Day 2 of 4 - Feb 28, 2017

Yesterday evening I had a bout with indigestion.  I drunk mint tea and green tea to but still no comfort, finally I settled for 2 TUMS... Sometimes when I force myself to drink water it can happen, I'll watch it closely today.

Sometimes the first day is the hardest because mentally you're thinking about the food you'r giving up, but I wasn't hungry.  Staying busy usually helps, especially when you're smelling food from the kitchen.  What I have learnt is that you shouldn't fight the  smell of food, but embrace it.  When I'm smelling something that really smells good, I try to inhale it deeply and then I tell myself when i go back to eating, I will have the same thing for lunch.  It's all a mental game.  I know I'm not going to have it for lunch or dinner because I'm too lazy to cook whatever it is I'm smelling, and if it's fast food, I promised myself not to eat fast food, but because I'm not fighting it, or denying myself the pleasure of thinking about consuming the food at a later date, it seems to go pretty well.

Yesterday I watched a Domino's Pizza commercial, I can't wait for the weekend where I can bite into a nice cheesy pizza topped with pepperoni.... (smile).

I weighed myself this morning at 166.8, yesterday I was 169.  I'm going to have to accept the fact that as I get older the pounds won't melt away as fast (sob), but at least they're melting and I'm grateful. It's going to take me a while to reach my goal weight of 150.  During my 'eat' days I'm going to have to be a bit more cautious.

Will it be possible for me to lose 16 lbs in 10 wks?

Day 1 of 4 - Feb 27, 2017

Today is day 1 of my 4 day lemonade diet.

This morning I weighed in at 169, a 4 lb gain from last week, which isn't bad, I thought I was going to weight in at 170+.

It's been a busy day so far and there' no way I can avoid the aroma coming from the kitchen.  If I had food or snacks at my desk I think I would have been tempted to munch on them.  Oh, wait, I do have some chocolates from Valentine's but I'm smelling real food....maybe turkey with rice????

I'll continue to gulp down my lemonade for today with hopes of dropping at least 2 lbs by tomorrow.   I got to stay focus on my new bod for the summer.   I'm travelling in May so I definitely want to be much smaller.

Yesterday I had chicken breast with salad, coleslaw and potato salad.  The breast was humongous and I was only able to eat half, the other half was placed in the freezer; I plan on chopping it up an using it in soup on Day 5.

Well, here's to day 1 almost over.

Getting ready again...

On Thursday I decided to start squeezing lemons again.  I had about 18 lemons left over and I have 1 1/2 containers of maple syrup left over.  I have about 6 cups of lemon juice in my freezer and I still have another 6 or 7 lemons to squeeze.  Why am I anxious to get started when I couldn't stand the taste of my lemonade mixture earlier?  I think it's just nice knowing I'll have a little discipline over eating.

I've been eating tangerines and soup for the past few days and today was my first day for really solid food, fish, salad, coleslaw and potato salad.  My number one priority is to get in enough water, something I've always been bad at, I only got in 36oz today  :-(

I'll probably have fish again tomorrow, I notice when I eat lots of protein, I don't have serious cravings, so we'll see :-)   We had a rainy day on Wednesday and I was tempted to buy popcorn, but then I remembered my New Year's Resolution no popcorn, chips, etc until end of March.  Thank God for sunflower seeds.... I'm actually hoping to give up chips permanently, but I'll take it one step at a time when that time comes.

Photos after Day 15

Sorry, I know these aren't good pictures, but I really have problems trying to get these shots right.

BEFORE

AFTER

It's difficult to see a change in these pictures

BEFORE

AFTER

BEFORE

AFTER

Some people see a change in their face, I'm not sure about mine.

BEFORE

AFTER

Phasing out after Day 15

Yes I did it, I completed my 15 day lemonade diet.  It is going to be so refreshing drinking something else other than lemonade.  :-)

Unfortunately, my day didn't start too well.  I went on the scale to weigh myself and it said 165.2; but I forgot my ipod to take a pic so jumping off the scale to retrieve my ipod I get back on the scale and it reads 165.8.  Of course I'm furious by now, so I wait a sec and give it another try...this time it reads 166.6.  WHAT THE HECK!  This is suppose to be my day for celebrating, how can this happen?  I decided to make me a nice hot cup of spearmint tea, exhale and give it another shot...168!  There's no FREAKING way I could have gained all of that on a empty stomach.  So, I'm gonna go with the 165.2, that's up .2 lbs from yesterday.

