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R5P2C2 Starting Weight 169.4
Yesterday – 159.2
Today – 158.4
0.8 lb LOSS Overnight
4.6 lb UNDER LIW of Round Five Cycle 1 (163.0)
11.0 Lost Since Start of R5C2 (VLCD) 06/09/08
92.4 Total Lost Since Start of Protocol (VLCD) 06/26/07

7.6 NEEDED TO LOSE TO REACH 100 POUNDS

OH OH OH – Ok, seriously, I cannot believe I have been able to maintain a 1.38 lb average loss this late in the game. I honestly don’t know how it’s happening, but I will take it, no problem! I have 12 more injections left (after today) and in those 12 injections, I need to lose 7.6 lbs to reach my 100 pounds – if it takes me until the 29th (LIW DATE) that is AOK with me, but officially my year anniversary is up on the 26th. But you know what? If I can complete this round at 100 pounds lost, I swear to Pete, I will completely FLIP OUT.

My head is SO in the ZONE – seriously – it feels like the very first round, when everything was new and exciting. I get butterflies to think how close I am to 100 pounds. I am trying hard to live in the moment right now, taking it day by day. But really, if you would have asked me a week ago if this was gonna be possible I would have shrugged my shoulders – and say, I don’t think so.

In 12 injections, that means I have to lose at least an average of .6 a day – very doable even for me. I have never gone under .65 per day average in any of my rounds, so this is VERY VERY doable, but again, I am really working on living in the NOW and taking this one day at a time.

If I keep these kinds of losses up, I am gonna keep doing the numbers cause they are OH SO EXCITING!

• Round 1 (8 completed days) – 4.55% of body weight lost
• Round 2 (8 completed days) – 4.57% of body weight lost
• Round 3 (8 completed days) – 5.80% of body weight lost
• Round 4 (8 completed days) – 6.94% of body weight lost
• Round 5 (Cycle 1) (8 completed days) – 6.00% of body weight lost
• Round 5 (Cycle 2) (8 completed days) – 6.49% of body weight lost

WOW! My round 4 really kicked some major butt, how the heck did that happen??? I am close, but it looks like it’s running away from me again! OMG – I crack myself up!

Updates:

My Son’s Stats:

• Starting Weight – 190.4 (after load)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 179.8
• Today’s Weight – 178.8 – 1.0 Loss – Total of 11.6 pounds lost!
• 8 completed days percentage Body Weight Lost – 6.49%

JPS’ Stats (I should be able to keep up to date with JPS now, so the numbers will be current):

• Starting Weight – 136.0 (after load, which is only like .8 over her LIW of Cycle 1)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 129.0
• Today’s Weight – 129.2 – 0.2 Gain – Total of 6.8 pounds lost!
• 8 completed days percentage Body Weight Lost – 5.00%

My menu yesterday:

• 2 Hard Boiled Eggs
• Strawberries and Grapefruit for Snack
• Pork Chop and Sliced Tomatoes for Dinner
• 2 Liters of water
• 2 Liters of Iced Tea (sweetened with Sweet and Low)

Superfoods – Walnuts

MMMM, Walnuts! During Phase 3 – these are a daily snack food for me. I buy them by the pounds (unsalted) and I will have usually about 2 ounces in a day. Sure they are loaded with calories, but they are loaded with all sorts of other good stuff as well!

Way back when, in May, I had a Superfoods discussion about Salmon – and we chatted about Omega 3′s – well, this is the number one reason Walnuts are on the list of SUPERFOODS – and in actuality, it’s the ONLY NUT that has Omega 3′s in the HUGE quantity that it has. Let’s refresh our memory on how important Omega 3′s are to our health:

Omega 3 Fatty Acids are very important for our “heart” health. It seems to not allow the gathering of cells in arteries that could cause blockage. Omega 3’s are something that our bodies cannot produce on it’s own, so we need to get these things from our food sources.

