For this short post and that i've not been replying to your lovely and kind comments. I have meant to.
This has been such a busy week, and i've company coming tomorrow afternoon thru Sunday about noon. I've extra company (that i'd not planned to have) coming for just the day Saturday, but they've not seen our house yet, so i need to get caught up on so many things!
I'm days behind in blog reading, and will be farther behind yet. Sigh. But i generally do catch up eventually.
Hope you all are well and please know i appreciate so much everyone who takes the time to comment.
BTW, our lows this week have been in the 30s (F). Monday night/Tuesday AM the low was 32! In the middle of July! Such a surprise. Oh, and i've maintained my weight loss for 2 weeks now. The doctor's scale weighed me only 1/4 pound higher than i was 2 weeks ago, so i'm content with that.
462
14 July 2011
13 July 2011
Christmas in July
Well, this is month 7 of my 12 days/12 months of Christmas project. I wish i could say i'm caught up. I was ahead of the game for a while, but now many of my projects are time-intensive. Now that i have the snowflakes completed, i am caught up to the end of May. June projects are tote bags, and i've only a couple of those done. (But they are cute!)
I looked again at my schedule, and i am more caught up than i thought. Just the July stuff to do, and i have a few of the things done into August, so it is not as bad as i had thought, originally!
I also did a little knitted purse for my niece's daughter. It turned out well.
Part of the problem is that i am now on to the sewing projects, and i just don't enjoy those the way i do the knitting. The sewing is not as portable (up and down the hill) either.
Oh, can you tell that i'm rather proud of my crocheted snowflakes, too?
I had fun with them. I didn't follow a pattern (i'm horrible at following patterns). I did look at the pics of some other snowflakes, but then made it up as i went along.
So, is Christmas on your radar yet, or is it something that will be happening later (around Thanksgiving ?) for you?
Today is my dear sister Elsa's birthday. Happy birthday, little sister. I love you!
461
12 July 2011
Half way thru the "maintenance" phase of our diet
Duane and i completed 24 days of hCG and each lost about 15 pounds. We are more than a week into the 3 week "maintenance" part of this diet. Duane is greatly looking forward to eating chips and pizza and bread again. Since he loses so easily, i've encouraged him to eat now, if he wants. But he is stubborn and when he sets his mind to something, he sticks to it.
We both have maintained our loss so far. I do see the scale vary a couple of pounds, and i think my most common weight now is about half a pound higher than my lowest weight. But i'm quite happy. I could start another round the very end of July, and part of me wants to. BUT this is summer with lots of good things available (peaches and raspberries!) and so i think i'll wait until mid-August before beginning again.
I don't think i'll do more than 21 days on the hCG drops, unless this next cycle is different than this one. I did find myself hungry most of the time. I think it is because i eat mostly vegetarian. On the days i had fish i think i was a bit less hungry. When we reached day 21, i honestly could not imagine going another 19 days. (The longest recommended is 40 days, and then you skip the drops every 7th day so your body doesn't become immune to the hCG.) But if i find that i'm not hungry next cycle, maybe i will go longer.
I STILL am having sugar cravings. I don't give into them and eat what i am not suppose to (like a candy bar), but i still am craving apple pie, and cherry pie, and brownies, and Almond Joy, and the list goes on and on. I can't help but wonder if i would lose that craving if i allowed myself no sweetener at all. I've been using stevia in my tea and making lemonade with it, and using it in yogurt and other things. Stevia is a natural, no-calorie sweetener. I don't have issues with it the way i do with Splenda or aspartame. It is very sweet, and i wonder if just the taste of it is enough to kick in my cravings. I hate the thought of giving up everything that is sweet! I did try making a homemade ice cream sweetened with stevia and xylitol. I was disappointed in the results.
However, all that said, i am doing well. We have not eaten out at all since we began this 4+ weeks ago. This from people who were eating out at least 3 times a week. I do have a kind of meal plan down better than i did before, but a very simple one that fits us. In that respect, i've not really missed the "before" meals, which kind of surprises me. Also, i noticed today that i can't remember when i last had a headache. I think i was getting minor levels of poisoning when we were eating out. I had been getting a number of small migraines. I was in some pain the first week or so on the diet - and missing my cherry juice. Tart cherries have been shown to be as effective as ibuprofen for inflammation and pain. I tend to drink about 8 oz of tart cherry juice a day to deal with chronic pain. But this is a no sugar diet for its entirety (even during maintenance) and so i've not had any fruit drink.
I'm very pleased with the results. I'm anxious to begin again, but as i said, probably not until the middle of August. If i do 2 more cycles and i continue to lose at the rate i did this time, i should reach my goal and be thru with the 3 week "maintenance" a week or so after Halloween. In time for Thanksgiving! :) Not that that matters much. I don't usually eat much at Thanksgiving and i don't over-indulge.
Now, passing up candy at Christmas - that will be another matter! :)
So, what is your downfall? Mine is sugar/chocolate/sweets, but i know lots of folks who like chips or soda or whatever. What do you have trouble letting go of?
460
We both have maintained our loss so far. I do see the scale vary a couple of pounds, and i think my most common weight now is about half a pound higher than my lowest weight. But i'm quite happy. I could start another round the very end of July, and part of me wants to. BUT this is summer with lots of good things available (peaches and raspberries!) and so i think i'll wait until mid-August before beginning again.
