Okay, so I went a little crazy. I am pretty sure I had a mid-life crisis :) Who am I?? What am I supposed to do?? What am I going to do with the rest of my life?? I turn 39 next week....... need I say more? The diet went out the window and I have basically been a basket case :)

I have finally decided to put on the brakes and turn the ship back around! I started last round at 155.6 and I have been hanging around 154. I guess another round after the holiday will be in order. I have been trying to sort things out and decide what I want to do. So here is what I came up with.

#1- I am just going to try to maintain right now thru the end of the month, instead of stress myself out during the holiday and try to lose.

#2- I started back exercising this week. I forgot how much I love dance! I have to keep the body moving!

#3- I am going back to school. I have gone back and forth on this because I could not figure out which direction I wanted to take. I found the degree I want. It is Community Health Education. Once I have my bachelors, then I can get certified as a Community Health Education Specialist. From there, I have lots of options as to where I want to go.

#4- I will start HCG consulting for a chiropractic office that is adding HCG to their office. They have an excellent homeopathic HCG that can only be obtained by a doctor. It has HCG plus a lot of extras in it.

Combine those with all of the regular family duties and I should be very BUSY!! Just how I like it :)

So that is my life in a nutshell. I have missed chatting with you all. Let me know how you are doing! If anyone wants to get HCG, just let me know. The cost is $99 and includes an hour getting started class (or phone) with me! Happy Holidays!

Laughter really is the best medicine..... :)

I saw this over the weekend and about died laughing! A cop has been stealing confiscated marijuana and baking brownies with it. He and his wife apparently had a bit too much and freaked out and called 911. You would NEVER live that one down! :)

My life lately....

I don't know what is wrong with me. Actually, this seems to happen pretty regularly. I am the typical perfectionist/overachiever type. I love a challenge and am most happy when I am using my brain. I love to work, and mothering has always been harder for me. I usually always work at least part time. Even though it is nice to have a break, this seems to happen after awhile. I get depressed and feel like I don't know what to do with myself. The house is clean, the projects are done, and now what??? I am the type of person who has the running "to-do" list in her head at all times. I can't sit still, and have never been able to take a nap during the day time. I used to love reading, and now would be the perfect time to just relax and catch up on some good books, but I can't. Same thing with the HCG. Each phase is always a challenge and has it's own things to work on. But when you hit lifetime maintenance after a while, it just becomes life. So combine those two and I am a basket case :) I am turning 39 in a few weeks. Age has never been an issue for me or bothered me. Until now. I am feeling like time is running out and I don't have anything to show for it. I feel anxiety, and an extreme need to travel. To get out there and go, see and do. On the body front, it is the same. Yes I lost the weight, but 40 year old skin is not 20 year old skin! I feel like I got to the game late. I think everyone thinks of losing the weight and getting to be that picture in your head of your perfect body. Only to realize it is a smaller version of my old self. Still all of the stretch marks and imperfections. And now I even have a varicose vein too!! I am my grandmother!! Ok, I know I need to calm down. I am guessing this is what a mid life crisis feels like :) Who am I? What do I bring to the world? What do I have to show for my life? What am I going to do with the rest of my life? For someone who has slight "control" issues, it really sucks not having all the answers and not knowing what to do next.

Proud to be an American....

I just had to comment about how lucky I feel to live in a country where your voice can be heard. Not only heard, but that we as American citizens really can step in when we feel things are going in the wrong direction. I cannot imagine living in other countries where you do not have that right, and where you just have to accept what is. NO MATTER WHAT SIDE YOU ARE ON, it is inspiring to see America demonstrate the most unique and special thing about our country. Sometimes your "team" wins and sometimes you have to endure. But the very fact that we have a choice, means EVERYTHING. We as Americans have no excuse. If you don't like it....... then do something about it. :)

Back to Lifetime Maintenance....

