Day 23 - A Bit Tired

Okay, I have a gift for understatement.

I'm sitting here at work yawning my face off. Anyway, the weigh in today measured in at 243.0 pounds.

Nothing interesting to report except that I have a weekend coming up... and my household does not yet make good food choices on the weekends. Somehow it is something of a ritual -- no cooking, ordering in, throwing a relaxation fest to unwind from the tough week.

Must. Change. Habits.

Day 22 - Doritos For Dinner

Yes, I know, just shut up.

Anyway, the weight this morning is 243.0 pounds to start week 4.

Of course I'm thinking that at some point I may want to start acting like I'm on a diet. Hell, I've been in great shape before, for years actually before getting married and having a child.

Now I've got work stress, home stress, sleep deprivation, and not enough time to look after myself.

Anyway, none of these are meant as excuses, just the realities of life that everyone faces. I guess I need to develop better coping skills.

Day 21 - No Trend Here

Well, with the help of Nanaimo bars, pizza and a boatload of stress I'm in danger of busting out of my statistically insignificant downtrend.

Today's weight: 243.0 pounds of fun.

Tick, tick, tick. Time is ticking. Let's get this diet under control...

Day 20 - Feeling Good

Today's weigh in yielded a slight return to the good at 235.5 pounds. The jury is out on whether or not I'll have a speedbump in my gradual weekly loss or not.

Anyway, I feel really good. I think there may be something to the idea that irvingia can attenuate leptin resistance, effect lipid profiles and so forth. When I used to go to the gym a lot I'd sometimes notice a long term warmth brought about by eating a meal.

It's as if the body is trying to find something to do with the food energy other than stimply storing it as fat or pumping it around in circles as high blood sugar. The opposite, feeling tired after eating, isn't a good thing.

Psychology or reality? It's also possible that this metabolic change is being brought about by consuming an extremely high quality multi and fish oil. While I'm on the topic, my belief is that you simply give the body the ammunition, and if it happens to need it, it will do the best it can with it.

People who pish-tosh at the expense of quality vitamins must have something of a different point of view. Perhaps they don't realize that the body generally resists illness for as long as it can, but eventually, if it doesn't get the resources it needs to fight effectively, something may win out.

Heck, when I'm on my vitamin regimen I simply feel healthier in general. I get colds less often... and so on. Pish-tosh on that!

Day 17,18,19 - FatBoy Was Bad

Yes, I have to admit pizza and homemade nanaimo bars were a major part of my dietary plan over the weekend.

What the hell was that about?

Have I mentioned lately that I've been dealing with a lot of stressful issues?

I'm thinking of pulling in the heavy guns and going to the gym, but that would somewhat ruin my experiment. I'd never know if the irvingia worked on it's own if I started hitting the gym.

As funny as it may sound, I'll probably cave and hit the gym. When I get right down to it being serious about my health is more important than whether or not irvingia is working for me.

Oh, I weighed in today at 245.5 with plenty of disgust weighing me down.

Day 16 - Short Term Weight Stasis

Yes, you guessed it, today's weight was 241.5 pounds.

I certainly don't mind holding steady. This is especially true with the boatloads of stress going on in my life right now. I really don't have any clue if the irvingia is doing much for me or not at this point.

I'll have to see if the potential downward trend for weekly results continues. That is the pudding that the proof should be targeting.

Day 15 - My Weight Is On A Hovaraound

Okay, okay, maybe not, and maybe that's a trademark, and no I'm not casting aspersion at anyone that requires one. It's just that my weight is hovering around and going nowhere in particular.

Today's weigh in had me at hello. I mean, I weighed 241.5 pounds on the scale.

No, I'm not delirious with the progress from yesterday. No, I didn't get any last night. Yes, I'm somewhat happy in general today.

Strange. I slept horribly.

Day 14 - Step Away From The Food

Okay, the weigh in this morning offered a slight reduction back down to 235.5 pounds. I really want to see this downtrend continue.

It's still very early in the irvingia regimen to know if it is having an effect or not. However, anecdotal evidence suggests I am moving my fat around. What does this mean? It means that some areas of my body appear visibly to be a bit leaner though my total mass and waist size seem to be the same.

