Anyone here try that HCG diet??

[wifezilla]

ONLY a pound a week? One pound a week is a safe, sane, sensible weight loss rate.

[Marlad3672]

The only question that I will ask is this...is this honestly something that you can stay on for life? I am not saying that it does not work. Obviously it does if people are losing weight. However, do you wonder if it is because of the low calorie limit of 500 calories and not just the HCG?

Just be careful. Your goal to get fit and healthy is something that I admire, just be careful not to hurt your health in the process of getting to the "thinner you."

[Kerry_Will_Win]

What you are asking is can we stay on a low carb diet for life? Can you?
lol. If you dont read the protocol there is no way you can possibly understand what is actually happening. Your concern is very much appreciated. It reminds me of all the well meaning folks who think low fat is best.

[wifezilla]

While there is evidence that low carb is healthy and the diet humans evolved to thrive on, there is no evidence that low fat is healthy, nor is there evidence that 500 calories per day and shots is smart and healthy.

[cowgirl07]

Hey guys, sorry so late, but I've been out of town this week. I just want to get this out of the way first - I agree with Kerry that I appreciate the concern/comments from everyone. However, I'm not here to debate or defend what I'm doing. Mainly, because I don't have to - my results will speak for themselves or not. I'm here to utilize the message board to spread the word about what works for me and give any advice/suggestions to those interested in the same approach. I was extremely skeptical at first myself but after being on this for a month I was absolutely amazed. While losing a pound a week may be healthy, being 70 pounds overweight is not. And I don't want to waste another 2 years of my life (I am 38 and I want this weight off before I'm 40!!!) at that pace waiting to get healthy. Yes, 500 cal/day sounds crazy and without the HCG the weightloss would definitely be unhealthy with a lot of muscle loss. The HCG gives your body an extra 2000 cal/day to use for fuel in addition to the 500 so you are not losing muscle - only fat. Now, on to the good stuff:


Kerry - WOW! 44lbs. with 35 injections is great! Those are the results I'm after. My goal is to lose 75 pounds. Since I'm not supposed to have immunity issues, I'm hoping for 90 days. That may be unrealistic but it gives me something to shoot for. Can't make it too easy of myself. I got my Releana filled this morning and started my load days today. Actually, I've been loading for about a month now. We did nothing but eat while I was gone this week so the loading part is actually tough right now because I am so overly stuffed but I don't want to wait any longer to get started. I was reading some info from the Dr. and it says, like Simeons, I can cut out anything I want (fruit, protein, veggies) because the fat release will sustain my body just fine. So are you going to do phase 4 and then another round or what is your plan? Do you cut out the oils in your make-ups, lotions, etc.? I don't know if I'm going to go that extreme.

Fit-by-40 - Yes, it sounds like we will be starting really close to each other. First let me congratulate you on the 30 pounds lost. You've got a great start! I think just eating fatty meats, cheeses, etc. will be fine. I remember on Atkins, it took about 3 days to get into Ketosis while your body was switching over to burning fat for fuel instead of carbs. The load days with HCG are basically to sustain your body for the 3 days so you won't have any muscle loss in that transition. I really don't know what the effect will be since you have been doing low carb already. I'm anxious to see what happens during your load days. I wouldn't expect you to gain anything if you just stick to fatty foods. However, if you have "true" load days, with adding in starches and sugar, I would expect you to gain but I think it will be only water weight from adding the carbs back and it will fall back off pretty quick. I understand about the cravings. The first week is the worst so if you can load on non-starches and sugars you may be better off. Let me know when you get your supplies and get started! I'm so glad we will be doing this together!

[cowgirl07]

I almost forgot! Seems like every time I go to the Dr. I come out of there with a great success story. There was a guy that weighed in yesterday who has lost 70 pounds in 2 months! At first, I thought, yeah well he probably has 200 to lose. Nope! He hit his goal. He went from 270 to 200 in 60 days. Amazing!! Now he's going to go for 20 more.

Why can't I have the metabolism of a knat like men do???

[wifezilla]

I lost 40 lbs in less than 6 months. Not sure where you are getting "wasting 2 years of my life". Since your body is designed to eat low carb, it will heal and be the healthiest (with rare exception) on low carb.

Impatience ends up sabotaging so many people while costing them hard earned money it isn't funny. I saw it with my mom, I see it now with friends, and I did it to myself in my younger years.

Do whatever you want. Seriously, I wish you the best. But I will chime in when I see people going to an unnecessary extreme all in the name of weight loss.

[Kerry_Will_Win]

Cowgirl,

I plan on maintaining (I'm doing reg Atkins right now) for the 6 weeks and depending on when our fruit gets ripe (we have apple tree and luscious plums---tomatoes too) I will do another round.

I am not in as big as a hurry as I was to start with; however. I think its because I'm off all my BP meds and Blood sugar meds and my health is so much better. Atkins is not hard at all like it was before.

So after fresh fruit is over I will do one more full round then wait minimum of 8 weeks then a partial round of 26 days. I should be at goal weight by then and maintain with low carb eating or I should say Healthy eating with healthy carbs like fruits, veggies, seeds, some whole grain.

