I am curious if any of you experienced being very tired the week of preconditioning.. I am a night owl, but since about the third day on preconditioning I have just been so tired come 8pm, which is completely unlike me.. Does it go away or will I continue being very tired early evening?

I love the way you worded all of this, Gina Stabilization is still pretty strict, but again...worth it. All of this is worth it. I haven't had much of the items you mentioned since May of 2011! I MISS peanut butter/jelly sandwiches and cereal the most Just like you said though...soon I will be able to reintroduce in smaller quanities while still maintaining what I have worked so hard to lose.

Awesome insight...

I had maintenance weigh in this morning and lost 1 pound, putting me 6 1/2 pounds under goal.. I did try to lose another pound, as the car races are starting here end of January, and for the 24 hour race, I want to be able to indulgem plus I have parties to go to relative the Nascar races. I want to indulge in the 24 hour tail gate party at the paddock this year, as last year I was still losing weight and brought my own food.

Remember ladies, if you have a drink, omit a fruit. U was talking about that with consultant today.

I tried one new thing this week on maintenance.. I tried Fat Free Ricotta Cheese with some of the super chocolate powder( one we make brownies with) and some stevia.. Very very good.. Enjoyed it and no weight gain.
Also added couscous to my meal, usually have 1/4 cup as grain is a big one of my carb triggers and that went fine. Couscous has onions, zucchini, veggie broth with spices in it.

Wishing you all a great weigh in and remember, if you work the program it works and it is worth it.. Best investment I ever made.

Patzi

I did. I absolutely dragged during my preconditioning. I was tired, then irritable, then emotional.

A large part of that is the withdrawal from some of the foods that your body had depended on (for me it was carbs, but I know some people were caffeine hounds before starting the plan, and that would do it, too).

The only advice I can give you is to make sure you get at least 64oz of water a day (it does help with the tiredness a little if you're well-hydrated) and to just plug along until they give you your meal plan. Once you start the actual plan with the HNS drinks, you'll feel lots better--I did, anyway. I think between the new meal plan and having been off of refined carbs and sugar for a week my body was able to get into the new food routine and my blood sugars evened out a lot so that I didn't have the dips that would make me so tired.

Good morning everyone,
This thread moves so fast. If you miss a day, you miss a lot!
I love reading about everyone's experiences on MRC. My plan is so different that I can't always relate or comment, but it still is inspiring to be among a group of people who have the same goal. Unfortunately, I seem to lose way slower than most people - always have. My plan is basically 1,200 to 1,300 calories a day in a structured way. If I lose a pound a week, I'm happy. Some day I hope to be one of the stabilizer/maintainers. You guys inspire me!
Also, there sure are a lot of us from Colorado on here. I wonder if MRC markets a lot here or if it's just a coincidence. Hmm...
Chickadee

Help! All the sudden I feel like throwing in the towel. I'm not far from goal and losing steam. I was so proud that I managed to lose a little over the holidays but now I just want to stop thinking about it. I want to stop putting in the effort it takes to plan. Stop working on alternative ways to decompress rather than mindless eating. As I write this, what I hear is that I'm tired. My job has been stressful, a few things have been out of the norm at home... I just want everything to stop and I want everyone to leave me alone.

I looked forward to getting back to normal after the holidays, but I haven't gotten there. I don't know why, perhaps in part because my daughter is still
here from college? Of course I love having her, but every dinner feels like it's "special" in some way, and to be honest, I try not to act like I'm dieting in front of her. Last night we went out for dinner at a very nice place - birthday dinner for husband- and today I am up 2 pounds! Yesterday up almost 1 from the day before that.

I am in dangerous territory. I don't want to drive all the way to my center to weigh in when it will be bad news and I don't need to buy any HNS.

How can I get my head back in the right place?

camaswa-A few suggestions, hope one of them helps. The first is to look back at pictures from when you started, go back and read your first posts here, or if you keep a journal, read there. Remember what it was like at the beginning, and you so don't want to go back there. If you are at a place you'd like to stay, then talk to them about stabilization rather than go backwards. The second is to take some time looking forward and asking yourself why you want to get to goal, how will it benefit you? Why do you want the last few pounds off? will it put you in a different size? Give you more confidence? Be better for your health? I was questioning wanting to go to stabilization just because I was tired and frustrated, so I committed do doing one more month (Jan) strictly on plan and see where I was and reassess if I wanted to go any lower. So glad I did...switched to the metabalance and am losing again. I am still going to reassess at the end of Jan, but will probably go through Feb as that should put me at goal or darn close.

