Trail Blazers and Path Takers

[privatediva]

Not too much at all Shirely! Love to know more about dietary issues for autism...I have one voice student who is autistic. I had no idea there was a nutritional component!

YAY Cristen's here!

[TerriMM]

Good Morning All!

Well down another 1.30 today, we're touching goal I'm actually going to try for 122 to give myself a cushion.

Hope the weekend is great for everyone.

Hope the wedding is a blessed event Bud!

[shirleychef]

Originally Posted by privatediva

Not too much at all Shirely! Love to know more about dietary issues for autism...I have one voice student who is autistic. I had no idea there was a nutritional component!

YAY Cristen's here!

When we realized something was wrong with our son.... after a Pediatrition telling us he was fine when if she had just watched him for 2 whole minutes she would have noticed otherwise... GRRRR... Anyway, I like many mom's became my own specialist spending 40+ hours a week reading. In my research found a lot of evidence that pointed to gut disorders and how some diets tend to help some kids. We plunged into it when he was 4 1/2 a whole mess of supplements along with going gluten & casein free. PTL! We saw immediate positive changes. He went form non-verbal, no eye contact, flapping, rolling, tantruming to a kid who started talking, looked at us, and was able to learn behavior management through ABA therapy. We are EXTREMELY blessed that he has now progressed to the point where he functions fairly well. He will never be "normal", but he is social, sweet and does not appear to be abnormal at first. He continues with ABA therapy and a GF/CF diet as it helps him to function better.

So long story short... through my research I also learned how some foods can cause issues like preservatives, and other SAD non organic foods. That started our family down a path of cleaning up our diet from frankenfood central to primarily organic fruits, veggies, and all grass fed organic meats. Due to our large family we decided that trying to raise our own food was going to be the only way we could afford to eat this way, hence we started "hobby" farming and gardening 3 years ago.

That led to 2 years of eating GREAT whole foods during which time I maintained my obesity 225-235 beautifully. BUT my health was very poor, thyroid & adrenal issues, high bp, high cholesterol... etc, not to mention I was severely depressed. Started doing the Eat Fat Lose Fat diet for health comprimised Feb 14 2011, was discouraged about slow weight loss, then stumbled upon hcg April 2011 and started my hcg journey Easter weekend. I read KT's book and with his organic angle really though hcg would be my solution to optimum health since we lived the organic whole foods life already.. I just needed to shed the blubber.

Now, my Teen daugher has done 3 short rounds and has gone from 189 - 143, my Teen son had lost over 30 pound from 220 - mid 180's, hubby has lost over 45 pounds to get to goal weight, and I'm at a normal BMI for the first time in my adult life, thanks to the hcg protocol.... and ultimately thanks to God for giving us a sweet Autistic boy which caused me to wake up to the reality of the SAD diet and start learning about real food!

Whew... probably way more than you wanted to know hey??

[privatediva]

NO I love knowing all that. I'm going to talk to my students mother and grandmother and see if they ever tried any dietary therapy with him. He is pretty high functioning (graduated high school and is working now). It is my understanding that his grandmother, bless her heart, worked her TAIL off to get him through school and that he has really come a long way with regard to his social abilities. He has a magnificent bass baritone voice and really uncanny abilities to mimic sounds...so he sings very well. He still has a hard time interacting with people as he tends to be pretty volatile and Asperger's-ish. I have had him through most of his high school years and into this first couple of years since his graduation. It's been a wild and woolly ride for his folks...I think you definitely have an advantage with your boy having a sweet disposition. This kid does not and can be quite a handful, especially now that he is grown.

[shirleychef]

My autistic son has a beautiful voice too. I'm a vocalist as well. He leads his class in music when they are singing.. .the music teacher comments often about he strong tone and good pitch. It is really good for him to be "good" at it. He is loving playing the recorder too... he is 10 and in 4th grade. He is in the normal classroom, no longer has a one on one aid for the entire day, just for certain subjects. He is keeping up with the class in math but is still at about a 2nd grade reading level. I never worry about science or social studies, to me that are not vital to his future functionability. We prefer to focus more attention on life skills and those subject that contribute to future life skills like math, reading, spelling, writing, etc and his ability to function socially with his peers.