Thank God I for my old trusty measuring tape.  I whipped that out and started with the measurements.

MEASUREMENTS
Lower Hip - 46 1/4............down 1 1/4"
Upper Hip - 44 1/2............down 1"
Waist - 35 1/2..................down 2 3/4"
Chest - 42 3/4................. down 1 1/4"
Left Thigh - 27..................down 1"
Right Thigh - 27................down 1"
Upper Right Arm - 12 3/4...down 1/4"
Upper Left Arm - 12 3/4.....down 1/2"

A great reason to celebrate :-)   I'm sure I couldn't have got those results in two weeks on any other diet and I'm happy.

Now I know when I start eating food again, some weight will come on, but I hoping to gain no more than 5 lbs and next week I will start this diet all over again for 4 or 5 days making the weekends my food days.

I have photos that I will post when I have time to settle down.

Day 15 - Feb 20, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
165

Total Weight Loss/Gain
10.8

Fluid Intake
32 oz lemonade
40 oz water
1 hot lemon tea


Other Details:

I'm so sorry I missed out on blogging on day 13 & 14, but everything went well and today, Day 15 I'm full of energy.  I have no cravings or hunger and I feel like I can just go, go, go.

My biggest problem for day 13 & 14 was being at home, my mind was constantly on food... :-(  and I found myself forcing myself to finish up my lemonade mixture.  Actually I can only get 32 oz down, I just can't stomach it for now.  But I've been trying my best to keep up with my water intake.  The bad part about cheating myself on the lemonade is that I'm not getting enough calories in so my body is going to go in starvation mode which means I'm not seeing the weight loss that I want to see.  But you know, I don't mind, I can't stomach the lemonade.

Today's the last day and  I can't wait.

Day 12 - Feb 17, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
166.2

Total Weight Loss
9.8 lbs

Fluid Intake
32 oz lemonade mixture
lemon tea
60 oz water


Other Details:

I felt great yesterday afternoon and after work decided to get some steps in, of course I knew not to go overboard on it though.  This morning I still have energy.  No real hunger pains, but I'm sure I smelt buttery popcorn as I walked towards my kitchen.  :-)  I'm happy I'm able to continue with my fast.

I am so hating this lemonade, not because it taste bad, it really doesn't, I'm just tired of drinking lemonade. 

Day 10 - Feb 15, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
167.7

Total Weight Loss/Gain
8.3

Fluid Intake
40 oz lemonade mixture
60+ oz water


Other Details:

Doesn't look like my body want to give up any additional fat, I'm still hugging at 167.7... it's nothing to sweat over though because my clothes are beginning to hang on me nicely.

Woke up with lots of energy, but I'm realizing I'm not getting that much sleep.  I'm usually inbed from 10:30pm - 4:30am, but lately I've been waking up around 3:30am and feeling as if I got a full 6 hours of sleep???

I'm still disliking the lemonade, but it is, what it is...I have no other choice.   Thankfully this is day 10 so I can begin winding down.  I'm considering phasing out my cleanse on day 13, at least I'm thinking about it.

Day 11 - Feb 16, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
167.6

Total Weight Loss
8.4 lbs

Fluid Intake
60 oz water
lemon tea
32 oz lemonade mixture


Other Details:

Woke up this morning with very little energy.  I'm not sure if it's because I didn't drink the full amount of lemonade mixture or if it was just one of those days.  I made some lemon tea and put a TBS of maple syrup in it hoping that would boost my energy level.  It worked somewhat but I still felt weak and had to sit down a lot while getting dressed.

So I guess you can say I had to tweak it, definitely couldn't afford to fall out at work.  I stopped at the store and bought 2 small tangerines and 1 healthy choice soup.  I ate one tangerine and felt a whole lot better.  I checked the carb & calorie intake and the tangerine is slightly higher than a lemon, which is why it probably gave me a good boost of energy. Because I'm feeling better I don't have to touch the soup.

