The fruity green tea is easy to make.  Simply pop 2 cups of water into the microwave and heat it up.  You can also heat it up on a stove.

Once the water begins to roll.  Pull it from the microwave, place 3 green tea bags and 2 fruity tea bags (some days I like orange, like when I am stressed out, the orange scent is calming.  Some days peach tea, this really hits my sweet tooth.  Other days straight green tea or perhaps a nice berry flavor.  Just make sure that the tea you are purchasing contains NO sugar).

Let the tea bags steep in the water for 10 minutes or so.  Remove the tea bags, place them in a half gallon pitcher.  Fill to top with water and pop it into the refrigerator.

You need to be drinking 1/2 to 1 full gallon of water per day on this diet.  In the morning I normally fill one  1/2 gallon pitcher with water and the other 1/2 gallon pitcher with my fruity green tea.

If you like a sweet tea, you can add stevia drops to your desired sweetness level.

If I have to eat anything else I am going to explode.  Not only am I not hungry, but I am still on the last few hours of the load day.  Have I mentioned how excited I am to start the VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet) come tomorrow?  I have had no appetite all day.  When my husband fired up the BBQ, he asked me how many hamburgers I wanted.  “None” I spouted out.  “I will bring you two” he replied.  All I could do was laugh.  He even put so much mayonase on my bun that is was squeezing off the sides. 

I thought loading for a few days with the things I have not allowed myself for so many years would be fun.  Rather it made me sick.  Not only is my body not used to all the fats in most foods, but the sugars in them as well was more than I could and or wanted to swallow.

I gained 4 pounds with the binge from last night, have no clue how much I have gained today.  Will know when I weight myself.

Today we are going to have a wonderful day of yet more lose.  I love lose don’t you?  

Breakfast:

Tea, Coffee, Water, you know the drill make 1/2 gallon of green fruity tea, 1/2 gallon of water.  Green fruity tea is 3 bags of green tea and 2 bags of fruit tea, steep in 2 cups of boiling water.  After 10 minutes or longer, pour the tea mixture into your 1/2 gallon pitcher, fill to top with water and chill. 

Lunch:

• 100 grams of chicken, remove all visible fat, slice into long fingers
• 4 cloves garlic, minced or run through garlic press
• 1/4 teaspoon Chinese Five Spice
• 1 teaspoon Basil, minced
• 1 teaspoon Oregano, minced
• 10 drops stevia
• 4-6 spears Asparagus
• Juice of 1/2 lemon

Brown your chicken with some water, and garlic.  After it has browned add the five spice, basil, oregano and stevia.  Remove from heat and place into a plastic container.  Shake till everything is mixed evenly, put top on container and set aside to allow the flavor to marinade.

In a vegetable steamer, steam the Asparagus till crisp steamed.

Place Asparagus lined up on a dinner plate, sprinkle your chicken mixture across it, garnish with a sprig of parsley (eat when you are done to freshen your breath).  Eat slowly and enjoy.

Snack:

• 6-9 small strawberries
•  Bread stick or Melba toast square

Dinner:

• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 1/8 teaspoon celery salt
• 1/8 teaspoon chile powder
• 1 tablespoon cilantro
• 1/8 cup organic, unfiltered, apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon basil minced
• 2 cups shredded cabbage
• 100 grams crab meat (not imitation, you need real crab)

Combine all ingredients except the Crab in a large ceramic bowl, mix well, cover and let chill in the refrigerator for a few hours. 

To cook crab, bring water to a rolling boil, reduce heat to medium, toss in your crab meat, cook for a few minutes, remove from heat and drain.

Remove the slaw mix from the refrigerator, toss the cooked crab meat into the mixture and garnish with a sprig of parsley.  Cheers and enjoy.

Snack:

• 1 medium apple
• 1 breadstick or two melba toast squares

Tonight when you go to bed, know in the morning you will wake up to a more beautiful you.

Copyright Laughing cloud 2009 all rights reserved, no copy of any kind allowed without expressed written consent

Today we will be savoring grilled shrimp, grilled chicken and a beautiful step onto the scale tomorrow morning.

Don’t forget to drink 1/2 to a full gallon of water/tea each and every day.  I might forget to mention this, if I don’t, just remember to drink it.