[privatediva]

Sounds like an excellent plan! Music is a great 'organizer' for the mind. No telling how many ways it enriches our lives outside of the obvious things...that we 'like' it. I was reading a recent study about how they've discovered that very advanced non-verbal Alzheimer's patients can interact and communicate with instruments in some pretty amazing ways. This is a non-commercial link, so I'm pretty sure I'm not breaking any rules posting it. It's really fascinating to me: Oregon brothers find music can break through solitude of Alzheimer's disease | OregonLive.com

If music can reach into the mind of a dementia patient and connect the dots, how much more could it possibly do for those of us who have more functioning 'hardware' to begin with? I wonder how much of my 'veneer' of functionality is because I spend hundreds of hours a week making music? If I stopped, I wonder how long it would take my thinking to deteriorate? It just interests me.

[shirleychef]

I agree. We are a very musical family. I teach piano, my daughter plays and almost all of us sing... well my littlest still cannot carry a tune... but my oldest son was the same way at his age and now he has a beautiful voice! Music is enriching, stimulating, calming.. you name it... VERY therapeutic!

[privatediva]

Yep yep. Tell me about your piano background. My primary instrument is voice. My conservatory education was in voice/opera which is where I met my DH (tenor and cellist) In recent years I've been directing and conducting musicals, teaching private voice and am rehearsal pianist for a ballet company. My kids all got the music genes. Oldest son plays very well, sings tenor, and composes. Middle kid (the Army girl in my avitar) plays guitar and sings and the ballerina (my youngest) plays piano and has a lovely light soprano.

[shirleychef]

I took piano lessons from the age of 6 through high school with a couple years of lessons at the collegiate level too. Learned both classical and sacred. I had a great teacher my first 6 years that taught me how to transpose, improvise and gave me a fabulous foundation in technique and theory. My Jr. High teacher had a strength in classical. My high school teacher was amazingly talented in hymprovisation.

I had planned to be a music minor in College, but could not pass College level theory with the teacher I had my freshman year. He had a very difficult time taking his extensive amazing knowledge of theory and getting it to a level where we could understand it. Even the music majors usually only passed his class with a C. So I changed my minor to education and majored in Home Economics. I've played for almost all the churches we've been in since I was 12. My strength is sacred hymprovisation and hymn site reading. I'm afraid I don't play nearly as often as I should with our busy farm life...I'm just coasting through my music right now, not developing at all. :-( I have 10 students and love teaching. My students range from beginners to early advanced.

It sounds like your education and experience far exceeds mine. You are a true professional... I'm just a hobbiest who has a little talent, not nearly as accomplished as you!

[privatediva]

I do it for a living, but there are many professional caliber talents not 'doing it' for money. Sounds to me like you're one of those, m'dear! And it's very nice to meet another musician here. There are several of us. It's nice to have more common ground than HCG and the fat we kiss goodbye

[CherylB]

Originally Posted by privatediva

It sure seems like less trouble to me, Cheryl...once you get the stuff off, let it stay off!

Kristopher Estes-Brown Choreography Project Premiere '11 - YouTube

That's the new ballet company promo vid...it's pretty cool. Merry is the first dancer you see, after that it's pretty easy to find her. She is featured throughout. These are all my girls though (and boys). I'm so proud of our dancers. There are three professionals dancing in this program with our girls. One is their teacher (pretty obviously older than the others) and one is about 27...she is dancing with the guy (who dances with Colorado Ballet). We do this mixed rep program each summer with the young dancers and pros together...it's a great experience for the girls to see and work with working dancers. Anyway...enjoy...these kids are golden...the light of my life. Hope for a bright tomorrow...the best of the best. None of them "just dance"...they are all beautiful, morally sound girls, and excellent students. Disciplined and delightful in every aspect of their lives. I love them all dearly.

This was so beautiful! So much grace! Thanks for posting the link, Debbie.

