm having my coffee with coconut milk now and will have some Greek yogurt later and coconut bark if I need it. I have a feeling the scale isn't going to be kind tomorrow so I want to try to push it along

[Gremom]

Quick check in! We still have family in town and haven't been able to get on LCF. I am up 1 pound this morning, but I am totally okay with that. Back to normal today and getting this weight off.

Am having horrible tooth pain, but I am having all 4 wisdom teeth extracted in 2 weeks. Hopefully the pain won't be too bad until then.

Anybody go Black Friday shopping? We went yesterday in the morning and still got all the deals we wanted! Yippee!! I love a great deal!!

Hope you all have a fabulous Saturday!

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by paulabob

Okay, down all but .4 of the weight. Weight lost in past 3 weeks, nothing.

Inches lost, 1 1/2 inches in 3 weeks. I am 3 1/2 inches down from last week, since my inches were going up the last couple of weeks (bloating probably). My waist is down 1/2 an inch this week. I am pleased with that. 2 1/2 inches to go to reach my final waist goal.

I might go all roguey the next couple weeks and do Monday Tuesdays as down days, Wednesday as Up, Thursday Friday as Down, weekends Up, and see if I can't get some actual weight loss accomplished without having to do another hcg round.

Congrats on the loss of inches Inches are also very important and make the clothes shrink as well I will get measured by my trainer in another week. Hopefully the muscle will have grown and the fat decreased. Inches make all the difference when shopping for clothes. You can be low in weight but if it is distributed wrong it does not bode well when you put on the clothing

Great job!!

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by DisneyPrincess

Oh! Was just talking to Dh and he said I looked a lot thinner. Amazing what a few pounds can do. Made my day

I'm going to try an EFGT day since they seem to provide a good loss for you all. I'm having my coffee with coconut milk now and will have some Greek yogurt later and coconut bark if I need it. I have a feeling the scale isn't going to be kind tomorrow so I want to try to push it along

Isn't really nice to get compliments from our significant others. It is so much better for them to be looking at us rather than someone else shape

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by Gremom

Quick check in! We still have family in town and haven't been able to get on LCF. I am up 1 pound this morning, but I am totally okay with that. Back to normal today and getting this weight off.

Am having horrible tooth pain, but I am having all 4 wisdom teeth extracted in 2 weeks. Hopefully the pain won't be too bad until then.

Anybody go Black Friday shopping? We went yesterday in the morning and still got all the deals we wanted! Yippee!! I love a great deal!!

Hope you all have a fabulous Saturday!

I am sorry about your pain One pound after Thanksgiving.. that's not too bad It will come off. Sounds like you enjoyed you're Thanksgiving. Black Friday shopping would give me Black Friday high blood pressure There will be more deals. Take care...

[HexaTheAmazon]

by .4 ounces. My weight seems to have stablized. I did not lose the entire 1.3 pounds I went up after Thanksgiving but, I am only .1 ounces up from my LDW. I would like to be 2 pounds below my LDW but since I am building now I don't know if that is realistic or a good idea. I hear muscle weighs more than fat. I hope...

So, I have stablized eating limited carbs which makes me very happy. I am still figuring in out so, we will see.

Have a great day everyone.

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

The Kale Chips sound awesome, Hexa -- I will give them a try! Excellent on the deadlifting!!

I was up to a 55 lb deadlift when I stopped lifting and started p2... I hope I can get that back soon (Nola, on the other hand, can lift like 200 lbs!!!!!)

I definitely don't have a lot of strength on p2... I look forward to regaining my strength!!

My only advice on p3 is to be DILIGENT about the correction days! Don't let a couple of pounds turn into 15 or 20, even if you are building muscle -- that is where I went wrong this last time.

p3's pretty much straight-up low carb -- but if there is a certain food that seems to cause gains, even if it is "legal," limit or eliminate it. I know I need to limit nut butters and flours... I can have them, but not in big quantities, or I start gaining. Seems that most of us have some food sensitivities, and going into p3 is a good time to identify them.

I wish that you, Nola, and I all lived near one another, and could be workout buddies! We would be one buff crew!

Oh, and speaking of buff... if you want some inspiration, check out the muscle matters thread on the exercise board... Twyla (WatchMeShrink) has pics up from her first figure competition, and she looks utterly awesome!!!

Thanks for the information. I am going to copy it and send it to myself in an email so that I can refer to it. I am definitely going to check out that tread. I didn't know it exsisted.

As far as P3, last time I did not do correction days and my weight flew back on. You are so on point. It is so sad to do all of the work on P2 and then gain the weight back. It's a waste of time but it can have lessons learned. I know that I will need to keep the training going to maintain in p3. I want to continue to lose inches but since I am building I will need to eat some carbs. As long as I am stablized I will be happy. Brown rice, noodles and kale chips seem to be okay so far....

Yes, it would be great if we were closer that way we could have been workout buddies. It is always good to have them

Nice deadlifting numbers. I see that Nola is a powerhouse.

I don't eat steak so what could I use if I need a correction day?

[paulabob]

Originally Posted by HexaTheAmazon

I don't eat steak so what could I use if I need a correction day?

There's several chicken CDs. I actually have done my own made-up chicken wing and chicken drumstick CDs with success. There's also an all yogurt CD, as well as an all nut CD (supposed to be raw unsalted nuts).

