Well, last week at my weigh in after being bad I did lose .4lbs and I was okay with that...but I explained to my counselors that I can no longer afford the HNS. I have put myself into debt and have maxed out my credit card...So they put me on maitenance exchange for 1200 calories. I was told I would still lose just slower...well I hate to say it but this race has been slow for me from the start......I can say I have maintained or possibly have lost this week eating REAL food with minimal carbs...I find I can barely eat the 1200 calories because I am full...it is a huge adjustment from the measly calories you eat on Meta-Slim...really considering just dropping the program...no way 33 lbs will be off by end of August and no way I can afford to reinroll....I agree some of the workers there don't care either...

Hi girls! I weighed in yesterday and was down 4 lbs in a week!!! If you all remember, I had off plan tacos and salsa, so 4 lbs was GREAT. I did change a little of my routine and had an extra supplement on exercise days, so I am going to try it again this week and see what happens

Oh, total of 16 lbs gone, I can NOT believe I am sooo close to 20 lbs!!

Hope everyone had a great weekend! I'm a bit frustrated and don't know if I sabotaged myself or if this is a stall. Since hitting 170 last Wednesday I have not lost any weight. I've now crept up to 171. Grrrrrrr..... I've stayed totally on plan, got in all my water, supplements, HNS, food, everything. Then it hit me Saturday morning. I was drinking Diet Pepsi's and not thinking a thing of it. So, I've went cold turkey on the sodas again. Is it possible that the sodas could really be that bad? Now I just have to wait and see if that was it or if this is a plateau.

On a positive note, I just got the results from my bloodwork. My cholesterol is down to 147!!! Woohoo!!!

I haven't checked diet soda lately, but I know regular soda tends to have quite a bit of sodium in it, so you might want to check that. Between the diuretic effect of caffeine and the sodium in the soda, as well as the body's natural reaction to something sweet going in the mouth (even if sugar-free), that may have messed you up a little.

Congrats on your cholesterol level, though! That's great! I'm going to get mine checked the next time I have to see the doctor. I'm curious as to what it may be now that I've dropped so many lbs.

You know, all I thought of was the caffeine. I didn't even think of the other factors. Makes sense. To make matters worse, it wasn't just a 12 ounce can either. The convenience store was selling 44 ounce fountain drinks for 99 cents! I think I've learned my lesson. It's not worth it.

ETA: Just weighed in and I've offically gained a pound. In addition to the soda, according to my food sheets, I'm under orders to change it up a bit. Apparently, I'm beginning to cluck like a chicken. Time to pull out the cookbook. Not enough variety in my diet could be hurting me as well.

You may or may not be able to lose 33 lbs by August, but you have already paid for the time - you might as well work your "butt" off until your time runs out, even if you can't afford to re-enroll at the end of all this - plus you will still have you menu and us!!! Don't give up, you have already come so far and stopping now would only leave you feeling depressed and defeated . . . You can succeed at this and it really does not matter how long it takes - we all wish we could just snap our fingers and be done - but it doesn't work that way. Even if it took a year to lose that 33 lbs, wouldn't it be worth it? I am slowly learning that the time it takes is not the issue - I am learning a lot about myself and my body through this process and I am better off today than I was 6 months ago - If I had not joined MRC I would not only not have lost this weight, but probably gained more. A healthy body is definately worth fighting for no matter how long it takes . . . so hang in there.

Mariah

Drum roll please !!!! I went Saturday for my official 17 week weighin. The scale was very uncooperative as I did not lose any weight last week and was really hoping to lose 2 lbs and sign the 40 lb board - but I am still at 38 lbs. They did my measurements and a new consultant measured me - when she told me the totals I was sure she had messed up and insisted the person who usually takes my measurements redo them - In the last month I lost 19.25 inches (the most ever) and 9 pounds. That makes a total of 61.75 inches and 37.5 of the 38 pounds were fat! I may not have liked the scale very much but I love the measuring tape - it was a much needed reminder that the scale does not always tell the full story and can be very deceptive!

