Friday, July 6, 2012

Day 1 - It begins!


The point of this blog is to record my adventures over the next 26 or so days as I attempt the HCG Diet for the first time. It being morning of Day 1, there is not much to report, so I shall instead indulge my authorial spirit by sharing how I come to find myself in this situation...

My older friends and family know that I have been - at times - heavy. Actually, I have been fat. Very fat even, my personal maximum being somewhere around 280 pounds. After Dad died at the end of 2009, I put on even more weight, and, as a result, was eventually diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Nothing had ever motivated me before to lose and keep off weight like this bit of news, and since then I've maintained a much healthier weight - typically in the 220-230 range, which is not bad considering my frame and muscle mass. I'm built like a gladiator, for those few who know what that means.

I lost 60 pounds by going the low carb route. I had tried many other diets, and had even gone vegetarian. This last adventure was the proverbial straw that broke this camel's back. Living on veggies - including all the starchy ones - plus rice, pasta, etc., only poured weight on me like water from a dam, and was what ultimately earned me membership in the Diabetics Club. It was only after that, when I stumbled serendipitously into the Atkin's Diet, that I finally found something that worked - and continues to work - for yours truly. The weight has stayed off - with a bit of fluctuation from time to time - and I've been happy with the results and the change in life style.

And, to add some perspective, the HCG diet is crazy. There is no hard science to support any of the claims made by any of its proponents. None. Zero. Zip. Zilch. Nada. In fact, what tests that have been done make HCG - human chorionic gonadotropin - a poor candidate for weight loss use indeed. The fact that HCG's most recent and biggest proponent - Kevin Trudeau - has been convicted/jailed for fraud, and fined by the FTC, SEC and others several times doesn't help the HCG cause either, nor does the fact that many "HCG" products contain no HCG at all

People do lose weight on the HCG diet, and the reason why is no mystery. Everyone - regardless of size, frame, activity level, or any other considerations - is limited to a maximum of 500 calories/day, with virtually no fat and very few carbohydrates allowed. At my age, size and activity level, that's around 1/6 of my maintenance intake. Add my diabetic condition to the mix and this experiment can turn out to be an adventure in hypoglycemia. It is a starvation diet, pure and simple.

"So Rod", you might be thinking, "if you did so well on Atkin's, why are you jumping ship to try this HCG thing?" The answer is simple: There's a girl involved. What else could make a straight guy do something as questionably crazy and potentially dangerous as the HCG diet?

Duh.

Before you go and accuse me of being blinded by my feelings, letting my heart (among other parts) lead  me into making a stupid decision, consider the following: 1) She is an intelligent, educated and rational person; 2) She has been physically fit most of her life, and it is only due to an injury that she has not been able to exercise with the regularity she likes as of late, so an intensive exercise program is currently not possible; 3) She has done the diet a few times before with considerable success, and it has been her experience that it is the only thing that consistently works. I can relate to the last bit, the low carb diet being the only diet that has afforded me any lasting success.

As far as I'm concerned, she has an incredible figure and doesn't need to be concerned about her weight (seriously, every time I see her sine vestimenta, all I can think is... WOW!). She, however, feels otherwise, and that is certainly her prerogative . Because appearance/weight is a personal matter, it is ultimately her decision to make, and, because these sorts of undertakings are often easier with someone to share the experience with, I have decided to be a good Wingman and join her for this adventure. That way, we can share our experiences - both positive and negative - and be there for each other to help during the tough spots we are likely to encounter during the process.

Also, maybe I can finally lose these love handles...

The bottom line is that, not only does she mean a lot to me, I respect her - rather a lot, really. If this is important to her, then it's important to me too. If there is a way I can help, then I am going to help, and participating in this diet with her is a way I can show my support.

And what kind of partner would I be anyway, if I were to let her eat the meager meals allowed while I continued to indulge myself in fine gourmet (but healthy) meals and wines? That would make me The Worst Boyfriend Ever, I think! The path of compassion is to be supportive. Besides, I'm looking at it as a culinary challenge; an attempt to make enjoyable and satisfying meals from the paucity of allowed ingredients...

Challenge Accepted, dag nab it!!!

So... for the next 26ish days, I will be posting here about our progress - from my point of view, of course. I might post several times a day, since it is summer, my course load is light, and writing will provide a nice distraction from the unavoidable hunger pangs that will crop up from time to time...

Oh my God... it just hit me: No cocktails for 26 days...

Cheers!

Rodney
The HCG Wingman

P.S. For reference, I weighed in at 227 lbs. this morning.

No comments:

Post a Comment