My doctor is totally estatic with my progress and of course I'm under her supervision. Overweight is deadly and we had tried everything before this. Success is sweet. I took my BP at walmart today and totally normal...no meds...yeah!!!!!

[delmem]

There have been several of us who have done the protocol & posted our progress in the form of videos on YouTube. Videos that show the losses, recipes, hard days, even the actual cost of the supplies if you work with your family physician as opposed to going through a high priced clinic or online hcg diet mill.

Just search "hcg protocol" & see for yourself.

Women have naturally occuring hCG... to suggest that in the small doses required would be a health risk has no medical basis. Please check mortality rates/complication data linked to lipo, lap-band, gastric bypass before you consider a surgical solution over this short term hormonal therapy.

[cowgirl07]

Hey guys! Wanted to give you my first update. I had my first weekly weigh-in at the clinic (actually I'm a day early...I loaded on Friday and Saturday, then went VLC Sunday). Per the clinic I've lost 9.4 lbs! I'm ecstatic! My scale says I've lost 10.8 so the nurse said we could use my #s.

[fib-by-40]

Cowgirl,
WOW!!!!!! Congratulations! What an amazing first week. How much did you gain on your 2 load days? Today is my first load day so I will be 1 week behind you. I decided to go ahead and load the normal way so I have had some sugar and carbs. I must say they really havent tasted good and I feel guilty about it but if it helps me get threw next week it will be worth it. Have you found a meal that you really like? Keep up the good work. Can't wait to hear about next weeks result.

[cowgirl07]

I gained 3 pounds on my load days but I lost 5 on my first VLC day. I have now lost 12.2 pounds...as of yesterday it was 13.2 but I broke down and had some potato chips last night and I paid for it today. I gained a pound. So today I'm making up for it. I'm going to drink extra water and exercise. The clinic said if I exercised, I should increase my calories to 800 but I'm going to stick with 500 today to get rid of my pound. It has been amazing to see the loss everday. My days have went like this:

Day 1 -5
Day 2 -3
Day 3 -1.8
Day 4 -.8
Day 5 -1
Day 6 -1.6
Day 7 +1

Not bad for 7 days!

I'm glad you are starting! I really don't think you can go wrong on your load days. Many people have said that you have to eat to capacity or you will feel more hungry for the first 7 - 10 days. I won't say I haven't been hungry but I think it's more of a mental thing right now. telling myself that I'm not supposed to want to eat.

Let me know how your first VLC day goes!!

[cowgirl07]

Forgot about the meal question. I have been eating mainly fresh tomotoes and cucumbers for my vegetables and they have been great. It's just a great time of year for them. My meat has consisted of chicken (cooked on the grill), ground beef patties (4% fat), and shrimp. Ground beef is supposed to be a no-no but I found the 96/4 kind at Wal-Mart and the fat/calories are less than any lean steak I can find. I just fry them in a pan with some cooking spray. I do the shrimp the same way except I use the butter flavor cooking spray. The clinic told me not to use the butter flavor but I have been and it doesn't seem to be a problem. I also did scrambled eggs one night just to keep some variety. So far I've been really happy with what I'm eating. The key has been to keep variety going. I never have the same meat twice in one day and actually try to skip a day. So if I have chicken on Monday I try not to have it again until Wednesday.

[fib-by-40]

Cowgirl- Here is my first update. I ended up gaining 7 pounds during my 2 load days. The sad part is I really didnt eat a lot. Not like I should have. I did have some carbs and sugar so I think it threw my body out of wack since I've gone 4 months without them. It's really hard knowing I weigh more now than I did 5 weeks ago. Yesterday was my first VLCD. It wasn't easy but I made it without any cheats. I just have to remember to do this one day at a time. This morning I was down 3.5 pounds. I'm hoping that by the end of the week I have lost my load weight and at least a couple of extra pounds.

Kerry- How is Phase 3 going?

[4gotn1]

I am so glad I found this thread! Thanks to a post in another forum by Kerry I have been researching this and can NOT wait to get started!

I need to wait till have a little bit of extra money though, wish it didn't take so long to get.

I know someone mentioned doing it SL? ARE you all Fib-by-40? Cowgirl?

I can't do IM...I just have NO clue how to find a muscle! LOL! Want to do either SQ in my stomach or SL!

For those of you who haven't read protocol...it really does answer all your questions. You are on a 500 calorie a day diet because there is like 2,ooo calories of fat being released that your body feeds off of.

You not maintain that 500 calorie a day diet for life.

The BEST thing I have read is that it redistributes the normal fat so even for a thin person w/ a fatty area, it can help even that out, if it makes sense.

I have NOT met anyone suggesting HCG that is patting Kevin T on the back. He is simply trying to make money from a real dr.'s hard work.

Like someone else post Dr. A had and still has skeptics!