Breakfast

Two cups of black coffee  (you may sweeten with stevia)

While your coffee is brewing, boil two cups of water.  When the water is at a full rolling boil, remove from heat, add three green tea bags and two fruit tea bags.  Allow this to steep in the water.  Go take a shower, get dressed for the day.  Look in the mirror and say.  “Inside of me is a very beautiful person.   Every day a little part of that beauty will escape and reveal itself on the outside”.

Pour the now slightly cooled tea liquid into one of your half gallon pitchers.  Fill it to the top with water and place in the refrigerator to chill.  Fill the other half gallon pitcher with water, put in the refrigerator and chill.  If you work, make these the night before and place in the freezer.  Only fill them half way with water however.  In the morning while your coffee is brewing, fill them to the top with water.  If you like your tea sweetened, add stevia drops to it.  I like mine unsweetened, so I don’t know how much you will need to add.

Lunch:

If you work, make this up the night before and heat up at work

• 100 grams of chicken breast (trim all visible fat off of it)
• 1 tablespoon chopped sweet basil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (run through a garlic press if you have it)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3-5 ounces fresh chopped fennel

In a small plastic container with lid combine basil, garlic and lemon juice.  Mix well.   Grill on your George Forman grill or pan fry with water only until your chicken is fully cooked.  Salt and pepper to taste.  Place cooked chicken into the marinade mixture, shake container well to coat chicken evenly.  Toss onto a plate if you are ready to eat, put in the refrigerator if you are making it ahead.

Chop up your fennel into small pieces.  Just large enough that you will have something to crunch on and chew, but not too big that you only have a few pieces.  The goal here is to let your mind think that you have more food to eat.  If a normal meal takes you 30 minutes to eat, eat slow enough that this will take you 30 minutes to eat as well.  For this reason, after my meat is cooked, I do the same thing.

I lightly line a dinner plate with the fennel sprinkled all around it, then toss the marinated chicken mixture over this as well.  Garnish with a sprig of parsley (eat it when you are done to freshen your breath).

Snack (snack time is really made of items you are allowed at meal time, I prefer to save for a snack a few hours later)

• One medium sized orange. 
• 1 breadstick

Dinner

Whew, you made it through the whole day, congratulations.  Now you have a yummy dinner waiting for you.

Turn on the BBQ grill to heat up.

• 100 grams, peeled and veined shrimp (get the small ones, will look like more than the large ones)
• 1 tablespoon thyme
• 1 tablespoon organic, unfiltered, apple cider vinegar
• 2 tablespoons water
• two cloves minced garlic (run through press if you have one)
• 1 teaspoon fresh rosemary (minced)
• salt and pepper to taste
• juice of 1/2 lemon
• 3-5 ounces of chard or spinach.  Personally, if you can find “bright lights” chard, the color is delightful with this dish.

In a large ceramic bowl, mix the thyme, vinegar, garlic, water, rosemary and lemon juice.  Wash and tear (not cut) your chard or spinach.  Add it to the mixture and toss until all of your greens are fully coated.  Place back into the refrigerator.

By now your BBQ grill should be heated up.  Dunk shrimp into cold water and place on the BBQ grill.  Cook until char marks on both sides of the shrimp.  Remove from the grill, cut each shrimp into at least two pieces. 

Turn your marinated greens onto a plate, sprinkle with your grilled shrimp.  Garnish with a sprig of parsley (eat it at the end of our meal)

Snack

• One medium sized apple
• One Grissino bread stick

Thats it for the day.  If you are hungry, drink more water and or more tea.  If you get a sweet tooth at any point, put some extra stevia in your tea.  Don’t cheat, you don’t need that.  You are looking so beautiful, but nothing compared to the knock out you are becoming each and every day.

When you brush your teeth tonight, look in the mirror and say, “Hey sexy momma, see less of you in the morning”.

Copyright Laughing cloud 2009 all rights reserved, no copy of any kind allowed without expressed written consent.

Yeah, my hCG arrived just after breakfast today.  I have at this point taken two of my three doses for the day and I get to eat anything and everything I want to eat.  Well not quite true, it has been so long since I have allowed myself ice cream, a milk shake, a key lime pie, a fast food hamburger.  To tell you the truth, I take a few bites and I want to stop eating.  Everything is too sweet, too fat or just too much for me.  Here I have forced myself for so long to say no, my body just doesn’t like these foods much.

