Day 6 VLCP 1.9.13
8:15 am - Due to the fact that I am on the 6 week protocol, I skipped hcg intake yesterday, taking it 6 days a week to avoid immunity to the hormone. Perhaps as a result of that, I can say with certainty that last night and this morning, I've experienced hunger. Real hunger. One of my first mornings feeling this way.
Unlike normal, when coffee would subside my sense of hunger in the AM, it made a very small dent in how I felt this morning. So, I ate a quarter of an orange, which seemed to help for about 2 hours. I think I'll have the rest of the orange in small increments, an eighth segment every 5 minutes, assessing my hunger before each segment.
I'm still only getting about 6 hours of sleep, and waking slightly tired. I'm hoping that changes in the next couple weeks.
I continue to find ways to differentiate real hunger from emotional hunger. I am an addict when it comes to eating for emotional reasons, and the challenges are to 1) detect the difference 2) plan on how to combat the urge to eat when not physically hungry, especially when the protocol is in the next two stages.
"To conclude, no matter how miraculous the human body is, or how effective the signal of leptin is to reduce hunger, the emotional drive to eat surpasses all physical cues and ignores the physical signal not to eat. In order to make responsible emotional change, we must use a different approach to Dr. Simeons’ protocol.
Finding a motivation to change that is stronger than the desire to lose weight, requires a more meaningful purpose; one that intentionally targets the source of the emotional problem. Success must be the goal, and success must be measured by a diminished emotional desire to eat, not by weight loss. For this approach, we suggest taking weight and size out of the equation, removing the scale altogether."
Woodall, Robin Phipps (2011-11-08). Weight-Loss Apocalypse : Emotional Eating Rehab Through the HCG Protocol (p. 70). AuthorHouse. Kindle Edition.
I don't think I'm beyond removing the scale altogether. But if I can decrease the importance of weight and increase the significance to long-term health, the scale's power will be diminished. There is certainly something to be said for the scale's ability to demotivate if expectations aren't being met. By weighing once a week I am avoiding many of the daily fluctuations of water and bowel movements, and removing that daily stress. Previously I would avoid drinking water during the night to avoid that gain when I woke up and weighed myself. But I actually learned (by weighing myself during the early morning hours) that drinking a good amount of water at say 3 am when I awoke, actually resulted in weighing less at 5 or 6 after urinating.
I'll have to deal with the mental challenges of my weight expectations on a weekly basis as well. I accept the challenge - for now.
[9:45 am - One hour after finishing the orange, in 5-10 minute increments, I am feeling a better sense of nourishment, but already sensing some hunger that may require more filler, such as a salad. But I'll let my tea work for awhile, with a glass of water, to see if that holds me off until noon or so.]
Tuesday, January 8, 2013
Sunday, January 6, 2013
Hunger as a choice
"You have to want to eat less in a culture that loves and encourages gluttony, without needing weight loss as a reward. To do this, you need to know what hunger feels like, and then do whatever your body tells you. You become the observer, and your body—the controller.
Take the culture’s disapproval of body fat and emphasis on weight, and redirect that effort towards changing your behavior. When you’re challenged to find emotional security, you’re forced to create it without needing to eat. Like taking the pacifier away from a baby, you have to believe you’ll be fine without it. If after the protocol, you’re willing to let your body control when and how much you eat, no matter how vulnerable you feel, you’ve won the battle—physically and emotionally."
Woodall, Robin Phipps (2011-11-08). Weight-Loss Apocalypse : Emotional Eating Rehab Through the HCG Protocol (p. 37). AuthorHouse. Kindle Edition.
HCG recipe sites
http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/cookbooks.asp?cookbook=365063
http://www.hcg1234.com/recipes.php
http://pinterest.com/shellbell126/hcg-recipes/
http://www.simplyhcg.com/pages/recipes
http://www.diyhcg.com/phase-2-recipes-hcg-vlcd-frecipes-hcg-p2-recipes/
http://www.easyhcg.com/recipes
121 pg cookbook http://www.firstcoastmd.com/pdfbin/free-hCG-diet-recipes.pdf
Take the culture’s disapproval of body fat and emphasis on weight, and redirect that effort towards changing your behavior. When you’re challenged to find emotional security, you’re forced to create it without needing to eat. Like taking the pacifier away from a baby, you have to believe you’ll be fine without it. If after the protocol, you’re willing to let your body control when and how much you eat, no matter how vulnerable you feel, you’ve won the battle—physically and emotionally."
