The HCG Diet: The Good - the Bad - and the Ugly

When I began the HCG Diet this Summer I had an underlining question that had gone unanswered until now. Do people keep the weight off that they lose while following the HCG Diet? Let me answer that question for you as well as a few more you might have along the way.

THE GOOD: I had met 3 people (all in seperate households and families) in my neighborhood who were in the last phases of the HCG diet when I was trying to decided whether or not to do the diet. All of them had lost a lot of weight and were thrilled with the results. We had read hundreds of stories of people who were just ending the diet and were celebrating their victory. Some of them were even working through a second or third round (which is incredible!) So, naturally, Leif and I wanted in on the party! We jumped in, and in the end of the hard road we had lost a lot of weight. The good part about the HCG Diet is that it really does cause weight loss.

THE BAD: During my round of the HCG Diet I was miserable. It was a very hard experience for me physically and emotionally. This was very perplexing for me because you would think that with so much success I would be in a state of bliss. That was not the case. I was exhausted. I was hungry. And I was melancholy. There were better days then others. But overall looking back the memories are not pleasant. None of them except that my pants size decreased.

It wasn't until I had completed the HCG Diet that I discovered why I had struggled so much. I could tell that it had something to do with the lack of carbohydrates in the diet. Simply because that was the only thing that had changed in my diet. I always eat vegetables and meat. So, I hit my health and nutrition books and my best friend, Google. I was reminded that the carbohydrates that we eat not only provide our body with energy (calories) they provide the first building blocks for serotonin. Serotonin in the body is most known for its mood balancing function. When someone is low on serotonin they are often melancholy or depressed and fatigued.

In my opinion, someone who is already struggling with a low serotonin chemical imbalance (including myself) the HCG Diet could be disrupting to any prior efforts they have taken to balance this chemical in the body. I was on a very low dose of Paxil. Up until the HCG Diet it was balancing the problem. I suppose that if I took more during the diet it might help. But that isn't always easy or helpful. So, for many people the HCG Diet could contribute to an already imbalanced serotonin level in the body. This is the Bad about the HCG Diet.

THE UGLY: It has been around three to four months since Leif and I finished the HCG Diet. The original unanswered question that I had about whether or not people keep the weight off after the HCG Diet has been answered. In my opinion, the answer is most definitely NO! All three of the people that I had met personally who followed the HCG Diet have gained the weight back. Leif and I have most unfortunately gained the weight back.

Why after such a struggle to lose the weight would someone gain it back? I believe it is because the struggle to lose the weight was short lived. It took less then 30 days for Leif and I to lose the weight. A habit can't even be broken and corrected in that short amount of time. Along with the habits not being broken and corrected their was no training on how to live a normal healthy lifestyle. Those of us who follow the HCG Diet are in need of a quick fix. We want to lose the weight, and FAST! But unfortunately, that is not the way to keep the weight off. The only way to keep the weight off is to change the bad habits that brought on the weight in the first place. I believe the very best way to lose weight is through using the Weight Watchers program. I have met several people who have followed Weight Watchers and they have kept the weight off for years. I should have done that! This is the ugly truth about the HCG Diet.

I hope your view looking back is better then mine!

Preparing for the HCG Diet and Introduction

I first heard about the HCG Diet a few months ago. My sister in law did the diet and she lost a lot of weight. But I was very sceptical about whether the diet was safe nutrition wise for a person. So, I blew it off as a crazy and unsafe idea. Then my weight that I had lost after giving birth started to creep back into my life. NOT OKAY. Especially when I live a healthy lifestyle and the fat just seemed to appear over night and come right back to it's original home around my hips, stomach, and rear end. Something needed to be done.

Then I fell upon the HCG Diet again through my studies as a Holistic Health Practitioner. I finally read Dr. Simeon's "Pounds and Inches" manuscript. I read it word for word from a Health Practitioners stand point. It made perfect sense to me. My main concern was where people would get their nutrients. Then I read and remembered that there are some nutrients (not to mention calories) in fat. Once that fat is moved around the nutrients are released into the body.

After reading the manuscript I decided to take on the diet as a science project. I want to evaluate how I feel physically, emotionally, and hormonally. My theory is that the HCG protocol will help balance all of the hormones in the body. We'll see how it effects me. Honestly, this truly will be a journey for me. Many things in the diet go against some of the theories that I am studying as a Holistic Health Practitioner. That is why I am keeping this blog. To help me sort things out through my personal experiences.

My husband and I are both doing the HCG Diet. Neither of us are horribly overweight. But we are over weight and show the classic symptoms that Dr. Simeon describes. I carry most of my weight around my stomach, hips, bust, and butt. My husband Carry's it all up front (classic basket ball stomach.) So, we're looking forward to the balance of the fat, both the loss of fat as well as the proper distribution of the fat.

We have a local doctor who will be our supporting physician through the next 40 days. We are grateful to live in a small town where we get the small town service. Our local pharmacist ordered the HCG and needles for us. We paid a total of $80.00 for everything.

So, I've done my homework, drawn up a plan, and we're ready to go!