Kuntreegirl - I hear you on stress. It is a major factor in my gaining weight, even if I am eating on plan. One thing I noticed is that I crave chocolate when I'm stressed... my mom's homemade fudge called my name like crazy. You don't want to give in (although I admit I did snag one piece during the holiday), but I find that drinking alot of water and doing the fiber drink helped me through a few times of hunger. Also, are you sleeping well? I think sometimes our mind keeps going and we really need to just shut down and sleep... you know?

Matea36- I did the same thing with preconditioning... I was tired way to early. I agree that it was my body ridding itself of the foods it was used to. For me, it was also carbs and sugar that picked me up throughout the day, ... the first few days I didn't have it, I was miserably sleepy. Just hang in there, make sure you're drinking your water (for me, 100 oz does better than the 64, for some reason) and also make sure you're resting enough (going to bed earlier, etc..).

Camawsa - you are such an inspiration on your weight loss. Don't throw in the towel! Remember that this is journey and things will get better... you'll get back into routine again and do great. I think though that, if you need to take a break, it may be worth it just to break the monotony... or try a new recipe or something that excites you again about losing weight (mine was dropping a size...). I thought back to when I was that small and the answer? Over 10 years ago...

I admit I'm not as strict or "gung-ho" now that I've been on since August, but I'm still plugging along...

Hi Everyone!
Today is a GREAT day! NOTHING can ruin my mood or bring me down! Wanna know why? (Drumroll, please). I weighed in today and lost SEVEN pounds. YAY ME! I'm 1/2 lb. from signing the 10 lb. board.

My counselor was like AMAZED (and so was I). I was only expecting a 3-4 lb. loss so 7 just about floored me. To top that, they had the Double Chocolate Wafer Bars on sale - buy 1 get 1 free, so I purchased a box after tasting a sample. Then, I got to pop a balloon (that had a prize inside) and won a free sample (I wanted a creamy, they didn't have any so I settled for my fav so far - Kiwi Melon drink).

For any newbies who are doubting this program, DON'T. For me, this program has worked better than ANY of the "popular" plans out there and I've tried at least 3 of them. Is it a challenge? YES. Is it worth it? YES. This is an investment in ME, I'M WORTH IT AND SO ARE YOU!

I'm always so grateful for your replies Leo....you can put a smile on my face. Things are better today and my husband basically said the same thing that you did.....I would have paid any price to take the pain away for my son and yes, I'm very thankful that I am able to pay it. I won't say it didn't hurt though. Just so you know, I am a worrier. I would love to change that to wArrior, but for now, it's wOrrier. LOL My oldest or "Mr. Know it all" as you called him (love it) does have consequences for his grades and has suffered them a lot this year. My biggest concern with him is that it seems like he just doesn't care sometimes. Rascals is a perfect word for my boys too.

I am concerned about my hunger when I'm drinking 4 hns's and taking almost every supplement they offer. I really feel like I shouldn't be getting hungry. Believe me after taking all those pills it feels like nothing else could fit inside my stomach, but that only lasts a short time. I really don't want to keep spending my money if it's not worth it. I'm not talking about the plan....just the supplements. I am going to do some research as well, but please keep me informed as to what you find.

I am feeling better today. I am so looking forward to leaving town and just not thinking about work, school, grades, bills. Year end at work is going to turn me into an alcoholic. Month end, quarter end, and year end all at once. FUN FUN. I am not even going to make into the center today for my WI but I'm not sorry, because I'm afraid to step on the scales with all this stress. I really wish I lost weight when I stressed instead of gained. Anyway, I really feel better today no matter what I complain about. LOL

Hope you have a good weekend and I look forward to hearing from you.

Hugs to you. I wish I had exactly the right thing to say but I don't. I will tell you that you're not alone and maybe take a little time to let go and regroup. It hasn't been that long since the holidays and it's OK to enjoy yourself. Enjoy your daughter being there. You know you CAN do this and when you're ready you'll get there. I know what you mean about going in to weigh when you know it won't be good. You are not going to throw in the towel because you've come too far. You are an inspiration for the ones of us that are just starting and we are all human and wonderfully flawed. Don't beat yourself up.

I have got to get back to work but just let me say WAY TO GO!!!!!(applause, applause, applause). I am so proud of you and I know you're proud of yourself. So happy for you!!!!!

Thanks so much. I will look for the BF this weekend.

Way to go, LEO! That is awesome.

Just made chocolate chip cookies with the kids (first snowy day of the year, it was pretty much a must do activity). Did sneak 2 chocolate chips, but other than that not eating them. I kept my hot cocoa right by us while were making them so when I was tempted I drank that. For once it was enjoying the activity of baking with the kids and not for the pleasure of licking the bowl or eating 10 cookies. I love the new mindset where I am not controlled by food.

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!! Awesome loss