A small tangerine has 37cal and 9.3 carbs  ; lemons have 17cals and 5.4 carbs

Here are my measurements after completing Day 10

I would say to anyone beginning this diet to take measurements, your weight loss might not be what you're expecting but you will see positive results in inches loss.

Day 9 - Feb 14, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
167.6

Total Weight Loss
8.4

Fluid Intake
40 oz lemonade
50 oz water

Other Details:

I love the way my system is feeling this morning, it's at peace, totally rested.  Yesterday was like a horror show.  I cringed, shouted and cursed this stupid diet.  I wondered why I embarked on a journey that couldn't be healthy and then I asked myself the question "Is it really worth it?  Am I wasting my time?"

I went to my closet and tried on a jacket I haven't been able to wear after I bought it, yep, I bought it, gained weight, and it's been hanging in my closet ever since.  Well believe it or not, it fits!  Yes, this diet is certainly worth the suffering.

I felt a new flow of energy this morning and considered getting some steps in, however, after doing some knee bends I found myself puffing and breathing hard.  I might have energy but I definitely can't over exert myself.  I'll pace myself and walk up and down the office.

No cravings today, no hunger pains.  I feel as if I found my inner peace, and it feels good.  I guess you can say I was experiencing a Dr. Jekly/Mr. Hyde moment yesterday.

Day 8 - Feb 13, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
167.7 lbs

Total Weight Loss/Gain
8.3 lbs

Fluid Intake
green tea
32oz lemonade mixture
30 oz water

Other Details:

There's no denying today is a horrible day for me.  All I can focus on is food.  This morning I began craving strawberries - I DON'T LIKE STRAWBERRIES!  And then came the cravings for sunflower seeds.  I was tempted to stop at the store to buy strawberries, but then the cravings diminished, neither am I craving sunflower seeds anymore!!! What the heck.

I did manage to get all of my lemonade concoction down yesterday, but I fell short on my water intake by 10 oz.

I'm looking at my lemonade as I type.  I  hate it!  I don't want it!  I'm beginning to feel hunger pains in my stomach, my stomach is growling.

My colleague had pizza for breakfast this morning, I so wanted to ask her for a bite....someone else is having KFC for lunch, but it smells so much better than KFC.  I remember reading somewhere where they said you should embrace the aroma of food and not fight it.  I'm trying my best to do that right now but it's not working. (sob)

Did I mention this morning that I woke up feeling nauseated???  Today definitely isn't a good day for me, I just hope I can make it home were I can cuddle up in my bed and sleep.

Like Alexander said "TODAY IS A TERRIBLE, HORRIBLE, NO GOOD, VERY BAD DAY!"

Day 7 - Feb 12, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
168.2

Total Weight Loss/Gain
7.4

Fluid Intake
32 oz lemonade
hot lemon tea
20 oz water


Other Details:

Felt pretty weak getting up this morning, my body was reminding me I hadn't eaten for a while.. Made lemon tea and then decided to eat the membrane from the lemon.  Oh gosh, did that taste good!  I even got up enough strength to fold clothes, iron, vacuum and make my lemonade concoction for the day.

For me the membrane seemed to have just enough sodium to prevent me from craving BBQ chips - something I dreamt about last night, that and white cake with white icing with sprinkles of colorful candy.  Something I wouldn't ordinary eat.

So, I'm now saving my lemon rinds, not just for tea, but I'm now using them to give me something to chew on and satisfy me.

I did manage to finish 60oz of lemonade & 60 oz of water yesterday, but today my consumption might be much less.  I'm now wondering if I can make it for 15 days, I might reduce it to 10 days.  I'm sick & tired of lemons right now and I'm not sure if I can pull it for another 8 days.  :-(

Day 6 - Feb 11, 2017

Starting Weight - 176

Weigh in
168.4

Total Weight Loss
7.6

Fluid Intake
Lemon Tea
40oz lemonade
30+ oz water


Other Details:

Beginning to have a love hate relationship with my lemonade mixture.  I luv that it's helping me to achieve my goal and to become much healthier but I'm just not into drinking it right now.  It's around 11:00am and I only took 2 sips of my concoction so far plus I only took 2 gulps of water.  Definitely not a good sign.