Today begins lifetime maintenance.... again :) TOM is here :( Feeling puffy, crampy and just overall icky! This weekend I had some Kneaders french toast. It was good, but I only had half and did not go crazy. Felt good about that. Then TOM hit along with cravings galore. I had 2 pumpkin cookies, 1 brownie, popcorn, licorice and 1/2 a chocolate shake!! Needless to say I am not going near the scale this morning :) I am going to do a high protein day today and keep it clean for the next few days. This week I am going to start exercising. Today I will do some resistance training with some intervals to finish off. Not much else to report! I will let you know what the scale says after a few days of being good :)

R4 P4 D16....

Sorry it has been awhile! Life has been keeping me busy :) The weight has been fluctuating between the 2 lbs and doing well. I weigh some days, and not others. Just trying to practice eating for the rest of my life and not taking it too seriously :) I have been out of the habit of exercising for so long now, I find myself not making time for it. So unlike me. I definitely need to get into a routine again. I have a few food finds to share with you.

The first is heaven in a jar :) This is sunflower seed butter, with added flax and hemp seed. This is sooooo good. It does not list sugar on the label, just organic vanilla powder. After one taste I immediately called the company because I knew there was some sort of sweetness in there!! They said their vanilla powder does have some sucrose, and they are changing the label. Even though there was not much, during P3 I was careful to have just a little at a time. It is amazing and most of the time eaten just off the spoon! I found it at Good Earth. It can also be found at Naturally Nutty. They have all sorts of flavored nut butters. My next one to try is White Chocolate Coconut Peanut Butter...... :)

Next up, makes life easier and delicious at the same time! This is from Costco. Nothing but the pork, salt and water. Heats up in seconds and can be used a million different ways. My favorite lately is pork tacos in romaine lettuce leaves.

For someone who LOVES anything coconut, I can't believe I have lived without this all my life. If the sunflower butter is heaven in a jar, this is heaven in a can. I use it in everything. Soups, sauces, puddings, over fruit, frosting etc. It thickens things up and makes them creamy. I don't really taste the coconut once it is mixed in something else. Only when I put it on fruit can I really taste the coconutty goodness :) For those in P3 looking for a decadent treat without the sugar and starch try this pudding.

1 pkg sugar free pudding of choice

1 cup of cream

1 cup coconut milk

I said decadent. You can also use 1 cup greek yogurt and 1/2 cup cream, and 1/2 cup coconut milk to add in some protein. Basically you are adding 2 cups of liquid to the pudding. If you want less fat then use 1 cup milk, 1/2 cup cream, 1/2 cup coconut milk. Just make sure to blend the pudding and the thinnest liquid first really well then add the others and blend completely so you don't get pudding mix chunks. Here was my latest. I used Banana Cream pudding, with the 2 cups split evenly between cream, coconut milk (can), coconut milk (box). Of course I had to sprinkle with unsweetened coconut and some sliced almonds and cinnamon :)

R4 P4 D10...English Muffins!

Here is a picture of my favorite breakfast these days:

That is cottage cheese with sliced almonds, fine shredded coconut flakes, cinnamon and some market fresh raspberries. Usually I stir in a little greek yogurt, but I am out today! And along side that is my "english muffin" with butter and honey. I love these.

English Muffins

I use a magic bullet to blend. So in a magic bullet cup put:

1 egg

1/4 cup almond flour

1 TBSP flax seeds

2 tsp butter

1/2 tsp baking powder

1 TBSP water

Blend till smooth. It will be really thick. Spoon the mixture into a ramekin about the diameter of an english muffin. You can also use a mug. It will just be taller rather than wider. Microwave for 1 minute and 10 seconds. Invert onto plate and slice in half horizontally. Voila! Perfect english muffin :) Since I am putting butter and honey on mine I don't add any salt or sweetener. Feel free to sweeten or spice it up as you please.

R4 P4 D9...

