Ups and Downs

Wow! The time is really flying by. It is Wednesday already and I was trying to write by MONDAY at the latest- *smile* Oh well, better late than never, right? But I know you are all wanting to know what is happening!!

So here goes-- I have lost 15.4 pounds since I started. I am really starting to feel the difference- On Sunday, I got up to get ready for church, and I thought "I wonder...." of course you KNOW what I am wondering because you also have in your closet clothes that you won't put into storage or give to charity because that would be an admission that what you have gained is permanent!! I also have those clothes in my closet, and one of them is a beautiful suit that I have not worn in 2 years, maybe more. I refuse to take it out of my closet because it is so beautiful, and because I don't want to know that it doesn't fit, so I simply "choose" to wear something else every week. But this week, I am really wondering.... can I get the button done up? I gingerly reach for it and step into it slowly sliding it over my hips. I reach behind-- it buttons! Wow! I fumble with the zipper and enlist my husband's help. It zips! I am happy and amazed- but still don't dare sit down. I take it off and wear something else, including a sweater that used to be too tight.

Later in the day, I realize that I am REALLY hungry- I feel grumpy and angry that I am so hungry. I am short with my kids (who for some reason are exceptionally hyper-- can you say HALLOWEEN CANDY?!?!) When I went to bed, I reflected on the day. I start to wonder... I have read Dana Thornock's works about Eating to be lean, and her theory that when our bodies are restricted from calories for a period of time, weight loss slows because our bodies think we are starving, so they adapt to the new caloric intake and start to maintain at that level. I wonder if this increase in hunger is a call from my body to be sure that we are not actually starving before it adjusts to the new level. I drift off to sleep wondering about it.

Some of you may know, and many of you probably don't, that I have a sleep disorder- sleep-eating. I know, I know as if that is a real disorder, but seriously, I have for YEARS woken up in the night and gone out to the kitchen, eat whatever I can find and go back to bed. I am awake enough to remember it when I wake up in the morning and wonder why my mouth tastes so disgusting, but not awake enough to comprehend what I am actually doing. Since being on HCG, I have only had 2 incidents of sleep eating. This is unheard of because it has always been calorically related-- like if I get enough calories during the day, I will not get up and eat, but if I am low (like go to bed even slightly hungry) I will almost assuredly be up eating. And the worst part of it is that I have no discrimination at that point! So whatever I can find, is what I eat. As you can imagine, my dieting efforts have been frustrating and fruitless.

So Sunday night, after being hungry all day, I got up and started eating. Now to my credit, I thought I was awake, and that I was making some good choices. I ate a breadstick, some cottage cheese, and some chicken. My husband heard me out of bed, and he came out to talk to me. He asked me what I was doing. I woke up, and couldn't remember what I had been doing. It started coming together for me, and I realized that the chicken I had cooked for the kids was frozen when I started cooking it, so I did not take the skin off. Oh, I took it off before I served it, but the chicken I am sure had a lot more fat in it than if I had skinned it first.

I woke up the Monday morning and weighed. I had gained one half pound. I started thinking about things, and decided not to stress about not having lost that day. I spoke with Doctor Wright about it, and we agreed that I would try to take a day each week (probably Sunday) to eat double the calories that I am currently eating. It is still only about 1000 calories, so it is possible that I will still lose weight, but even if all I do is reset my body to think that there is still enough food, and I am not going to starve to death, then it will just be like changing gears, and then I go on losing.

Tuesday morning I got up and had lost 2.5 pounds. Wednesday I had lost another 1 pound bringing the total up to 15.5!

Soooo... I am still going the right direction!

I promised some additional recipes- and here they are:

Bison "tacos"
3.5 oz ground bison
Onions
Taco Seasoning
Romaine Lettuce
Tomatoes

Cook the bison with just a few slices of onion for flavor. Add the taco seasoning to taste. Place bison on a romaine lettuce leaf . Add chopped tomatoes (a handful, of course). Roll up the lettuce leaf-- Delicious!

Stir Fry
You could do this with beef or chicken. I did it with chicken.

3.5 oz chicken, cut into bite size pieces
1 Bell Pepper
2 T Braggs liquid amino acids

Stir fry the chicken (add a couple slices of onion for flavor) Add 1 T of Braggs to keep the chicken from sticking. Cut up the bell pepper , and add to the pan. Cook and stir, add the rest of the Braggs and cook until peppers are as done as you like them.

The other great thing about this recipe is how BIG your serving looks! So wonderfully satisfying.

We are trying Cabbage Rolls tonight-- I will let you know how it goes.