Originally Posted by shirleychef

Very Nice to meet you too. CONGRATULATIONS on reaching your goal... you must feel AMAZING!!! I will soon be at goal or close enough. I'm on my third hcg round having shed 85 pounds since Feb 14 2011. 12 pounds detoxing, so technically phase 1, and 73 pounds doing the VLCD/hcg. I'd like to lose another 10-15 but am getting totally tired of strict VLCDing... I've never veered from protocol... until now.. being rogue for a while to see if I can make it through and get close to my goal. Actually I have met my original goal of 155, I'm down to 151 (gained 3 pounds over my lowest on my Planned Interruption), but I still see lots of abnormal fat that I'd like to see GONE. LOL! I'm 5'6" and large framed so at a normal BMI for the first time in my adult life. I'm thinking 135-140 would feel even better. WE'll see if a FF and some other rogue steps might get me within spitting distance. :-)

I've enjoyed reading about all of you on this thread and in the FF thread too. You all seem like a great group of cheerleaders for each other!! So glad to see a place where there is SOOOO much positive energy!

What an inspirational story! Shirley! Sorry I'm late to the party. I'm loving reading all about you and your kids.

Originally Posted by shirleychef

Terri... I have a picture posted in my profile. Do you know by any chance why it does not show up? Is it because I'm new to the group. Will it take a while for my status to allow the picture to post? I know this it totally not hcg talk but I'm so techy challenged... and was just wondering if it is b/c I did something wrong or if it is b/c I'm new to the forum. Thanks for the warm welcome!!

Terri addressed this but I see you still don't have an Avitar. I don't think you have to be here a while to post an Avi. I remember way back when I joined I used one of those "stock pics" that you can choose on LCF. But if you want to post a picture and it is in jpg file format on your computer, just go to control panel, Edit Avitar, scroll down the page to the button that says "browse", click browse again in the box that opens up, then find your picture, click it, click "open" and it will arrive in that box that opened up. Then click "upload." Close out that box and it should show your picture in the preview. Click Save and even if you get an error message, it's okay. I often see "file to large" or something like that, but all pics work fine.

It sounds complicated until you do it! Give it a go!

Originally Posted by shirleychef

I was an upper level sales consultant with The Pampered Chef for 10 years. Plus, my degree is in home economics. Cooking is my thing. I love throwing things together though I'm a very simple cook, not fancy like a professional chef, but it is always very nourishing and tastes good! I have 6 children ages ranging from 6-15, so I seem to spend a lot of time in the kitchen! We don't eat any franken food... so everything is from scratch and with real foods, whole foods, etc. And we raise all our own organic grass fed beef, pork, chicken and turkey along with our laying hens for eggs and a 1/2 acre garden. Actually this year I think I'm going to decrease it to about 1/4 acre. We've gone through some major changes in our diet over the years due to being blessed with an Autistic child. His needs sent me spiraling into years of research. Now we have landed on a Nourishing Traditions/Paleo type diet for our family.

Sorry... maybe I'm posting too much.

That's so great that you raise and grow all your own food. And how amazing that your son changed so much for the better through diet!

Originally Posted by beachagain

Coming soon to a thread near you....round...whatever...
Got my drops...getting ready to load....I just want a great round, with a great P3
I am hoping with a no cheat P2 and P3...I'll not have any problems with a P4....I HAVE to have success this time

Good luck on your round!! Rock it, sweetie!

Originally Posted by TerriMM

Good Morning All!

Well down another 1.30 today, we're touching goal I'm actually going to try for 122 to give myself a cushion.

Hope the weekend is great for everyone.

Hope the wedding is a blessed event Bud!

What??? AMAZING! What are you doing differently this time? Are you still doing 600/900/etc? Are you thrilled? You should be!! Wow!

Originally Posted by shirleychef

When we realized something was wrong with our son.... after a Pediatrition telling us he was fine when if she had just watched him for 2 whole minutes she would have noticed otherwise... GRRRR... Anyway, I like many mom's became my own specialist spending 40+ hours a week reading. In my research found a lot of evidence that pointed to gut disorders and how some diets tend to help some kids. We plunged into it when he was 4 1/2 a whole mess of supplements along with going gluten & casein free. PTL! We saw immediate positive changes. He went form non-verbal, no eye contact, flapping, rolling, tantruming to a kid who started talking, looked at us, and was able to learn behavior management through ABA therapy. We are EXTREMELY blessed that he has now progressed to the point where he functions fairly well. He will never be "normal", but he is social, sweet and does not appear to be abnormal at first. He continues with ABA therapy and a GF/CF diet as it helps him to function better.

