R3P4D3 Finally A Three Day Weekend

Round 3 Phase 4 Day 3
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
LIW: 159.8
Yesterday's Wt: 161.4
Today's Wt: 162.2
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +0.8lb
R3 Total Loss to Date: -12.6lbs

Duh, my 3 weeks of P3 are done and I should be in P4.  We all know I haven't been sticking to P3 like I should but I'd rather eat as if I was still in P3 with my occasional cheats.  It works better for me for maintaining.  I just have a few days left and I'll be back on P2.  I'm considering this a planned interruption rather than a completed round since I'm hoping to do sublingual.

After I finished my blog entry yesterday, I went and laid down for a nap.  I must have slept deeply because I awoke thinking I was late for work because of all the light I was seeing.  After a few seconds, I realized I was taking a nap and fell back asleep without a problem.  I finally dragged myself out of bed around 5:30pm because I realized I had missed the local news and I still hadn't eaten dinner.  I started to cook my steak along with some Brussels sprouts and mushrooms.  I ate all my vegetables and about half of the steak.  Later I enjoyed a heaping tablespoon of peanut butter.  The bump in weight was because I had eaten rather late and weighed in at 4am.  I did weigh myself when I arrived home at 10:30am, and I was at yesterday's weight.  So since I get to sleep in tomorrow, I should see some better numbers unless I indulge in some cheat foods today.  I'm not sure if my daughter is coming home today or not, she was still debating last time we text.  I only worked half a day today so I left work at 9am.  I headed to the Tractor Supply Store to get my rabbit a larger water bottle however, they were completely out.  They may get some on Tuesday.  I did find some saddle soap and it was a pretty large tin, 12 oz. for $4.99.  That's pretty good since the one I bought at Wal*Mart was $5.25 for only 3.2 oz., so guess what I'm returning on Sunday or Monday.  I would do it tomorrow but I have a bowling tournament on base and that will be all day.  So after I went to the Tractor Supply Store, I went to Walgreen's to get my Merlot night cream with the free sample of moisturizer.  I thought it was eye cream, darn. I tried to pay with my register rewards but the cashier was kinda dumb.  I couldn't go to another Walgreen's because this store was the only one with the free sample.  She jipped me on one of my register rewards but I was too tired to argue with her.  Then I headed to Albertson's and that damn place was packed for 10am!!  I got my free eggs with a purchase of the bacon and a few other things that were on my list.  I came straight home because I also bought some ice cream, LOL. I put everything away as soon as I got home, changed and began cooking my brunch.  I had left over steak, so I cooked some bacon and 3 eggs over easy.  Now I sit here enjoying a Fat Boy and typing.  Luckily its early so I should be able to digest this.  Now I debate whether to take a nap, hands down the nap will win!!!  I'm still debating dinner, salmon patties or tacos.

R3P2D45V39 How Dare He!

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 45 VLCD39
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection #38
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt: 159.4
Today's Wt: 158.6
Today's LOSS/GAIN: -0.8lb
R3 Total Loss to Date: -16.2lbs


Wow, I can't believe there was a drop!! I've been stair stepping all week so this was a complete shock.  I got to sleep in today since I didn't have to go to work but I got up early anyway because my cats were fighting.  I wanted to water my palm trees before I went to my meeting anyway so they just woke me up a bit earlier than I wanted to. I was having some intense carb cravings last night and I kept eating some pita chips and melba toast.  I know TOM is very, very near.  I finally drank some apple cider vinegar water and that calmed me down.  I seriously thought I was going to see a gain and be back in the 160's. One of my teammates saw me and she said I had lost a lot since the last time she saw me and that was only about a month ago!!  Talk about making me feel better.  I explained to her that the scale isn't very friendly but I can tell its the inches that are coming off.  I wore a pair of Dickies that I bought about a month ago and this time, there was no muffin top.  Whoo hoo!! Oh, that reminds me, yesterday at work, one of the guys actually told me that I have lost too much weight.  I was like WTF?!? He asked me if I was going to lose any more and I said yes, another 30 pounds if possible.  He was like no, you're gonna look all anorexic.  I explained to him if I could lose another 30 pounds, I would be at my high school weight and I was still a chucky kid at that weight. I also explained to him that if I went my the government guidelines for my height, I would still have to lose another 60 pounds.  Now I know that would be impossible.