I'm sure it's all massing around my heart... :p

Day 12,13 - No Joy In Mudville

Oh, unhappy fat gain, who invited you to the party?

Yes, yes, I'm sure you can tell already. The weigh in this morning was not a bearer of good news. I massed in today at 245.0 pounds. It's not like I don't deserve it. The scale can only reflect on what you actually did... n'est pas?

Anyhow, it's been a stressful week, weekend and I'm sure this week will be stressful too. Hopefully, the irvingia will be fully kicked in by the time work is no longer in such a tough phase. We are pushing for a tight deadline and it means lots of hours, complexity, interruptions and unfortunately an undue amount of work on my plate compared to others.

Day 10,11 - No News Is Good News

I didn't bother to look yesterday, but today I weighed in at 241.0 pounds. I'm pleasantly surprised -- even if I suspect that perhaps I am a bit dehydrated this morning.

Time will tell on that front.

Anyway, I've eaten large lunches, pizzas for dinner and generally done nothing that should have me doing anything except gaining a couple of pounds. The fact that I have apparently stayed in stasis this week is great!

After this upcoming week my work induced stress levels should drop by an order of magnitude. I'm hoping that it will become much easier to make appropriate food choices once that happens.

Day 9 - Diet Stasis

Nothing interesting to report today.

The weigh-in providing a nice boring number of 242.5, despite some malfeasance on my part due to climbing stress levels at work.

We have a software release due soon and we ran into some issues...

Day 8 - The Dietless Diet Continues

This is the strangest "diet" concept that I've ever been on.

There are simply no guidelines of any kind. I have the vague notion that I might have some level of metabolic syndrome and that irvingia may be useful in such a case.

Wait, of course the supplement literature does suggest that a healthy diet and regular exercise would be good, but they all say that. What's the point in a diet supplement if it is a change in routine that causes the potential weight loss anyway?

This means that I'm unlikely to introduce strict food controls or regular gym visits until after I'm able to tell if irvingia alone is having an effect.

Today's weigh-in yielded a weight of 242.5 pounds.

Day 7 - Irvingia By Day

Okay, another day another dollar.

Today's weight was 242.5 pounds. No clear direction in weight and still nothing clearly noticeable in terms of hunger.

I may dig out a tape measure and and that to my daily tracking. It is possible that a metabolic shift could lead to a size change prior to a weight change -- and I'd be happy if that were the case.

Anyway, as I've mentioned repeatedly, this is something that is supposed to kick in over time, so we'll just have to be patient during the first weeks.

Day 6 - Back On Track

It's day 6 of my irvingia program. I'm weighing in this morning at 241.0 pounds. Nothing notable to report at this point, as expected.

Now that I'm almost a week in I'm starting to expect some change in terms of hunger, eating, or something. Maybe this is just conditioning from the way everything else in the diet industry works.

They pump you full of stimulants and/or caffeine. This way you feel something and believe it must be working. Also, if you aren't usually taking a lot of caffeine you are likely to have some water loss. Bingo, aren't you the lucky recipient of an amazing weight loss miracle.

Irvingia seems to be the opposite. You feel nothing. No stimulant. No caffeine. Is it doing anything? Honestly, in the instant gratification world we live in, this is doomed to leave most consumers flat -- even if it should turn out that it does have a demonstrable effect.

I will also note that I'm aware that shifts in body chemistry take time to build up. If irvingia does do what it's supposed to do it is very possible for it to take a month or two to build up an effect. It takes time for the body to activate new pathways, adjust to different hormone levels, express different genes. Unlike the instant stimulant effect we are used to -- these are very slow processes.

Think of it like healing a wound. Even a scratch can take a week or more to fully heal. If your metabolism is whacked from years of abuse you can't expect it to undo years of abuse overnight.

Day 5 - Not A Happy Camper

I start today annoyed from the stresses of yesterday, with a headache and a weigh in at 243.0 pounds.

None of this has anything to do with my irvingia trial and it pisses me off.

Now I get to start a very stressful week with important deadlines and a lot of work to do to meet them.

None of this has anything to do with my irvingia trial and it pisses me off.

Anyway, I guess I can't stay all gloom and doom. Time to get busy...

Family And Diet Sabotage

If you want to be in control of your life, of your habits, of your stress level, of your food consumption, then I have to warn you about getting married and having children.