Am I hungry? No
Do I have any cravings? No
Do I miss food?  Yes

Fleeting images of food does cross my mind, sort of like a friend or an acquaintance you haven't seen for a while.  You vaguely remember their face, how they smiled, their voice tone or your last conversation. You begin to wonder how they're doing, whether you should give them a call...then you get side tracked, start doing something else and forget.

So, for now I miss food as a companion, a friend, something I might find comfort in when I'm lonely, not feeling well, or depressed... But this lemonade is like a family member who over stayed their visit and you can't wait them to leave.

It's now around 6pm and I still haven't finished my fluids.  I'll keep chugging it down hoping I can get all of it down before bed.  I also feel guilty that I didn't do any steps or exercises, busy working on assignments, hopeful, I'll be more active tomorrow.

Day 5 - Feb 10, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
170

Total Weight Loss/Gain
6

Fluid Intake
Green tea
60oz lemonade
60+ oz water

Other Details:

My weight was unchanged this morning, sob, but on the good side, I'm feeling good this morning.  Woke up feeling a little light headed, but as the day wore on I started feeling better.  I feel a little hungry but its more like a reminder that I haven't eaten for the day, not a starving hungry feeling.

Here's my measurements for Day 5 (well actually Day 5 is just starting, so should I say Day 4???)

Lower Hip - 47 1/4
Upper Hip - 45 1/4
Waist - 37
Chest - 43 1/2
Upper Left Thigh - 27 1/2
Upper Right Thigh - 27 1/2
Upper Left Arm - 13
Upper Right Arm - 13 1/8

You can visit my previous blog to see what my measurements were prior. Measurements Day 1 you can see inches are starting to melt, especially around my waist.

I'm gonna take it easy today, no stepping or exercises - yesterday I did get some knee lifts in before going to bed.  Funny my arms are now hurting from my bicep & triceps exercises on Day 2.

Oh, although I'm not hungry I'm kinda tired of the lemonade already.  It took me forever to drink it yesterday and I'm struggling to finish it off this evening.  I think you have to drink all of it if you want to have positive results, ugh..

One other good news, I've been having aches in my knees, thumbs and leg muscles and I've noticed the pain almost disappeared.  Where I hurt my knee from a fall two months ago it was painful going up stairs, yesterday I realized the pain was barely noticeable.  They say this cleansing gives your body time to heal itself, I would like to know that's happening now.  All the more reason to stay on cleanse for 15 days.

I decided Day 6 & 7 will be spent relaxing at home, no exercise or steps.  I'm not tired but I seem to stay sleepy.  Anyway's here's hoping for a good tomorrow.

Day 4 - Feb 9, 2017

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
170

Total Weight Loss
6 lbs

Fluid Intake
Lemon tea & Ginger tea
60+oz water
60oz lemonade mixture


Other Details:

Okay this morning but not full of energy like Day 1 or 2, but I guess that's to be expected I've now been without solid food going on 4 days.  I'm hoping to be 169 by tomorrow, beginning of Day 5.

Realized the air-condition is my friend.  The colder I am, the better I feel and the more energy I seem to have.  I was able to get in a few steps, some table push up and some waist twists.

Surprisingly I'm not hungry, I was slightly hungry last night when watching  TV but then again all of the commercials were pushing pizza, donuts and ice cream.  :-)  So the best thing for me is to skip TV shows and watch movies on my Amazon Fire.

I think one reason for my lack of hunger is I'm get in my full 60oz of water, it keeps me full and even during lunch when I'm smelling food, my belly is so full of water the smell of food doesn't bother me....not yet anyway :-)

I got a lot of gooey white stuff over my tongue, understand this means my body is ridding itself toxins, it looks icky!

Later during the evening I started having some small cravings, maybe not even cravings, just thoughts of food, like boiled eggs and fried fish.  Not together, just passing thoughts.

Have much more energy this evening got some more steps in and also some side bends.  I'm really hoping I can make it to the 160's tomorrow.

