[Leigh]

Originally Posted by Rockinonahigh

I know I havent said much lately about to much,gess im going thrue a quiet spell or something..you know how life goes.Id like you to know that ive been readiing how things have been going for you and wish it hadnt been that way.Onething I do know is that you have made some very possitive changes as well as good desisions in your life.Changes are hard at first but once you get to makeing them it becomes less hard to do,just takeing one step at the time has been said by many, but is so true.In one post you said u were thinking of geting a place of your own,wich is a great idea,I did the same many years ago and have never regreted doing so..the freedom and peace of mind was worth haveing done the move,I still stayed intouch with family but haveing a place to call my own was and is priceless.
As for changeing your eating habbits and getting more exersise is one of the best things you can do for yourself.I know how you feel about cokes I use to drink a 12 pack a day then got to three a day and now I still he 8 canns in a 24 pack to the third case that my son bought tonight,I doubt I will totaly quit sodas but now and again its ok to have a bit of it,water and chrystle light is my fix how.I also as of next monday will be smoke free for a year...that was harder than droping the soda habbit.Even tho I eat something I shouldnt hear and there wich I think is ok I have changed my diet 180 degrees around.I wish we lived closer We could be weigh loss buddies and hit the gym also.Being we can only suport each other and others on this issue on line, it will have to do.But together we can and do help eachother by what we post.Good luck my friend in your journey,keep those post comeing its good to read them.

Hey Rockin,

The thing that sucks for Me, is that all of My friends here are in another country! Many times I've wished I lived closer to friends, especially many on here, but atleast I have the computer as a way to communicate. I have one bio guy friend who has been saying that he will go to the gym with Me but it hasn't happened yet, so yeah if you were closer bud I'd definately take you up on that offer. Over the last three days, I've only allowed Myself a small glass of pepsi a day otherwise its been water and the occasional glass of milk (like My chocolate almond milk). I've gone for a couple of walks, not long ones but small ones, starting off slow and working My way upto longer ones.

I'm making sure to eat three meals a day, and not two and then binge later on snacks. I've been having a package of oatmeal for breakfast which is keeping Me full; then lunch I've been having one can of pasta (chef boyardee) then if I want a small snack I've had one of those 100 calorie packs of Special K fruit crisps (I got strawberry and blueberry). They are almost like small versions of pop tarts, which I love, but so much better for Me and they taste amazing. Supper varies day to day; last night was breaded fish sticks (I only had 4 or 5 instead of like 8 or 10) as well as cheddar and broccoli rice. To bed different for a snack before bed, I had a couple of rice cakes ~ they are tomato and basil, and are very good.

I've made definate changes since Tuesday and not only has the swelling in My legs and feet gone down ALOT, but its much easier to walk now and I'm feeling better. Small things like what I've been doing above are going to make these long term changes easier because I'm not going cold turkey on anything, just limiting bad stuff to occasionally and stocking up more on the good stuff ........... I love this thread, its helping Me get healthier :-)

Originally Posted by JustJo

Anya....I'm so glad you posted this.

I read Starbuck's post and, as happy as I am that you achieved the results you want, it frankly scares the crap out of me to hear about people injecting themselves with stuff and living on severe calorie restriction just to lose weight.

My dearest friend has been on a lifetime of yo-yo dieting...often with very severe calorie restrictions. She's lost dramatic amounts of weight many times, only to regain it and then some.

After her last wildly calorie restricted diet (of about 500 calories a day) she ended up having to have her gall bladder removed, and suddenly started having thyroid problems....something she had never experienced before. In addition, her metabolism is destroyed, she's flirting with diabetes...and she is now bigger than she's ever been.

She's working with a nutritionist now (thank goodness) who is helping her learn to eat sensibly, and working with a counselor to try to sort through some of her issues with food....but her body is (probably) permanently damaged, according to her doctor, because of these kinds of diets. The doctor equated it to living through several famines...and the damage that does. She's left wishing that she had never done the diets, but it's not something she can take back.

