Front View (Before) [/caption]
Hi Guys!!! Its been awhile since I have updated this blog and I am sorry. I have been kind of silent on purpose because I have been doing something kind of out of the norm and maybe a little controversial. Many of you who follow my blog know that I am a HUGE believer in diet and exercise and healthy eating and swaps, so what I am about to share DOES NOT negate those opinions of mine.
Remember the picture on the right, yep that is me back in the beginning of March at the very beginning ( or re-beginning) of my weight loss journey.(a whole 262 pounds ..which by the way isn't even my very heaviest which would be 267) What I thought I was going to do didn't ever happen. I will say it triggered my journey though, so I am very thankful for the steps I took. I had taken a genetic test for weight loss from Inherent Health.... Lower / Healthy Carbs and High Intensity Exercise was the result, at the same time I had ordered a weight loss plan and joined the Y. Now I will say I got some minor results...But it was a HUGE struggle...HUGE!!!! (no pun intended...hahahah). Not to mention I was still EXHAUSTED by mid afternoon, It just isn't normal for a 40 year old woman to want to nap all the time (at least that is what I was told...lol) .
I have so many friends pulling for me on this journey it really makes my heart swell with joy!!! One beautiful friend volunteered to be my coach just to help me reach my goals.... Another one recommended an Integrative Physician who specializes in different hormonal issues. (which I had suspicions about) Others just encouraging me by sharing the stories of how I had encouraged them!!! While I loved their stories of how I encouraged them to lose 75, 100 etc pounds, inside I was just frustrated. I mean I was working out faithfully, I was eating healthier, had given up sodas...blah blah blah the list goes on, but the weight was being stubborn!!! So I began researching, working with the coach and made the appointment with the Integrative doctor :) Hey why not do it all!!! I want to pause right here and say something .... I absolutely LOVE my regular family physician!! LOVE (not romantically!!! duh!) And the last thing I would ever want to do is cause hurt, he is an amazing person and very caring doctor and A dear friend who would do anything for us if we needed it, so making an appointment with someone else I felt like I was "cheating"...(I tend to be extremely loyal) but I was not "satisfied" with the traditional answers to things. I tend to be a bit "granola" in that mindset . So while I was waiting for the appointment to take place, I started making changes that went along with my research (and a lot of prayer) of what I suspected what going on....Under active Thyroid! Hello hormone free meats and dairy, bye bye fluoride......add rhodiola..NO SOY (yikes that was in all my diet bars, some vitamins etc) ..The two weeks seemed endless!!! Long story short after an intensive questionnaire intake form/ appointment/exam and GALLONS (okay maybe vials) of blood and another few days of waiting for results, the results came back..as the doctor said "It would be impossible for you to lose weight with the hormones like this" . Every hormone in my body was out of WHACK...Every ONE! Well well well. I have to say if I had just replaced those I would have felt wonderful, but he said something to me that really made me pause. He began to share about the HCG diet ....Now I have had friends that have done some type of this diet in the past and it had always made me a little nervous. Yes they had lost weight but WOW was it $$$$$$ and it involved shots (UMMM NO THANKS!). I told him I would come to the meeting, listen to what the plan was about and consider it. So yes I dragged my hubby determined to not do one more thing that would lead to "failure" and cost us a fortune. What I hear was incredible...beautiful people who had struggled were losing weight, NO SHOTs...but a simple homeopathic drop containing just a minor amount of the HCG hormone...dropping .5-1 pound per day. With tears, trepidation and a prayer of encouragement from the receptionist (and now my diet coach) I started the journey. Seriously I had been on every other plan...what could this hurt.
Now the "fun" part of this diet (or so I thought It would be) was for two days, start taking the drops but while I did this I would have to eat the equivalent of 3 Thanksgiving meals and two heavy snacks with a milkshake for Two days!!! REALLY I get to eat....yay! (NOT) and I needed to put at least 5-7 pounds back on (WHAT!!!! it took me 2 months to lose 5 pounds)...But the better you "load" the better you lose....so here goes. I ate everything I thought I would ever want and wouldn't be able to eat on the next stage of this plan...Pizza, Tacos, Pancakes, Bacon, Milkshakes....but I was miserable!! Miserable I say! I did gain the 7 pounds back...cry!!! And believe me I DID NOT want to eat...I had to force myself to do the loading and I seriously thought I would be sick!!! UG.... I remember walking with my mom, pretty much crying the first day at the thought, that this could really happen!!! It was a bit scary at first...I have lived a large part of my life as the "heavy" girl...I had an identity in that. Time to shed that identity!!!!
Well after 2 days of loading you then start the "plan" while taking your drops 3x a day..... a 750 cal plan, with specific foods you can and cannot eat. I though I will STARVE!!! Hahaha but I will say I was NOT hungry. So the next day I got on the scale...down 4 pounds...ummm NO WAY, day 2 another 2 pounds....The first week was CRAZY 8.2 pounds... 2nd week and on avg of 4 pounds per week, and inches lost, with fat being burned from places I never knew had fat!! So within 32 days I have lost 25.4 pounds so far!!! NOT hungry...no side effects, Blood pressure normalized. With the weight loss and proper hormone adjustments I have ENERGY, my knees aren't hurting.....WOW is this what it is like to feel ALIVE!!!
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Down 25 pounds[/caption]So here are photos of me TODAY.... as I was weeding though the clothes that no longer fit...THERE are quite a few!!! I had some smaller things in my closet I had saved and that one my cousins had given me (hand me downs are awesome...lol) and I can fit in those...YAY. it is a strange feeling though....especially shopping, having to learn to walk past the sizes that used to be me for so long.
Love my little black dress...that is NOT a 2x!!! Woo hooo. I did have to replace my swimsuit top, it wasn't decent any longer....SAGGY! hahahaha
Below is me in a Red Dress that I just bought 6 weeks ago and wore to a special event... WAAY to Big! Am I smiling ...YES! I will reach my goal...set my weight (did you know your body remembers weight) and NEVER look back again. Honestly at first I thought "this is cheating" but you know what I CAN DO THIS!!! I will keep you updated .... EmBee
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YES I am smiling![/caption][caption id="attachment_176" align="alignleft" width="225"]
The Red Dress[/caption]
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