The last time I blogged about what I was personally doing, I was attempting a week or so of the VLCD without actually taking hCG. Yea, that lasted a week! By the end of the week I was STARVING! I kept hoping it would go away, or I would just get used to it, but I never did. I was able to get down to 157.8, but again, it wasn't about weight. But once I started eating again, I obviously went up a little bit - back to my 159-160 range.
We finally got our hCG pellets and protein powder. I had a lot of people asking about the difference between drops and pellets, so I did decide to do a final round utilizing the pellets. I loaded the 4-6th and got up to 166.3. The day after I started the VLCD I got back down to 159.2 - I'm currently on day 12 and am at 154 - Almost to my lowest point ever.
While I'm excited to be losing, that was not my purpose. I wanted to see what differences I could find between taking drops or not, how pellets compared to drops, and experiment with different recipes with the protein powder. The biggest differences I found between hcg and no hcg were hunger, TOM, and weight fluctuations. As I mentioned previously, I kept getting hungrier without the drops. While on the drops, I found with in a couple of days the hunger started going away. By day 8, I was just fine, and still am. TOM - I have an IUD and don't have a regular period, if ever. I realized the other day that every time I have started a round of hCG, I've started spotting. When I did just the VLCD, nothing. (Sorry if TMI for my male readers;). When doing just VLCD, I lost consistently every day. I even put on my heavy BBW body cream, and still lost. While on hCG, I've fluctuated between losing and gaining. I tried putting on BBW body cream again, and had a stall. During my very first round of hCG, I put on BBW cream with out even thinking about it, and had a gain the very next day - my only gain during my first round. I've also observed on days that I had to wake early for training sessions, I didn't lose near as much as on days that I didn't. Sleep makes a huge difference! I've also been lifting heavy this round, and am enjoying that. I'm sore and it feels good. I've been keeping track of my body fat % with a hand held BIA, and have gone from 22.7 - 20.3%, so I am losing fat, and not muscle, which is very desirable. To me, there were definitely observable differences that leaves me very confident that the hCG is in my system and works! At the end of this round, I will take a ketosis test, and will also have my RMR tested to see where it is at. A month after that, I will repeat these test to see what changes occur.
As far as differences between pellets and drops - I haven't noticed anything too different other than convenience and shelf life. We had a stronger formula created after my last round of doing drops, so I don't know how they compare to that, but compared to my last formulation used, it feels about the same. If anything, I don't feel as tired as I was last time - even with my early hours.
Recipes - still working on that one. I've been adding 1 TBSP and a packet of stevia to plain, fat free Greek Yogurt, and have done well with that. Tastes good to! I plan on going the full 23 days or until my body doesn't want to let any more go. In that time frame, I will come up with some recipes. Extracts are safe to use - mint is my favorite :)
So that is what I have been up to the last couple of weeks. As soon as I am done, I plan on giving P90X my full dedication! I've stocked up on Shakeology and Results and Recover Formula! I'm excites to see what this will do for me and if it will get me where I finally want to be. If not, then I'll reconsider the "Final Phase Fat Loss".
Always a plan, and sticking to it - what's yours? Hope you are all doing well in your resolutions and know that I am here to help in any way I can. Don't hesitate to contact me. Happy Losing!
Rachael Ray
SEE ME ON RACHAEL RAY - JUST CLICK THE PICTURE ABOVE! :D
15 comments:
Hi,
Today is the first day of my VLCD along with the drops. I have done the loading for two days, and I want you to give me suggestions to keep me on track and avoid myself cheating :(..I fear I wont be able to control my appetite..thank u
Hi Johanna! I would love to help you! If you have a sweet tooth like me, I know some great ideas to help satisfy it with out straying from the protocol. :) I know it won't be easy, but the results are worth it. Feel free to join our support group on FB "local HCG" and stay in touch - don't hesitate to get ahold of me as you go. Take it day by day :)
Hi! I've been debating whether or not to do this diet. I'm 25 years old, 5'6'' and weigh 150 lbs. The biggest concern i have is what will happen after i complete the diet? I cant imagine having to eat the same thing ALL the time to maintain the weight loss. Fortunately, I am someone who loves lifting weights and staying active at the gym, but the past 2 months i've gotten away from it. I'm just looking for something that will help me lose 20 lbs and then i'd like to start back up w/ the weight training.
Hi Sweety! You are young, and for your height and weight you really don't have a ton to lose, so you would need to weigh whether or not it is worth is - have you read through all the protocol? It's a minimum of 23 days of only 500 calories, which is rough, but doable, and I will be here to help you through it. Once off hcg you do 21 one days of stabilization where you can eat dairy, nuts and other foods again, just still no sugar/startches/carbs. After stabilization you go into maintaince where you can slowly start introducing carbs (good ones) and some sugars again. Guaranteed you will lose weight, but if you don't get back into the gym and/or change your eating habits, it will creep back on. It's that way with any program. But I know if I personally were to do my year over again, I would have done HCG first, then hit the gym hard... If you haven't already read through the protocol, email me at iluvtnf@aol.com and I will forward it to you. Educating yourself is key. :)
Hi!
I tried to follow your post and I do not understand all of the abbreviations... would you be able to LMK what they mean. I just found out about this diet and I really want to understand everything prior to trying it! I am concerned but I want to do it if it actually works and I am not going to die in the process. My husband is 59 and I have to make sure that it will not kill him if I give it to him. Can I please get the link of where to buy it? My friend says that I have to buy the injection form in order for it to work right... but, now I am reading that the drops will do the same... so, anything from you I would appreciate it. Cindy
Hi Cindy!
