My Dad is Better Then Your Dad!

I missed the Fathers Day post because we were out of town. I have known what I have wanted to say for awhile and today have the time to do it. Dad you are the best dad around. I appreciate what you do for me and my family. I am grateful for the example that you set for not only me and my siblings but also our children. You are a great father with so many admirable qualities. I use you on a daily basis to measure my sales ability as you are a great salesman. Although I never wanted to be a salesman I am honored to share this profession with you. I am grateful for your spirituality and that our kids will grow up knowing their grandfather as a spiritual giant. I am grateful for the time that you make for all of us. Running trips between Boise and Las Vegas gets tiring yet you are always willing and able. I appreciate your sense of humor and know that if it was not for that I would not be the personable kid that I am today. I am grateful for your example of being a great father and husband. You have given me a high bar to aspire to and I appreciate that. You are many things in my book but the one that I value the most is your friendship. I told my teachers this last week, as I gave my lesson on Fathers Day, that I have always been able to talk to you about anything. I don't just feel that you are my dad but also a friend. Thank you for always being there for me, and now for my family. You are a wonderful parent, an excellent friend, and a spiritual rock. I LOVE YOU! Happy Fathers Day!

This past week has been a rough one for me with the diet. Last week I started getting a really bad sore throat. I thought that I was getting sick so I didn't worry about it. On Friday night I went to sleep but I couldn't breathe very well because it felt like my throat was swollen. It didn't get any better over the weekend so I called a doctor on Monday and went in. The doctor checked me out and told me that I was having an allergic reaction to the HCG. She said that only 5% have this problem that it is really rare. Since then I have been off the HCG. Today is the first time that I haven't had pain in my throat. The swelling went down not long after I stopped taking the HCG. I am bummed about it but with how bad my throat was hurting I am glad that the HCG was the problem and not something more serious.

Day 8

So yesterday was a pretty good day for the diet. It was a pretty bad day for me business wise. For lunch I went with an apple because I knew that Becky and I would be going out. For dinner I had a wrap and then cheated a little and had a very small sundae. I felt pretty good but when I got home I had the remaining four strawberries. I don't think that I cheated that much and it felt good to order something rather then have to cook the veggies and meat that I have at home.

Weight: 216.2

Day 7

It has been a week since I started this adventure and I am losing weight. I mentioned yesterday that I was sick but throughout the day I started to feel better. I did stick with the water only part all day yesterday until dinner. For dinner I had an 8 oz steak and a small salad. This morning when I weighed myself I was at 217. I think that I am back on track and I will just have to be sure to eat some other veggies and fruits to make sure that I am getting the right vitamins.

Weight: 217

Day 6

Yesterday was a horrible day for me. I started out with a half a cup of dry Cheerios and for lunch had chicken with radishes. Around noon I started feeling pretty bad. I have been sick ever since. I am not sure that it is the diet but I have been wondering if I am not getting the right vitamins since I am on this diet. I am going to continue for the time being and just see how things go. Last night, because I was sick, I did cheat and have some "real" food to see if I would feel better. After eating I did feel better and I am feeling better this morning. I am back to it and to make up for last night I am taking the pills and just drinking water today. For dinner I can then have an 8 oz steak and a small salad.

Weight: 219.2 lbs

Day 5

Yesterday I got up and weighed in and I was down to 221. I was mildly excited about this. I didn't really think that I would lose 20 lbs right off the bat but I guess I did think that it would come off quicker with the food I am eating.

I have had some people ask (mom) where I come up with my meals. I received a list of foods that I can eat and I have tried to pair things that I would like to eat. Steak and tomatoes, chicken and cucumbers, steak and cucumbers, chicken and radishes. These are just a few of the foods that I can eat, there is a whole list of them and most of them are pretty good. I can have 5 oz of protein; steak, chicken, lean beef, shrimp, fish and crab. 1 cup of vegetables which include; tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, beet greens, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, celery and asparagus. 1 slice of 40 calorie bread, if you can't find that then you have to cut a regular piece in half. And then one fruit; apple, orange, half a grapefruit or a handful of strawberries. I have loved the fruit and although I missing chocolate I am not in need of chocolate. I seem to get all my sweet cravings taken care of with fruit. The meals have been good and I have enjoyed coming up with different combinations.

Yesterday I had a half a cup of Cheerios dry. For lunch I had 5 oz of steak and cucumbers with salt and pepper followed by an apple. All day I drank 2 liters of water. For dinner I a hamburger without the bun and a tomato. Dinner yesterday was probably my favorite and it tasted so good. After dinner I had a handful of strawberries which I cut into small pieces so it would feel like I was eating a lot.

I had a rough night last night sleeping. I don't think that it had anything to do with the diet but I am not sure. I was restless and just kept tossing and turning. I feel sick this morning but more congested then anything. Also when I weighed in this morning I was down to 218.6. I was a little excited about this since I broke the 220 mark. I did have a rough day yesterday, telling Becky that I was craving a big piece of cake. Luckily I didn't have any and my weight shows it.

