Thread: MissM's second time around

Originally Posted by FlirtyFlo

Well done girl..... your body LOVES HCG! and I am so happy for you!

Yes, as you say, there is so much more to the journey... Self Pampering, and rewarding yourself in so many other ways than with food..

But not just that, I think so often people go on a diet, they loose weight and 3 months down the line they have fallen in the same trap of not being mindful of our eating habits.... this P3 and P4 was really a valuable 2 months for me.... To realise that going forward, I need to formulate my plans and stick by it, in My case Keto works for me and then a little more freedom on weekend and not to desert the scale, I will still weigh in daily so I am aware of where I stand and reign it in when necessary

I am considering doing only P3 after this round and double back for a last round.... will miss doing it without you around, but Maybe Dubbles will buddy up with me

For me as well our P3/P4 together was invaluable. You're so right in declaring that's where the real magic happens. I so appreciate learning from your wisdom gleaned from previous mistakes. I am planning to do an extended P3 and will likely hang around the forum for a couple of months after this round ends, anyway, so I'll be around to continue to cheer you! It is so helpful to be in good company through this process, especially because I generally don't tell anyone in my life what I'm doing. I mean, my boyfriend and best friends know that I'm doing an elimination diet in waves and they're more or less supportive, but I haven't told a soul about the HCG. I know they'd worry and think I'm insane. But having the support of my doctor and the forum gives me strength to let them do their thing and continue to stay committed to mine.

Also: I'm 100 percent with you. Keto, now that I've figured out how to do it, with some off roading on weekends and special occasions, is, I've decided, the best way forward for me as well. Years ago when I first started playing with Keto, it was a disaster. I ate way too much fat to get into ketosis, and I didn't lose weight or change my body composition at all. I also now understand my body had a whole lot of healing to do in terms of metabolic derangement. I'm in such a different place now. And focusing on eating healthy animal proteins and non-starchy vegetable with not too much worry about how much healthy oils and fats I add in while also not deliberately overdoing it does seem to be the best path. It's been a long road to discover that, but worth every step!

Weight dropped another pound overnight: 143. That's a full 10 pounds lost from loading weight, three pounds down from pre-loading weight, and 2.2 down from LIW.

At some point I'll stop with all that unnecessary data and just stick with one of the numbers.

I made good progress on my office yesterday, and now I have three hours until my yoga class to finish up. Boyfriend gave me a printer for Christmas, and I want to get it out of the box and set up before he gets here this afternoon. I don't want him to think it's going to stay in the box forever or that I didn't appreciate the gift!

Hoping to make some progress on the bedroom tomorrow. I'm pretty sure my sewing kit with my measuring tape is in a box in there, and I'd really like to take some measurements--at least of my waist. My waist measurement before I started the last round was 35"--I'm an apple shape and definitely carry my weight in my midsection--and I have no idea what it is right now though I have gone down in sizes. In my mind my goal was always to have a 28" waist. That would be very healthy in the waist-to-height ratio and even the waist-to-hip ratio which, as I understand it, is actually a better measurement for long-term health and longevity than scale weight or BMI or anything else. So, there's more motivation to get fully unpacked and organized in the bedroom!

Boyfriend knows I'm "eating healthy" at the moment, and that it tends to go in waves for me. He's patient and relatively supportive. Today I'm making flank steak and braised cabbage for our meal--with a potato for him thrown in. He was so enamored with the chicken wings I made last weekend in the air fryer during loading, he wants more. So, I told him to bring some raw wings and we'll cook them up, though I won't be eating them. I think I've learned that simply preparing people for my hard-line boundaries ahead of time so they know what to expect helps minimize their resistance when the moment comes around.

He'll be going back to work in two weeks as bars and restaurants are opening back up here, so I'm planning to go spend a night or two next weekend. Already thinking about preparing my meals and bringing them, though I certainly could cook while I'm there. I think I'd just rather bring my little tupperwares and be done with it. Shrimp on a bed of braised cabbage or cod/orange roughy baked on a bed of fennel is easy and transportable. I've also been doing well with romaine hearts stuffed with sliced chicken breast and eaten as a sandwich as well as my celery soup. Working on creating other soups for P2 as well. I have an HCG cookbook downloaded on my kindle, but I find cookbooks so difficult to manage on kindle. Oh well, I'll search through and see if I get any inspiration. I have lobster claw meat in the freezer and am thinking about getting some crab as well. Those are two foods I didn't eat last round but lend themselves well to soup.

Happy Saturday, friends, and enjoy the weekend. I'm off to unpack books--yippeeee!

Found my sewing kit in a box in the office--YAY!

38" bust
32" waist
38.5" hips

I guess I have more of a short, squat hourglass shape than an apple now!

But that's some significant shrinkage. I can remember my measurements being between 41" and 43" for bust and hips at some point, though, unfortunately, I didn't measure before I began my first round last fall. Oh well.

And maybe a 28" waist is overly ambitious. I guess we'll just see how it goes. . . .