I also had them take an "in progress" photo and will try and post my before and the new pics a little later today. At some point the weight lost is going to have to catch up with the inches lost or I am gonig to be the heaviest skeleton that ever.

Mariah

Congratulations, Mariah! 61.75 inches is more than I am tall!!! It's also encouraging that you are still losing so many inches, so many months into it! And, 37.5 pounds of fat-WOW! I love that they use the body comp--gives you a much clearer picture of exactly what's happening to your body! Keep up the good work and you'll be signing the 40 lb board before you know it!

2.4lbs lost for the week!!

Actually is 11 pounds in 8 days since I had to melt off all that vacation food, but I didn't even change my ticker the other day because I felt it was a "false weight" and I was even dropping weight every time I peed.

So I'm very happy.

Congrats, Mariah. Inches are really more important even though it's hard to pull our eyes up from the scales and focus them on the person in front of us.

Jen, congrats on your cholesterol. I was ecstatic when my MD cut my BP meds in half two months ago. He wanted to check my cholersterol too since it was borderline, but I want to wait until I hit goal (plus no insurance for bloodwork).That 1lb will drop of very quickly, I predict. If I can lose 11 pounds, you can lose 1!

chasingskinny- that is awesome news. I'm very happy for you.

jmgirl-- momoffour gave you great advice. I second it. You might as well work it until the end. Also I think some use egg whites as an alternative to HNS. But I wonder if you can't eat some higher protein foods to help you. Maybe another ounce of chicken or grilled fish to make up for it?

Seventeen pounds is a LOT of weight and August gives you maybe seven weeks to lose even more? Hang in there, girl.

Have any of you found a cheaper version of the MRC-6?

I will add on to this post.. I agree with everything Mariah has posted. I was to reach my goal in January, did not reach it until May. Everyone is different, and no matter how long it takes it is so worth it.. I hope you do continue on until the time runs out.. It is worth every effort you put into it.. Remember , if you cannot afford to re-enroll, I am on maintenance and on a 1200 program that could help you, plus this forum is here, and without them I would not be where I am today.. Good luck to you.

original post
Originally Posted by jmgirl
Well, last week at my weigh in after being bad I did lose .4lbs and I was okay with that...but I explained to my counselors that I can no longer afford the HNS. I have put myself into debt and have maxed out my credit card...So they put me on maitenance exchange for 1200 calories. I was told I would still lose just slower...well I hate to say it but this race has been slow for me from the start......I can say I have maintained or possibly have lost this week eating REAL food with minimal carbs...I find I can barely eat the 1200 calories because I am full...it is a huge adjustment from the measly calories you eat on Meta-Slim...really considering just dropping the program...no way 33 lbs will be off by end of August and no way I can afford to reinroll....I agree some of the workers there don't care either...



Patzi

Jen...
When I had uncontrollable High Blood Pressure, Mayo Clinic told me to stay off diet drinks, as they had sodium benzoate in them.I figured because it was diet, it was ok and it was no caffeine. I have one every now and then, since hitting maintenance and have not noticed a weight increase.
Congrats on lowering your cholesterol. That is fantastic news indeed. Has your blood pressure stabilized?

Edie.. Congrats on weight loss.

My goodness, Mariah, what a loss of inches.. I noticed this post previously and have to remark how fantastic this is.. That has saved my sanity when I was in a stall, and they would take measurements and I had so many inch losses.. Great job..

Have a great evening, everyone..
Patzi

Well, we made it to Pensacola yesterday afternoon. My mom stayed with the boys and I went out to dinner with my dad (he lives here in Pensacola). He took me down to Pensacola Beach. We ate at Flounders.. I had the most AH-MAZING Mahi with asparagus. I'm not an asparagus eater but this was little tiny asparagus and so tasty!

