Wish there was more info on maintenance

RedsSkinnyJeans · 02-01-2012, 08:52 AM

I posted a thread about a month ago. I'm really struggling with keeping the weight off during winter.

Had I kept strictly to P4 the whole time, it would not have happened. Although my straying was not often, or extreme, I did gain 6. Now, for the past 3 weeks, I have eaten loyally P3. I stay at 6 pounds up. (when I eat regular after a steak day, it seems to come back).

So, would you please tell me your maintaining experience? I cannot do another round till April. Do you recommend JUDD? Atkins induction?

Also, I know that when I restrict calories, my body will lose a couple of pounds, then stop, and consistently regain as soon as I eat like a normal person.

My body, just like before HCG, seems very unwilling to lose.

I would love to hear your experiences. I am 7 months into maintenance.

Thanks for any help.

C'Marie · 02-01-2012, 10:16 AM

I hear you. I was close to finishing menopause when I finished my very first round of hcg. After doing through all the way to the end of #5, about 6 months into maintenance, I suddenly gained 8 pounds. I swear I wasn't doing anything really differently. Then I gave up a bit during Christmas, kinda got lazy and didn't want to cook "my" special treats, just ate gramma's treats - with sugar and wheat. Now my round 6 is almost a re-do. UGH.

It seems others are having a great deal of success with JUDDD. I know for me, like you, if I wouldn't have gone off P4 guidelines and kept working the scale numbers, except for those 8 that I gained completely due to hormones, I would've kept it off. Never again. Constant vigilance. I think once you "let" that weight stay on for awhile, it just stays, unless you do something to "shake" up the body's memory of weight. JMHO. So maybe a JUDDD thing would do that, kind of a confusion thing.

OR maybe try the fat fast, Atkins style. That seems to work for some people pretty easily. One or two days, then low calorie high protein in between? until it comes back down? I know some experience a slight rebound while doing that, similar to a steak day rebound, but then the general trend still is downward with repeated use. I may try that on P3 or P4 for a correction day here and there.

Arctic_Mama · 02-01-2012, 10:55 AM

Might I suggest looking up Harmony Clearwater Grace? She has written an awesome book (two, actually, but one is more focused on P2) on maintaining after hCG and I found it an excellent read.

It's called "The hCG Diet Book of Secrets", if I recall, and is a compilation of her clarifications of the protocol, personal experiences, and research gleaned from studies, clients she has helped, etc. It made me much more confident about maintaining.

Majerus · 02-01-2012, 11:04 AM

I've been thinking a lot about VFT. I just wonder if our bodies don't fight like a mo-fo to keep it in a place where it is comfortable--whether it's a healthy weight or not. Not that it's not possible, but that it's harder and takes longer for our bodies to recognize that this new weight is where it is comfortable.

This last round for me takes me to a place that my body is not familiar with. And my losses were slow and less than I wanted. I just wonder if there are factors at work here that aren't as simple as the cals in/cals out, (etc) that the scientists and nutritionist try to tell us. KWIM?

And I wonder if that is why Dr. S told us to take longer and longer time between rounds. Maybe it's NOT about immunity, and maybe it's more about allowing our bodies to adjust and for the very cells of our beings to start believing that we don't need all that fat.

My husband was telling me that he read something (somewhere) that was talking about if you lose more than 10% of your weight in a year, you are more likely to gain it back. (Sorry, I don't have a source). Anyway, that resonated with me. I mean, if you think about all the people who have lost weight really fast and then gained it all back (and then some)...! We are all in such a hurry to do EVERYTHING and maybe this is just proof that fast isn't always better. Maybe we need to take our time with weight loss. Especially those of us (like me) who've been overweight their entire lives.

Anyway...that's what I've been thinking about.

RedsSkinnyJeans · 02-01-2012, 04:41 PM

Thank you very much for the suggestions.

I stabilized and kept the weight off just fine for 6 months. Then December happened. I ended up yo-yoing with a steak day once a week!

Anyway, I am currently traveling and working. I must admit that I know almost nothing about JUDD (I imagine it like P3 with a calorie up and then a calorie down day). And I know entirely nothing about a fat fast.