After my meeting, I drove to Costco since it was still early and I bought some Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches that I had a coupon for, of course.  I bought a clothes steamer too, that was completely unnecessary but I did.  I filled my tank since I was there but I should have drove to Sam's because it was about a nickel less but I had the ice cream already so I just fueled up there.  I didn't need to refuel completely but I wanted to have a full tank for the week.  I immediately drove to my mother's house to drop off some of the ice cream (I don't like cookies n cream that much) and when I opened the box, they were all melted!!  WTF!!!  Apparently I got a box that had been left out or their freezers aren't working.  I had to drive like a mad woman all the way home so I could put the vanilla ones in my freezer.  Talk about losing my appetite or cravings for that ice cream.  I will indulge in one during my PI oh, that's later this week, LOL. Of course now I'm debating if I should just continue on since I'm already used to VLCD and I'll be switching to sublingual.  If I do I will have to freeze all my avocadoes and feed my dog and cats the kefir or else it's all going to waste and that's a lot of cash in the trash.  Now to ponder what to do.

R3P2D44V38

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 44 VLCD 38
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection #37
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt: 159.4
Today's Wt: 159.4
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +/-0.0
R3 Total Loss to Date: -15.4

Ugh these 4am weigh ins!! But I only have 2 more injections to go and I can finally take my planned interruption.  Plus my lower back has been killing me all day.  I got home early and I seized the moment, I took a nap!! I slept for nearly 2 and 1/2 hours.  I feel better but my back doesn't, it still feels stiff.  Of course I have a million things to do but the nap was priority.  I got to go shopping while I was on duty because a co-worker was needed Muenster cheese.  He usually buys the loaf and splits it with me and doesn't ask for a dime.  How sweet huh?  But today, I purchased my own loaf and he still let me keep his change.  The cheese was on sale this week $1.99 per pound and that's pretty cheap.  Sadly they make you buy the whole the loaf.  I also got some mayonnaise they had on sale. Would you believe, they were completely out of the water that was on sale? Since I was able to get in and out (twice) of the store quickly, I also stopped at Big Lots, no one was there.  I wanted to purchase an outdoor resin chair so I could sit outside once in a while, and with my rewards cards, it only costs me $7.99.  They also had the Nutrisystem food on sale today for 10/$5.  I found some heat and serve vegetarian chili, cheese tortellini, and some other soups that I can use in a pinch during Phase 4.  I was going to stop at another Big Lots on my way home but decided my nap was more important.  Once I got back to work, I ate some tuna again.  Problem with the tuna was, I didn't check the ingredients when I purchased it.  I just saw it was Herb and Garlic flavor.  As soon as I put the first bite in my mouth, I immediately felt and tasted the oil.  I checked the label, sure enough, soybean oil was the 3rd listed.  Ergh.  I had a radish since I had bought some of those too (4 bunch for 99 cents).

So now I sit here debating what to eat for dinner.  I had decided early to make cabbage rolls but I will have to make a few since it would be pointless to just cook one.  Yesterday, I didn't cook my chicken like I said I was going to but I separated it, froze it, and had steak and broccoli for dinner.  I know broccoli is not allowed as well on this protocol but if I hadn't eaten it, there would have been no room in the freezer for it after I put the rest of my steaks and chicken in there. Hmmm, that reminds me, I need to figure out how I'm going to get that whole loaf of cheese into the freezer, even after I cut it down to 2 pound blocks, there's no room!!  I have 1 pound unsalted butter blocks frozen as well since I can't have any on P2.  That shall all change on Thursday!!!  I'm so excited because I can have  all that kefir I have in the fridge!! While still making more, haha!!  Alright, I'm off to the kitchen to make my dinner.

R3P2D39V33 TOM and Restocking My Cupboard

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 39 VLCD 33
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection #32
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt: 161.0
Today's Wt: 161.6
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +0.6lb
R3 Total Loss to Date: -13.2lbs

Ergh, TOM is pissing me off.  My numbers keep going up and up but I have to remind myself it is because TOM is right around the corner.  Last time TOM visited, I pretty much gave up, took a planned interruption because my weight was stalled or went up.  I just have to keep focused and remind myself it is because of TOM.  I've been having normal BM's the last couple of days but somewhere I'm retaining water.  I shouldn't be complaining of such a small gain because before TOM presents itself, I usually gain 5 to 6 lbs, off protocol.  I just need to keep a positive mind set and chug along.