Sorry for all the abreviations! Were there any specific ones? If you want to email me at iluvtnf@aol.com, I will forward you all of the information and protocol that I have. I recommend everyone consults with their physician before starting the HCG protocol, and educate your self as much as you can. You will hear both negatives and positives of this diet, so it's a very personal decision. But as I see it, I have NEVER heard of anyone getting abnormally sick or dying from this diet, but you hear of hundreds of thousands of people dying from heart disease, diabetes, stroke, diabetes, and other obestiy related disease... What ever you decide to do, get the weight off! From my personal experience, and many others that I have worked with, the homeopathic works just as well as the injections. I have not seen anything to suggest other wise. It's just a matter of making sure you get a quality product. If you go injections, go through a doc - DO NOT buy them online or with out an Rx. If you go homeopathic, look for at least 6x, 15x, 30x, 60x, and American made. The company I went through it "Local HCG" They are still a smaller company, but have a great support system, and product. I have referred all of my clients, friends and family to them. If you click the picture of the HCG bottles on the right side of my blog, it will link you directly to their site. Let me know if you have any more questions, and I will look for your email!
Hi,
I am on my fourth day of the VLCD and have already lost 7 pounds. My problem is deciding what to do about exercise. I have been training regularly three times a week for a year and have made a lot of strides. I also like to run and go through on and off spurts of good running months. I am so leary to give up my training while on the VLCD but worried that I will go into starvation mode and quit losing. I also am worried about how it will affect my weight if I stop now but then jump right back in when I am finished. I want to do the best thing. Thanks!
Hi Tracy!
Sounds like you are off to a great start, keep it up! I know one of the things a lot of poeple complain of is having to give up exercise. In the originial protocol, it says that walking for no more than a 1/2 hours is ok, and even that those that had more physically active lives tended to lose a little bit more. But it's a matter of keeping a balance and not over due it. If you stall or start gaining, then cut back.
I personally would rather lift weights than walk, and I tried it, with several others, and was successful. I would just keep it simple though - alternate between lifting one day upper one day, then lower, and walking the next. Don't get your heart rate up too much. I actually did some lifting videos for Local HCG. You can find them on their site at http://www.localhcg.com/hcg-exercises/- start at the chest. They are simple, but will at least give you something to do help maintain what you have already achieved. Once you are off the drops, you can get back to it, and thanks to mucscle memory, your body will take 2-3 weeks to adjust, but should be back to where you were. Just remember to keep the balance. Good luck! :)
Hi Candice,
You mentioned: "If you go homeopathic, look for at least 6x, 15x, 30x, 60x, and American made."
The formula I got from the naturopath is 12c, 30c, 60c, 100c. It is from Deseret Biologicals out of UT. I know it's not the same company and formulation that you used. Have you heard of this brand? I'm detoxing right now in preparation for starting the diet, and I just want to make sure I've got a "good" product!
Thanks very much! :)
Hi Amanda! I have not looked into the naturopath, so I'm not very educated on it... But I forwarded your comment to Local HCG, and the owner was going to ask his lab, and I will try and look into it some more. As long as you aren't getting hungry, and are losing, hopefully it is legit :)
What is VLCD? Also, I noticed alot of different foods on here that you and others have mentioned that I was told not to eat! Like yogurt for instance. With my drops, the only snack we get is an apple, orange, or strawberry. The only vegetables we get is lettuce, tomato, onion, cucumber, cabbage, and asparagus and we can NOT mix them and like make a salad. Then the meat is chicken, fish, lean beef. Also everything has to be 100 grams. Does this sound correct to you?
VLCD = Very Low Calorie Diet - this is the 500 cal part :) My last round I did was primarily for experimentation, hence the greek yogurt, lifting, protein powder ect. The original protocol from Dr. Simeons is very restrictive, but that was 50+ years ago. Since then, many other protocols have come into circulation allowing more food variety, mixing, ect. Some even going for 800 cals... I'm open to it, and I myself used a food list that had a little more variety and I mixed veggies, all with success. BUT, I tell people if they choose to stray from the original, then it is "at their own risk," and if they stall/gain then to go back to the original. People just need to weigh the pros/cons of trying the different protocols - if it makes the diet easier to stick to with a possible slower rate of loss, then that may be better for some. I believe it is just a personal decision.:)
I recently ordered my drops from Local HCG and will begin my loading day Friday! I've been researching other sites about their protocol, and wanted to ask why the 3 loading days as opposed to the usual 2? I want to follow formula exactly but does this sound beneficial to you?
From my understanding, it is just from a different protocol, and not 100% on the reasoning of why... I did the 3 day load - I say its your choice :) Good luck, and see ya in the room! (eat some cheesecake fore me;)
Hi there!
Today was the first time ever i heard about HCG and already I have read dozens of blogs excellent results and some not so good...but the majority was positive feedback. I am a 32yr old soon to be 33yrs in September and I weigh 184lbs. Im really uncomfortable in my body so i am so excited to try this and get great results. I know that everyone's body works differently at different rates .....i want to release 54lbs in total...which will take me to 130lbs which has been my dream weight for the longest time ...how may rounds do you think i will need to achieve this...providing that I follow all the instructions...
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