So long story short... through my research I also learned how some foods can cause issues like preservatives, and other SAD non organic foods. That started our family down a path of cleaning up our diet from frankenfood central to primarily organic fruits, veggies, and all grass fed organic meats. Due to our large family we decided that trying to raise our own food was going to be the only way we could afford to eat this way, hence we started "hobby" farming and gardening 3 years ago.

That led to 2 years of eating GREAT whole foods during which time I maintained my obesity 225-235 beautifully. BUT my health was very poor, thyroid & adrenal issues, high bp, high cholesterol... etc, not to mention I was severely depressed. Started doing the Eat Fat Lose Fat diet for health comprimised Feb 14 2011, was discouraged about slow weight loss, then stumbled upon hcg April 2011 and started my hcg journey Easter weekend. I read KT's book and with his organic angle really though hcg would be my solution to optimum health since we lived the organic whole foods life already.. I just needed to shed the blubber.

Now, my Teen daugher has done 3 short rounds and has gone from 189 - 143, my Teen son had lost over 30 pound from 220 - mid 180's, hubby has lost over 45 pounds to get to goal weight, and I'm at a normal BMI for the first time in my adult life, thanks to the hcg protocol.... and ultimately thanks to God for giving us a sweet Autistic boy which caused me to wake up to the reality of the SAD diet and start learning about real food!

Whew... probably way more than you wanted to know hey??

Now this is a post full of happy, positive vibes! That's all I can say!

Originally Posted by privatediva

Sounds like an excellent plan! Music is a great 'organizer' for the mind. No telling how many ways it enriches our lives outside of the obvious things...that we 'like' it. I was reading a recent study about how they've discovered that very advanced non-verbal Alzheimer's patients can interact and communicate with instruments in some pretty amazing ways. This is a non-commercial link, so I'm pretty sure I'm not breaking any rules posting it. It's really fascinating to me: Oregon brothers find music can break through solitude of Alzheimer's disease | OregonLive.com

If music can reach into the mind of a dementia patient and connect the dots, how much more could it possibly do for those of us who have more functioning 'hardware' to begin with? I wonder how much of my 'veneer' of functionality is because I spend hundreds of hours a week making music? If I stopped, I wonder how long it would take my thinking to deteriorate? It just interests me.

That was very touching! Music is an amazing thing, to all of us. I don't play or sing, but boy do I appreciate music. I feel for those who can't hear.

As for me, I went hiking with my sister Donna, looking for a missing dog. It's day three of her absense and it isn't looking good at all. There's no sign of her. The owner is devastated so I wanted to go and help them look today. I think someone opened their car door, she hopped in and they drove off. She was wearing a collar with ID tag, but she is half husky and half lab and said to be beautiful and loving. I don't know if that is the worst case senario or if it would be worse that her leash (cord that was still attached to her when she broke her run) got tangled in some brush in the woods and a coyote got her on the first night.

I'm down another 0.4 today and feeling great! Hoping Carrie is having fun at her Mom's wedding and that she is finding peace about it.

Hugs to everyone! Sleep tight tonight.

Shirley, one more thing about the Avatars. Make sure the little box is not checked where it says, "Don't use an Avatar."

[TerriMM]

Hey Cheryl,
I'm doing the Fat Fast, started last Thursday. Here's a copy of what I posted on the Fat Fasters thread.