I have to make a confession.  I'm a coupon fanatic!!  So this morning I set my alarm for 3:30am and snoozed a bit but finally headed out to walk the neighborhood.  I picked up everyone's unwanted flyers from their driveways while they slept.  There's a Spanish newsprint that is given to everyone around the neighborhood but no one reads them or picks them up, so I figured I'd help myself to them and do them a small favor.  I even asked my friend, who lives 2 blocks away, to give me her unwanted coupons.  She had to fish them out of the trash but they were still good.  I picked up about 6 papers and even one from last week that these people never picked up.  It was a win for me because there was a coupon for a free box of tissue paper for purchasing a 12 roll size toilet paper of same brand.  Fortunately for me, I have a dollar off coupon for the the TP, so I win, win!!!  There were also coupons for a dollar off 2 bags of Cheetos and Albertson's has them on sale with their coupon, so I pay $1.19 per bag.  After I came home from my coupon hunting trip, I went back to sleep.  I awoke again around 7:30am and had my coffee.  I went to Sam's to get dog food and some potting soil.  Then I headed out to Albertson's on the west side of town since they're well stocked.  I got me some more red wine vinegar (BOGO FREE), $1.50 apiece, some more garbanzo beans (88 cents per can), the Cheetos and since they had the Silk Almond Milk on sale all month, I found my 55 cents off coupons and bought it. The Duncan Hines cake mixes were on sale for a dollar. I picked up some more chicken since it was BOG2 FREE.  Can't beat that.  The trick of course, is to get the packages of similar price so you win and not the store since the take off the least expensive price of the packages.  I stopped by my mother's store to pick up some plastic milk cartons.  I plant on making my moveable garden in them.  Then I went to the other Albertson's by her house.  I got some more Cheetos (I have soooo many coupons now LOL) and the FAB detergent was 99 cents with their in-store coupon.  Don't need to tell me twice. I went in 3 times with 3 different cashiers so they wouldn't recognize me as the same person that just came through their line.  Then I headed to Costco to refuel since I was in the area.  I ran in and bought my "crackers" because I don't believe they're going to stock them anymore.  As soon as this stock is gone, that's it, no more crackers.  I will learn to make them myself since they contain brown rice, quinoa, sesame seeds, flaxseed and that's basically it.  I ate them during my Phase 3 and I had no issues with them.  I would just snack on them while watching tv.  I didn't find the seaweed chips so I don't know if they sold out or if they moved them.  I was just there Saturday so who knows.  I didn't want to stick around too long since I had my milk and chicken in the car and it was mighty warm out this morning.  Then I headed to Albertson's closer to my home, actually there's two of them, so I visited both.  I still have plenty of coupons so guess where I'll be tomorrow? You guessed it, Albertson's.  It's also the last day of the monthly and weekly ad, so I will be there.

I'm off to say a few Hail Mary's and Our Father's for all my coupon sinning I did today!! I also need to figure out where I'm gonna put all this stuff at.  Did I mention the eggs were on sale too!!

R3P2D37V31 Darn, Darn, Darn!!!

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 37 VLCD 31
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection #skip
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt:160.8
Today's Wt:161.2
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +0.4lb
R3 Total Loss to Date: -13.6

I wasn't expecting a gain this morning since I got to sleep in later than my normal work week.  Must have been those extra WASA 7 grain crisp and light crackers.  I did have a couple extra and that was my only cheat. They have the same calories and carbs as the Melba toast, but these are more like cereal since they're so light and airy.  After looking at the numbers, it really isn't that bad.  I believe TOM is going to try and rear his ugly head soon, I can feel it.  My side was hurting yesterday, ovarian pain.  Felt as if I had a huge gas bubble stuck in my gut on my left side.  It's not intense but just bothersome.  This morning my nerves were all worked up because of my test.  So my body decided that I needed to have a BM before I left.  It wasn't much but glad I did it because I did not want to have to go during the test.  I did have to pee during my test but I had to hold it.  I managed to fall over a 4 foot wall and cut my ear, hit my head on the metal frame but I got up and kept running.  The running part of the test sucked because my time was slower than the last time.  Sheesh, what the hell?  So as I sit here typing, I can feel soreness coming over different parts of my body.  I cut the underside of my elbow so I'm unable to rest it on the arm rest.  So to reward myself for doing so poorly on my test, I went to Costco to spend money.  That always makes me feel better of course, my bank account doesn't appreciate it.  Since it's Saturday, surprisingly enough, it wasn't packed but it was 10 am.  I found what I needed and left.  I dropped off some items with my daughter.  I got her some pita and pretzel chips for her hummus and some roasted seaweed chips for her to enjoy at school. I left and went to Albertson's on the west side of town.  I love that store because it is always well stocked compared to the one by my house on the east side of town.  Since the west side is the ritzy part of town, that store caters to the rich so they have an extensive variety of items I don't find at mine but I just hate the drive over there.  From there I went to the International Market.  That store is freakin awesome.  I found a huge jar of tahini paste, turmeric powder in many different sizes, and relatively inexpensive, garam masala powder, sesame seeds and my Goya seasoning packets in the economy size.  That store is just awesome but again, it is out of my way. Now I will be able to make my own hummus since I have the tahini paste and the garbanzo beans were on sale at Albertson's.   I finally made my home by 12:30pm.  I was somewhat hungry when I finally arrived home so I made me some coffee (since the Keurig demo wasn't ready yet at Costco), a hamburger patty, Romaine lettuce, sliced tomato and a bit of red onion.  My mock burger, oh and some yellow mustard for flavor.  I know we are not suppose to mix veggies but to me, onion doesn't count for a veggie nor tomato.  Tomato is a fruit so I haven't had an apple or strawberries.  I did skip my injection today but I'm not sure if I'm ready for a planned interruption.  If I calculated it correctly, I should have 10 injections left but my test retake is in 2 weeks.  I may take my interruption next week just so I can have more food during the retake and hopefully TOM doesn't show up during that same week.  After my injections are completed, I will switch to sublingual.  I need to get this weight off as quickly as possible and get my butt in gear and in shape if I want this career change.  I know I didn't become overweight overnight, so I shouldn't expect it come off that quickly.  This protocol does help tremendously though and it works quicker that any diet or exercise program I've tried before. Enough of my ranting, I need to go work on my kitchen faucet.  I purchased a new one at Costco, so now I need to install it.