Though my waist-to-hip ratio right now is .83 and that's below .9, which puts me in a pretty healthy category. So hooray for that!

Originally Posted by Dubbles

Way to go with those measurments. I never measured at all since starting. Figured I'll just let my clothes tell the tale. You both have such great attitudes, I really need to read, listen, and follow.

Thanks, friend! You know, I think each of us has to find our own way, though having this forum through which we can learn from each other's experiences is super helpful. I still think it's important to remember that each of us is a unique snowflake with our own histories and contexts--and that we'll be much happier not comparing ourselves to others. Finding the balance is key in hanging out on the forums. Finding support and not getting overly swept up.

And btw, up until yesterday, I hadn't measured. Going by my clothes was more than good enough first round. Though I did freak out sometimes when my weight stalled or went up (which is common for this body that seriously hangs on to inflammation and water weight in response to exercise and monthly hormonal shifts), and it might have been helpful to be able to measure on those days and realize my progress wasn't actually stalled or reversed.

Anyway, this is all to say, you do you, lady. And you're doing great. And I really appreciate your voice and support on the forum!

Another pound down this morning: 142.

I'm delighted and surprised so far this round with these big, consistent losses. Everything I've read suggests subsequent rounds after the first can be challenging in every way--in terms of weight loss and motivation, especially. But so far so good. It's even a bit more effortless because I feel like I know what I'm doing and I'm more fully committed. I know what HCG can do and so I'm not skeptical and going blind like I felt I was in my first round.

So it got me thinking about what's changed for me since last round, and it's A LOT.

First of all, my thyroid numbers are within range and I was seriously hypothyroid last round. It's kind of amazing I lost as well as I did.

Second, I'm under much less stress.

Third, I think I've got my mind right in terms of motivation and expectations. I'm more curious rather than desperate.

Yesterday with boyfriend was lovely. He arrived later than expected because he got stalled by his mom. I was super hungry and have a tendency to get hangry, so instead of waiting for him to eat and therefore setting myself up to be seriously pissy when he arrived a couple hours later than I had planned for, I went ahead and ate. Which meant we didn't eat together. But we happily prepared food for him after he arrived and we had gone for a walk. Experimenting with the air fryer he gave me for my birthday in November was part of the plan, and he was thrilled with the flank steak, french fries, and chicken wings that were infinitely more healthy and lower in calories than a similar kind of meal he might have ordered from a restaurant.

He didn't like that we weren't sharing the eating experience together, because as I've mentioned here before, it's historically been a big part of our connection and time together--and a problem in many ways, because we feed off each other's passion for food in a way that leads to excess and unhealthy behavior. So, it was interesting to observe. I think we both ended up eating less because we ate separately. He went home with leftover wings; I stayed OP and ended up with another good loss today. We're breaking the pattern.

I also had the opportunity to respond to his playful resistance. We talked about his health issues, which are getting more serious with more test results showing low testosterone, hypothyroidism, GERD that's affecting his voice which is how he makes a living as a professional singer, high cholesterol and triglycerides, and mysterious blood clots even specialists can't figure out. And I talked about my tragic family history: my mother died at 66 of kidney failure because of diabetes, and my father committed suicide in no small part because of his struggles with lifelong morbid obesity. I will do everything I can to have a different fate and to live and die in a different way. That is my commitment to myself. And if that takes what looks like pretty drastic measures, so be it.

I don't think I'd ever said it so succinctly, and I think it landed. He may still tease me, but that's OK. I think part of loving someone is supporting their dreams and pursuit of their best life. I certainly do that for him, and I think deep down he understands that's what this is for me.

In short, it was a very good day and a good visit.

I also spent a little time looking at the HCG cookbook on my kindle and got some great ideas for single portion soups. I made a big batch of homemade Instant Pot chicken bone broth yesterday, and I'll be freezing it in single portions for those soups and eating well for the rest of P2. I honestly enjoy the creative challenge of cooking delicious things that are appropriate for P2. Having limits and boundaries within to work often inspires the best creations, in my experience, so I'm open to that.

Happy Sunday, lovely friends. Enjoy your day!

Originally Posted by FlirtyFlo

MissM... You are mowing down those pounds !! So proud of you!!
How much Net weight is is?
Hopefully now I can start catching up.... as I am only 2.4 down so far...
Sounds like you had a great weekend just chilling with BF... and I love how he is totally on board to eat the way you do.... Most men, especially in your situation of not seeing each other often, would moan and groan.... but he is very supportive!

Lets see what the new week brings.... For me it is very confusing that my new week does not start on a Monday in this round.... so I can still catch a decent loss for the week by Thursday morning.. fingers crossed....

Thank you, Yvonne! Net loss is 3.2 from LIW; 4 from starting weight this round. That's after one week. But if I go way back to our September round, it's a 28 pound loss total. I think that's a good thing to remember now and again!

And yes, let's see what the new week brings!