Walnuts’ concentration of omega-3s (a quarter-cup provides 90.8% of the daily value for these essential fats) has many potential health benefits:

• Cardiovascular protection
• Better cognitive function
• Anti-inflammatory benefits helpful in asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, and inflammatory skin diseases such as eczema and psoriasis
• Improve Cholesterol Profile especially in people with Type 2 Diabetes
• Reported to lower levels of some molecules that promote Atherosclerosis
• Has been known to prevent gallstones
• Protects Bone Health

In addition, walnuts contain an antioxidant compound called ellagic acid that supports the immune system and appears to have several anticancer properties.

The antioxidant properties of walnuts are HUGE:

A 2002 study conducted in Norway showed that walnuts rank second only to rose hips in their antioxidant content. The researchers examined a wide variety of plant-based foods, including fruits, vegetables, cereals, nuts, and seeds. Sunflower seeds were shown to have 25% of the activity of walnuts while other nuts (almonds, cashews, hazelnuts and peanuts) exhibited less than 4% of the activity. (This information was found here)

So be sure to add Walnuts to your daily regime. Very healthy snack. Add it to your salads!

One of my favorite ‘desserts’ for Walnuts – legal for Phase 3:

Here is one of my favorite recipes for use of WALNUTS – completely legal for Phase 3:

Toasted Walnuts

Ingredients:

1 cup raw walnuts
2 tbsp butter
3 packets of sweetener
Pinch of salt

Directions:

Warm butter until bubbly but not browned in a skillet on medium heat.

Add walnuts and distbute evenly in the butter.

Add salt, always keeping the pan moving so that the walnuts do not burn. Let cook for around 3 minutes. Add sweetener and cook for one minute longer.

Great as a snack, or chopped and added to your salad.

Hope you enjoyed our discussion on Walnuts! Tomorrow I will be taking a break from Superfood discussion as I am leaving the house early. Wont have time to give an update until later in the day, and then I will only be able to give you our stats. So stay tuned on Thursday, I will have a discussion about OATS!

A question to all my readers – feel free to either comment here on the blog, use my Tag Board or use my Comment Form. Today’s Question:

What is YOUR favorite way to use WALNUTS?

R5P2C2 Starting Weight 169.4
Yesterday – 160.0
Today – 159.2
0.8 lb LOSS Overnight
3.8 lb UNDER LIW of Round Five Cycle 1 (163.0)
10.2 Lost Since Start of R5C2 (VLCD) 06/09/08
91.6 Total Lost Since Start of Protocol (VLCD) 06/26/07

8.4 NEEDED TO LOSE TO REACH 100 POUNDS

Sorry I wasn’t around yesterday, wow, we had an incredibly busy weekend. Saturday, I ended up not eating all day and having a double portion of protein (RibEye) at night with sliced tomatoes. A non planned modified P2 “Steak Day” – it is just the way things worked out that day. I didn’t have a HUGE loss, but I did lose .8 from Saturday to Sunday – which kinda goes along with my ‘theory’ that those Egg Days, Apple Days, and Steak Days don’t work unless they are used for what they are designed to be used for.

Yesterday I was still busy, but I ate more protocol style, and quite honestly that felt alot better.

Do you see how utterly CLOSE I am to reaching 100 pounds? And I am 1 week down. WOW – do you all think it’s POSSIBLE??? I am not gonna hold my breath, just take each and every day at a time. Someone just recently reminded me that losing 90 pounds was NOTHING to sneeze at, so I am going to count my blessings and live in the now and move on.

I haven’t done the “numbers” for awhile, so let’s see where I stand one week down.

• Round 1 (7 completed days) – 3.75% of body weight lost
• Round 2 (7 completed days) – 3.54% of body weight lost
• Round 3 (7 completed days) – 5.28% of body weight lost
• Round 4 (7 completed days) – 6.40% of body weight lost
• Round 5 (Cycle 1) (7 completed days) – 6.00% of body weight lost
• Round 5 (Cycle 2) (7 completed days) – 6.02% of body weight lost

The winner was still round four – but it certainly is a CLOSE call! HA! In Round 4 during my first week completed I lost 11.8 pounds – this time I lost 10.2 – this is really nothing to complain about, just working the numbers.