There's no way you can get all of the nutrition you need each day in 500 calories. And starving and injecting yourself doesn't change your relationship to what you eat...it just forces your body to comply (temporarily). For me, this is like the lap band and stomach stapling....yes, it works....temporarily.

I don't want to sound like I'm coming down on anyone or criticizing their choices....I'm not. But I actually started this thread in response to a post about HCG and the 500 calorie diet....and, with respect, I'd prefer that that kind of advice stayed in that thread rather than this one.

This one is about healthy weight loss.

I definately agree with you Jo, its all about being healthy! I know that I've wanted many times to try some fad diet just to lose the weight, but now I look at them and think what about health benefits? Many diets may give you dramatic results but in the end, you'll just gain it back ten fold and thats not healthy in the slightest. Diets, gaining and losing weight etc is a serious thing and as much as we want to be healthier we also have to be careful. One day at a time, thats really all we can do :-)

Originally Posted by Tcountry

Well said Jo!
I thought that too. This is about becoming & staying healthy.
Making Lifestyle changes.

I agree with you My friend, is all about lifestyle changes and making better choices for ourselves!

Originally Posted by PinkieLee

Welcome Starbuck!

First of all, I would like to say congratulations on your weight loss. I bet you feel amazing!

Like you, I've also done the HCG diet. Well, not as extreme as yours with the 500 calorie a day restriction. We have 2 weight loss clinics here that pretty much specialize in this kind of weight loss. They combine HCG and B12, put you on Adipex (yeah, speed) and tell you to stay within 1000 - 1200 calories a day. You come in once a week, pay $14 for the shots & get a $10 week perscription... they weigh you and say "see you next week." Well, when I did this years ago, I lost an unbelievable 65 pounds.... only to gain it all back plus another 15 pounds.

Like others said, this was a temporary fix. I was bouncing off the walls, thanks to the speed, and just didn't eat. I NEVER learned why I overate, anything about triggers, or how to actually eat healthy foods without feeling deprived. I hate to admit it... I've tried this method at last 5 times in the past 7 years. FOR ME, it doesn't work longterm.

Its great that you lost 65 lbs hun, but that sucks that you gained so much back. I know it seems easy to do alot of these diets to get fast results, but in the end those fast results can do more damage to our bodies than taking the slow route ~ its true that slow and steady really does win the race :-)

Originally Posted by JustJo

Thanks for sharing this PinkieLee

My only foray into "chemical" weight loss was about 10 years ago. A co-worker was losing lots of weight, had tons of energy, was looking great....and she recommended I see her doctor.

I did, and he put me on some pills (can't remember the name for the life of me). I took them, and had a ton of energy, started to lose weight.

That went on (for me) for only about 3 weeks....until I found myself unable to get out of bed in the morning, sick, in tears at anything and everything....I was just an absolute wreck.

Turns out that the pills I was taking worked by stimulating the adrenal glands...so basically my co-worker and I were on an unending andrenaline rush. No wonder we felt great and lost weight!

The problem was that my adrenal glands were (evidently) over-taxed by the stress I was under in my life....and within 3 weeks I had exhausted them, and myself, completely.

I went off the pills, and it took months before I felt even remotely myself again.

In those months I was exhausted, could never get enough sleep to feel even remotely rested and dragged myself around through my single working mother life like a wet, dirty dishrag.

Guess what I relied on for energy and comfort?

Yep.

In the end my "diet pill" experiment made me lose 18 and then gain 45 pounds.

I'll stick to the giant salad lunch, greek yogurt and generally low-glycemic food plan I'm on. I'm losing weight and, more importantly, my blood sugars are good!

Geez I can only imagine how scary that was, I'd have not been happy to feel so dragged out that I couldn't even life My own life properly. Its amazing to Me that we can put these pills and stuff in our bodies hoping for a fast and quick fix, yet that always seems to backfire in the end. I've gone through it too, wanting a fast fix and then BAM!, it hits like a ton of bricks. Not fun thats for sure, but your on your way to being healthy one step at a time and I'm glad your doing it the right way Jo