Down to 145.8 this morning! That is just +0.6 above LIW! It has been going down a little everyday. I don't know why because I am not doing anything different. I even had frozen yogurt and my mug cake yesterday. I went to the gym for the first time on Monday. I did a yoga/pilates fusion class. It was fun and felt good to be doing something again. Until the next day that is :) So sore! I definitely could feel the fact that I have not done anything in awhile. I am feeling "flabby" so I am going to focus on getting the muscle tone back :) It is another beautiful fall day. 70 and sunny, who could ask for anything more??

R4 P4 D7....

Today is 146.4, which makes me very happy. I did not weigh yesterday and was interested to see how things were after the weekend. I have been pretty good, but tend to do a little more on the weekends than during the week. Yesterday I had the following:

2 eggs, 2 strips of bacon

1/2 pear

almond flour/flax english muffin in a cup with butter and drizzle of honey

large iced coffee with sf syrup and cream

Red Robin Mount Olympus Burger served with no bun on a bed of lettuce

3 fries :)

2 cantalope wedges

diet coke

2 sf candies

cottage cheese mixed with greek yogurt and 1 tbsp sf rasbperry jam

chocolate coconut mug cake with dollop of whip cream

So nice to have fun weekends and not have to pay like my Kneaders french toast days :) And that is even with having cake for dinner :)

Chocolate Cake.....with a secret!

Photo courtesy of Healthy Indulgences.

First off this morning was 147.0. That is +1.8 above LIW. I am wondering if being up could just be the natural transition of adding sugar and starch slowly, or still related to ovulation. Either way I am ok with it. My overall goal is to stay between 145.2 and 150.0 from here on out.

Second, I found this wonderful Chocolate Cake recipe over at Healthy Indulgences! It has NO sugar and NO flour! It is essentially made with black beans and eggs! Tasted exactly like cake. My husband hates beans with a passion. After 2 slices I told him the ingredients and he about died :) I would have taken my own picture, but they ate it all before I got any shots! She also has a vanilla version. You can also find a vanilla bean cake recipe at The Spunky Coconut. I will definitely be using these in the future. I am not one that likes frosting very much, but I made a frosting that was excellent. More like a thick chocolate mousse. So simple, but so good.

Sugar Free Chocolate Frosting

1 and 3/4 cup cream

1/4 cup coconut milk (regular milk is fine too)

1 pkg sugar free chocolate pudding mix (you can use any flavor you like)

Just put into a bowl and mix until thick and spreadable. It takes awhile to get it there. Very good!!! I cut the cake in two and filled the middle and frosted the top!

R4 P4 D3...

Not much new to report. I ate really well after going up, and to my surprise ended up 2 more pounds up the next day! I have done this long enough to know that major moves are always hormonal, especially when the eating is right. I just ate right again, and was back down the 2 pounds, but still at the +2.0 mark from the day before. I am thinking I hit ovulation. I am guessing it will just come back down on it's own with good food. As I was contemplating new workouts and reading over at KarlMacphee I came across this video and could stop laughing! Now that would be an interesting workout :)

R4 P4 D1...

First day of P4 starts off with a bang :) I am exactly +2.0 above LIW this morning. I ate out a lot over the weekend, and had a slice of real lemon cheesecake last night after dinner. So today, I will eat at home and be good :) Life has been so hectic, I think I will try and maybe read some of my book I have been trying to read forever. I also need to think about starting my workouts, and deciding what type of exercise I want to incorporate. It is sunny today, but it was definitely COLD this morning! Sad to see summer go. I love fall, but winter is way too long in Utah. I need to be one of those people who spends half the year in one location, and the other half in another :) Sounds fabulous to me!

R4 P3 D18....

I am staying between 145.8-146.0. That's .6 to .8 above LIW. I am not counting any calories or stressing out at all!! After all of the insane years of freak dieting, this right here is the absolute very best thing about HCG.......peace. Freedom from the chaos, period. When I think about all of the years I wasted stressing about my weight/body image, it really does boggle the mind. So much wasted time.

