So it has been awhile since I have tried to jot some thoughts down. I'll admit, a little lazy, changed up work schedule, catching up on movies. Hey, I'm a guy, lots of excuses and rationalizing. But I thought it was time to catch up again, and wouldn't you know know it, the FDA comes out today and says that the HCG diet is bad and sends out warning letters to producers. From today's article,
"The U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission issued seven warning letters on Tuesday to companies that sell the over-the-counter products, noting they have not been approved by the FDA for weight loss.
The FDA and FTC said the products, taken as oral drops, pellets or sprays, instruct buyers to use them in conjunction with a very low-calorie diet that the agencies consider potentially dangerous.
"Consumers on a very low calorie diet are at increased risk for side effects including gallstone formation, electrolyte imbalance and heart arrhythmias," a type of dangerous irregular heartbeat, the agencies said in a press release."
Well shoot, that doesn't sound too good now, does it? The article goes on to say that the Hormone has not been proven to aid in weight loss and since it is being sold as a weight loss drug, it is illegal. There are a lot of articles out on it, so there is plenty of info for you if you want. But what do I want to say? I'm sorry, I believe it does work and am a living testimonial of it, so I am going to tell a little about it.
So what is HCG? From the ever knowledgeable Wikipidia, which pretty much describes it how I have seen it on various sites, Human chorionic gonadotropin or human chorionic gonadotrophin (hCG) is a glycoprotein hormone produced during pregnancy that is made by the developing embryo after conception and later by the syncytiotrophoblast (part of the placenta).
So yeah, basically it is a hormone prevalent in a pregnant female. Unfortunately, I failed to take a pregnancy test to see if I would be positive, and I asked a couple of buddies who were doing it if they would, but we never got around to the experiment. But it would be intriguing to see what the results would be! How would that Facebook post look, "Scott Reed updated his status to expecting!" Boy the conversations around the watercooler tomorrow!
A brief understanding of the HCG diet. Take the supplement, take in a 500 calorie diet, and hold on for the ride of your life. There are various ways to take HCG. I took the shots. Every morning I would wake up, pull a syringe out of the fridge, and inject my leg with the supplement. My friends and family took the drops. You take 10-20 drops about 30 minutes before eating. We saw equal results. I liked the shots mainly because I only had to worry about it once a day, it was portioned out ahead of time, and fairly easy. No carrying it along with me. Those I have talked to who took the drops said the portions didn't last or it was a pain to take the drops with them. The secret lies in that as you limit you intake, instead of storing it as fat like your body normally would, the hormone communicates to your body that you are not starving, so it opens your existing fat cells and your body survives on the stored fat cells.
So how do you survive on a 500 calorie day, or what does that look like? Well, it could be a cheeseburger, but that would be it. There are restrictions to the diet, rules that lead to success. To see this success, you have to really be committed and willing to follow it 100%. Basically you were allotted two pieces of select fruit (apple, orange, and strawberries.) You could also have two 5ounce portion of protein (lean beef, chicken, eggs) and two portions of fresh or cooked vegetables. Four big things were to be followed. NO SUGAR! NO DAIRY (well, I think a teaspoon a day) and NO STARCHES! NO BREAD! Well, I thought the sugar was going to be the hardest for me. Soda is again my nemesis, but that wasn't my craving. Oddly enough, the only thing I really craved was cream cheese! I wanted blocks of it. We had a volunteer day at work and they brought bagels from Panera, and I whimpered through my apple lusting for a bagel with cream cheese!
Sound tough doesn't it? it seemed tough at times, but once you got into a routine, and had a good support group (Jodie tried to eat healthier and the maintenance guys kept the Sunday morning donuts away from me!) I discovered a make shift taco salad with a sugar free salsa to be a favorite. Also green bean chili became a family favorite (green bean because chili/kidney beans are great sources of starch and were on the prohibited list.) Also Weber makes a great garlic and herb seasoning for grilling chicken. So I would wake up to an apple, have a piece of chicken or some 93% lean hamburger or a petite sirloin steak with some beans or lettuce, a couple of fat free saltines for a snack, the same portioning as lunch of protein and vegetables for dinner, then a piece of fruit for dessert. 8 cups of water a day too. Amazingly enough, some days I wouldn't even eat that much because there wasn't a desire to eat.
