We are having terrible Internet issues right now, due mainly to the load our server has put on our bandwidth (it had previously been hosted in Nevada but had to be brought home for repairs after the collocation place broke it... Grr!). Comments are broken on here, my connection is spotty, the HTML and MySQL are currently locked up, too. So this is mainly me talking to the air on here, with no decent way for anyone to respond and nothing editable but the blog, itself.

Oh well, right?

I'm moving forward with my VLCD in the next few weeks (I'm waiting on my supplies to arrive) and it's very exciting stuff. In the meantime, I've been sticking to 1500-1700 calories and losing slowly but surely, in the meantime. I'm going to try and keep my progress updated on here with pictures and some details of the protocol, in case anyone else is interested and for my records. It is likely I can lose between 20-30 pounds in each round of the protocol (which is about three months from beginning to the end of the rest period before another cycle, with another week or two added each cycle for a greater rest) and I'm hoping two or three of them will take care of my excess entirely. I was originally going to just do one round before trying for another baby, but at this point I'm actually feeling very excited at the prospect of doing two or even all three rounds in a row.

I haven't had peace over delaying trying to conceive for MONTHS, even knowing my husband would like me to put it off (for financial reasons) and I have wanted to get down to 160, myself, before trying. I have been praying for guidance on this and that is about as distinct as it has been. It is a surprising load off my mind to be able to put to rest my biological urges for a season, without it being a daily fight over my desire for another child. Wanting health and weight loss more, for the first time in a year, is refreshing.

My default weight loss support site, 3FC, doesn't support hCG weight loss in its forums (primarily due to scammers), and so I have had to search elsewhere for information from users. I have discovered a wonderful Yahoo group of wise hCG users who have had lots of personal experience and success with the protocol, as well as frequenting one of my favorite old haunts, Low Carb Friends, who have an active and helpful hCG Protocol bulletin board. The information is extensive and the support and friendship is exactly what I wanted. I will miss frequenting 3FC, but the fit isn't as good anymore. I'll still be there, but less so.

I am looking forward to providing information on this blog about the protocol and what I am doing, because the more I research the more I believe in it and see a workable, healthy solution to some of the weightloss struggles I have had (restricting calories without hunger or lean mass loss, breaking food addictions and sensitivities, resetting my hypothalamus for a healthier maintenance pattern, etc). It's backed by solid science (including reproducible results from the original, successful protocol) and as far as I can tell is a shockingly healthy way to reshape one's body and get rid of abnormal fat deposits. It sounds so wacky on its' face and the hCG market is rife with scammers and alterations to the original diet, but the basis is simple and effective. I knew NONE of this before researching the heck out of it the past week, and was highly skeptical, but I've become a believer in theory and am looking forward to affirming it in practice.

When my hCG gets here I will do an official set of start pictures and measurements and move on from there. I am still food journalling and recording my weight daily, but I will likely make that information a more frequent feature in daily blogs throughout the duration of the protocol, so others can see what I am doing. I hope I can do the whole thing justice, it is definitely going to be a challenge but one I am more than ready for, after so much time working at calorie counting and maintaining.