It's become very clear over the last few days how much stress the last few years have introduced into my life. Unfortunately, part of my coping strategy seems to be eating. It makes me angry just to say this.

Shit. I sound like a woman.

Anyhow, needless to say I've been to the kitchen a few times this evening.

Irvingia isn't going to do f*ck all about my stress levels.

Day 4 - Eat When Hungry

I'm eating pancakes for breakfast as I type this. Syrup on the keyboard, the whole works.

I guess that is part of the reason I wanted to give irvingia a try. There are no instructed dietary changes involved. If it's going to work it will simply increase the effectiveness of the leptin being produced by my fat blanket.

So, I'm sitting here typing, thinking, do I need more pancakes. My default answer is yes, I love breakfast and generally enjoy a large meal on the weekend. However, I'm trying to assess my stomach. Am I hungry?

I certainly don't have hunger pangs. Heck, in todays world, at least in our affluent societies, this is rare. I can't remember having true hunger pangs since childhood. Food is always at our beck and call. Have a couple bucks? Someone will sell you a cheeseburger or an ice cream anywhere and anytime.

Back to the question under consideration. I have some type of feeling in my stomach, but it's not clear what it is. I could interpret it as a signal to eat. I'm sure I have many times.

Maybe I'll wait until it's ready to speak more clearly.

Reduced Hunger?

Once again, I think I might have experienced reduced hunger again today.

As strange as it may sound I didn't eat any less than I otherwise would have. From now on, whether or not it is psychological, I am going to start eating less if I don't feel as hungry as normal.

I know, I know. I'm fat, I'm not hungry, I'm eating. It sounds stupid to me too!

Day 3 - Normalcy Returns

I think the major psychological impact of starting a new dietary plan is fading. I've taken my morning pill, hit the scale, and the day begins. It's just like any other day.

With that out of the way here is my weight pattern so far:

Sat: 240.5 am
Fri: 240.5 am
Thu: 244.0 pm

Of course, once again, I really can't expect any changes given the proposed mechanism of action for irvingia.

Also, I'm trying to avoid pushing away food at times that I would otherwise have eaten just because I'm hoping to lose weight. It wouldn't be a fair test if I purposely cut back calories -- so I hope that the effect of increased leptin sensitivity will eventually scale back my desire to eat.

Hunger Returns

It's still day 2.

I noticed that I had built up a nice normal hunger by the time lunch had rolled around. In other words, I can't tell if anything at all is going on or not. This is actually appropriate -- though very different from all the stimulant style weight loss supplements out there.

People want to feel it. They want to notice a different for their money. It has to happen right not. It has to be noticeable.

I'm patient. I'll wait. If it doesn't work that will be unfortunate but it's not like I'll be out anything other than a couple bucks. I am okay with that.

Day 2 - Does Irvingia Suppress Hunger?

I know there is a basis for irvingia to suppress hunger. However, let's get real. This is only day two. I don't think this can be anything but psychological at this point.

Yes, upon waking this morning I felt mildly disgusted at the thought of food. Perhaps this is how I feel every morning but never do any introspection to notice? Oh, my weight also changed by about 3 lbs during the night. I'd imagine simple dehydration and so forth... but I'll track these things and see where they lead.

Anyhow, psychological or not, if my hunger is suppressed then I'll eat less. Works for me! I know I've been hungry or at least interested in food a lot of the time lately. Sure, part of it is stress, but part of it really could be the C-reactive protein binding to leptin and that rot.

Don't worry, eventually I'll start to write about how this is supposed to work and all of that. Well, let's get serious, if I feel this is working for me I'll be motivated to continue blogging about it regularly.

Day 1 - My Irvingia Has Arrived

I ordered my Irvingia supplement from the LEF. I've been a member for a long time and have learned a lot about health and nutrition by reading their magazines over the years.

Today, I start.

My weight this evening was 244 pounds. Not big enough to look hugely obese but well above where I should be. I find my appetite is a regular problem and I have a propensity to store my weight in my midsection.

I'm 41 years old and am quite likely to have some level of metabolic syndrome due to my current sedentary lifestyle.

The dose is apparently 2 pills per day. I took one around noon and then another later this evening. Obviously, I have nothing significant to report at this time.