I don't think i'll do more than 21 days on the hCG drops, unless this next cycle is different than this one. I did find myself hungry most of the time. I think it is because i eat mostly vegetarian. On the days i had fish i think i was a bit less hungry. When we reached day 21, i honestly could not imagine going another 19 days. (The longest recommended is 40 days, and then you skip the drops every 7th day so your body doesn't become immune to the hCG.) But if i find that i'm not hungry next cycle, maybe i will go longer.
I STILL am having sugar cravings. I don't give into them and eat what i am not suppose to (like a candy bar), but i still am craving apple pie, and cherry pie, and brownies, and Almond Joy, and the list goes on and on. I can't help but wonder if i would lose that craving if i allowed myself no sweetener at all. I've been using stevia in my tea and making lemonade with it, and using it in yogurt and other things. Stevia is a natural, no-calorie sweetener. I don't have issues with it the way i do with Splenda or aspartame. It is very sweet, and i wonder if just the taste of it is enough to kick in my cravings. I hate the thought of giving up everything that is sweet! I did try making a homemade ice cream sweetened with stevia and xylitol. I was disappointed in the results.
However, all that said, i am doing well. We have not eaten out at all since we began this 4+ weeks ago. This from people who were eating out at least 3 times a week. I do have a kind of meal plan down better than i did before, but a very simple one that fits us. In that respect, i've not really missed the "before" meals, which kind of surprises me. Also, i noticed today that i can't remember when i last had a headache. I think i was getting minor levels of poisoning when we were eating out. I had been getting a number of small migraines. I was in some pain the first week or so on the diet - and missing my cherry juice. Tart cherries have been shown to be as effective as ibuprofen for inflammation and pain. I tend to drink about 8 oz of tart cherry juice a day to deal with chronic pain. But this is a no sugar diet for its entirety (even during maintenance) and so i've not had any fruit drink.
I'm very pleased with the results. I'm anxious to begin again, but as i said, probably not until the middle of August. If i do 2 more cycles and i continue to lose at the rate i did this time, i should reach my goal and be thru with the 3 week "maintenance" a week or so after Halloween. In time for Thanksgiving! :) Not that that matters much. I don't usually eat much at Thanksgiving and i don't over-indulge.
Now, passing up candy at Christmas - that will be another matter! :)
So, what is your downfall? Mine is sugar/chocolate/sweets, but i know lots of folks who like chips or soda or whatever. What do you have trouble letting go of?
460
11 July 2011
A July post
I've had so many blog posts in my mind . . . and that is just where they stay. I've been very undisciplined about writing (and many other things, too).
Part of my problem with being undisciplined in general (not about writing) is that it is hard for me to know what my boundaries (with energy) are. Many times i don't know that until i've breached them, and then it is too late.
Not long ago i had a busy morning, and then sat on the couch, watching TV and knitting, but looking out the front door (which is an enormous sliding glass door) at all the things that needed to be done in my garden, but knowing i didn't have the energy to do them. Sigh.
I'm reading how folks are harvesting produce now. One blog said she is "at the end" of her peas. Wow. I've some cherry tomatoes that might be ready to pick in a week or two and the onions seem to be growing well, but other than that, i don't know that i'll have much of anything. Well, the mint is growing well, too, but that doesn't take much. I've not found a single apple on our tree that survived. Early on it looked like a few were growing, but i guess they didn't make it.
My grape vine is leafed out and looking impressive. But i have come to realize that naturally we will never have grapes. It looked dead until the end of May when i could see a few buds, and was fully leafed by mid to late June, but at that rate, grapes will never have a chance to develop. I think we will have to make a small "hot house" - a miniature greenhouse - to go over it. I think if we do that and put it over the grapes in March and keep it on until past the chance of frost, and then put it on again in September, we might someday grow grapes.
I've planted strawberries that are doing well, and some raspberries, too. We won't have any berries this year, but i'm hopeful for next. Raspberries and peaches are my favorite fruits.
These pics are reposts from a couple of years ago. We didn't take any this year. But the light show was absolutely amazing. The best i remember seeing.
So, that's us. How are you?
459
Part of my problem with being undisciplined in general (not about writing) is that it is hard for me to know what my boundaries (with energy) are. Many times i don't know that until i've breached them, and then it is too late.
Not long ago i had a busy morning, and then sat on the couch, watching TV and knitting, but looking out the front door (which is an enormous sliding glass door) at all the things that needed to be done in my garden, but knowing i didn't have the energy to do them. Sigh.
I'm reading how folks are harvesting produce now. One blog said she is "at the end" of her peas. Wow. I've some cherry tomatoes that might be ready to pick in a week or two and the onions seem to be growing well, but other than that, i don't know that i'll have much of anything. Well, the mint is growing well, too, but that doesn't take much. I've not found a single apple on our tree that survived. Early on it looked like a few were growing, but i guess they didn't make it.
My grape vine is leafed out and looking impressive. But i have come to realize that naturally we will never have grapes. It looked dead until the end of May when i could see a few buds, and was fully leafed by mid to late June, but at that rate, grapes will never have a chance to develop. I think we will have to make a small "hot house" - a miniature greenhouse - to go over it. I think if we do that and put it over the grapes in March and keep it on until past the chance of frost, and then put it on again in September, we might someday grow grapes.
I've planted strawberries that are doing well, and some raspberries, too. We won't have any berries this year, but i'm hopeful for next. Raspberries and peaches are my favorite fruits.
These pics are reposts from a couple of years ago. We didn't take any this year. But the light show was absolutely amazing. The best i remember seeing.
So, that's us. How are you?
459
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