Let’s see, let’s give an update on my son and JPS – incidentally – my son is loving this round – he told me last night, after I made him a dinner of “Swiss Steak over Mashed Cauliflower” that this is the easiest round he has been on so far. He loves the added variety of foods (I have given him blueberries, cottage cheese, cauliflower, broccoli) and the fact that he isn’t doing this while in school is a plus – anyway, here are their stats:

My Son’s Stats:

• Starting Weight – 190.4 (after load)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 180.4
• Today’s Weight – 179.8 – 0.6 – Total of 10.6 pounds lost!
• First week complete percentage Body Weight Lost – 5.90%

JPS’ Stats (I should be able to keep up to date with JPS now, so the numbers will be current):

• Starting Weight – 136.0 (after load, which is only like .8 over her LIW of Cycle 1)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 129.6
• Today’s Weight – 129.0 – 0.6 Loss – Total of 7.0 pounds lost!
• First week complete percentage Body Weight Lost – 5.15%

My menu yesterday:

• 2 Hard Boiled Eggs
• Strawberries and Grapefruit for Snack
• Chicken and Sliced Tomatoes for Dinner
• 2 Liters of water
• 2 Liters of Iced Tea (sweetened with Sweet and Low)

Superfoods – Pumpkin

Well now, here is one of my favorite things. I absolutely ADORE pumpkin, in almost any form. What is very interesting is that both the flesh of the pumpkin AND the seeds are equally nutritious. Oh yes, and who doesn’t like pumpkin seeds? They are a FUN and healthy snack! So let’s discuss what makes the pumpkin such a ‘superfood’.

Something we haven’t discussed yet in our articles are carotenoids. This precious orange gourd is pack slap full of them, in fact, look at what has been reported about this particular vegetable (in reality, a pumpkin is a fruit because it has seeds) and it’s abundance of carotenoids:

Pumpkin flesh is high in fibre and vitamins C and E, magnesium and potassium and a staggering quantity and variety of carotenoids, being one of the most abundant natural sources of these amazing phytonutrients. (This was found here)

So what is this Carotneoid? They have been defined as a pigment – it is what gives fruit and veggies their red, yellow or orange color – but in that pigment is where all the benefits of carotenoids lie. Some of the health benefits of carotenoids include the following:

• Lowering risks of certain cancers (lung and colon in particular)
• Lowering risks of heart disease
• Lowering risks of blindness and cataracs
• Powerful ally against aging

What is most fantastical about this superfood is that it is actually one of those things that are better for you canned – again, look at what has been reported about this fact:

In fact, in terms of both dietary fiber and beta-carotene, the nutritional score of canned pumpkin is better than that of fresh. (This was found here)

So that all being said, let’s discuss for a moment the SEEDS! I just LOVE pumpkin seeds, they are a total guilt free snack, even for PHASE 3 – chalk slap full of nutrition! When getting them pre-packaged all I warn you is to watch the sodium count. Did you realize that just eating 1/4 cup of these delicious wonderful delicacies will provide you with approximately half the daily recommended dose for magnesium and iron, in addition to high doses of zinc, phosphorous, potassium, selenium, manganese and copper. WOW! Simply amazing that this tiny bit of goodness can give you all those benefits, all that and only 186 calories per 1/4 cup!

So what are the benefits of pumpkin seeds?

• Prostate Health
• Protection for Men’s Bones
• Anti Inflammatory Benefits in Arthritis
• It has been known to lower cholesterol

What are some uses for pumpkin seeds besides snacking?

• Grind them up and use them instead of bread crumbs in recipes
• Add them coarsely ground into cookies
• Use them instead of pine nuts for your pestos
• Chop them in use on your salads, or your granola

Here is one of my favorite recipes for use of PUMPKIN – completely legal for Phase 3:

Pumpkin Serniki’s

Hope you enjoyed our discussion on Pumpkins and Pumpkin Seeds, stay tuned – tomorrow will be about WALNUTS! OMG! I just LOVE walnuts!

A question to all my readers – feel free to either comment here on the blog, use my Tag Board or use my Comment Form. Today’s Question:

What is YOUR favorite recipe using Pumpkin or Pumpkin Seeds?