Today was a long day - took the boys to a doggie day care, then mom to Andrews Institute and waited. Surgery went smoothly but in recovery, she was in severe pain so they ended up putting an ankle block on her left foot. They have splints on both her feet, she can't bear any weight on the left foot and her right one she can only use for a second.

I was SO tempted earlier today! After getting her back to the hotel and situated, I had to go to Walmart to get her pain meds and pick up the boys. I went through Sonic to get her a drink and just sat there thinking... mmmm... chili cheese tater tots. Ended up driving off with a Diet Dr. Pepper for mom and a Route 44 Ice Water for me :-) I just had a week moment and almost broke but I didn't!

Tonight I cooked us dinner. I had chicken w/ green beans and she had a broiled ribeye. There are a lot of snacky foods because when she takes some pain meds, she gets the munchies. Staying strong and staying away from all that stuff. I want to be able to sign the 60lb board when I get home!

I hope everyone has a great week and I will try to catch up on all the posts.

Mariah-- That is a lot of inches lost in comparison to your pounds! I bet you look great! Can't wait to see your pics, and congratulations!

Candi-- I am constantly in awe of your willpower. The stress alone would have driven me to cheat a little already. You didn't miss out on anything from Sonic, trust me. One thing I've learned is that the junkie stuff I used to drool over doesn't taste as good to me now as it used to. My husband got nachos from Amigos not too long ago (that's where I used to go & what I used to get in college after a night dancing and drinking) and they smelled wonderful and brought back so many memories. I took one bite, though, and was so disappointed at how gross they were. I couldn't believe I ate that crap so many times in the past! I like to think that MRC is helping me really taste the food I'm eating and helping me develop a more "gourmet" palate, lol. You can do it--we all believe in you! I'll keep your mother in my prayers for her quick recovery.

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Well, I really didn't feel like going to yoga tonight, but I dragged myself anyway. Good thing, too. "Bootcamp Jen" (the really tough instructor whose classes I generally avoid because she's so challenging) was the substitute instructor for the class tonight... After class, Jen pulled me aside and told me that I have really good form and that she almost pulled me up in front a few times so she could demo a few things about my form to the others (Mondays are a beginner class, but I continue taking that class to have an easier, more meditative class--then I go to a more challenging class on Fridays). SHe also told me that I need to stop hiding in the back of the classes--I really seem to know and understand what I'm doing, and have a good sense of my body and the form, according to Jen, so she said I should be in the front of classes so others can see me and use me as a guide. What a huge compliment!!

This was HUGE for me! When I first started back to yoga classes last winter (after having not taken a class for almost 10 years!), I thought "wow, if I ever get into good enough shape, I'd love to become a yoga instructor some day"--even though I STRUGGLED just to get through a simple, 1-hour beginner's class at the time. I mentioned this to Jen tonight after she complimented my form, and she told me I'd be a great instructor and to let her know when I think I'm ready for formal training and she'd get me the information! I think I'm still a couple years away from being far enough along in my practice to do it, but hearing that from such a "hard-core" instructor was the first time I really felt like it wasn't just a "pipe dream," and this is something I can actually do!

Hi! I spent a really good chunk of my weekend reading this June thread and a few other random ones. When I went to my consultation at MRC today, I was pretty much already sold on the program. You are all so motivating! The progress and success each of you are seeing and the support you provide each other is definitely the little extra something that will help me stick with this program! So thank you!

I'm actually sticking with the pre-conditioning menu for three weeks because my mom is coming to visit and she won't be very supportive of anything too radical (like the HNSes and other supplements). My 17 weeks don't actually start until the 18th of July. I was really impressed that the center manager was willing to do that for me. She really seemed to want me to join the program for ME, not because she was making commission or bonuses or whatever. I've read some negativity regarding attitudes found in certain centers and the manager's actions today helped me feel confident that this center isn't one of those.

Anyway, I just wanted to introduce myself and say hi. I'll now stop lurking and start joining in!