The butterfinger, the hot dogs and the marble rye sandwich are about the only things that I have enjoyed so much I finished them with no problem.

Went to the grocery store to purchase  what I will need.

Read, double check and read again, make sure nothing you purchase contains any sugar what so ever!

• One package Organic Green Tea
• One package Organic fruit tea
• One bottle Multi-Vitamin (was difficult finding one without sugar)
• One bottle B-6
• One bottle B-12
• One bottle organic unfiltered apple cider vinegar
• One container real sea salt
• One container Tony Chachere’s Creole seasonings (for meat and vegetables)
• dozen fresh lemons
• 6 medium sized granny-smith apples
• 2 roma tomatoes
• three oranges
• three ruby red grapefruits
• one bunch Asparagus
• one head celery
• 3 cucumbers
• one bag (1 pound) organic spinach
• One package fresh strawberries
• 1 package Grissino breadsticks
• 1 pound fresh chicken breast
• 1 pound fresh turkey breast
• 1 pound raw, uncooked shrimp
• 1 pound fresh Tilapia fish
• 2 half gallon pitchers (fill one with water, fill one with your green tea mixture)

Thats it, this will carry me through this week and part way into next week.  Except for the vitamins, I purchased enough to make it through two months.  My active hCG days are going to be 42, but the vitamins will last for a full 60.  Total cost minus the vitamins came to $44.15 which isn’t so bad for a full weeks food.

If you have fresh herbs in your yard, feel free to pick those, I have mine growing in sunny windows as we have snow on the ground.  Fresh herbs are your best friend and will bring flavor to your food, which is limiting, but you will be living off of your stored fat while active on the hCG so don’t be scared.

Remember, I started first with a physical with my doctor.  I will be going in once per week to follow up my care with him.  Many people treat the HCG diet as a do it yourself type of diet.  I just feel much better making sure my doctor is following up with me as this is a very low calorie diet. 

When on the HCG diet, you also have to be careful what you use for cleaning your body.  Here is an easy recipe to follow while on the HCG diet as well as any other time in your life.  When selecting unscented shampoo, I opted for an organic baby shampoo that used mineral oil as the base fat for emulsification. 

• 1/2 cup unscented shampoo
• 1/4 cup water
• 3/4 teaspoon salt

Using a kitchen funnel, I mix everything right into a squeeze bottle that I would use daily.   Pour in all ingredients and shake well until it is fully mixed. 

When you are off your HCG diet, you can then add scented oils, what ever fragrance you might like.  Just add an additional 15 drops of scented oil.  I prefer EO (essential oil) but FO (fragrance oil) may be used as well.

Home Made Deodorant is really easy to make.    Here are a few basic recipes.  I will start first with the HCG diet version.  It doesn’t work quite as well as the other recipes, but it is an allowed fat.  Keep in mind that you may apply this with either your finger tips or a cottonball.  Arrowroot flour is easily found in most organic stores with all the specialty flours.  If you can’t find it in your town, Bob’s Red Mill normally carries it. 

HCG Diet Version

• 5 tablespoons Mineral Oil
• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1/4 cup arrowroot powder

Mix the baking soda and arrowroot powder thoroughly, slowly add the oil one tablespoon at a time, mixing well as you go.  Stop adding oil as soon as you have a nice paste to work with under your arms.  Its okay, it won’t look all creamy like when you are off your diet, but the goal here is to introduce as little fat into your system as possible, so only use as much oil as you absolutly have to to work with it.

 

Normal Version

• 5-6 Tbsp Coconut oil
• 1/4 cup baking soda
• 1/4 cup arrowroot powder

Mix the same as above using the coconut oil.  You can use as much oil as you would like, but don’t get it too greasy, you don’t need to bake a cake under your arms.  You only want to apply as much as your skin can take up and use, there is no need to have the coconut oil dripping down your arms.  More is not a good thing so use care with adding the oil and only use as much as needed to make a nice creamy mixture.

When on a diet, one would not normally think much about their hygiene products, but on the HCG diet, the use of various hygiene products are a no no.  I mean, who is really going to look into what toothpaste, hand lotion or shampoo?  Well, if you are on the HCG diet, you will be looking at all these products because most of them are a total NO NO or you will not see results.

