HCG Diet Anyone???

It's NOT FDA approved for weight loss. It is not regulated by the FDA, or anyone else. You lose weight, because you're only eating 500 calories...which is NEVER safe. That is not enough to sustain organ function. I read an article about how not very many people kept the weight off 1-2 years later, and most people gained even more then they lost. It is a fad diet, plain and simple.

http://www.dietscam.org/reports/hcg.shtml

http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/the-hcg-diet-not-...

Your best friend will be REALLY skinny when she's dead...

Fad diets never work in the long run, and they're usually dangerous. You're losing weight the right way -- sensible eating, taking in fewer calories and exercising. That can't be bad for you any way you look at it.

Your friend's diet is bad any way you look at it. Just like any other fad diet, your friend will balloon up again when she stops taking the drops and eating more. Just wait for it.

Obviously some haven't read up on it. It's FDA approved and very scientific. Just starting my second round! Love it and I am under doctors watch! It resets your hypathamlus gland. You should really look into it. I have friends and family members who have done it successfully! It's not a fad at all. Talk to people who have done it and not haters. It's always those who haven't done it who have something bad to say. It will make you change your lifestyle and you learn alot about nutrition and your body and how it reacts to certain food. I bought mine from liquid hcg, you can find them online and even in Facebook! Good luck! It's a great way to get a jump start the weight loss and a new lifestyle!

Well it's not a fad per se given that's it's been around for 50+ years. The shots are expensive. HCG might normally be covered as part of obstetric care (as part of infertility treatments or possibly to support the early stages of a high-risk pregnancy) but for weight loss, it's off-label use and will not be covered by insurance. I've heard that the shots are $10 per day and that you go on for 20 days, off for a few and then back on again. It doesn't seem like a great way to sustain weight loss. It works because on HCG, you can eat 500 calories a day and not be ravenously hungry, and HCG stimulates the body to release fat stores from the belly, hips and thighs.

I do have to admit that I'm intrigued by this because I have a very odd weight gain and loss pattern. In the first trimester of each pregnancy, I would lose 10-15 lbs. Then throughout the pregnancy, I would slowly gain that back and then maybe at delivery be only 2-8 lbs above my pre-pregnancy weight. As the baby (or babies, I had one twin pregnancy) would get bigger, my arms, hips, and thighs would shrink. After each baby, I would go home from the hospital 10-20 lbs lighter than my pre-pregnancy weight. I never had to "lose the baby weight" because it was gone - and then some - instantly. I would literally walk out of the hospital in my skinny jeans and a slinky top and soak in the compliments. And then after a week or two, the weight gain would begin - anywhere from 10-20 lbs in the first 12 post-partum weeks. Didn't matter if I was breastfeeding or not, active or not, starving myself or not, working out or not it would pile back on and stay. With each pregnancy, my final weight point would settle in at about 10 lbs higher than the previous pregnancy - so 4 pregnancies later, I'm carrying a lot of extra weight (and wasn't slender to start with).

Anyway, because I have a specific hormonal pattern to my weight gain I have considered asking my doc about this at my next physical to see what she thinks. She joked in the past about "faking" my body into thinking I was pregnant to see if I could lose weight and keep it off...who knows?

The HCG diet is ridiculous. It's starvation. Of course it doesn't work. The amount of calories you are ''allowed'' is not even enough to support minimum brain function.

There is no quick fix. Eat a healthy diet & exercise!

What's causing the weight loss is that a person has to drop their calorie intake to only 500 per day. I had a friend do it and she documented it for those of us who were curious. You eat very little, do no exercise so as to not build up muscle (which weights more) and take the HCG. After a certain amount of time you have 2 days of completely binging..I mean to the point of making you sick practically and then you go back to eating nothing at all.
She didn't have energy to do much honestly. She did loose a lot of weight while on it. But it's not a diet you can maintain at all. It's a given you'll see the weight creep back on.

Yeah, I didn't think it was FDA approved either, so I'm glad Bug pointed that out for sure. Look, I get what you're saying, but stay on with your trainer and WW!! I know one person who did it, morbidly obese, and he dropped a ton of weight right away. Then after his first cycle (his was 40 days) he stopped losing weight and started putting it back on. My neighbor just started it a few days ago and has already lost 7 pounds as well, although she doesn't have a ton of weight to lose in my opinion. Anyway, both of them complain about being hungry ALL the time, you can barely eat, you have a huge restriction list and as others mentioned, your calorie intake is crazy, crazy low.

It is too good to be true. I believe that only the people who go through the steps will lose weight. This might work for your friends but unless they keep up this diet then it won't last. PLUS, when you go on the HCG "they" specifically tell you to NOT exercise b/c these drugs can mess with your heart and cause you some serious health concerns. I mean doesn't that sound backwards??

My advice, keep on keepin' on. You're doing good, you have a good trainer and you will meet your goal weight soon. Above all that you are making healthy choices that will help you create a new lifestyle!

