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| Knocking out fat one drop at a time!! |
Hello HCG Nation - yep, I'm going to start calling it that because we are growing like crazy. I am so humbled and yet excited about the how many hits my blog is now getting as well as how big our HCG community is getting. This weekend at Trade Days was brutally hot and kept many folks away, but nonetheless, I was able to reunite with past customers as well as get many new customers on board and on the way to conquering their weight loss issues. It is so rewarding to visit with those of you who purchased from me and see the obvious pride, satisfaction and excitement you have about yourself and the progress you have made in such a short period of time. And I'm just as equally stoked about getting folks started on the journey as well. Thanks to all of you who came out to see me - new and old customers. I have added a new page to the blog entitled "My Awesome Customers." Check out the pictures and see for yourself the wonderful local folks who stopped by to see me this weekend - they all look awesome because of their dedication to the HCG Protocol.
It was a very busy weekend for me. So much so, that I must apologize for being a little tardy on a blog entry. I have been a bit distracted. I had so much going on so fast that it was hard to keep up with everything. But I'm not complaining because it was a GREAT WEEK. Besides Trade Days, I had old coaching buddies from Lubbock come in for a golf tournament and Rangers game yesterday. These guys, along with their wives are some of the best people you can come across - salt of the earth. Coach Grimes, Ledbetter, and Pasley are such instrumental people in my life. I miss working with them each day, and I look forward to seeing them when possible. Thanks for everything fellas. By the way, Dallas Grimes, or Tiger-Pride as our players liked to call him, is a barrell-chested fellow, who I used to give such as hard time for eating healthy. Boy, am I getting it back for all of those jabs I made to him back in the day. Anyway, Dallas, is taking HCG for a test drive as well. He wants to lose about 15 pounds around the middle. However, he is very reluctant about forgoing weight lifting while on Phase 2, but has agreed to in order to meet his goal. I am anxious to hear his thoughts and reactions after being on the plan for a week or two. He has promised to keep us updated. I told him he would lose his 15lbs in two weeks - we shall see. Dallas is a great example of someone who is not grossly overweight, but can still benefit from the HCG protocol to finally get rid of those problem areas that are full of abnormal fat. Dallas - we expect to see pics of that six pack that will match the gun show!!
That is a good segway into a topic that is being brought up often by HCGers - working out while on the drops - why can't you do it? Here's the deal, if you workout strenously, will you not lose any weight? No, you will still lose weight; however, you will not lose as much as you possibly could and you may well lose the benefit of increased energy. When you exert your muscles during exercising, such as weight lifting or running, they require require water retention to repair themselves. We all know that water retention can hamper weight loss - just ask all of the female of the species in the audience. So, if you want to maximize weight loss on Phase 2, you will drop the barbell and pick up a remote control. Of course, you may still walk, do yoga, golf, and stretch because that is not considered strenuous.
There has been some talk on the news and of course the internet about possible side effects of the HCG protocol. Now, keep in mind, that most of these discussions are related to the injections of pure HCG that you would receive from a doctor. The great thing about the Homeopathic Drops is that they are not as expensive or potent as the pure HCG injections, but proving to be just as effective. Nonetheless, I wanted to address those here as well to set the record straight as I know it to be. Below are the possible side effects from the protocol:
Headaches - the first few days on the drops and low calorie diet, most people struggle with headaches. This is normal and is not a results of the drops, but your body being in shock from the deprivation of certain substances it is used to such as sugar, carbonation, and starches. Usually, after 3 or 4 days have passed the headaches cease and participants start to feel really good with increased energy. It is certainly fine to take pain reliever for the headaches such as Tylenol, Advil, or Aleve. I used to have frequent headaches and I approximate that after one week into the HCG protocol, I have had maybe three headaches.
Digestive Issues - many people may experience some constipation or the opposite while on the phases of HCG. Not to give you too much information, I have experienced both, and both passed in time. I figure all the salad and apples I was eating, combined with large amounts of water pretty much assured that I would have some issues. Again, it passed and was a result more of the diet and not the drops themselves.
Hair Loss - When Dr. Oz had his episode on the HCG diet, he had people testifying about their postiive results from the protocol. He also had a lady on there that suffered some hair loss. I have been reading as much as I can about this particular issue and have discovered the hair loss can be a side effect for certain individuals who experience
rapid weight loss of any kind. It is not attributed to the HCG dieter specificaly, but people who experience sudden and rapid weight loss. Again, it does not effect everyone, or even most people, just some. I have experienced nothing of the sort - in fact I'm can't control the hair in my ears and nose. Of course, that isn't the HCG either - that is just becoming an old fart. But, I digress - so to repeat, hair loss can be a side effect of sudden and rapid weight loss, but not the HCG hormone. The good news here is that, it is a temporary condition, not permanent, and the hair can be expected to return.