I started Thursday the 2nd after a 3.6 bump up from bad behavior. Here’s how my calories, fat and percentages have ended up:
Day 1 1041 calories, 91.75 fat – 80%, Lost 1.10
Day 2 1357 calories, 128.50 fat – 85%, Lost 4.30
Day 3 1485 calories, 135 fat – 82%, Lost 1.90
Day 4 1470 calories, 127.75 fat – 79%, Gained 2.0
Day 5 1222 calories, 117.75 fat – 87%, Lost .30
Day 6 1729 calories, 163.25 fat – 85%, Lost 1.2
Day 7 1118.5 calories, 102.25 fat – 82%, Lost .10
Day 8 1628 calories, 152.45 fat – 84%, Lost .40
Total loss, including gain in eight days = 7.30
Since I’m so close to goal I’m pretty impressed. I was struggling on getting my motivation going on P2, trying the rotation diet with HCG because I just couldn’t go protocol again and decided to try this after I totally blew it at a dinner party and gained back 3.60 of the 7.30 I had lost in twelve days. Just realized now that eight days fat fast netted me the same losses as twelve on rotation. Since both are as rogue as they some, you have to take my ramblings with a grain of salt. But I’m not hungry, in a lot better spirits and just the change of menu is a blessing.
Okay, now for my recipe du jour. I used it to make a 1 cup of broccoli and cauliflower qualify.
1 oz cream cheese
¼ oz sharp white cheddar
1 T HWC
Seasoning of choice, black pepper and garlic power, among others are a good choice.
Microwave 30 seconds, stir, Microwave another 15 seconds
By its self 167 calories, 15.25 fat – 83%
With a cup of Broccoli & Cauliflower, 193 calories, 15.75 fat – 74%
I paired it with a lot of other high fat foods for the day and still ended up with
1189.5 calories, 109 fat – 83%

[shirleychef]

Wahoo... techy challenged me did it! Thanks Terri & Cheryl for your help. I NEVER would have been able to figure out how to get my picture up without your help!

I don't know if you guys read all the hcg threads... but I went super rogue today and did my first FF day.... I LOVED it! I felt GREAT... HOT for the first time since my PI.

I might have eaten more than 1000 cals... ok... I DID eat more than 1000 cals, but I've seen others list over 1000 and still lose well. I didn't count my cream in my coffee. AND tried a bite for the cocoa crack I made for hubby even though I had already eaten my cocoa crack portion for the day. I'm SOOOO nervous about weighing tomorrow BUT am I right in thinking that part of the "science" behind the FF includes consecutive days?? So.. I'm preparing myself NOT to lose tomorrow but maybe the next day. I have a nasty head cold that hit two days ago when my stall began... been stuck at 151.8... would LOVE to see the 140's tomorrow.

Oi... did I EVER feel good today! I cleaned the house for about 2 hours, did lots of laundry, cooked for the fam... simply felt I had the energy to DO. This round my energy has been MUCH better with Rx, with homeopathic the frequent trips to the bathroom would make me want to nap I was so exhausted. BUT this round with Rx I have a lot more energy. Today by far surpassed my normal energy output though!

Let me tell ya... if I gain... I'll be re-reading all your POSITIVE supportive energized threads. I appreciate your energy and attitudes! AND am thankful for a place where folks can do something out of the ordinary and NOT be condemned, criticized, slammed, etc. You gals ROCK!

[dazygyrl]

hey, there! whew! what a day. all went sooo well! not a glitch (that i know of anyway ) here are a few pictures.

my happy mama!


my tribe!


my sisters, mom, & i (little sweetie in front is my niece, isabelle...her mama is on the right)









terri!! so happy for you so close to goal!

[shirleychef]

Beautiful! Congrats to your mom and you looked lovely too!

[CherylB]

Terri, that's wonderful! And that recipe sounds like it would be really hard to choke down. (NOT!) I'm so glad this is working for you. So now you're shooting for 122? Where do you hope to reside?

Shirley! You did it! I knew you could. It was easier than the instructions made it sound, huh! Glad you enjoyed your fat fast. Terri just wrote about that in the post above yours! You pee more on homeopathic hcg? If you meant the other one, never mind. I would count the cream in your coffee on future fat fasts. It adds up! (I know.)

"The no condemnation zone"

[CherylB]

Wow, Dazy! I love all the pictures. Your Mom and new Step-dad look like such a lovely couple. What a happy day for all of you! Your little daughter is a doll. And I love the one of you, your sisters and your Mom. So glad everything went off "without a hitch"!

You look gorgeous, but what's new?

[shirleychef]

Originally Posted by CherylB

Shirley! You did it! I knew you could. It was easier than the instructions made it sound, huh! Glad you enjoyed your fat fast. Terri just wrote about that in the post above yours! You pee more on homeopathic hcg? If you meant the other one, never mind. I would count the cream in your coffee on future fat fasts. It adds up! (I know.)

"The no condemnation zone"

Thanks Cheryl! NOW... I'm going to try to figure out how to put pics in my..... do they call it.. album. So I can post before and after pics. Although, probably most people never look hey?