Now there are side effects out there and you would want to look into those for yourself. A lot are rumored, but I am not sure of all of them. I did not grow man boobs. That was one that was thrown around a lot. Scott, you're going to grow boobs because you are taking a feminine hormone. Well, needless to say, that didn't happen. I think the misconception there is that when large guys do lose the weight, the burnt fat isn't equally removed so it gives the appearance of it. But by toning and exercise, that will work out. You won't have any energy. Well, I had more energy that I had before and I didn't have a lot of hunger. A sore back, well, I think I felt a little of this, but that could have been from the more time on my feet because of the increased energy. I think the biggest side effect is my wife couldn't (can't) keep her hands off me and all her friends say I am hot!! Ok, maybe not but sounds good!
But clearly HCG isn't a life style. As I went through the cycle, I tried to learn about eating better. I started researching different diets to adapt to continue the momentum. I was told the South Beach or Weight Watchers would be great, and I eventually chose weight watchers. I will talk more about in the future.
Well, that's a lot of info to download. Maybe with today's warnings, maybe a visit to get this from you doctor would be best. There are quire a few online sources to buy HCG. The HCG diet website gives you support and a cook book with recipes. But to have success, you need to be committed. You have to follow the rules. and like I said in previous posts, you need to have a plan for afterwards, or you are going to put the weight right back on of you don't change your habits. I loved it. It changed, no revolutionized my life. The best part was as people noticed, it kept me motivated. The hardest part was when it was all said and done, the mechanics still won't share the donuts because they don't want to hurt my diet. Dang it, I quit dieting in March, give me my chocolate donut!
As always, let me know if there is more from me you would like to know. I wish I would have kept a journal during my time on the diet. If you do it, write down what is going on so you can share it with others! But I will try to remember things to share. Happy Holidays to all, and enjoy them. What ever you do, do NOT start dieting now, you will regret it. Set a goal for the first of the year, and make it happen Until next time, Suck it UP! The Bobblehead
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Friday, October 7, 2011
The Journey to get to where you want to be. Just Suck It Up!
So this summer we went on a 17 day road trip to Utah and Wyoming. 6 days in Utah, 6 days in Wyoming and 5 days on the road. We planned ahead and saved some money, bought some snacks for the road, set up our reservations for the drive, planned our activities for each stop and had the Magellan GPS ready to guide us along the way. We went on our journey, had a great time making memories with our family and made it back safely to resume our day to day activities. What made this vacation a success? We had a plan, we followed it with some deviations and we had a good idea of what we wanted to do.
Why do I mention this? Because I have found going on a diet requires a plan, a destination, and a mindset for what you are going to do when you get there. I am amazed at the success stories of people who have lost weight on their diets. 30 days and 20 pounds. They cheer about it. They go out to the buffet and fill up, go grab a shake and celebrate their victory. And they deserve it. But it's not always a smart thing. The next morning they see the scale laughing at then by adding five pounds in one day! After all that work to drop 20, and one whirlwind of a celebration and they have gained 5 back. Then guess what, and I know this one. They will show that scale up and go pig out for lunch and they spiral out of control and gain the weight back. Then it is a pity fest. Where did their map go? Where is the plan?
In the past I never had a plan. I knew I wanted to lose weight, and I knew how much. But I wasn't sure how to get there, and I certainly didn't know what to do when I got there. I lost 15 pounds on the cabbage soup diet. I was elated to drop that much. But I didn't change anything after and finished and I gained it all back and then some. I tried the Atkin's Diet. Boy did I love that journey for the first two weeks. All the meat I could eat! A half pound of bacon each morning with thee eggs. A half a pound of nature's candy every morning! I lost 12 pounds, in 10 days, but suddenly I couldn't stand the sight of protein for a week! A week later, I gained the 12 back plus 5 more. I was so frustrated. I knew where to go, but had no clue how to get there. Where was the map? Does this sound familiar to you?
This time it has been different. It had to be. I knew again where I wanted to go. The goal, drop 50 pounds. That was a good goal. And I had a road map. My Father-in-law Roy had a diet. He gave me the tools to lose the 50 pounds. But this diet, the HCG diet, was only the road map. I knew where I wanted to go and how I was going to try to get there. But then one thing different this time, what was I going to do when I got there? I needed to plan of what I was going to do differently when I got there. This is where we all can learn and we must be ready to change. We need to learn from our past failures and have a plan for the lifestyle change. To be successful on this road trip, you have to have a plan for when you get there.