Right now I am 3 days from P4, and find myself in my usual dilemma. I don't want to create carb intolerance, but am loving the food and see no need to add it. But, I said I was going to add as much as I could so that my body would hopefully tolerate them. I guess I will add the Ezekiel products to start and go from there. Funny, but the idea of my precious Kneaders french toast, sounds way too sweet and kind of nauseating right now. I would much rather have my choc coconut mug cake any day.

I have been having the Baked Chicken Meatballs everyday for lunch or dinner. I have had them on zucchini noodles, sauteed cabbage, and chopped romaine. All were great. It is nice when you make them, because then you have meals for the whole week!

After the kitchen makeover I decided it was time to update the decor. It turned out so beautiful. Here is the before and after:

R4 P3 D16...

First off I have to say the Almond Butter Pumpkin Brownies were awesome! The family ate the whole pan by nightfall! For dinner I decided to try out Baked Chicken Meatballs from Elanas Pantry. They were really good. I served them on a bed of zucchini noodles. Just slice them up thin and boil for 2 minutes. They made perfect noodles. Then I topped with the meatballs and some no sugar added marinara sauce. A little parmesan cheese would have been great, but I was out. Ever since I quit work, I have been busier than ever :) Between the renovating, mucking out, and baking, I don't have enough hours in the day!

R4 P3 D15...P3 Cookies and Brownies!

Still at 146.0! The past 2 days I have tried out some P3 baking recipes! They both were excellent. My husband and kids even said they were pretty good :)

Photo courtesy of Everyday Paleo.

The first is a cookie recipe found over at EverydayPaleo. I followed the recipe as is except for adding some vanilla stevia and about a table spoon of sugar free maple syrup. The only bananas I could find were not all the way ripe, and it felt like they needed a little more sweetness. I just added a little of both until the batter tasted right.

The second were some Almond Butter Pumpkin Brownies!

This one is a variation of a recipe found over at This Primal Life. The original recipe would be great, but I added a few things, and changed the sweetener to fit P3. Here is what I used:

3/4 cup pumpkin puree

3/4 cup almond butter

1/4 cup cinnamon vanilla sunflower butter ( just use a full cup of almond if you don't have this)

1 egg

1/3 cup xylitol, powdered (or p3 sweetener of your choice)

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp pumpkin pie spice (to taste)

splash of vanilla

I then chopped a small handful of each of the following: pecans, walnuts, sugar free baking chocolate, and tossed them into the batter. Oh yeah, and about a tablespoon or two of fine shredded unsweetened coconut flakes of course! :) To finish it off I drizzled a little sugar free maple syrup over the top.

Bake in a greased 8 x 8 pan at 350 for 20-25 minutes. (Some people posted they had to bake a little longer.) Bake until a tooth pick comes out clean. I probably could have gone a little longer, but they were still really good and very moist.

R4 P3 D14....

Well the garage is clean! It only took 3 runs to the dump and 2 runs to the local charity :) But BOTH cars fit into the garage nicely! Since I seem to be in the process of "mucking out", my goal is to get my closet cleaned out and the kitchen cupboards this week. But first I have to wash all of my clothes today. I literally think I have worn every piece of clothing I own. Since the last 2 weeks have been a chaos between the house renovation and work crap, I have not done any laundry!! Weight has been the same for the last 2 days at 146.0. That is +0.8 above LIW. Loving that. I told myself that I refuse to go back to the calorie counting nightmare that was after last round. I am really trying to listen to my body, and if the weight goes up a little, to make adjustments without calorie counting and just make smart decisions. Seems to be working so far. I feel very relaxed and free, like my first two rounds. I really think my weight did not stick last round and the only reason it did was because I had to workout like crazy and count calories to make it happen. I still have another week to go to add exercise. I am going to do the opposite of my usual. I normally am a cardio queen and avoid weights. I can cardio for hours, but weights are hard for me. I am going to try to do all weight related training such as yoga/pilates, along with upper and lower body resistance. My focus is going to be on strength, and I will only do two twenty minute interval sessions per week. Time to go, my closet is calling.... ;)

R4 P3 D12...