I actually pee about the same on both Rx & homeopathic. BUT on hhcg I was always exhausted! I have much better energy on Rx and less hunger. I was starving my entire second round on hhcg. With Rx the first week was not the nicest but then my hunger was very managable, mainly at meal times... until my PI... post PI I was STARVING... like wanting to eat both arms and a leg type of starving!! That is one reason why I started reading the rogue threads... and am doing something completely out of character for ME on hcg. HOPEFULLY it will do me good.

[privatediva]

I love the pictures, Carrie. Everybody looks so happy and beautiful. I swear, Noah just keeps getting more handsome. He has the most serene wisdom about him. And Ella looks like a princessssssssss!!! (so does her Mom!!!)

[shirleychef]

I think I figured it out! In my profile I loaded my weight loss journey pictures. Included in them is a picture of my hubby at his goal weight with me.. ALMOST there... at goal weight that is.

[privatediva]

You two look great, Shirley! You've come such a long way! Congrats!

[shirleychef]

Thanks Diva!

Well the scale was mildly friendly with a -1 today... I'll take it! I think I would've seen more off if the plumbing wasn't clogged, Hopefully it will let loose today which will allow for a greater loss tomorrow.

Since I did lose I went back and calculated my cals from yesterday... YIKES... I think it hit close to 2000 cals . Cheryl, you are right, that cream in coffee REALLY adds up. So today I'm tracking!

Breakfast was 1 egg, 2 bacon, cream in coffee and 1 cream cheese muffin for 490 cal. Lunch will be cocoa crack which is about 420 the way I made it. Doesn't leave much for dinner so I'll see how I feel by then and might allow myself 1200 for the day.

Have a Wonderful Sunday everyone!

[ellenalesa]

TerriMMM's post has me curious. I am on Day 7, and I want to stick to my 800ish calorie plan (with a little added fat here and there). I think I should stick to one thing at least for the first 21 days so I can learn what works for my body.

Loading weight is 193.5, so I've lost 5 from load. Not counting the load, I've lost either 2.5 or 3.5. I am retaining water so the scale hasn't moved for several days. I expect a whoosh next week.

Is fat fasting better saved for when I'm closer to goal?

I would like to get rid of about 25-30 pounds on round 1, which means I'll be going for an extended round.

Does it make sense to do a refeed or an interruption after the first 21 days to help speed up the losses?

[CherylB]

Originally Posted by shirleychef

Thanks Cheryl! NOW... I'm going to try to figure out how to put pics in my..... do they call it.. album. So I can post before and after pics. Although, probably most people never look hey?

I actually pee about the same on both Rx & homeopathic. BUT on hhcg I was always exhausted! I have much better energy on Rx and less hunger. I was starving my entire second round on hhcg. With Rx the first week was not the nicest but then my hunger was very managable, mainly at meal times... until my PI... post PI I was STARVING... like wanting to eat both arms and a leg type of starving!! That is one reason why I started reading the rogue threads... and am doing something completely out of character for ME on hcg. HOPEFULLY it will do me good.

I love your pictures! How do you make the one of the three different shots of yourself into one picture? I have asked people this in the past but have yet to get the answer I seek. I like how they look and want to make one or more of my own progress. It's time I made another progress pic! You and hubby make a very handsome couple. And YOU have made such an amazing transformation! I always love the contented, satisfied smiles on people's faces in their after photos. It shows how worth-it the struggle really is.

You're the only one I know of who did a detox P1. It's shocking that you lost 12 lbs just in that round alone. What did you eat/drink and for how many days? I'm glad the intense hunger resolved! That must have been brutal. I had two hungry days this round, but that was it.

Originally Posted by shirleychef

Thanks Diva!

Well the scale was mildly friendly with a -1 today... I'll take it! I think I would've seen more off if the plumbing wasn't clogged, Hopefully it will let loose today which will allow for a greater loss tomorrow.

Since I did lose I went back and calculated my cals from yesterday... YIKES... I think it hit close to 2000 cals . Cheryl, you are right, that cream in coffee REALLY adds up. So today I'm tracking!