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R5P2C2 Starting Weight 169.4
Yesterday – 166.4
Today – 165.0
1.4 lb LOSS Overnight
2.0 lb Over LIW of Round Five Cycle 1 (163.0)
4.4 Lost Since Start of R5C2 (VLCD) 06/09/08
85.8 Total Lost Since Start of Protocol (VLCD) 06/26/07

14.2 NEEDED TO LOSE TO REACH 100 POUNDS

Still doing just peachy, happy with life at the moment. Strange how a couple of days of losses put you in a good frame of mind eh? I am still 2 pounds over my LIW of Cycle 1 and 3 pounds over my LIW of Round 4 (way back when in February) but still, it has to come off, and it will, and I am above average right now. LOL – I crack myself up with the numbers.

Ok, I am only 14.2 away from that MILESTONE of 100 pounds. Monday morning it seemed like an impossibility, but today? With 18 more injections, it’s ALMOST possible. ALMOST I say. It will be CLOSE I tell you, very VERY close. Who wants to play with the numbers? I DO I DO!!!

During my first week of every round, including the first cycle of this round, I lost the following in percentage:

• 3.75% (Round 1 – 1st Week)
• 3.54% (Round 2 – 1st Week)
• 5.28% (Round 3 – 1st Week)
• 6.40% (Round 4 – 1st Week)
• 6.00% (Round 5 – Cycle 1 – 1st Week)

So totaling that out, I lost an average of 4.99% during my first week of any given round, so let’s say I do the same this round – that would be almost 8.4 lbs lost during week one – that would put me at the end of this week at 1 POUND BELOW MY LIW OF ROUND 4 – WHICH WOULD BE OH SO NICE!!!

Let’s go to my 2nd week, and do those numbers:

• 6.30% (Round 1 – 2nd Week)
• 6.44% (Round 2 – 2nd Week)
• 7.25% (Round 3 – 2nd Week)
• 9.22% (Round 4 – 2nd Week)
• 7.35% (Round 5 – Cycle 1 – 2nd Week)

So totaling that out, I lost an average of 7.31% during my 2nd week (the two weeks combined) – if I can do the same this round – that would be almost 12.4 lbs – so where will I be PROBABLY at that point? OMG – in the 150′s at 157!!!

Ok, I know I am just playing with the numbers, but hey it’s fun to do, and it gives me a reason to just keep on going, uh huh!

So that being said …

My Son’s Stats:

• Starting Weight – 190.4 (after load)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 188.4
• Today’s Weight – 185.4 – 3 Pound Loss – MEN!!!

JPS’ Stats (remember, I have her stats a day late, so I don’t know what she is yet today):

• Starting Weight – 136.0 (after load, which is only like .8 over her LIW of Cycle !)
• Yesterday’s Weight – 134.2 – 1.8 Loss

My menu yesterday:

• Cottage Cheese and Strawberries (for a meal)
• Spaghetti Sauce over Green Beans (treated tomatoes as a fruit and had a double portion of green beans)
• 2 Liters of water
• 2 Liters of Iced Tea (sweetened with Sweet and Low)

I am a little late in getting this posted today. I will have a BIG STORY tomorrow, just you wait, I am bursting at the SEEMS about it, but it will have to wait. I want to actually do another VIDEO as it’s THAT important to me. So PLEASE bear with me until tomorrow.

On to my commenter’s from yesterday

• Mary – Gosh, CHILDREN – can’t live with them, and you can’t take them out either. ROFL – I gotcha – bowling eh? If it weren’t so expensive to bowl (remember now, we are a family of 5) we would do that all the time, we all love it SO much! The only thing about me and bowling? That means BEER! ROFL
• becca – Oh that DUDE of mine – my son – I just wanna SLAP him. Who loses MORE on the 2nd day then the first? ONLY HIM – seriously – he comes out of the bathroom with this HUGE grin saying to me, “IT’S GOOD TO BE A MAN” – and I am like, you know what? I can still take you out. LOL Yes Becca, even I like me better when I am in better spirits.

That is all I have time for today folks, tomorrow should be a bit better. And be prepared for a VIDEO! WOO HOO – Me in all my skinny glory. OMG – I so crack myself up ALL THE TIME!