Weight: 218.6 lbs

Day 4

When I woke up this morning and checked my weight I was down to 223.4. It made me think that this might be working. I took that drops this morning and skipped breakfast. For lunch I had 5 oz of steak and a cup of asparagus. I then had an apple and then took a nap since I haven't been sleeping well. After the nap I took the drops again (15 drops 3 times a day) and then made chicken with cucumbers and 4 strawberries for dessert. I have had my 2 liters of water today and I am feeling pretty good. I am noticing that I am not having indigestion like I have had which is nice. I am guessing that it is due to the diet and not the HCG. The only time that I am noticing the diet right now is when Becky or Audrey are snacking and I have to make a choice not to. Other then that I am not feeling hungry and I am enjoying the food that I am eating.

Weight: 223.4

Day 3

Today has been pretty good. I got up this morning and didn't have breakfast but still took that HCG drops. For lunch I had 5oz of chicken wrapped up in lettuce and a half a slice of bread. I drank water with it and have had 2 liters today which is the amount that you are suppose to have daily. For dinner I had 5oz of steak with one tomato and after that had four strawberries. I haven't felt hungry all day and no headache which some people said that they experienced. I am suppose to weigh-in in the morning so I will try to update tomorrow what my weight is. So far things are going good. It wasn't as bad as I thought and I haven't been "snacky" at all today. I really enjoyed both meals today and I am looking forward to see what I will come up with tomorrow.

Day 2

I woke up yesterday feeling pretty good. Yesterday was the last binge day so I started the morning out with a huge bowl of cocoa puffs. For lunch Becky, Audrey and I went to Taco Bell. Afterwards we had our doctors appointment and found out that the baby is healthy for this far along. Afterwards we stopped by McDonald's and got a couple four piece chicken nuggets. For dinner we went to Red Robin and I got the Bleu Ribbon Burger with a bunch of fries. Marc, Ashley and I went to a concert last night and when I got home I had a huge brownie with some milk. I weighed myself yesterday morning like I am suppose to and I was at 225.2 lbs. I am a little nervous to start the 500 calorie days but it has to be done so I am in for the challenge.

Day 1

The first two days of this diet are actually the best days. They are binge days so you eat as much as you can. All day I have been eating. I had breakfast this morning with scrambled eggs, toast and hot chocolate. At about 10am I had another hot chocolate and a pastry. For lunch I ate at West Side Drive Inn and I had a Monte Cristo sandwich with tater tots and a sprite. I had a Kit Kat for a snack around 4pm and then for dinner I had pizza. I ended the night with a HUGE chocolate brownie with carmel and nuts on top and a glass of milk. Twenty minutes before each meal I took the HCG drops. It doesn't taste horrible like I thought it would and it didn't have any effect that I could tell on the outside. The day was a pretty good one and I can tell that I have been more aware of my body, trying to see if there were any side effects that I could feel. There wasn't and so I am going to go for day 2 tomorrow. Another day of feeding my face getting ready for day 3 when I start only eating 500 calories a day. For the record I am up 1.4 pounds to 226.8lbs. Hopefully this works otherwise I am going to be heavier then when I started.

Also this is my 100th post. How exciting is that?

The HCG Challenge

Last week I had a guy from church ask me if I had ever heard of HCG. I had heard about it, a guy from a past ward was taking the shots and Boise.biz was in business with HCG in Utah. I didn't know much about it though and figured that this guy from my ward was trying to get me involved in a multi level marketing scheme selling the product. I told him that I wasn't interested in getting involved and tried to move on. This guy from my ward insisted that this was different then the HCG program that Boise.biz was doing. He then asked me what I weighed and I sheepishly told him 235. You see I am not one that has been ashamed of my weight. At one time I was a healthy 160 and I had a lot of fun, but I had reserved myself to thinking that I was older now and that I could let myself go. Over the past 6 months though it seems that a lot of people have taken interest in my weight. I had one of my boys give me a bad time about it almost every Sunday. A few weeks ago I about keeled over on a prep hike for our 50 miler in August. And now this guy was asking about my weight in the Walmart parking lot at 11pm. 235 has snuck up on me and I am not that happy about the way I look but at the same time I wasn't doing anything to stop it either. I always tell everyone that I am married so who do I need to impress. Well the guy started in that I could lose 30 lbs easy and that I should do it. I told him that, from what I understood, I would only get to eat 500 calories a day and that anybody could lose weight only eating 500 calories. He told me that there was more too it then that and that he wanted me to be a testimonial for him. I left that night wondering if I should be offended or not. I went home and told Becky that I was a little offended because where was it this guys business? We discussed it and the more we did the more Becky got mad about it. We talked about it all night and then the next day. She wanted to tell this guy at church that he needed to take a flying leap. At church neither of us said anything, Becky was busy with primary but I just got to thinking that maybe this might be a good idea if I could stick with it. I talked to him at church and told him that I would do it. He was really excited for me but, to be honest, I was a little nervous. I have since done a bunch of research on the product. I do believe that it is safe and I think that it may work if I can stick with it. I am still not sure how this is going to go but I am willing to try it and see how it works. So here is the first post of many on my journey through this process. Becky thinks that I am brave for putting a picture of myself shirtless but I think that it is just part of the whole thing. In order to do this right I need some accountability and what better way then to post this on the internet? I am going to post every day for the next 23-40 days (depending on my weight goal), some will be how I am feeling and some will just be my weight and measurements. Hopefully this is a good experience. WISH ME LUCK!

Weight: 225.4

Waist: 39"

Stomach: 49"

Chest: 46"

Quad: 26"

Bicep: 14"