Ok...so before I go intot his I just want people to understand that I have had THREE different doctors approve this diet...so I'm not going just off of a quick fix.

I am at 800 calories a day. I've been doing it for 2 weeks and at first it was ok...now it seems like I retain water, and gain, and the next day I'm down beyond what I was the first day.

What's frustrating me is I am NOT cheating. At all. I know today I ate a little bit later than normal...7...but because of that I guarantee I will have a gain in the morning.

As for weighing in weekly, it isn`t going to happen. I hold myself more accountable if I do it daily.

People are telling me to increase me calorie intake, which a few months ago I did, to 1200, and then 1400, and I still never lost....gain gain gain. So my body hates that number for some reason.

I`ve heard of the HCG diet but wanted to ask others what they thought in regards to it.

Help!

What is your weight at? I am not going to tell you that eating 800 calories isn't okay, because as long as you feel okay and you're getting enough of what you need I don't see a problem with it... are you working out? What are you eating on a normal day?

Normally on a given day, for breakfast I have egg whites, pita, and a fruit --usually apple.

For lunch I usually have a shake.

For supper I usually have a chicken breast and a small salad.

I feel fine...not sick or light headed.

I work out, but more or less walking and running for an hour with the fiance. Did you notice that you had days that you lost nothing?

I tried the HCG diet and didn't notice any difference in weight loss than when I ate healthy and hit the gym. It also made me extremely moody and I broke out in acne like a teenager. Maybe try a different exercise routine?

I'm not going to tell you to NOT eat 800 calories, but my opinion- and that of 1000's of doctors- is that 800 isn't enough even to sustain your body to live, let alone allow it to lose excess weight. Your body is in starvation-mode, at anything especially below 1200 cals.. so it's going to hold onto everything it can so you can SURVIVE. I was eating 1200 cals for months and my loss stalled in a big way, plus I was always ravenously hungry.. I decided to follow the "Olivia Method" about a month ago, and I lost 4 lbs the first week, and 2 additional lbs the next. The scale loss is slowing because I've added weight lifting, but I can tell my inches are rapidly decreasing, and I'm officially now the lowest weight I've been in over a decade. From INCREASING my cals to 1500.

I'm sorry you're having a rough time. If you're ever interested in hearing more about that method, feel free to talk to me.

have you checked with the doctors who put you on this diet?

how much weight have you lost in the 2 whole weeks you've been doing it?

what are you expecting as a "normal" weight loss from it?

There are days and weeks where I lose nothing. Just because you start drastically reducing your calories doesn't mean you'll wake up every day to a lower number. Weight loss is not linear. Your diet looks very low in nutrition, so while 2 weeks in you may feel fine - 2 months in you may notice hair loss, mood changes from lack of fat, low energy, getting sick more.

Is this a plan you intend to stick with for the rest of your life, or some short term fix recommended by your doctors for some health reason?

In the two weeks I am down 7.9 pounds.

I'm only expecting two pounds a week, so I am getting past that, but there are days where it makes absolutely no sense why I am gaining.

What exactly isthe Olivia method?

Almost 8lbs in two weeks is fantastic!

You can't look at the daily gains and losses at all -really. You have to look at the long term and how it works out. Recently there have been weeks where I have lost nothing at all and bam a week where I lose 5. Overall I've averaged about 9lbs a month.

Thanks! The last two days were hard, but this morning when I stepped on the scale I felt a lot better. It was down .7, so it was finally a good sign. I find it so much easier to stay on track when I am at home, and not at work.

It's a method that utilizes your BMR, and is very personalized to your needs. I haven't forgotten about you, it was just a very busy weekend- I will explain in more detail when I get home from work tonight.

Don't expect a clear line of being .1 or whatever of a lb lower each day. Weight loss doesn't work that way. Even if you're eating at a calorie deficit, the weight of food and water in your body changes constantly. Overall, if you stick with a calorie deficit, you will lose weight month to month. Just not necessarily day to day or even week to week all the time thanks to hormonal fluctuations.

Yes, this morning I was down another .2. It's going slower, but it's going. Some days it's 1 pound, others it's .1 or .2 It's been two weeks today and total I am down 8.1 pounds...so not bad!

Let me tell you from experience that you are causing your body harm. I was eating more calories than you, but I work out A LOT ...burning about 1000 calories or more a day and my hair was falling out, etc. You do need to up your calories. I am now doing the Olivia method as well, thanks to girlsenberry, and I finally feel better. I was exhausted and feeling weak after 15 months of starving my body. I have been doing it only a few days and went down 2lbs by also raising my calories. When you eat that little you are only hurting your metabolism and creating problems later. If you hit a plateau and stop losing, you cannot lower your calories anymore. This was something I didn't understand either. Your body needs fuel to burn more fat.

Could someone please explain the olivia method?

The "olivia method" is simply creating a calorie deficit, apparently named after someone using My Fitness Pal to do the calculation. It's a mathematical approach that factors in your BMR, your calorie intake, and how many calories you burn through exercise.

I use Lose it and do something similar: set a calorie budget for the day and "eat back" some of my exercise calories. Determining one's exercise calories is notoriously difficult, though, so that number is really just a guess. And even if, by some miracle, someone managed to create a deficit of exactly 1000 calories per day, it's unlikely that person would lose exactly 2 pounds per week. It just doesn't work that way, especially if you don't have much to lose. And if you have a lot to lose, like me, you'd be better off finding a longer-term solution than eating only 800 calories a day.