So here’s how this diet works. You know, the one that is not terribly supported by the science but that I am inexplicably doing anyway? I have to show plenty of self-deprecating skepticism to protect me emotionally from the people who think this is just totally batshit crazy.
This is just the short version. There are lots of books written about how to do this, so if you are some random internet person finding this blog because you googled "HCG", don’t use this as an instruction guide. Do your own research. This is some controversial shit.
So, doubters and skeptics: here is the 12-week plan. Have a field day.
Day 1: Start taking HCG drops and eat like crazy to build up your “normal” fat reserves.
Day 2: Take drops and eat like crazy.
Day 3 through 40: Take HCG drops and eat 500 calories per day. Each day you can have two small servings of organic protein, two organic vegetables, two organic fruits, and two Melba toasts, all from a preapproved (and quite restricted) list. No fat or sugar or starch of any kind. But, see, you’re not hungry and you’re not malnourished because the HCG is freeing up the nutrients and calories in your “abnormal” fat reserves and is making them available to your body as nutrition.
Days 41-43: stop taking drops so they can clear out of your system, but continue on 500 calorie diet.
Day 44-86: maintenance
I’m hearing that women can lose anywhere from 25 to 35 pounds on the first round of 40 days. It sounds too good to be true (which means it probably is).
There seem to be three main reasons you stop after 40 days, even if you haven't lost as much as you want to lose.
1) your body becomes immune to the HCG, which means the 500-calorie diet is no longer sustainable because of insane hunger pangs.
2) you start to lose “normal” fat instead of “abnormal” fat, which will make you look drawn and sunken-cheeked without reducing the size of your waist, hips, and butt.
3) your metabolism will go into starvation mode and you need to "reset" it to your new weight. The idea (if I’ve got this right), is to eat as many calories as you can and still maintain your weight. If you continue on a low calorie diet, say 1500 calories, your body will think “I need 1500 calories to maintain my new weight,” and if you ever eat more than that, you’ll gain back. But if you can get away with eating 2300 calories on maintenance, then your body will think you need 2300 calories to maintain your new weight. This part of the idea actually makes sense to me based on the reading I’ve done.
For the first three weeks of maintenance, you eat much like you did on the program (lean meats, veggies, fruits), but you eat a lot MORE. Then for the second three weeks, you can add a lot of healthy carbs. It sounds sort of like phase 2 of the South Beach Diet.
Then, if you need to do a second round, you can. Your second round is the same as the first in duration and practice. But your second maintenance round is eight weeks instead of six. You can even do a third round if you need to, but your third maintenance round is 12 weeks. The maintenance rounds get longer and longer to 1) decrease your immunity to the HCG so that it will work again and 2) really “set” your metabolism at your new weight so it isn’t impossible to maintain.
Then, the theory is that you can eat normally and maintain your weight. You cannot overeat and maintain your weight. You can eat normally.
This is just the short version. There are lots of books written about how to do this, so if you are some random internet person finding this blog because you googled "HCG", don’t use this as an instruction guide. Do your own research. This is some controversial shit.
So, doubters and skeptics: here is the 12-week plan. Have a field day.
Day 1: Start taking HCG drops and eat like crazy to build up your “normal” fat reserves.
Day 2: Take drops and eat like crazy.
Day 3 through 40: Take HCG drops and eat 500 calories per day. Each day you can have two small servings of organic protein, two organic vegetables, two organic fruits, and two Melba toasts, all from a preapproved (and quite restricted) list. No fat or sugar or starch of any kind. But, see, you’re not hungry and you’re not malnourished because the HCG is freeing up the nutrients and calories in your “abnormal” fat reserves and is making them available to your body as nutrition.
Days 41-43: stop taking drops so they can clear out of your system, but continue on 500 calorie diet.
Day 44-86: maintenance
I’m hearing that women can lose anywhere from 25 to 35 pounds on the first round of 40 days. It sounds too good to be true (which means it probably is).
There seem to be three main reasons you stop after 40 days, even if you haven't lost as much as you want to lose.
1) your body becomes immune to the HCG, which means the 500-calorie diet is no longer sustainable because of insane hunger pangs.
2) you start to lose “normal” fat instead of “abnormal” fat, which will make you look drawn and sunken-cheeked without reducing the size of your waist, hips, and butt.
3) your metabolism will go into starvation mode and you need to "reset" it to your new weight. The idea (if I’ve got this right), is to eat as many calories as you can and still maintain your weight. If you continue on a low calorie diet, say 1500 calories, your body will think “I need 1500 calories to maintain my new weight,” and if you ever eat more than that, you’ll gain back. But if you can get away with eating 2300 calories on maintenance, then your body will think you need 2300 calories to maintain your new weight. This part of the idea actually makes sense to me based on the reading I’ve done.
For the first three weeks of maintenance, you eat much like you did on the program (lean meats, veggies, fruits), but you eat a lot MORE. Then for the second three weeks, you can add a lot of healthy carbs. It sounds sort of like phase 2 of the South Beach Diet.
Then, if you need to do a second round, you can. Your second round is the same as the first in duration and practice. But your second maintenance round is eight weeks instead of six. You can even do a third round if you need to, but your third maintenance round is 12 weeks. The maintenance rounds get longer and longer to 1) decrease your immunity to the HCG so that it will work again and 2) really “set” your metabolism at your new weight so it isn’t impossible to maintain.
Then, the theory is that you can eat normally and maintain your weight. You cannot overeat and maintain your weight. You can eat normally.
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