So here I was with my road map, and I wasn't going to deviate at all. I grabbed my mechanic and started on the journey. My mechanic, and we all need one, was my beautiful wife Jodie. She knew my restrictions, she was my encouragement, and she was the guardian of the pantry and refrigerator. And the best part, she vowed to eat the same food as me and to rid the house of all of the junk so I wouldn't be tempted to break my diet.
It is so important that you have a personal mechanic! I remember when I was low on oil one night, ready to give up and follow the same path I always had before. I had lost 18 pounds in the first 20 days of my 60 day diet. I wanted to eat some real food. I wanted something more than my 500 calorie alotment. I was on the couch throwing a temper tantrum like a four year old at Disneyland who wanted the colorful lollipop but who's parent's wouldn't buy it. I wanted a lollipop and I wanted it now. Jodie called Vicki, who was our expert on the HCG diet. She asked Vicki what I could have to make me happier. Jodie was on the phone for about fifteen minutes nodding her head, saying yes, asking the questions. I waited patiently for her to end the conversation and to let me know what I could have to ease my burden. I was excited, eat a cookie, a bagel with a block of cream cheese. Anything to reward myself for losing the 20 pounds. Jodie, lay it on me and give me my reward. "Vicki said to suck it up." Wah?!?!? Suck it up? Suck it up? How dare you say that! The world was going to end because I wanted some cheese and you are telling me to suck it up! She may as well have wrapped her steel toed shoes in barb wire and kicked me in the nuggets. I wanted my lollipop and all she could do was tell me to suck it up.
I sat on the couch for about 20 minutes wallowing in self pity. Suck it up. SUCK IT UP! Reward myself and break off the path? Eat a luscious lollipop, or suck it up. This was the crossroads of my diet, and for the first time in my life, I was ready to accept that I could return to my normal life, be glutinous and over weight, or I could put my head down, suck it up, and plow through this roadblock. So I sucked it up, and this was the turning point of my new life.
So my mechanic helped me follow the map, and I got to my destination. 50 pounds in 47 days. But this was just the beginning of my journey. I had arrived, but now it was time to enjoy myself now that I had reached my destination. So I decided to change my life. I did Weight Watchers and learned how to eat. How to really eat (I'll talk about this more in the future because I think this made a huge difference for me and it is critical for anyone who diets.). And I learned to love to run. In fact, I ran 10 miles today. I think that is more than I ran from 2005-2010 combined! This is not the person I once was, and I hope to never return to the, as my ten year old Turner would say, "Fat Dad."
So set up your journey, find you road map and mechanic (or mechanics), make sure your tools are available and have a plan for when you get there so you will know how to live it up. Celebrate along the way, but don't over do it. Then your nick name will go from "Fat Dad' to "The Bobblehead." (My new nick name at work because they say my head is way too big for my new body.) Until next time, cherish the journey and avoid too many pit stops!
The Bobblehead
Why do I mention this? Because I have found going on a diet requires a plan, a destination, and a mindset for what you are going to do when you get there. I am amazed at the success stories of people who have lost weight on their diets. 30 days and 20 pounds. They cheer about it. They go out to the buffet and fill up, go grab a shake and celebrate their victory. And they deserve it. But it's not always a smart thing. The next morning they see the scale laughing at then by adding five pounds in one day! After all that work to drop 20, and one whirlwind of a celebration and they have gained 5 back. Then guess what, and I know this one. They will show that scale up and go pig out for lunch and they spiral out of control and gain the weight back. Then it is a pity fest. Where did their map go? Where is the plan?
In the past I never had a plan. I knew I wanted to lose weight, and I knew how much. But I wasn't sure how to get there, and I certainly didn't know what to do when I got there. I lost 15 pounds on the cabbage soup diet. I was elated to drop that much. But I didn't change anything after and finished and I gained it all back and then some. I tried the Atkin's Diet. Boy did I love that journey for the first two weeks. All the meat I could eat! A half pound of bacon each morning with thee eggs. A half a pound of nature's candy every morning! I lost 12 pounds, in 10 days, but suddenly I couldn't stand the sight of protein for a week! A week later, I gained the 12 back plus 5 more. I was so frustrated. I knew where to go, but had no clue how to get there. Where was the map? Does this sound familiar to you?
This time it has been different. It had to be. I knew again where I wanted to go. The goal, drop 50 pounds. That was a good goal. And I had a road map. My Father-in-law Roy had a diet. He gave me the tools to lose the 50 pounds. But this diet, the HCG diet, was only the road map. I knew where I wanted to go and how I was going to try to get there. But then one thing different this time, what was I going to do when I got there? I needed to plan of what I was going to do differently when I got there. This is where we all can learn and we must be ready to change. We need to learn from our past failures and have a plan for the lifestyle change. To be successful on this road trip, you have to have a plan for when you get there.