Breakfast was 1 egg, 2 bacon, cream in coffee and 1 cream cheese muffin for 490 cal. Lunch will be cocoa crack which is about 420 the way I made it. Doesn't leave much for dinner so I'll see how I feel by then and might allow myself 1200 for the day.

Have a Wonderful Sunday everyone!

I got a visit from Bernice today, after I already weighed and drank a few coffees and some water. So whatever losses are a result of "plumbing", I'll find out about tomorrow. I was up 0.8 today, but I was up the same exact amount a week ago Saturday. Seems to be a pattern. If so, tomorrow it will be gone.

about the cream calories! Yowser! Glad you'll be counting them from now on.

Originally Posted by ellenalesa

TerriMMM's post has me curious. I am on Day 7, and I want to stick to my 800ish calorie plan (with a little added fat here and there). I think I should stick to one thing at least for the first 21 days so I can learn what works for my body.

Loading weight is 193.5, so I've lost 5 from load. Not counting the load, I've lost either 2.5 or 3.5. I am retaining water so the scale hasn't moved for several days. I expect a whoosh next week.

Is fat fasting better saved for when I'm closer to goal?

I would like to get rid of about 25-30 pounds on round 1, which means I'll be going for an extended round.

Does it make sense to do a refeed or an interruption after the first 21 days to help speed up the losses?

You're doing well so far, Ellen! Fat fasts and refeeds are definitely for when you hit a 3 day or longer snag. Apple days, too. If you are losing, you know what they say. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. I wouldn't do a refeed or interruption unless you have some event on the calendar that just would be too hard to negotiate on plan. But that's just me.

I had a rotten dream last night. Here it is, for your amusement:

Oh, man. What a night! I had a terrible dream that would just not end regarding my house and new owners. It's very funny in hindsight but it wasn't when I was "in it." They (a whole pack of young and old people) moved in before my time here was up. They had completely remodeled the place and turned it into a very hip (though a tad over-the-top) palace. They had put all my stuff into a heap. I tried to call the cops but couldn't find a phone. Then one of the women handed me a land line phone and it was a rotary! I dialed 911 but there was way too much going around the dial for the 1's and I knew it was not working.

Then she gave me her cell phone and I'd push what I thought was the 9 and it was an 8 or something else. I couldn't find my purse or my own phone because they had completely just basically disposed of all my things. Then when I tried to make a break for it and just call the cops from somewhere else, one of the guys (happened to be a big, burly black dude. No offense to anyone who is black reading this, please! It was just a dream) was tackling me and keeping me from leaving.

Among the changes they had made, they shredded my hot tub because it wasn't up to their standards, they put in an ocean (Yes, my back yard now had ocean frontage!), They created all these outdoor patios and places to play sports, and more stuff I don't recall. It was your typical nightmare.

At one point I knew I was dreaming and remembered in a movie I saw ("White Squall") where a boy tells another boy that if he's having a bad dream to just say to himself, "one two three WAKE UP!" But for some reason I stayed in it. I think I was just determined to find my purse and phone!

But the house had all new windows (with a lovely view of the ocean), granite counters, top-of-the-line kitchen appliances, the works. I remember one of them making a crack about my small driveway and I told them sarcastically that they could remove the front yard and just make it a parking lot.

This is helping to see how funny and ridiculous it was! Thanks for listening. I feel better now.

So, woke with a dang headache which I almost never have (thank you, Lord) and am drinking some coffee and downed 800 mg of Advil. I'll be in tip-top shape momentarily.

Up 0.8 today, but I checked back in my food journal and it was a week ago Saturday that I bumped up that same amount. Then the next day it was gone and took about 0.4 more with it. I'm cool with it.

I need to finish waking up now. I need to do something substantial today in this house, before all my stuff ends up in a heap! May we all have a very blessed and safe day today. AMEN! (The End.)

Dazy, Terri, Deb and everyone else out there, I hope you have a lovely day today! And may the honeymooners be sharing their first day of wedded bliss!

[shirleychef]

Cheryl, my hubby does the cropping, he uses a free program he downloaded called "gimp". He said it is like photoshop but it is free. I'm sooooo not talented when it comes to computer stuff... but I'm married to a really cute computer geek!

