State of the Union - Tues., October 4, 2011

[NOTE:  sorry about the repost!  Added new comment functionality, and only way I could figure out how to import existing comments and replies was to recreate the page and paste over the comments.  Thanks for your patience!]

I've been on the HCG diet for 13 days now.   While that's not enough to form a conclusion in either direction, I've seen a few interesting trends I'd like to share.  Please comment, especially if you see something that strikes you differently, or that I may have missed all together.

Overall Observations.
  • Hunger.  It took me about a full week to stop fantasizing about chewing off my arm - not a bad thing when you consider all the fat I could get after just one chomp. My hunger decreased by nudges daily.  Now, I'm only hungry after I go more than four or five hours without food, which is probably normal.  Of note:  I was least hungry in the first three days, when I was taking both Phentermine and Fluoxetine. 
  • Loss.  I seem to drop about 2lbs every 3rd or 4th day.  In between, my weight loss is "normal" (i.e., loss you would expect without the HCG). 
Observations that suggest HCG may be driving my weight loss.
  • I'm losing an average of a pound or more a day.  I've lost 18.2 pounds to date -  including load "gain" - and 14.6 pounds to date - excluding the same.  That averages to a 1.4 and 1.1 pound loss per day, respectively.
Observations that suggest my CALORIC DEFICIT may be driving my weight loss. Excluding loading and my week of dieting data (which seems fair to do since that's the honeymoon week):
  • Many of my day-to-day trends mirror the loss I would expect on a 500 calorie-a-day diet with no HCG.  On three of last six days, I lost my projected weight amount or less.  In otherwords, if my BMR/activity formula projected I should have lost .4 of a pound, I lost anywhere between .2 and .6 of a pound.
Going Forward.  There are two variables that I am not collecting that may help interpret this data.   
  • Bodyfat Percentages.  What I am losing is key.  Five of six days that I ate less than 400 calories, I also lost average of 2.3lbs.  I need to collect my body fat percentage to see if I am losing fat or muscle. 
  • Body Measurements.  Whether I am shrinking on "slow loss days" is as important as whether I am losing:  I need collect my body measurements in key areas (arms, chest, waist, hips, thighs, calves). 
Anyway, as I said, I'm just reporting on the state of things.  I'd love to hear your thoughts, either way!