Woodall, Robin Phipps (2011-11-08). Weight-Loss Apocalypse : Emotional Eating Rehab Through the HCG Protocol (p. 37). AuthorHouse. Kindle Edition.
HCG recipe sites
http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/cookbooks.asp?cookbook=365063
http://www.hcg1234.com/recipes.php
http://pinterest.com/shellbell126/hcg-recipes/
http://www.simplyhcg.com/pages/recipes
http://www.diyhcg.com/phase-2-recipes-hcg-vlcd-frecipes-hcg-p2-recipes/
http://www.easyhcg.com/recipes
121 pg cookbook http://www.firstcoastmd.com/pdfbin/free-hCG-diet-recipes.pdf
Saturday, January 5, 2013
Food rationing and mindful eating
1/5/13 Day 3 of VLCP.
- day 3 of my sore throat that is now moving into my chest, with sneezing and sinus drainage as well
- after watching the flu season problems in MN, I think we'll try to get vaccines today
The first two days of VLCP have been fairly uneventful. Lunch was a blackened chicken, celery, and orange salad. We both experienced gas after dinner, which was shrimp, tomatoes, garlic, onions, and spinach. With slight light-headedness last night, I'm starting to experience hunger now, and taking the time to sense it. It's difficult for me to sense when I'm hungry or full. There are alot of resources out there that speak to "mindful eating".
Robin Woodall offers some great thoughts into food rationing in her book which I will discover more today. The thesis is that we are an overindulgent society due to the overabundance of cheap food. And cheap food can sometimes be the worst kind. I just read that Wendys just expanded their dollar menu to stay in competition with McDonalds. People are choosing combos less often, for both penny- and weight-consciousness. [note: I LOVE McDoubles and small fries]
Mindful eating and food rationing both have environmental and social ramifications as well (not to mention financial). One blog was from a woman who was challenged to buy her food daily for less than $10 a day, with the mandatory order to include chocolate every day. That lasted 5 days, and she averaged $12 a day.
But what if we did have to scavenge for food every day, and when we had food, needed to make the most of it, in terms of nutrition, cost, quantity, and even flavor? Obviously, foods like rice, dried beans, and flour are much cheaper than meats, seafood, veggies and fruits. One would have to consider that those items were also in very short, limited supply. In warmer climates, produce would be more available than here up north, for which we pay a premium for fresh options.
The point is - How would you conserve food consumption to make it last as long as possible for your family? Eating only when hungry. Stopping at the first sign of contentment. Looking for the nutritional benefits of what you eat. Enjoying what you eat by focusing on its preparation and flavor, and where you eat, and with an attitude of gratitude.
The tougher questions are: what would you do when you are bored? or, how would you celebrate something without food? Those are killer questions I need to find answers for, which only confirm that much of my identity is tied to food and alcohol. Research is needed for the answers, for me.
"With a change in perspective, suddenly eating less doesn’t feel punishing at all, and weighing yourself as motivation, seems stupid. This view changes what is perceived as emotional hardship—away from the superficiality of weight and emotional eating, to the profound and meaningful importance of life and family. Food instantly is viewed only as a physical necessity and emotional eating is obviously viewed as irrational."
"Relearning to trust the physical cues of hunger requires that you let go of calorie counting, pre-portion controlled foods, and pre-determined meal times. It demands that you end all emotional judgment about food. You must completely start over with your diet so you can develop confidence in your ability to listen to your body when eating—without the extreme opposites of our cultural excess, and without a diet’s control. The goal is to recognize how your body gives feedback, and to allow this feedback to guide when and how much food is needed, since varying foods influence this system differently. After you’ve mastered functional eating, the next goal would be to apply nutritional intelligence to the foods you choose. To be successful, you need to focus on eating functionally before you attempt to learn to eat nutritionally. This requires you to trust and learn to use your sense of hunger. This is where the protocol comes in handy, and why its profound value surpasses the superficiality of weight loss alone."