When I get time I shall do a search. Until then, I remain,

......yours truly.....stuffed uncomfortably into my new wonderful skinny jeans

kj2010 · 02-02-2012, 09:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Arctic_Mama

Might I suggest looking up Harmony Clearwater Grace? She has written an awesome book (two, actually, but one is more focused on P2) on maintaining after hCG and I found it an excellent read.

It's called "The hCG Diet Book of Secrets", if I recall, and is a compilation of her clarifications of the protocol, personal experiences, and research gleaned from studies, clients she has helped, etc. It made me much more confident about maintaining.

I just bought this book on Amazon last week!! It's great. I haven't read it all yet, but it is VERY informative!
I want to be prepared for P3!!!

IThinkICan · 02-02-2012, 10:22 AM

Red... I'm in a similar boat with you. I feel like I messed my body up after I was pretty stable in P3 a few months ago. I was basically to the point of doing Correction Days every 2-3 days, trying to get down, down, down... and I can't quite get down to my proper range again. I was tired of the scale going up, even while eating perfectly legal P3 style foods! I just so badly want to eat regular P3 for a change!

I'm trying a new experiment to change the timing of my eating patterns, not simply focusing on what I eat. I just posted a message about Timing of Meals in P3/P4 for Stabilization which kinda explains what I'm trying out. I'm hoping to learn more about how our bodies respond to eating and not eating at certain points in the day. Unfortunately, I don't understand a lot of scientific jibberish that I attempt to read!

Tricialy · 02-02-2012, 03:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Majerus

I've been thinking a lot about VFT. I just wonder if our bodies don't fight like a mo-fo to keep it in a place where it is comfortable--whether it's a healthy weight or not. Not that it's not possible, but that it's harder and takes longer for our bodies to recognize that this new weight is where it is comfortable.

This last round for me takes me to a place that my body is not familiar with. And my losses were slow and less than I wanted. I just wonder if there are factors at work here that aren't as simple as the cals in/cals out, (etc) that the scientists and nutritionist try to tell us. KWIM?
:

I have totally wondered this same thing - I worry that after 5 rounds if I have ruined my metabolism more than it already was in the first place - how can I load for 2 days and admittedly eat a lot of things I shouldn't have - and gain 8 lbs. - I wasn't eating the 28,000 calories in a two day period that the experts tell us takes to gain 8 lbs. It can't always be calories in vs. calories burned.

I also worry that I'll be in big trouble if I ever go off of an extended P3 - when Istart to eat starches at all I am going to blow back up again - all those 65 lbs. I lost will be back. Can I never eat a piece of birthday cake or an ice cream cone again without doing a CD the next day? I know I can't go back to eating like I did before - or I'll be where I was, but I don't want to never be able to eat something I enjoy again.

Hugs!

Tricia

RedsSkinnyJeans · 02-03-2012, 08:46 AM

I feel the answer to that is absolutely "no!"

For 6 months my body was stable. I did eat a piece of cake, or have an ice cream cone. But those deviations happened once or at the most two times in a week. Never more. The problem is not the occasional piece of came or bagel, it's the slippery slope on which it places us.

Tricialy · 02-03-2012, 10:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RedsSkinnyJeans

I feel the answer to that is absolutely "no!"

For 6 months my body was stable. I did eat a piece of cake, or have an ice cream cone. But those deviations happened once or at the most two times in a week. Never more. The problem is not the occasional piece of came or bagel, it's the slippery slope on which it places us.

You are absolutely right - that darn slope! You know my husband could care less about food - he enjoys a good ribeye and baked potato - but he really doesn't care that much - I see something on TV or in a magazine and I want to try it. Wish I could be more like him. How do you change that - I wonder.

emel · 02-04-2012, 08:51 AM

I think my best tip is to defer indulgences.
I'll have a treat on the weekends, but on the weekdays I stay on the straight and narrow.

I sabotaged myself in December, too. Looking back, I think it was because I got off of the plan of eating very clean through the week and then allowing moderate indulgance Friday happy hour through Sunday brunch.

ETA....
along the same lines, another plan's maintainence calls for never going off plan two days in a row. So if you choose to have birthday cake on saturday, you have to do on-plan stuff on Friday and Sunday.

TerriMM · 02-04-2012, 04:51 PM

I agree with the two day rule. I've found that to be true for food or drink and also incidentally for dieting. I do better with an alternating calorie plan on P2, usually 500-700 on low days and 900-1200 on high days then I did with straight 500 days.