So here I was with my road map, and I wasn't going to deviate at all. I grabbed my mechanic and started on the journey. My mechanic, and we all need one, was my beautiful wife Jodie. She knew my restrictions, she was my encouragement, and she was the guardian of the pantry and refrigerator. And the best part, she vowed to eat the same food as me and to rid the house of all of the junk so I wouldn't be tempted to break my diet.
It is so important that you have a personal mechanic! I remember when I was low on oil one night, ready to give up and follow the same path I always had before. I had lost 18 pounds in the first 20 days of my 60 day diet. I wanted to eat some real food. I wanted something more than my 500 calorie alotment. I was on the couch throwing a temper tantrum like a four year old at Disneyland who wanted the colorful lollipop but who's parent's wouldn't buy it. I wanted a lollipop and I wanted it now. Jodie called Vicki, who was our expert on the HCG diet. She asked Vicki what I could have to make me happier. Jodie was on the phone for about fifteen minutes nodding her head, saying yes, asking the questions. I waited patiently for her to end the conversation and to let me know what I could have to ease my burden. I was excited, eat a cookie, a bagel with a block of cream cheese. Anything to reward myself for losing the 20 pounds. Jodie, lay it on me and give me my reward. "Vicki said to suck it up." Wah?!?!? Suck it up? Suck it up? How dare you say that! The world was going to end because I wanted some cheese and you are telling me to suck it up! She may as well have wrapped her steel toed shoes in barb wire and kicked me in the nuggets. I wanted my lollipop and all she could do was tell me to suck it up.
I sat on the couch for about 20 minutes wallowing in self pity. Suck it up. SUCK IT UP! Reward myself and break off the path? Eat a luscious lollipop, or suck it up. This was the crossroads of my diet, and for the first time in my life, I was ready to accept that I could return to my normal life, be glutinous and over weight, or I could put my head down, suck it up, and plow through this roadblock. So I sucked it up, and this was the turning point of my new life.
So my mechanic helped me follow the map, and I got to my destination. 50 pounds in 47 days. But this was just the beginning of my journey. I had arrived, but now it was time to enjoy myself now that I had reached my destination. So I decided to change my life. I did Weight Watchers and learned how to eat. How to really eat (I'll talk about this more in the future because I think this made a huge difference for me and it is critical for anyone who diets.). And I learned to love to run. In fact, I ran 10 miles today. I think that is more than I ran from 2005-2010 combined! This is not the person I once was, and I hope to never return to the, as my ten year old Turner would say, "Fat Dad."
So set up your journey, find you road map and mechanic (or mechanics), make sure your tools are available and have a plan for when you get there so you will know how to live it up. Celebrate along the way, but don't over do it. Then your nick name will go from "Fat Dad' to "The Bobblehead." (My new nick name at work because they say my head is way too big for my new body.) Until next time, cherish the journey and avoid too many pit stops!
The Bobblehead
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
A New Me
It was a beautiful day in September, 2010. My parents had come from Utah to visit for our Son Oliver's baptism. We went to the St Louis Zoo for the day to enjoy some more time together before they had to head back to Utah. We seemed to have to stop frequently to rest for me and my Dad. Trust me, I love my father and he was a big inspiration for what changed that day. On the drive home I reflected on how how much he had struggled to make it through the zoo that day. I noticed that I struggled too. When we came home I looked at the pictures of my father at the different stages of me growing up and thought about his weight gain progression, and realized that I was on the same path as him as my weight gain mirrored his weight gain in his 20's and 30's.
At the same time, my father in law was also here, but he was different. He was a lot like me. He loved food. It was what we both enjoyed. But he was different and he wanted to share something with me. He had just lost 40 pounds on a life changing diet, he had complete control over his appetite, and he looked great. When we went out to eat, he was eating healthy. Roy was eating the HEALTHY choices over our loved fried morsels. My father and I both took notice of this and things were about to change for both of us. Who was this Roy and how could I be like this.
So here I am. One year later and 85 pounds lighter. I never thought I would be here. I have tried so many diets. Atkins, starvation, something with Scooby snacks called Isagenix, and the awesome cabbage soup diet. Every time I would do any of these, I would cave in and give up and put on more pounds than I lost. It was frustrating. I was constantly tired, hated the idea of working out, hated the idea that I couldn't change because I came from a large family that always battled obesity. I was pathetic and lazy and was pretty much hopeless. But that day in 2010 changed me.