Down another -0.4! That puts me at just +0.2 above LIW. I should have looked at the calendar when my weight went up earlier this week. TOM arrived this morning! I did not even think of that because usually when I come off of HCG I am anywhere from 1-3 weeks late getting started again. So you know what this means don't you.......... LET THE LOVE OF MUG CAKES CONTINUE! Today we are going to start cleaning out the garage. What an exciting way to spend the weekend. Oh well, one step closer to being done. I am off to have cake for breakfast and then get to work :)

UPDATE #2!!

I have just been notified by Linda Prinster herself that the Corporate Head Offices of Pounds and Inches Away, will be more than happy to continue support to all the customers who paid for full support here at the Draper, Ut location. The Corporate team is excellent to work with, and I know they will do everything in their power to help you succeed in your HCG endeavors. They can be reached at:

Pounds and Inches Away

(636)-922-2282

Contact: Amber: Long Distance Customer Manager

3900 Old Hwy 94 S, Suite 5

St. Charles, MO 63304

Email: Info@paiausa.com

UPDATE!!

I have just been notified by Mr. Smart, of Pounds and Inches Away (Lethbridge) that "you do not have authorization to post our contact information on your blog, get it off now!!!!" So, I have now removed their contact information from the previous post. I guess the only option for those needing any further assistance would be to contact Pounds and Inches Away directly. I am sure they can help you with whatever you need.

R4 P3 D11....

Down -2.0 lbs for the high protein day. Back to +0.6 above LIW. I did 2 eggs, can of tuna with mayo on celery sticks, ounce of cheese, steak and salad with ranch, and an ounce of cheese. Those usually work just as good as steak days for me. The only bummer about getting done with the house is that my garage is now filled with everything from the basement! Now I have to sort the trash, charity, and possible garage sale items. If it is not one thing, its another :)

R4 P3 D10... So much to catch up on!!

Wow, it has been awhile, and so much has happened this week! First off I have been enjoying food and staying within the 2# limit..... until today that is :) I am +2.6 today, so I am going to try a high protein day. Those usually do the trick for me instead of a steak day. It will be 2 eggs, tuna w/mayo and celery, steak and salad. I am not sure why exactly it is creeping up, but it may have something to do with my new found love affair of almond flour goodies made in a mug:) Even though we are not supposed to have to count calories, I did the calorie count on my choc mac mug cake and it was 500 without the big dollop of cream on top! And while I think you don't have to count calories in general, I am sure there is a point where it is going to start to matter:)

The next huge event for the week is that I am now unemployed! Yep, I got a phone message on Sunday morning that the store had been closed and that was that. No warning what so ever. They just said the store was not making enough money to keep it open. I know many of you have gone to the store by my referral and I am sorry for the abrupt closure. I also know that many of our current PIA clients read this blog, so to them I would like to say how fun it was working with you all, and I am so sorry that no warning was given. I know that many of you may have questions, comments, complaints or concerns regarding your programs. The only thing I can give you is the contact information for the owners other location. It is:

** This information has been removed. See Updated post.

If that doesn't get you what you need, you could try calling the Corporate Headquarters of Pounds and Inches Away at: 888-GET-HCG1.

That being said, you know you can always find me here, and I will be happy to try to help or answer any questions you have about HCG in general. If you do contact them, and get any other reason for the closure, or any derogatory comments made regarding the staff, please do be sure to come back here and let me know. There are a few legal issues that may need tending to:)

And lastly we finished the basement and the kitchen counters! Finally it is all done! Here are a few photos:

Kitchen Counters:

Basement:

R4 P3 D5....Chocolate Coconut Macadamia Mug Cake!

Still exactly at LIW! Loving that! I am also loving having dessert for breakfast :) Those of you who know me, know that I think coconut is one of the four food groups! So, this morning I took the choc mug cake and added coconut flakes and macadamias! Tis was pure heaven...... :) Here is the Choc Mug Cake recipe:

2-3 tbsp almond flour

1.5 tbsp xylitol (or sweetener of choice to taste)

1 egg

1 tbsp unsweetened cocoa

2 tbsp cream

1 tbsp butter

splash vanilla

1 large coffee mug!