Woodall, Robin Phipps (2011-11-08). Weight-Loss Apocalypse : Emotional Eating Rehab Through the HCG Protocol (p. 28). AuthorHouse. Kindle Edition.
- day 3 of my sore throat that is now moving into my chest, with sneezing and sinus drainage as well- after watching the flu season problems in MN, I think we'll try to get vaccines today
The first two days of VLCP have been fairly uneventful. Lunch was a blackened chicken, celery, and orange salad. We both experienced gas after dinner, which was shrimp, tomatoes, garlic, onions, and spinach. With slight light-headedness last night, I'm starting to experience hunger now, and taking the time to sense it. It's difficult for me to sense when I'm hungry or full. There are alot of resources out there that speak to "mindful eating".
Robin Woodall offers some great thoughts into food rationing in her book which I will discover more today. The thesis is that we are an overindulgent society due to the overabundance of cheap food. And cheap food can sometimes be the worst kind. I just read that Wendys just expanded their dollar menu to stay in competition with McDonalds. People are choosing combos less often, for both penny- and weight-consciousness. [note: I LOVE McDoubles and small fries]
Mindful eating and food rationing both have environmental and social ramifications as well (not to mention financial). One blog was from a woman who was challenged to buy her food daily for less than $10 a day, with the mandatory order to include chocolate every day. That lasted 5 days, and she averaged $12 a day.
But what if we did have to scavenge for food every day, and when we had food, needed to make the most of it, in terms of nutrition, cost, quantity, and even flavor? Obviously, foods like rice, dried beans, and flour are much cheaper than meats, seafood, veggies and fruits. One would have to consider that those items were also in very short, limited supply. In warmer climates, produce would be more available than here up north, for which we pay a premium for fresh options.
The point is - How would you conserve food consumption to make it last as long as possible for your family? Eating only when hungry. Stopping at the first sign of contentment. Looking for the nutritional benefits of what you eat. Enjoying what you eat by focusing on its preparation and flavor, and where you eat, and with an attitude of gratitude.
The tougher questions are: what would you do when you are bored? or, how would you celebrate something without food? Those are killer questions I need to find answers for, which only confirm that much of my identity is tied to food and alcohol. Research is needed for the answers, for me.
"With a change in perspective, suddenly eating less doesn’t feel punishing at all, and weighing yourself as motivation, seems stupid. This view changes what is perceived as emotional hardship—away from the superficiality of weight and emotional eating, to the profound and meaningful importance of life and family. Food instantly is viewed only as a physical necessity and emotional eating is obviously viewed as irrational."
"Relearning to trust the physical cues of hunger requires that you let go of calorie counting, pre-portion controlled foods, and pre-determined meal times. It demands that you end all emotional judgment about food. You must completely start over with your diet so you can develop confidence in your ability to listen to your body when eating—without the extreme opposites of our cultural excess, and without a diet’s control. The goal is to recognize how your body gives feedback, and to allow this feedback to guide when and how much food is needed, since varying foods influence this system differently. After you’ve mastered functional eating, the next goal would be to apply nutritional intelligence to the foods you choose. To be successful, you need to focus on eating functionally before you attempt to learn to eat nutritionally. This requires you to trust and learn to use your sense of hunger. This is where the protocol comes in handy, and why its profound value surpasses the superficiality of weight loss alone."
Woodall, Robin Phipps (2011-11-08). Weight-Loss Apocalypse : Emotional Eating Rehab Through the HCG Protocol (p. 28). AuthorHouse. Kindle Edition.
Thursday, January 3, 2013
Starting today - VLCP, hcg, my identity, work and food
Another journey.1.3.13. 282.8
For the last three days I've (we've) been preparing for the hcg VLCP by "fat-loading" with tons of food, especially fatty food. [we were gluttonous pigs] Today I begin the low calorie protocol of the program. The protocol is this: 10 drops 3 times a day, 2 fruits, 2 veggies, and 2 3.5 oz servings of lean protein, 2 crackers. I'm going to follow this phase for 6 weeks.