I would like to share with you all an analogy that I think best explains your body's metabolism and how important of a process it is. I call it the "Cruise Control Dynamic" and it goes like this. When you are on the interstate traveling and you set your crusise to "70" (well some of us - just go with it) it maintains that speed for you. Now lets say you are on I 20 between Eastland an Abilene - you are going to have to go up the steep Ranger Hill. What happens to keep your speed at "70" going up Ranger Hill? The vehicle will automatically excelerate to keep the speed at "70." This is the equivalent of you taking in an unusually large amount of calories once your metabolism is set - instead of eating 1800 calories, you take in 3000 one day. To compensate your metabolism will exclerate to keep you at your "cruise" weight. Consequently, going down the hill is like taking in fewer calories than normal, so your "excelerator" will slow down so you don't lose weight beyond your "cruise" weight. This is an awesome thing and I am still amazed to witness my body do this for over two months now. And it is exactly why Phase 3 is so very important. You must take as much care and attention to the maintenance phase as you did during the drop phase. Too many HCGers feel the "work" is over after the drops, and are not as diligent during the maintenance phase and unfortunately, have trouble resetting the metabolism. Resetting the metabolism is the key to getting you off dieting forever.
For all of our new HCGers, I would like to clarify the purpose of each phase:
Phase 1 - Loading: You load the first two days you start taking the drops for two reasons. First, you are storing up some energy that you will utilize down the road as you are about to embark on a very low calorie diet for a significant amount of time - your storing up energy for the long haul. Don't worry if you gain a few pounds during this period - it will be gone soon enough. Secondly, you are showing the HCG where you store your abnormal fat. I know, I know, everyone can tell by looking at us, but to my knowledge, HCG drops are incapable of seeing or hearing, so we load, and leave out some bread crumbs to our problem areas. It takes approximately 48 hours for calories to settle, so this gives the HCG time to target those areas. Remember, to weigh yourself each day even while you are loading.
Phase 2 - Drops/Low Calories: Simply put, the objective here is to lose a lot of weight as rapidly as possible. And yes, it is safe, because the fat that will be leaving your body is abnormal fat, not structural or normal reserve fat. Don't worry about metabolism or any of that on this phase - concentrate solely on staying loyal to the diet restrictions, weighing, and losing fat. Phase two can last from 24 to 45 days depending on how much weight you would like to lose. At 45 days, you need to begin Phase 3 because it is at about this point that your body could start becoming immune to the effects of the HCG, so you need to take a break from it for a time period before introducing it to your system again.
Phase 3 - Resetting your Metabolism: You ojective here is to maintain your weight at the end of Phase 2. It takes 21 days, or three weeks to reset your metabolism. Weigh each morning and make sure that you stay with in two pounds of that weight plus or minus. That is, you don't want to lose more than two pounds either because your body needs to stay within this four pound window for a significant amount of time so it knows the weight you are supposed to be. If one morning, you are 3 pounds over the number, you must immediately to a "Steak Day" to get your weight back down. If you lose 3 pounds, you need to increase our calorie intake for the day. Don't hold back on the steak day either - eat a large steak - at least 12 ounces. Please note that your weight will fluctuate, especially during the beginning of this phase and you will have to play with the calorie count to figure our where your body weight stays consistent. I have not known anyone who went through maintenance and did not have to do at least one steak day. I believe I had to do two and my poor wife has done several. Sorry ladies, again, your bodies for some reason have more trouble with consistency than ours. That makes sense however, because I don't know how you dames expect us to understand you, when your own body can't figure itself out. I guess you ladies are just far more complex than we simpleton males.
Tomorrow night I have my first, and hopefully, not the last free Weight Loss Seminar for people wanting to get some more information about the HCG diet. So, if you have friends that have been asking you about the diet and considering starting it, please let them know that I will be at the
Holiday Inn & Suites at 3220 Craig Drive in McKinney tomorrow night from 6-7:30pm telling my about my personal journey with the protcol and explaining the phases of the diet. I would like to have these seminars monthly. Also, if you have a group of individuals that you would like me to talk to, please let me know and we can set that up easily.
Before I go, I am going to make a plea of the followers of this blog. Please sign in and get an account so you can reply to posts and make comments to help others. Also, I would like to do surveys and also get my customers to try out some new products that I am looking at distributing, but I want people I trust to give them a test drive first. To encourage folks to become a "follower," I am going to put all the followers names in drawing at the end of June to win products from Scentsy as well couple of Kevin Trudeau books. So please take the time and become a follower of the blog - it doesn't cost a thing, and I'm not going to give your name out to telemarketers.
The next blog entry will be Friday. I will talk specifically about why our metabolism gets slowed down and also have some more recipes available. Also, brace yourself for some more D.A.P (Dear Annoying Personality) Files. I have come across a few new letters that need to be written since our last visit into that file. Until then, I hope the rain keeps up and your weight keeps going down.