R3P2D36V30 Stair Steppin'

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 36 VLCD 30
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection #30
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt: 160.8
Today's Wt:160.8
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +/-0.0
R3 Total Loss to Date: -14

Depending on how I do tomorrow at my test, that is going to determine if its time for me to take a planned interruption.  I've been going to bed late so I'm exhausted all day.  I have energy however, without plenty of sleep I just feel as if I'm walking around in a haze. I took a nap right now when I arrived home from work & the grocery store but that only lasted 30 minutes.  I obviously am going to start stair stepping in weight loss.  My ticker graph shows that.  I wish it was just a downward spike but since I'm female, we know that's not gonna happen.  I'll take whatever I can get at this point.  Last time I did this protocol in 2008, I managed to get down to 154 but with taking care of my daughter, I didn't take care of myself by maintaining so I went back up to 190.  I did not want to start there but I did and now look at where I'm at.  My second round wasn't that great for pounds lost (9lbs total in 30 days) but the inches sure came off.  Of course I didn't take measurements but my arms aren't as huge as they were before and all my clothes fit very loose except in the waist.

Let's see what tomorrow holds for me.

R3P2D34V28 What Is A Happening?

Round 3 Phase 2 Day 34 VLCD 28
0.25ml (125iu) HCG SQ injection # 28
Starting Weight on 03/26/2012: 174.8
Yesterday's Wt: 162
Today's Wt: 162
Today's LOSS/GAIN: +/-0.0
R3 Total Loss to Date:  -12.8lbs

Hmmm, my body seems to be happy at this weight, but not me!!  I'm guessing I'm losing lots of inches this week because my Dickies from last week (new size 8) fit completely loose yesterday and my size 12 dress pants I wore today were extremely loose that they almost fell off every time I got up from my chair.  My practice yesterday was cancelled and I was a bit disappointed and a bit relieved because I did not want to be out in the heat (98 degrees yesterday).  I did manage to get in a small workout today and since I'm not used to working out, I don't expect to see a loss tomorrow, again.  My arms are feeling sore now but I really need to work on my upper body strength to pass the physical test for my new career.  It's not easy but I feel I can commit this time.  If I don't make it this time, I will continue to work on my fitness and try again in the fall.  My running is for crap and I really need to work on that as well.  I'm munching on strawberries like they are going out of style.  I bought so many last week that there is no room in my fridge for my other food so I don't want to waste them.  Plus my daughter is not here any longer so I have them all to myself to share with my rabbits.  I tried a small dot of balsamic vinegar on them but it's a very powerful flavor, good but very powerful.  Luckily I only used a drop.

I was thinking today that I may have to take a planned interruption here in the next couple of weeks.  If I don't pass my test this Saturday I can try again in two weeks but I may not have my running down by then.  I'm not a runner so that is my obstacle.  I'm already on my 28th injection so I will be okay to take an interruption and be able to eat more protein and fat to sustain me while I train.  Once I find out if I made it or not, I can restart injections and resume protocol.  This is what I shall ponder over the next few days and definitely after my first test.