Physically I feel fat. I have had a sharp pain in my lower chest or ribs since yesterday. I don't recall running into anything. It hurts slightly when I breathe. I also have a sore throat this morning.
Mentally I feel ready for the protocol and right now don't feel I'll be missing anything. Last night for our wedding anniversary we had wonderful King crab legs and butter, Mumm's champagne and NY cheesecake. I'm ready to lose weight and get healthy. I'm feeling mentally burdened with many things to get done. It's been 2 1/2 weeks since I first attended the Wooddale Job Transition Group, and my efforts are far from organized.
Not weighing myself. Robin recommends not weighing oneself during the protocol, since she wants us to separate emotion from the results. Trust your sense of hunger, not the scale. Only eat when you're hungry, eat only enough to get past the hunger and spare your food as if you are rationing your food. Have food prepared when you sense that hunger is coming, because the more fat you have, the quicker hunger can turn severe, causing overeating. Track hunger sensations and emotional desires to eat - when hunger usually comes, how long it takes to subside. What are my emotions when I sense hunger? I need to detect and track whether my hunger comes from stress, boredom, anxiety, "deserving" - or from true hunger. [I've decided to weigh myself once a week only, on Thursday morning]
In a video Robin challenged a client to "figure out how much of your identity is attached to food." This issue seems to have a correlation with my "work identity" - how much of my identity is attached to my work and what I do. This is one of the takeaways from my meeting with Pastor Steve Case yesterday regarding my emotional challenges toward not having a job. My self-worth is definitely attached to my job success. The problem is when I work, I put my whole being into it, and make it a 24-hr job. Life balance becomes an issue. My relationship with God almost disappears. So, his question was - to himself - has my job become more important to me than God? Bottom-line, we are a divine creation with or without a job. He stills loves us and has a purpose for us whether we are in a job or not. And when not being burdened by the responsibilities of a job, I currently have the ability to be shaped by God for his purpose, using the skills, talents and abilities that he has given to me to find a way to express them.
Good question (from the above video): what would I do if I was in a thin body? When I go somewhere, what would I gravitate to. [what does it mean if my eating problem is just my love for the taste of food? how do I deal with that?] One thought that comes to mind is Jazz Fest. While I love the music, the food is my main attraction - po boys, crawfish monica. Around town, it's the beignets, cafe au lait, the crawfish and the muffalettas that come to my mind.
I found this in a forum on emotional eating from a member: "Food , shopping for it, thinking about it, preparing it and eating... it's my most enduring hobby. It never goes away. Everything else, I get sick of." There are some great responses and advice. Sounds a lot like me, although it's not my love for great food that usually causes problems - it's the cheese, crackers, and peanut butter (usually late at night), and oversized portions.I MAY NEED TO REDEFINE MY PRIORITIES AND INTERESTS TO SUCCESSFULLY STAY HEALTHY.
What is leptin resistance? And there's a leptin diet too.
For the last three days I've (we've) been preparing for the hcg VLCP by "fat-loading" with tons of food, especially fatty food. [we were gluttonous pigs] Today I begin the low calorie protocol of the program. The protocol is this: 10 drops 3 times a day, 2 fruits, 2 veggies, and 2 3.5 oz servings of lean protein, 2 crackers. I'm going to follow this phase for 6 weeks.
Physically I feel fat. I have had a sharp pain in my lower chest or ribs since yesterday. I don't recall running into anything. It hurts slightly when I breathe. I also have a sore throat this morning.
Mentally I feel ready for the protocol and right now don't feel I'll be missing anything. Last night for our wedding anniversary we had wonderful King crab legs and butter, Mumm's champagne and NY cheesecake. I'm ready to lose weight and get healthy. I'm feeling mentally burdened with many things to get done. It's been 2 1/2 weeks since I first attended the Wooddale Job Transition Group, and my efforts are far from organized.