** my substitution was 2 tbsp almond flour + 2 tbsp unsweetened fine shredded coconut flakes, and 3 crushed macadamias.

Just puree and pour into a coffee mug or ramekin. I use a ramekin and wipe it with a little coconut oil first. Microwave for 90 sec to 2 min. It will puff up, but don't worry it will come right back down :)

It is extremely moist and delicious! Eat it warm with a little real whip cream!

Today we are getting the tile backsplash done. One more thing off the list!

R4 P3 D4.....Pumpkin Pie Mug Cake!

Exactly at LIW! Who says you can't have pie for breakfast?? I just had healthy pumpkin pie/cheesecake for breakfast :) I have had the chocolate mug cake before, but have been craving pumpkin. So I decided to try and make one. It turned out great!

Pumpkin Pie Mug Cake

3 tbsp almond flour

1 tbsp plain pumpkin

.5 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or as much as you like)

1 egg

1.5 tbsp xylitol (or sweetener of your choice)

1 tbsp cream

1 tbsp cream cheese

.5 tbsp butter

3 drops vanilla stevia

*I think next time I will try to add 2-3 chopped pecan halves.

Put all into the blender or magic bullet and puree. Pour into a coffee mug or ramekin. Microwave for 90 seconds to 2 min. It will puff up, but will come back down. Invert onto a plate and top with a little real whip cream if you like! Yum! I will make again tomorrow and get a picture for you. It smelled so good I had to eat it before I could take a pic!

R4 P3 D3...

Right at LIW! :) I am so loving food right now :) I think I might have a slight obsession with raspberries... last p3 it was In-n-Out burgers, so I am making progress right?? I had tons of great food yesterday. This morning my jeans were even looser than a few days ago. Yesterday I took 1/2 a small apple, 1/2 small peach, and some raspberries and put them in a ramekin with several drops of vanilla stevia. I then mixed 2 tbsp almond flour with 1 1/2 tbsp xylitol and cinnamon. Drizzled coconut oil until it made the mixture crumbly, and put over the top of the fruit. Then baked at 350 till bubbly. That with a dollop of real whip cream was heaven! This round feels so much better than my last one. I am going to try to go pick up the tile for the backsplash today so we can get it done this weekend!

R4 P3 D2...

Down -0.8 lbs today! That was very nice to see this morning. I had my first glorious day of P3 yesterday! It was so nice to eat some new food! Can I just say how much I love Fage Total..... :) Here is what the food for my first day was:

8 oz roast beef

1 apple

1 7oz container of total fage greek yogurt

2 string cheese

5oz raspberries

2 tbsp coconut oil

sprinke of coconut flakes.sliced almonds

2 tbsp cocoa

2 eggs

1/2 oz cheddar

2 slices bacon

1 sf caramel pecan

2 liters of water, 8oz perrier, 8oz tea

We are just getting all the finishing touches on the basement and kitchen. I will post photos as soon as we are done :)

R4 P3 D1....

Final day! I will have some dinner tonight! I took pics this morning and there is really no difference from the ending pics of my last round. Like I said the body just wants to stay. Maybe it is time to just really focus on body shaping from here on out. I am ok with that. A little bummed but still pretty happy :) Here are the pics from this morning. The first one on the left is from the end of round 3. The next 2 are from this morning in a couple different suits.

My husband and I took a drive up the canyon this weekend and here are a few pics in clothes :)

R4 P2 D25...