Day 3 - Feb 8

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
170.8

Total Weight Loss/Gain
5.2 lbs

Fluid Intake
2 lemon tea
60oz lemon mixture
60+oz water


Other Details:

Woke up this morning with very little energy, felt like I had a busy day at work and was drained.  Realized I didn't put enough maple syrup in my mixture yesterday, I think I shorted myself at least 3 Tbs which may be one of the reasons for me feeling drained.

After I mixed my mixture this morning I found myself licking the maple syrup off of the spoon and believe it or not that gave me a small sugar rush.  Managed to get in a few steps, roughly 1500 before coming to work.

Didn't have a BM this morning so that means I definitely have to take the Smooth Move this evening.

So far I'm not hungry, just feel a little light, but thankfully no headache thus far.  Been forgetting to mention that I found myself waking up around 2:30am for the past few days.  Last night I woke up at 1:00am, then again 2:30am then again 3:30am, and no it wasn't to use the bathroom, I was just waking up wide eyed.  My regular wake up time is 4:30am, I've read where persons doing this had problems sleeping for the first few days.  I'm hoping tonight will be better.

Worked triceps and biceps this evening

Day 2 - Feb 7

Starting Weight - 176


Weigh in
172.6 lbs

Total Weight Loss/Gain
3.4 lbs

Fluid Intake
-Ginger tea with a teaspoon of lemon juice & tsp of maple syrup
-Lemon tea with tsp of maple syrup & stevia
-52 oz lemonade mixture
-60+ oz water



Other Details:

I woke up this morning with a slight headache plus I was a little hungry.  My stomach wasn't growling I just felt like I didn't eat that night.  I felt energetic so I did some steps (jogging in place) and got up to 2000 steps (not bad on a empty stomach :-) before getting dressed for work.

I didn't do the Smooth Move last night, had a good BM this morning so maybe I'll drink some tonight.  I decided I'm not going to do the SWF unless absolutely necessary.

Headache lasted all day on a scale of 1 - 10 I guess I'll rate it a 1.  It was one of those headaches where you want to yank off your wig and rip off your bra.  Overall I think I had a good day, no hungry spells or cravings.

Did some crunches and leg lifts not much steps.

Tomorrow is Day 3 which is suppose to be the worse day for the cleanse so I'm gonna brace myself for whatever happens.  

Day 1 - Feb 6, 2017

I'm sure a lot of my info will be repetitive, so I'll be using the  below template for daily details.

Starting Weight - 176

Weight 2.6.17

Fluid Intake for the day
2 cups of hot lemon tea w/1tsp syrup & 1 pack stevia
1 cup hot spearmint tea (plain no sweetener)
60+ oz water
52 oz lemonade mixture

Exercises
4938 steps - could have done more but didn't want to over exert myself
3 x 10 crunches

Other Details:

-Started getting hungry around 10am only for a few minutes
-Had to use the restroom constantly
-Didn't experience any withdrawals
-I did a lot of drinking today because I'm so accustom to having something in my mouth.  I really missed my sunflower seeds today.  Not because I was craving them, but just having something to keep my mouth occupied...
-Overall I had a good day today, no major cravings, hunger pains or headaches.  Day 1 gone, I'm ready to face Day 2.

Last Day for prepping for Lemonade Diet

This morning I squeezed one of my lemons to see how much juice it'll make.  The diet requires 2 Tbs of juice per serving of lemonade mixture.

I managed to get 7 Tbs which gives me slightly over 3 servings.  I had bought 10 lemons and after doing the math I would only have to use 2 lemons a day, so I felt I was off to a good start, and then it hit me, if I'm gonna be on this diet for 15 days I need more then 10
lemons.  So I rushed off to the store this morning and bought 30 large lemons and 1 more bottle of maple syrup.  I was a little upset at first, thinking about the money I had spent, but I later found comfort in knowing I wouldn't have to go to the grocery store again for the next 3 weeks or maybe 4 weeks if I push this diet to 20 weeks.

Here's the master cleanse or lemonade diet recipe I'll be using, but I don't think my lemons or maple syrup are organic.