On my last two P3s I stabilized very well by balancing fat and protein grams making sure the fat was on the high side. And I had a lot of trouble stabilizing before that.

Somewhat Damaged · 02-04-2012, 06:07 PM

I've had a lot of success maintaining with a paleo diet after the hcg protocol.

For some people, the thought of giving up grains and dairy is impossible to grasp, but I'll tell you that after p2 it was not that difficult, lol.

02-01-2012, 08:52 AM	#1
RedsSkinnyJeans Major LCF Poster! Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 1,007 Gallery: RedsSkinnyJeans Stats: 170/144/140 Start Date: 4/1/11	Wish there was more info on maintenance I posted a thread about a month ago. I'm really struggling with keeping the weight off during winter. Had I kept strictly to P4 the whole time, it would not have happened. Although my straying was not often, or extreme, I did gain 6. Now, for the past 3 weeks, I have eaten loyally P3. I stay at 6 pounds up. (when I eat regular after a steak day, it seems to come back). So, would you please tell me your maintaining experience? I cannot do another round till April. Do you recommend JUDD? Atkins induction? Also, I know that when I restrict calories, my body will lose a couple of pounds, then stop, and consistently regain as soon as I eat like a normal person. My body, just like before HCG, seems very unwilling to lose. I would love to hear your experiences. I am 7 months into maintenance. Thanks for any help.

02-01-2012, 10:16 AM	#2
C'Marie Very Gabby LCF Member!!! Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 4,083 Gallery: C'Marie Stats: 270/down 110-ish/ goal 147 WOE: hCG Rx shots/JUDDD maintain Start Date: 1/4/2010 Now R9 P2	I hear you. I was close to finishing menopause when I finished my very first round of hcg. After doing through all the way to the end of #5, about 6 months into maintenance, I suddenly gained 8 pounds. I swear I wasn't doing anything really differently. Then I gave up a bit during Christmas, kinda got lazy and didn't want to cook "my" special treats, just ate gramma's treats - with sugar and wheat. Now my round 6 is almost a re-do. UGH. It seems others are having a great deal of success with JUDDD. I know for me, like you, if I wouldn't have gone off P4 guidelines and kept working the scale numbers, except for those 8 that I gained completely due to hormones, I would've kept it off. Never again. Constant vigilance. I think once you "let" that weight stay on for awhile, it just stays, unless you do something to "shake" up the body's memory of weight. JMHO. So maybe a JUDDD thing would do that, kind of a confusion thing. OR maybe try the fat fast, Atkins style. That seems to work for some people pretty easily. One or two days, then low calorie high protein in between? until it comes back down? I know some experience a slight rebound while doing that, similar to a steak day rebound, but then the general trend still is downward with repeated use. I may try that on P3 or P4 for a correction day here and there. __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~* HCG Rx to lose - JUDDD to maintain

02-01-2012, 11:04 AM	#4
Majerus Way too much time on my hands! Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: La La Land... Posts: 12,827 Gallery: Majerus Start Date: 1/03	I've been thinking a lot about VFT. I just wonder if our bodies don't fight like a mo-fo to keep it in a place where it is comfortable--whether it's a healthy weight or not. Not that it's not possible, but that it's harder and takes longer for our bodies to recognize that this new weight is where it is comfortable. This last round for me takes me to a place that my body is not familiar with. And my losses were slow and less than I wanted. I just wonder if there are factors at work here that aren't as simple as the cals in/cals out, (etc) that the scientists and nutritionist try to tell us. KWIM? And I wonder if that is why Dr. S told us to take longer and longer time between rounds. Maybe it's NOT about immunity, and maybe it's more about allowing our bodies to adjust and for the very cells of our beings to start believing that we don't need all that fat. My husband was telling me that he read something (somewhere) that was talking about if you lose more than 10% of your weight in a year, you are more likely to gain it back. (Sorry, I don't have a source). Anyway, that resonated with me. I mean, if you think about all the people who have lost weight really fast and then gained it all back (and then some)...! We are all in such a hurry to do EVERYTHING and maybe this is just proof that fast isn't always better. Maybe we need to take our time with weight loss. Especially those of us (like me) who've been overweight their entire lives. Anyway...that's what I've been thinking about. __________________ 203/166.4/150 R3: 177.8/166.4/160

02-04-2012, 08:51 AM	#11
emel Way too much time on my hands! Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: VA Posts: 16,607 Gallery: emel	I think my best tip is to defer indulgences. I'll have a treat on the weekends, but on the weekdays I stay on the straight and narrow. I sabotaged myself in December, too. Looking back, I think it was because I got off of the plan of eating very clean through the week and then allowing moderate indulgance Friday happy hour through Sunday brunch. ETA.... along the same lines, another plan's maintainence calls for never going off plan two days in a row. So if you choose to have birthday cake on saturday, you have to do on-plan stuff on Friday and Sunday. Last edited by emel; 02-04-2012 at 08:53 AM..

