98 Pounds Gone Forever!!!

And I feel better than ever! I'm starting my 5K training today and got my first walking session in. Proud of myself since I've been so sedentary for so long! I'm ready to change my lifestyle.

Hot Chocolate on A Rainy Day

It's been incredibly rainy and cold here where I live, and I happened to post on Facebook that I was missing my daily Hot Cocoa. A friend of mine suggested that I try 8oz. of hot water with 5 drops of chocolate flavored Stevia, and 5 drops of vanilla Stevia.  She'd never tried it, and I haven't either but I thought it was worth posting. As soon as I can manage the trip to Dixie Nutrition, I'm kicking back with a mug and a good book!

She also told me about an Orange Slushy recipe that I really want to try!  Combine 2 Tbs. Milk, Ice, an orange, Orange flavored Stevia and Vanilla flavored Stevia in a blender. Sounds delish!

Do you have any other suggestions for Hot Chocolate substitutes or other drinks? I'd love to hear them.

BTW, after 7 days: I've lost 9 lbs., hubby's lost 9, daughter's lost 7.5!!! Doing pretty good, if I do say so!

Happy New Year!

Wow! Where did the holidays go? I apologize for my lack of posting over the past busy weeks. I hope you were all surrounded by family, friends, and fun times. I had my fill of all of that as well as more food than one can imagine. I count myself lucky that I have stayed within 2 pounds of my LIW with the exception of this morning when I woke up and discovered that I was 4 lbs over!!! Yikes. Needless to say, I did my steak day and we'll see what tomorrow brings. Throughout the holidays, I've had to do about 4 steak days...but they always bring me back under control so I'm grateful for it!

If you are like me, you look forward to the New Year as a time to take stock and set goals. In the past, this time always seemed a little frustrating since I knew my resolution would include some kind of weight loss plan and that I would most likely fail at the attempted plan before spring. This year is different! Looking back over my success of the past year, I can't help but be excited about the idea that I WILL meet my next goal. I begin Round 3 in the coming week and I am confident that I will meet the goal I set last March, of losing 100 pounds total since starting the HCG diet. Is that crazy or what?

After I reach that goal, my big resolution for 2010 is to run a 5K.  I've never been much of a runner, but I have friends who have inspired me and I want to become a more active person and my new lighter weight is no longer an excuse to sit home. My husband and daughter both trained in the past for a 5K with the "Couch Potato to 5K" program so I know it is doable. I have no doubt that it will be difficult, but I'm excited for this new phase in life.

For this HCG go-round, my husband and daughter will be joining me. It will be great to have this camaraderie...they've always been supportive, but now we can help each other through.

I look forward to blogging in 2010. I hope you will all find success with your HCG adventures. I would love to hear your New Years' Resolutions. Leave me a comment and share your motivation. Good luck and Happy New Year!

75 lbs and counting!!!

Here's the new me (so far)! I am so glad I found the HCG diet. Click here to see my before photos. (Proceed at your own risk!)

My Before and After

Here's the proof! It's hard for me to believe I am the same person!

And I'm not done yet...check back for more updated photos soon!

Why I love the HCG Diet!

Let me introduce myself and tell you a little bit about why I've started this HCG Diet blog! My name is Tonya and I've become somewhat of an expert on the HCG diet. Not because I am a doctor or had any special training, but because I've used this diet plan and I've had GREAT success.

Before I began the HCG diet, I weighed (deep breath as I'm about to divulge this deeply hidden secret) 320 lbs!!! Now, I grant you that I am tall (6'1"), and I carried the weight well or so I was told, but it was beginning to have very significant effects on my overall health and well-being. The final straw for me was when, not once, not even twice, but three times in my 38th year someone mistook me for my husband's mother! No offense to my actual mother-in-law, but talk about a major blow. That was it...I decided to take drastic measures. I looked into many different diet plans, I'd done Weight Watchers before with limited success, and even went to a Surgical Weight Loss Seminar, but the cost and the surgery itself put me right off.

In my searching, I spoke with several of my acquaintances who were having great success with HCG...they looked amazing and had nothing but good to say about this diet. I did more research online and found Dr. Simeon's original HCG protocol and was surprised to find that it has been in use since 1945 throughout the world and I was intrigued. I also found plenty of controversy-but to my mind none of the arguments against HCG were very solid. I decided I would try it. I found a clinic that would give me a consultation and got started.

Within the first two weeks, I had lost 16 lbs! And by the end of the first round of HCG shots (about 6 weeks later), I had dropped 35 lbs total. I entered the Grace period, knowing I would do another round at the end of summer, and during the initial 3 week phase 3 period I lost another 7 lbs. bringing my total to 42 lbs. Throughout the summer, I gradually returned to a pretty normal eating pattern (phase 4), albeit I was much more aware of portions and sweets, but I didn't gain a single pound back.

As I write this post, I am just finishing my second round of HCG shots and I have lost another 28 pounds! That's a total of 70 lbs--from 320 to 250!!

The HCG diet has given me my life back! For the first time in 15 years, I am seeing the real me in my reflection and I am so glad to be back! Because of my success and maybe my very vocal recommendations, I have been asked by many friends and family members about my experience....and so this blog is born.

I am hoping that I can provide people who are thinking about this diet with the motivation, resources, and tips they need to reclaim their own lives and find success in weight loss. It's easier than you think, and it really works!