** Added...I'm glad it worked for Gee and I think she offers a nice perspective (and maybe it is FDA approved after all...I'm really not sure!) But even she pointed out the fact that if you want this to work then you have to change your lifestyle. The thing is though is that it is a fad...because people want it to be a magic cure and not have to work for it. If you truly use it for a jumping off point and then continue to rearrange and change your entire outlook on food, then it might work for you, but that's not what most people are doing. That being said, exercise and healthy eating habits are a good jumping off point too and you're already doing that.

You need to do a ton of research. Not only is it food restriction, but it's any type of oils. This includes lotions, make up, and soaps. I know this because a family friend worked at one of the original clinics that started this whole thing. A lot of people it's just restrictions on foods. But it's very specific types of foods that you can eat.
My mom was on the diet. She lost about 30lbs in one month. I'm sure she would have lost more too (she is MORBIDLY obese) if she actually followed the diet to a T. She never weighed her protien so I'm sure she was getting more calories than she was supposed to.
As for the drops vs the shots? I would NEVER ever suggest getting the drops. They aren't regulated. Any person could have made the HCG from undisclosed sources. They also add more fillers and less HCG. With the shots they are made by specific sources and have a higher concentration of HCG which is more effective.
Does it work? Yes, but just like any other diet, results are based on the individuals. If you get a prescription from your doctor, follow all the rules from the actual HCG diet and not a knock off, I am sure you will do just fine.

And yes, it does train your body to eat at the fat and not the muscle which is what your body will naturally do. That is why you need the HCG to go along with the strict diet. If you did just the diet, then you would be telling your body to eat the muscle.
If you want a copy of the mini book that our doctor friend gave us, I can upload it and send it to you. Just personal message me.

Hi J.,

I am on it right now and it works! I have to say though, I am looking for one that doesn't have alcohol added to it--do you know where your friends got theirs? I have lost 10 lbs so far-- I am in phase 1. I would recommend it. It is really hard to stick to, but the HCG helps with the cravings immensely. GL!

M

I've always believed if you gain weight naturally, then you should lose it naturally. I've never known ANYONE who has not benefitted somewhat in excercising and eating right.

If you have a trainer I'm assuming you are weight training? Just remember, with weight training, it takes longer to see the effects but it also takes longer to gain the weight back b/c you have all that muscle burning fat and other things.

Keep going J. E! If you are going to the gym, that's more than most people do all their lives!

Rather than use chemicals, try giving your body enough fuel to function so you aren't constantly hungry. I would NEVER have believed this would work- I tried for years to eat the Lean Cuisine, etc and restrict calories, and I was always starving.
We changed our way of eating after reading Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon (a cookbook, but also has a a ton of info about food!) and going gluten-free (which I thought would be impossible, but was surprisingly easy. I lost a quick 30 lbs after eating loads of protein and good fats each day, without even trying. I was SHOCKED when I saw the scale- and I had a lot more energy and didn't have the hunger I had had before (I would alternate quickly between starving and stuffed all day long before.)

After about a year with this way of eating (I also cut out refined sugar and use only honey and maple syrup for sweeteners) I realized that grains were making me bloated too, so I have cut most of them out now as well, but do go back and forth with this (I'll eat rice or rice pasta when I want.)

I don't know how you are eating on the WW diet, but I see what a lot of friends eat, and I don't see how it can be healthful. You need a lot of fish oil, grass-fed butter, coconut oil, etc to keep your brain functioning. The sugar, preservatives, and artificial things (not to mention hormones in the meats) are just going to counteract any efforts you make to lose the weight if you are eating processed foods. PLUS, while fruit might be "free," you are consuming a LOT of sugar if you aren't pairing it well with proteins, and that is spiking blood sugar and causing a host of other problems.

Just my opinion, of course! I love being able to eat until I am full and not count calories, etc. and still keep off the weight without putting anything potentially harmful in my body :(

there are plenty of journal articles that have tested this. research and learn..."google scholar"

No need to do the HCG diet. The reason why people lose so much weight is not because the HCG, but it's because they do not eat anything processed and avoid all sugar. Give that a try and see how much you.

www.SoYouWantToCleanse.com

It is real.

B.
Family Success Coach

Of course it doesn't "work". It's a starvation diet. I have seen several coworkers do it, and they all last about a week because you can't eat. It's the not eating, not the HCG that causes the weight loss. Don't waste your money. I'll never forget the other day, one lady said she was only going to have an apple and some iced tea throughout the day, and she stood there pale as a ghost and going to pass out at any moment. I saw her 2 days later with a box of donuts!

WATER, drink as many ounces to equal your weight every day! 1200 CALORIES A DAY, and ZUMBA! Try it. 12 pounds down with those 3 things alone.

I don't think i could do it, but I know 4 people who have and it rocked for them (they all had less than 30 to loose). They have not put the weight back on (two years for one, and 6 months for the others). So far so good. If they all keep it off for two years or more, I'll do it too. My mother swears it reset her "set point".