Ya... I was totally shocked when I totaled up my cals from yesterday.. it sure tasted GOOD but since I'm only doing the FF through Thurs or Fri I'd like to get the most bang for my buck! My goal is to do FF until I hit 145 or Friday... Then go back into the VLCD strict to do 21 days strict then transition into lifetime maintenance... which I'm thinking if I don't hit 135 I'll JUDDD or do a series of FF to get there after Phase 3. I cannot get out of my head what Dr. S says about the need for 21 days ... if it really does effect the ability of the hypothalamus to kick back into normal functioning... I'd love for mine to function properly by the end of this round. I know my first round I followed very strictly and stabilized beautifully... my second round was AWFUL . I was STARVING the entire round and could not stabilize. I did 3-4 CD's a week... finally gave up after Phase 4 and enjoyed my holidays... 17 pounds too much. Which is why I'm not already at goal this round even though I'm down 21.8 for this round... 17 of it was re-losing from round 2.

Today's FF calories are done at 1290. A little higher than I wanted but we'll see what the scale has to say about it tomorrow.

[CherylB]

Thank You!! I just downloaded GIMP and I will work on getting some good progress pics. I'm still 27 lbs from goal but I'm down 67 lbs and there MUST be a noticable difference in a side-by-side image.

I hear you about regains. I've done that twice since I'm been doing hhcg. I have a really hard time emotionally every year from August through January. Then I hit my stride and it becomes easy again from late January/February through July. No idea why but suspect it has alot to do with family events, the growing shortening of the day, SAD, etc. Whatever it is, it SUCKS! I may (if I can afford it) invest in a sun lamp come August. I hate feeling so nasty for half of the year.

[TerriMM]

Hey Bud!
The wedding was beautiful and your mom looks very happy. And you are simply stunning! And yes ma'am you do make some gorgeous babies.

Hi Shirley,
2000 calorie and down a pound? Can I get a Yaw Hoo?! Cheryl is right you've got to count everything. I find it just as important, if not more so to make sure the percentage is as high as possible. Are you calculating that? Its fat grams x 9 ÷ total calories. So a jumbo egg is 80 calories, 8 grams of fat, you take 8 x 9 = 72 ÷ 80 = 80%. If you pencil it out throughout the day you can figure out better how to make room for a little protein or veggies, how to tweak recipes or whether you need to ramp up the fat with what calories you have left to make a good finish.

I don't think there is any hard and fast rule Ellen. This is pretty much as rogue as it gets. Some use it to break a stall, get over mental withdrawal from lack of fat or just because they can't face another day of P2 I'd say if you're losing at what you're doing, keep it up and save this for when you need it. That's kind of what I did.

Morning Cheryl,
I hope to reside between 122 & 125. That gives me room to play with and keeps me in my current wardrobe. If I lose any more I'll have to get all new clothes and I can't really afford that, aside from the fact that teenager clothes no longer suit me

Well after a bunless burger for lunch yesterday I really had to over consume fat to get my percentage up. I ended up with over 1800 calories and only 83%. So I got an expected bump up today. Today is a down day, going to try to keep the calories down and the fat up. It’s funny since the DH is doing strict protocol and I’m doing fat fast I feel like Jack Sprat and his wife.

[SueQ]

So a jumbo egg is 80 calories, 8 grams of fat,

Really? I have been calculating 70 calories, 5 grams of fat. I like your numbers better!

[CherylB]

Originally Posted by TerriMM

It’s funny since the DH is doing strict protocol and I’m doing fat fast I feel like Jack Sprat and his wife.

That's funny. Sorry you bumped up but so did I! I'm not concerned because I know my pattern. Tomorrow I'll be at least back to where I was yesterday but I expect to be down a little more than that. I'm on the verge of the 166's so things get wonky when we slip on down the scale.

I'm thrilled that the fat fasting is working so well for you! I hope someday to be in your shoes and worrying about getting too thin for my wardrobe! No sweat for me, though. I buy almost all my clothes at thrift stores.

[CherylB]

Originally Posted by SueQ

Really? I have been calculating 70 calories, 5 grams of fat. I like your numbers better!

Caught you lurking! I use ****** and it says that a single Jumbo egg= 100 cals, 7 gm fat, 8 gm protein. A large= 77, 5 and 6. I like my jumbos.