Not weighing myself. Robin recommends not weighing oneself during the protocol, since she wants us to separate emotion from the results. Trust your sense of hunger, not the scale. Only eat when you're hungry, eat only enough to get past the hunger and spare your food as if you are rationing your food. Have food prepared when you sense that hunger is coming, because the more fat you have, the quicker hunger can turn severe, causing overeating. Track hunger sensations and emotional desires to eat - when hunger usually comes, how long it takes to subside. What are my emotions when I sense hunger? I need to detect and track whether my hunger comes from stress, boredom, anxiety, "deserving" - or from true hunger. [I've decided to weigh myself once a week only, on Thursday morning]
In a video Robin challenged a client to "figure out how much of your identity is attached to food." This issue seems to have a correlation with my "work identity" - how much of my identity is attached to my work and what I do. This is one of the takeaways from my meeting with Pastor Steve Case yesterday regarding my emotional challenges toward not having a job. My self-worth is definitely attached to my job success. The problem is when I work, I put my whole being into it, and make it a 24-hr job. Life balance becomes an issue. My relationship with God almost disappears. So, his question was - to himself - has my job become more important to me than God? Bottom-line, we are a divine creation with or without a job. He stills loves us and has a purpose for us whether we are in a job or not. And when not being burdened by the responsibilities of a job, I currently have the ability to be shaped by God for his purpose, using the skills, talents and abilities that he has given to me to find a way to express them.
Good question (from the above video): what would I do if I was in a thin body? When I go somewhere, what would I gravitate to. [what does it mean if my eating problem is just my love for the taste of food? how do I deal with that?] One thought that comes to mind is Jazz Fest. While I love the music, the food is my main attraction - po boys, crawfish monica. Around town, it's the beignets, cafe au lait, the crawfish and the muffalettas that come to my mind.
I found this in a forum on emotional eating from a member: "Food , shopping for it, thinking about it, preparing it and eating... it's my most enduring hobby. It never goes away. Everything else, I get sick of." There are some great responses and advice. Sounds a lot like me, although it's not my love for great food that usually causes problems - it's the cheese, crackers, and peanut butter (usually late at night), and oversized portions.I MAY NEED TO REDEFINE MY PRIORITIES AND INTERESTS TO SUCCESSFULLY STAY HEALTHY.
What is leptin resistance? And there's a leptin diet too.
Friday, October 23, 2009
Take a walk on the wild side
For all my friends, family and students...
"Take a walk on the wild side."
This is good for all of us to remember. Go visit your local parks and wild areas. Really experience them. Sit quietly and just breathe, in and out, slowly.
" I had the feeling that this was the first day, the first sunrise, the first time when the earth took a breath,
and I was all alone but I was in the presence of everything around me and I was never alone..." Shelton Johnson, Yosemite Park Ranger
Honor those places in the world around you and don't forget the wild places within you - they can be your source of strength, peace and creativity.
Karen Kurka Jensen
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Top Christmas Picks for Digital Cameras
It's time to review the current cameras available for gifts in 2009. See this review.
http://sellphotographyonline.com/general-info-on-sell-photography-online/best-digital-cameras-for-christmas/
Top Picks For Digital Cameras
Friday, July 10, 2009
Can VDP save the small commercial printer?
While VDP is already as old as the hills, it still has not been utilized as well as it can be by marketing. It still holds tremendous potential. However - it is still much more costly to produce and less productive than the many forms of online marketing tactics. Don't get me wrong - VDP has it's place, and in some cases nothing will perform better.
But while many printers are calling themselves MSP's (marketing service providers), in most cases VDP and maybe PURL campaigns remain the extent of their marketing services.
I would never suggest or expect printers to fully engage in internet marketing, while it certainly is a possibility. The truth is, most owners are far too closed-minded and invested in heavy metal to admit that the industry is changing faster than they can lay people off. But soon all eyes will be opened, to the unfortunate surprise of people without jobs, customers without their printer, and owners without a company.
The name of this group says it all - INBOUND marketers. How many printers are creating inbound sales opportunities for their own sales team, beyond the "Contact Us" form on their website? Only the smart ones - because many traditional owners just won't buy into it. Total denial.
Long live VDP, but it's time for the printing industry to get smart.
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