I have been debating a blog about this. I should have done this as I went through this so it would have been more real. I wondered if anybody really care about my experience? Could I entertain as well as share my experiences that would hopefully motivate others to change? Could I articulate with my simple vocabulary and words what I really want to say. (Although my vocabulary is simple, Jodie has yet to beat me in Scrabble!) Ok, I wrote for the school newspaper in college, but now I am a supervisor in a factory, so obviously I was not made to make headlines. But as my friend Connie said the other night, please share for those of us who are still on the journey.
So blog I will. I hope my gibberish can inspire, I hope my simplicity doesn't annoy you, and I hope you realize that I will write how my thoughts process and how I think. So things may get weird because I laughed really hard while watching Brendan Frazier in "George of the Jungle," and I liked John Luggizamo in the movie "The Pest." I love my sense of humor and those that really know me will understand where some of it is coming from!
A couple of things to remember, I am just a normal guy who still loves food, but over the last year has changed how I see life and food. I exercise now. I try to be smart about what I eat. I found two diets that helped me get there and will talk about both. Spoiler alert, do your homework now and look up HCG Diet and Weight Watchers. I have no medical experience (In fact, the reason I studied communications was because I didn't want to take too many science classes in school even though I always wanted to be a Neuro Surgeon.) I just want to share what I have learned, and I want you all to know that if I can do it, anybody CAN do it! I hope to post once or twice a week until I run out of things to say, unless Jodie's honey do's take too much time. But please let me know what you think. Ask me what you are dealing with and maybe I can share something similar. We are all in this journey together, and a strong support group can get anyone though this! Blog-amos, pues!
Scott, the Normal Dude
At the same time, my father in law was also here, but he was different. He was a lot like me. He loved food. It was what we both enjoyed. But he was different and he wanted to share something with me. He had just lost 40 pounds on a life changing diet, he had complete control over his appetite, and he looked great. When we went out to eat, he was eating healthy. Roy was eating the HEALTHY choices over our loved fried morsels. My father and I both took notice of this and things were about to change for both of us. Who was this Roy and how could I be like this.
So here I am. One year later and 85 pounds lighter. I never thought I would be here. I have tried so many diets. Atkins, starvation, something with Scooby snacks called Isagenix, and the awesome cabbage soup diet. Every time I would do any of these, I would cave in and give up and put on more pounds than I lost. It was frustrating. I was constantly tired, hated the idea of working out, hated the idea that I couldn't change because I came from a large family that always battled obesity. I was pathetic and lazy and was pretty much hopeless. But that day in 2010 changed me.
I have been debating a blog about this. I should have done this as I went through this so it would have been more real. I wondered if anybody really care about my experience? Could I entertain as well as share my experiences that would hopefully motivate others to change? Could I articulate with my simple vocabulary and words what I really want to say. (Although my vocabulary is simple, Jodie has yet to beat me in Scrabble!) Ok, I wrote for the school newspaper in college, but now I am a supervisor in a factory, so obviously I was not made to make headlines. But as my friend Connie said the other night, please share for those of us who are still on the journey.
So blog I will. I hope my gibberish can inspire, I hope my simplicity doesn't annoy you, and I hope you realize that I will write how my thoughts process and how I think. So things may get weird because I laughed really hard while watching Brendan Frazier in "George of the Jungle," and I liked John Luggizamo in the movie "The Pest." I love my sense of humor and those that really know me will understand where some of it is coming from!
A couple of things to remember, I am just a normal guy who still loves food, but over the last year has changed how I see life and food. I exercise now. I try to be smart about what I eat. I found two diets that helped me get there and will talk about both. Spoiler alert, do your homework now and look up HCG Diet and Weight Watchers. I have no medical experience (In fact, the reason I studied communications was because I didn't want to take too many science classes in school even though I always wanted to be a Neuro Surgeon.) I just want to share what I have learned, and I want you all to know that if I can do it, anybody CAN do it! I hope to post once or twice a week until I run out of things to say, unless Jodie's honey do's take too much time. But please let me know what you think. Ask me what you are dealing with and maybe I can share something similar. We are all in this journey together, and a strong support group can get anyone though this! Blog-amos, pues!
Scott, the Normal Dude
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