Today: 145.0! It's official, Saturday was my LDW at 145.2. This is day 7 of the same weight. I have gotten a couple 145.0's but if I get back on the scale it varies between the two. Husband says it's time to be done, he wants his wife back :) I really wanted to get another 5-7 lbs, but the body doesn't want to budge. I am hoping that one positive thing about this would be that the weight really wants to sit here and that stabilization will be good. I have been having definite periods of hunger that get pretty intense and then it will go away. I will be at the 72 hour mark tomorrow morning. I usually wait a full 3 days, but I will see how the hunger goes today. Hunger is usually the indicator that the HCG is gone from the system and it is ok to begin maintenance. Right now I have no counters or kitchen sink! They should be arriving around 3:30 today. Almost done with all of the chaos! Here is what I am having today:

113g cottage cheese 100.0

215g apple 111.8

4oz chicken 146.6

175g cabbage 44

115g straw 36.8

5g cocoa 10.0

*miracle noodles

Total Calories: 449.2

R4 P2 D24....

145.2 for the sixth time in a row! Absolutely nothing is working. I tried double protein, changing proteins, exact protocol etc. Today is the day I normally skip my HCG, so I am going to see if it changes tomorrow. If it is the same then I will just go with Sat as my LDW and consider today as my first day with no HCG. If it changes then I will take it a day at a time to decide. So frustrating! Today we have to rip out the counters to be ready for the new ones tomorrow. I sure hope I like them. So hard to tell from a sample. Here is what I am having today:

4oz chicken 146.6

150g celery 24.0

215g apple 111.8

40g jay robb 146.6

115g straw 36.8

Total Calories: 465.8

R4 P2 D23...

Up +0.4 lbs, back to where I have been the past week! I knew yesterday was just restroom and not real weight loss! I tried doing beef to change things up and still nothing. Right now my plan is to go until Weds and then be done. In other news the basement is done and the carpet looks great. The counters arrive on Monday, so the tear out will be tomorrow! Then we have to tile the backsplash and it will all finally be over! Here is what I am having today:

84g chicken 110.0

250g tomato 45.0

115g apple 111.8

100g beef 137.0

125g cabbage 31.5

115g straw 36.8

Total Calories 472.1

R4 P2 D22....

Down -0.4 lbs! Not much from the double protein. I was also able to go to the restroom finally, so I would tend to think it was that rather than real weight. I don't know what to think. Last round I ended at 144.4 and people said I looked sickly in my face and upper body. I was very hungry and miserable last round. When I started eating the weight did not want to hold well either. Now I am basically at the same weight and I am not losing, and I woke up with a headache and real hunger for the first time. I am beginning to wonder if my "normal" fat stores are just my trouble spots in the hips, butt and thighs. Every time I lose I get very thin everywhere else, and some on the lower half, but definitely not skinny on the bottom. Seems like this is where my body wants to get and then sit there. I am fine with where I am today if it will hold. I would tend to think it will since I felt so much better this round. The photo is from this morning. I just don't have anything else to lose on top. I guess I will see what tomorrow does. If it is still not moving and the hunger starts increasing then I will consider that maybe it is time to end things and be done. Oh yeah! Carpet arrives this morning! :) Here is what I am having today:

100g beef 137.0

250g tomato 45.0

115g apple 60.0

4oz chicken 146.6

150g celery 24.0

*1/2 pkg miracle noodles 0.0

Total Calories: 412.6

R4 P2 D21...

Well this is my third day of 145.2 and my second day in a row of -0.0! So annoying. It makes it very hard to keep going when I know I could end this in 2 days. The real kicker is that I have no appetite and have to remind myself to eat. Why is it that when I am having such an easy time, there are no losses??? I will try the double protein day again today, since my last two losses were following my last one. I said I was going to go 30 days, which would be a week from Saturday. I have half a mind to not weigh at all next week and just surprise myself at the end, because I am not hungry and doing great, until I get on the scale and see no movement! :) Here is what I will have today:

30g jay robb 110.00

2.5g cocoa 5.0

168g chicken 220.0

100g romaine 17.0

84g chicken 110.0

100g celery 16.0

Total Calories: 478.0

R4 P2 D20....

Another -0.0 lbs! Seems to be the trend. A day of no loss for every day of loss. Still doing good hunger wise. Bored of the food :) I did have 2 decent losses in a row after the double protein day, so I will see how tomorrow goes and maybe do another one if it is a zero again. I am only .8 away from my LIW last round. The bummer is I am right between sizes. I now can wear my smallest pants comfortably, but I need it to get me to the next size all together. We are almost finished with trim and should be cleaning up and doing final touch up tomorrow. It is looking really good.