Master Cleanse Lemonade Recipe for Detox:

• 2 T organic lemon or lime juice
• 2 T organic Maple Valley Syrup
• 1/10 t cayenne pepper
• 10 oz spring or purified water

Drink 6 to 12 glasses per day

I decided to try a lemon tea this morning.  After squeezing the lemon I cut the rinds in quarters and added to a pot of water (2 cups).  I let boil for 1 minute, turned off flames and let it steep for 5 minutes.  I then poured in a cup and added 1 tsp of maple syrup and 1 package of stevia.  Not bad, I decided that will be my morning tea for the next few days or weeks.

 After debating with myself for a few minutes I got up enough courage to take my measurements & take my pic.  Here goes...

MEASUREMENTS
-Lower Hip - 47 1/2"
-Upper Hip - 45 1/2"
-Waist - 38 1/4"
-Chest - 44"
-Upper left thigh - 28"
-Upper right thigh - 28"
-Left arm - 13"
-Right arm - 13 1/4"

Decided it would be best for me to weigh myself tomorrow the actual day I start my diet.  I know I'm gonna dread the numbers.

PHOTOS

Day 2 of Prepping

I got an early start this morning and went to Fresh Markets to purchase my items to launch my diet on Monday.  I paid a whopping $58 but that's because I bought 2 bottles of maple syrup, plus I decided to buy some spearmint tea and Stevia.  Items I probably won't be buying again for a while.  I already have the Smooth Move tea and cayenne pepper so I didn't have to buy those.  The spearmint tea is for those days where I want to taste something different other than lemons.  Now that I think about it I probably won't need the Stevia for the tea...

The lemons were a little expensive $1.09 each but they were quite large (larger than a small apple) so I'm thinking I'll only need to use maybe 2 lemons a day vs 4 a day, well that's if they have a lot of juice.

I have everything I need to get started so now it's about preparing myself mentally for the journey.

Tomorrow I will post a picture plus take my measurements and go on the scale, ugh, I'm really not too keen on doing that but I'm sure 15 days after I will be happy I did.

PREPPING FOR MY15-DAY LEMONADE DIET JOURNEY

It's Friday, February 3, 2017 and I decided to embark on the Lemonade Diet.

I'm 5'2" size 12/14 my goal is to fit comfortably in a 9/10 by the end of April.  While everyone else is probably prepping to begin the Daniel Fast, I've opted to do the Lemonade Diet.  That's because around my b'day in November and the Christmas Holiday I went on a eating binge, partly because I knew I was going to start dieting during the New Year and partly because I discovered Klondike Bars, fell in love with them, and found myself consuming 2 bars a day.  YIKES!  I packed on the pounds and begin to develop unhealthy eating habits.

During the New Year I made a resolution to refrain from eating/drinking the below foods for 3 months.  It's been 34 days and so far I've managed to stick with it.

- Chips/Crackers
- Cakes/Cookies/Pasteries
- Chocolates/Candy
- Processed meats (ham, turkey, etc.)
- Tea/Coffee/Sodas
- White bread or store bought bread, rolls, muffins, etc.

I suffered withdrawal headaches for 3 days, but it's always a good feeling when you realize you're no longer being controlled by food.

By the end of January I realized I was consuming lots of homemade bran & oat bread usually having 2 slices of toast in the morning and then a sandwich for lunch (maybe because I was baking the bread too :-).  So on January 30th I reduced my consumption of bread to just 2 slices a day.

To be honest although I've reduced my intake of junk foods I generally feel bloated every day, which is another reason for me wanting to start this diet.  The lemonade diet will give me a jump start to a better and healthier way of eating.

Today I prepped myself to give up eating sunflower seeds to reduce my intake of sodium.  I usually keep a pack of seeds at the office, in my car and at home.  I don't want to have strong withdrawal symptoms from salt so I felt it best that I try to get it out of my system now before I start my diet on Monday.

My goal is 15 days, but I'm hoping I can make it to 20 days.  My journey will begin on Monday, Feb 6th and I'll try to make sure I post my struggles and successes everyday and post pictures.

Tomorrow I go shopping for my food, oops, I mean lemons  :-)