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by paulabob

There's several chicken CDs. I actually have done my own made-up chicken wing and chicken drumstick CDs with success. There's also an all yogurt CD, as well as an all nut CD (supposed to be raw unsalted nuts).

So, you eat chicken wings, or yogurt all day? Hmmm...

[paulabob]

Originally Posted by HexaTheAmazon

So, you eat chicken wings, or yogurt all day? Hmmm...

Yup, boring but it's usually good for a 1-2 pound drop during P3. Although I don't always show the drop until 2 days later.

You can see more varieties in the sticky thread:
Phase 3 information for HCG diet

[minimonkey]

Okay, I am seriously at my wits end over here -- I am up 1.4 lbs today, for no good reason at all! I did eat turkey with mustard yesterday, and the turkey was a bit salty, so perhaps that was the problem -- the mustard is a bit salty too.

I'm definitely retaining a lot of water, and feeling a bit hormonal overall -- so perhaps I am getting another one of my random periods... who knows.... but this is officially frustrating the heck out of me.

I'm doing another higher fat day today-- at least those satisfy me -- but something has to change. I've been bouncing around these same couple of pounds for weeks.

I'm hesitant to cut calories much further at this point, since I'm already averaging less than 1000 a day -- and I really don't want to end up maintaining on 500 calories of low carb or what not....... so I am thinking about taking a short interrupt from the hhcg, and then trying again.

I haven't taken the hhcg today, and I'm not sure if I will or not ... but this seriously has to change. I don't want to take an interrupt, but then again, I am getting nowhere at the moment... so what is the harm in doing that?

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

Okay, I am seriously at my wits end over here -- I am up 1.4 lbs today, for no good reason at all! I did eat turkey with mustard yesterday, and the turkey was a bit salty, so perhaps that was the problem -- the mustard is a bit salty too.

I'm definitely retaining a lot of water, and feeling a bit hormonal overall -- so perhaps I am getting another one of my random periods... who knows.... but this is officially frustrating the heck out of me.

I'm doing another higher fat day today-- at least those satisfy me -- but something has to change. I've been bouncing around these same couple of pounds for weeks.

I'm hesitant to cut calories much further at this point, since I'm already averaging less than 1000 a day -- and I really don't want to end up maintaining on 500 calories of low carb or what not....... so I am thinking about taking a short interrupt from the hhcg, and then trying again.

I haven't taken the hhcg today, and I'm not sure if I will or not ... but this seriously has to change. I don't want to take an interrupt, but then again, I am getting nowhere at the moment... so what is the harm in doing that?

how do I know? Because I have done it before myself and I was not amused Take a deep breath, take a break and do a small interrupt. That's just my opinion. Remember a watched pot never boils.

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by paulabob

Yup, boring but it's usually good for a 1-2 pound drop during P3. Although I don't always show the drop until 2 days later.

You can see more varieties in the sticky thread:
Phase 3 information for HCG diet

I don't think I can do the nuts all day. Maybe the chicken wings. I'll look at the sticky.

[HexaTheAmazon]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

Oh, and speaking of buff... if you want some inspiration, check out the muscle matters thread on the exercise board... Twyla (WatchMeShrink) has pics up from her first figure competition, and she looks utterly awesome!!!

Mini, I can't find the thread. Is it buried in all of the other threads. There are so many pages..

Mini, be encouraged with your losses.

[minimonkey]

Hexa -- really, the mustard? You think? I don't think I used to be this sensitive to sodium... now, it seems to send me off the water-retention deep end.

Thanks for all your support in this -- I need it today!!!

I hope that's all it is -- there is definitely a ton of water retention happening -- I can see and feel it. I actually broke down and took a water pill last night and this morning (they suggest taking for three days --it's an herbal formula) -- I really don't take those often, but this seems an appropriate time... they always take a day or three to kick in though. I will drink lots of fluids and see if I can flush some of it out that way, too.

I'll keep to the moderate cal/ high fat day today -- even though I feel like diving head first into a vat of comfort food -- and keep the faith.

Not sure if I want to do the interruption or not -- I'm not physically hungry, and food wouldn't actually make me feel any better, physically or emotionally -- so I will likely just stay with the program. At the very least, I will get back on my vitamin regimen, which I've let slip a bit too far.

I think a lot of the problem is hormonal -- my hormones are less wacked out than they were, but are still a bit off balance.

I'll see if I can find Twyla's thread.....

[minimonkey]

Here's Twyla's awesome story!

My First Figure Competition -- It's NEVER too late!

[DisneyPrincess]

Good afternoon. Well after a 35 minute run today and a circuit of pushups I decided I should probably eat some protein, so I'm doing a protein only day in hopes of seeing at least 111 tomorrow. My jeans are a bit lose so I know I haven't gained, but I'm not expecting a loss either.
I'll tell you, it was great to get moving again. I actually used to be very active on the muscle matters board and actually worked with Inatic's coach for 10 weeks and got in the best shape of my life. I considered competing under his watch but then I had a baby and that thought went bye bye

Mini you have been at this HARD for how many weeks now? I know how you feel about not wanting to stop being I close to goal, but maybe this is your body's way of telling you it's fighting? hang in there, you have been doing amazing

Hexa- you can also do an egg day. It makes me but I know it has worked well for others when they are stalled

Nice job on the inches lost Paula

[nola baxter]

Originally Posted by minimonkey

I wish that you, Nola, and I all lived near one another, and could be workout buddies! We would be one buff crew!

It would be good!
I would love a good training partner/partners..