One strange thing is that I have dry mouth all the time and it is driving me nuts! On every other round I was freezing to death, but so far nothing. That's about it. Off to work! Here is what I am having today:

4oz chicken 146.6

200g celery 32.0

215g apple 111.8

4oz tilapia 110.0

150g asparagus 30.0

100g orange 47.0

Total Calories: 477.4

R4 P2 D19...

Down -0.8 lbs! I will take that! Yesterday morning when I got up I kept getting the cold sweats and having to put my head between my legs so I would not pass out. I think I had definitely over done it the previous 2 days by working non stop on the basement. I went to work, then came home an laid low for the rest of the day. I had absolutely no energy. Then I took a muscle relaxer and went to bed and actually slept all the way till morning. I know I posted at the beginning of the round how I was so happy for the improved sleep, but about a week ago I started waking up at 4:30. Wide awake and not able to go back to sleep. It was a nice change and I think the body appreciated it :) Today I have to work and then will take it easy. The basement is all painted, and the trim is going up today. That is all that is left before the carpet comes Friday morning! Here is what I am having today:

4oz chicken 146.6

100g romaine 17.0

150g apple 77

1 breadstick 10.0

40g jay robb 146.6

184g orange 86.0

2.5g cocoa 5.0

Total Calories: 488.20

R4 P2 D18...

Down -0.6 lbs! I really thought it was going to be a pound or more :( I was even able to finally go to the restroom!! But I am also even more sore today than yesterday, so that could be part of it. I think this week I am going to weigh M, W, Sat. Maybe that will ease the morning frustration :)

Off to work this morning! Here is what I am having today:

4oz chicken 146.6

250g tomato 45

115g straw 36.8

40g jay robb 146.6

115g straw 36.8

5g cocoa 10.0

Total Calories: 421.8

R4 P2 D17....

Down -0.0lbs! That really ticks me off. I was wondering if I was going to have a problem this morning. We painted all day yesterday. My job is where the ceiling and walls come together so I must have done the equivalent of a million high step ups and I am sore. Also, I did not even think about it until the end of the day, but my hands were covered in paint. I have no idea if there are any oils in there or things that might affect me. Oh well, today I will wear gloves, but I still have to finish the bedroom. We got the main room painted, and just have to finish the hall and bedroom today. Then we will start the trim. The paint color turned out beautiful. Hard to believe this area has been a pile of junk for the past five years :) I was reading over on the forum about double protein days. One of the "experts" over there does these in the middle of her rounds when things get slow. I think I will try that today. It goes like this:

Breakfast: 100g protein

Lunch: 200g protein, veggie

Dinner: 100g protein, veggie

You must stay under the 500 calories, so you will most likely need to stick with chicken and fish. Then fill in with veggies to stay under the 500 cals. Here is my plan..

Breakfast: 6 egg whites 96

Lunch: 226g tilapia 220

150g asparagus 30

Dinner: 84g chicken 110

100g romaine 17

Total Calories: 473.0

R4 P2 D16...

Down -1.0 lbs! I am now just 2.3 lbs away from truly official virgin territory. My last round ended at 144.4, but I never stayed there, since I went right up to the 149.8 after adding exercise right out of the gate. Exciting stuff! Today we will start painting as soon as the contractor drops off the paint. We have to have all the paint and trim done before the carpet arrives on Friday morning. Then Saturday morning we have to rip off the counters, so the new ones can be installed Saturday afternoon! This is going to be a very busy week! And just think, on next Saturday it will be day 23! Then it is time to make decisions on how long I want to go. Gotta get to work! Here is what I am having today:

4oz chicken 146.6

200g celery 32.0

215g apple 111.8

40g jay robb 146.6

115g straw 36.8

Total Calories: 473.8