Cosmetics

Cosmetics, these are a big no, no.  Outside of a little lipstick (if it contains no Lanolin), eye pencil and a mineral powder (that contains no lanolin).  Anything else is a big no no.  I know, you might be thinking “I am not going to go without my makeup”.  And you certainly can if you feel you really have to.  But if you decide to wear your make up…..your fat will be saying “I am not going to leave where I am stored”.  And what is the point of going to go on a diet if you are allowing it to stay right where it is?  So do yourself a favor, while on HCG, just go natural and feel beautiful.  After all, look at how beautiful you are going to be when you shed the fat off.  Certainly no makeup for a month while on your HCG phase is worth it isn’t it? 

Facial Toner

Just like face cream, night cream, day moisturizer, under eye serum and everything else, facial toners are out.  However, you can use witch hazel.  Just put some on a cotton ball and tone away.

Deodorants

So many doctors have been saying that the aluminum in all the underarm preparations are not good for us, some are even stating there is a higher rate of breast cancer in women using these applications.  Well, I have read some of the research and frankly I have not come to any conclusion yet.  Its like seeing a cloud in the sky and calling an emergency for an approaching hurricane.  True, there are clouds present in a hurricane, one cloud does not necessarily announce its coming.  So until I see some real links, I am going to sit on the fence post and watch all the research.  I do however like home made products without all those chemicals.

Remember, HCG diet requires you to remove excess fats from your diet and daily routine, so here is a recipe for a Home Made deodorant. 

Soap

Well, here again, most of us like to slather our skin with moisturizer, so our bath soap is loaded with moisturizer.  Again, this is a big no no on the HCG diet.  Here again, while on HCG you are limiting the fats you intake so that the HCG can limit all your abnormal fat stores.  If you go putting any fat on your skin, even just from a moisturizer bar or get soap your body is going to have a blast with it.  Your fat storage manager is going to say “Holy cow, look at all that pretty fat I can store today, I was getting bored with nothing to do”.  And it will, trust me, it will store any fat your body comes into contact with.  It might not be pounds and pounds, but it will be enough fat that you simply will not lose any weight that day from it.    I had a hard time finding any soap or gel that did not contain any fats. 

One fat allowed on this diet is mineral oil only as really, really, really needed.

Here is an easy recipe for home made bath gel that you can use on the HCG diet.

Shampoo and Conditioner

Well conditioner will not be used due to the fats, but I simply use the left over Organic Baby Shampoo that I purchased to make the bath gel.  No conditioner?  I was worried so much, I mean a whole phase of no conditioner will leave my hair a mess right?  Well, again, this is a temporary and small price to be paid to get rid of all the excess weight I carry around.  I spoke with my hair dresser and she said that if I simplify my hair style while on the diet, not blow it dry or straighten or curl it every day, I should be okay.  In fact, she said that by not using so many products on my hair every single day would help.  It might not be the beautiful head of hair I was used to, but I had to remember each day why I was on the HCG diet.

Vinegar can be used as a conditioner, just use 1/8 cup plain white or apple cider vinegar and rinse.  My hair dresser said this would be good and will not impact my HCG diet.

Hand lotion

Nope, not allowed.  However, if you just feel you have to have something, get Aloe Vera from any health food store.  Not lotion with aloe in it, not a gel with aloe vera in it, get pure aloe vera, it comes in a clear jug normally that looks much like a jug of Vinegar.

Toothpaste

It has a strange flavor, but actually is very good for you, Baking Soda.  Place a small amount on your hand, tap your dampened toothbrush in it and brush away on your teeth. 

Mouthwash

If you are a mouthwash freak, get a little cup, like the kind that comes with liquid cold medicine.  Use Apple Cider Vinegar and swish away.  You can dilute 2 tablespoons in water and add a little salt if you really want to as well.  Gargle, swish and spit it out.

These things might make you decide, HCG diet just isn’t worth it.  Well my personal feeling is this, the fat I pack around, my image in the mirror makes me sad and any other diet I have tried simply hasn’t worked.  Not even working out 7 hours per week (1 hour per day) has worked.  So if I have to give up my facial moisturizer, hand lotion, moisturizer bar, facial toner and everything else.  I am going to.