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02-01-2012, 10:55 AM	#3
Arctic_Mama Major LCF Poster! Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Alaska Posts: 1,781 Gallery: Arctic_Mama Stats: 257/163/140 WOE: Atkins 2002 Start Date: R1 12/11, R2 3/12	Might I suggest looking up Harmony Clearwater Grace? She has written an awesome book (two, actually, but one is more focused on P2) on maintaining after hCG and I found it an excellent read. It's called "The hCG Diet Book of Secrets", if I recall, and is a compilation of her clarifications of the protocol, personal experiences, and research gleaned from studies, clients she has helped, etc. It made me much more confident about maintaining.

02-01-2012, 04:41 PM	#5
RedsSkinnyJeans Major LCF Poster! Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 1,007 Gallery: RedsSkinnyJeans Stats: 170/144/140 Start Date: 4/1/11	Thank you very much for the suggestions. I stabilized and kept the weight off just fine for 6 months. Then December happened. I ended up yo-yoing with a steak day once a week! Anyway, I am currently traveling and working. I must admit that I know almost nothing about JUDD (I imagine it like P3 with a calorie up and then a calorie down day). And I know entirely nothing about a fat fast. When I get time I shall do a search. Until then, I remain, ......yours truly.....stuffed uncomfortably into my new wonderful skinny jeans

02-02-2012, 10:22 AM	#7
IThinkICan Senior LCF Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Florida Posts: 366 Gallery: IThinkICan Stats: 218/142-144/145 WOE: HCG-R5P4 JUDDD	Red... I'm in a similar boat with you. I feel like I messed my body up after I was pretty stable in P3 a few months ago. I was basically to the point of doing Correction Days every 2-3 days, trying to get down, down, down... and I can't quite get down to my proper range again. I was tired of the scale going up, even while eating perfectly legal P3 style foods! I just so badly want to eat regular P3 for a change! I'm trying a new experiment to change the timing of my eating patterns, not simply focusing on what I eat. I just posted a message about Timing of Meals in P3/P4 for Stabilization which kinda explains what I'm trying out. I'm hoping to learn more about how our bodies respond to eating and not eating at certain points in the day. Unfortunately, I don't understand a lot of scientific jibberish that I attempt to read!

02-03-2012, 08:46 AM	#9
RedsSkinnyJeans Major LCF Poster! Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 1,007 Gallery: RedsSkinnyJeans Stats: 170/144/140 Start Date: 4/1/11	I feel the answer to that is absolutely "no!" For 6 months my body was stable. I did eat a piece of cake, or have an ice cream cone. But those deviations happened once or at the most two times in a week. Never more. The problem is not the occasional piece of came or bagel, it's the slippery slope on which it places us.

02-04-2012, 04:51 PM	#12
TerriMM Very Gabby LCF Member!!! Join Date: May 2011 Posts: 3,503 Gallery: TerriMM Start Date: 5/18/11	I agree with the two day rule. I've found that to be true for food or drink and also incidentally for dieting. I do better with an alternating calorie plan on P2, usually 500-700 on low days and 900-1200 on high days then I did with straight 500 days. On my last two P3s I stabilized very well by balancing fat and protein grams making sure the fat was on the high side. And I had a lot of trouble stabilizing before that.

02-04-2012, 06:07 PM	#13
Somewhat Damaged Senior LCF Member Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: Idaho Posts: 215 Gallery: Somewhat Damaged Stats: 185/164/150 WOE: Paleo, all the way! HCG Rx inj to lose weight Start Date: 9/6/10	I've had a lot of success maintaining with a paleo diet after the hcg protocol. For some people, the thought of giving up grains and dairy is impossible to grasp, but I'll tell you that after p2 it was not that difficult, lol.