Yeah, got the tracking information last night for my HCG.  It is scheduled to arrive on Wednesday just like I thought.  I am so excited to shed this extra weight.  Spoke with mom before she went in for her surgery.  She has 100+ pounds to lose, has high blood pressure and is on medication for it.  When she tried the HCG diet it made her feel nauseous all the time and lowered her heart rate into the low 40 range.  Before you get totally worried about this little fact, keep in mind that her heart rate in normally in the 45-50 range on her hypertensive medications.  This had her concerned enough however that she quit using HCG.   She is one of those that didn’t read anything about it and never contacted her doctor.  If she had, she would have known she could have adjusted her HCG dosage and her doctor could have made changes to her hypertensive medications.  Did you know Doctors monitor these things for you if you let them care for you?  It is not uncommon to have to change brands and make adjustments to medication.  There are many reason HCG causes this, one of them to include the fact that as you loose weight, you become healthier.  Another important reason you must follow up with care from your doctor while doing this or any other diet.  Your life, your beautiful body, your health.  Keept them all in as best shape as you can.

It amazes me how many people simply find HCG on the internet, don’t read about it, don’t know what side effects might be and or how to know how much you should be taking.  Even with the drops, the kind I will be taking, it is important to follow-up with your doctor and read about what it is you are taking.  Understand how it might impact you and speak with your doctor with any concerns and or symptoms you may be having.  Your health is serious business.  You should definitely approach any diet under the care of your doctor so he can monitor your progress or lack there of.  There are many reasons why things happen and your doctor can make sure that you do it as safe as possible.

Anyhow, if you are looking into the HCG diet or are already on it.  Your first step is to speak with your doctor, stay safe and don’t let your desire to lose weight make you unhealthy and or unsafe.

Update on Mom.  It is 3am here, she has been up and walking around a little, though her pain levels through the night have been very high.  Dad will be unable to get to the hospital until noon.  The nurse just called me and said mom is really restless so I am on my way up to the hospital to give her some family support.  Her surgery took a little longer with a few minor challenges due to her heart rate and personal body weight.  Both of these things are challenging in and of themselves.  Her doctor stated that it is up to the family to help her through these challenges and encourage her to lose some weight so she can enjoy her brand new knee. 

She goes in for her first round of physical therapy in the hospital today.  I can’t wait to see her encouraged to use it.  Pain isn’t a fun thing, but getting up and moving around is a very important part of the recovery process with any joint replacement.  While it might hurt, it will help in the long run.  So for now I will say goodbye as I need to jump into the shower if I am going to be up to the hospital by 4am.

Today mom is having her right knee replaced.  When she recovers from this surgery, she will go back and have the left one done.  Her doctor is amazing and specializes in joint replacement for women.  He is considered the best in his field which is a good thing as I was really worried about mom with this surgery.    She has quite a few extra pounds that she is carrying around which is part of the reason for her knee troubles. 

Right now, Dad and I are sitting in the family waiting room.  Everyone here looks rather bleak, except for a young man here with his bride.  Evidently they didn’t have the kind of fun they hoped to have on their honeymoon.  I kinda chuckle at this.  The woman sitting in front of me keeps staring at me while I type, so I have been trying this whole thing in a staring contest with her.  Stupid I know, but so far neither of us has dropped the stare.  LOL I wonder if she thinks I am blind and typing by feel because she has the most puzzled look on her face. 

The decorations in this waiting room are far from the stark interior decorating scheme that one is used to in a hospital.  The walls are a bright orange with birch twigs encased in frosted glass room dividers.  The seating is milk chocolate-colored leather with sage and orange backing.  The woods are a natural oak in color.  Rather odd for a family waiting area.  The colors while they do inspire warmth, the bright orange paint is not calming, rather makes you just want to stand up and pace the room like you would if you were out in the great outdoors exploring the side of a mountain on a warm fall day.

YEAH.  I WON THE STARING CONTEST.  She just looked away.

Anyhow, Mom should be out of surgery in about a half hour.  So I had better get back to keeping dad calm while he waits for mom.

I am still so very excited to start the HcG diet this week.  Can’t wait too loose some weight.

Oh yeah, HcG tidbit of the day.  Did you know that you need to change and or not use many hygiene products?  True that, evidently the fats in many lotions, potions, shampoos and conditioners are not good fats and are absorbed through the skin and right into your system.  I will have to do more research, but it amazes me that the body can gain weight through the use of certain fat containing personal hygiene products.  Simply amazing.