[fib-by-40]

4gotn1,
Hi! I have been doing the injections SQ. It's really easy. The shots only take a minute and I dont have to think about it for the rest of the day. In 4 days I have lost my load weight plus an extra pound. I now feel like I have really started the diet. I hated gaining that load weight. I will be honest and say the first couple of days were hard! Yesterday was a lot easier. I think it will get easier everyday.
The HCG does take awhile to get. I ended up going with a company that charged a little bit more but I had it delivered in 12 days. Once I decided I wanted to start I didnt want to wait a month for the supplies. The few extra dollars were worth it to me.
Have you joined the yahoo egroup? You will find a ton of info there. PM me if you want the info. Good Luck

[wifezilla]

The cost?

[4gotn1]

Originally Posted by wifezilla

The cost?

Depends on the dose....how you are delivering it ( SQ, IM or SL) and where you buy it and how many rounds you think you will need and of course if you plan to buy most of your rounds up front. Being it is a out of country bank the shipping is HIGH and you pay it whether you buy enough for One or ten rounds ( exaggerating w/ the 10 of course)

[wifezilla]

Give a good guestimate of what an average person would spend.

[4gotn1]

Originally Posted by fib-by-40

. PM me if you want the info. Good Luck

Uggghhhh, I can't PM you!

[4gotn1]

Originally Posted by wifezilla

Give a good guestimate of what an average person would spend.

I hope this doesn't sound rude but I get more of a feeling that you are looking for another reason to discount the method and not actually "curious" as to what the financial cost is.

I know every time I read a post from a newbie asking a question about Atkins the reply is always "have you read the book" so again, I recommend reading protocol before being such a skeptic....those kind of skeptics kept people from trying Atkins and possibly getting healthy. I would hate to see the same thing happen to Simeons that HAS been around almost as long as good ole' Dr. A!

The cost for the HCG for 10 total ampoules 5000 IU. is $195.28 and that is enough ( again depending on which dose) 5 weight reduction "phases" doing it SL

That is also enough to lose between 75-150lbs

Now you need syringes , storage bottles and such and that has to be ordered separately but I would say after doing Atkins for almost 3 months that it wouldn't be any more than you pay for AWESOME low carb fare!

[wifezilla]

I just think that if someone reads this thread, the cost would be a reasonable question.

I also think before and after photos would be reasonable as well.

[4gotn1]

Originally Posted by wifezilla

I just think that if someone reads this thread, the cost would be a reasonable question.

I also think before and after photos would be reasonable as well.

I will gladly when I start post before and after photos'. I just wonder why before and after photo's are recommended for every other "method" on the board

[wifezilla]

Before and afters are often requested. There is nothing unusual about that.

[4gotn1]

I also want to add that I can understand a bit of skeptism based on the amount of posts some of the posters on this thread have but I think that my time here and posts pretty much prove I am not just a "sock puppet"..I would think the same w/ Kerry ( though I haven't read her posts)

[g2g]

For those of you following this program, how do you find a clinic that offers this method for weight loss? I would be interested in the oral doses instead, could you give me any information how I might go about this.

PAG

[4gotn1]

Most of us are doing it ourselves...buying the supplies, mixing and administering. I pm'd you a group that can help you get started. There are few on Yahoo!

[cowgirl07]

Yeah! I was so glad to come in here tonight and see more people finding our thread that are trying or wanting to try the protocol. It has been a CRAZY week for me...working 12 hour days for 6 days straight and will probably be this way until Tuesday. UGH!

But I had my 2nd week weigh-in today and I lost another 5.5 pounds this week per the clinic. So my official total after 11 VLC days is 15 pounds! My scale says 16.5 but who's counting anyway, right?

I am taking Releana SL that I get from a clinic. You can go on their website and get a list of clinics I believe. I think everyone else on here is mixing their own which I may resort to later but right now my life is so crazy that I kind of like the fact that someone is taking care of that for me. I just go in every week get my shot, and get my bottle once a month. My cost is $300/month which inlcudes a $50 office charge. Well worth the cost because my grocery bill is only about $30 - $40/week now.

I haven't really had any problems with the protocol so far except I can't seem to get in my water or my exercise like I wanted to do this week but I've still had a steady loss every day so I can't complain. And my clothes are already starting to fit loose and people are noticing. I'm extremely happy with it!!

Fit-by-40 - Glad to hear that you lost your load weight. It's scary stepping on the scale after those load days. Makes you wonder what the heck you've gotten yourself into. How are the meals coming? How are you feeling?

4gotn1 - glad to have you! Have you got your stuff yet? It will be that several of us are starting about the same time. Sounds like you've done your research. I did the same thing for about a month, mainly just trying to mentally psych myself up for it. I think you have to be mentally prepared to do this since it is a drastic change ffom the "norm". I think I joined the Yahoo group a while back but I haven't been there in a while. I need to check it out!

I did take before photos in a swimsuit and man was THAT a nightmare. I will post by before/after when I'm done.

[g2g]

4gotn1 , thank you for the information
I sent you a pm

PAG

[fib-by-40]

Here is my update for the first full week of VLCD. I lost 11.6 pounds total, but 7 of that was my load weight. Im still thrilled with that and it is getting easier everyday. The last 2days I have actually been really full after eating dinner. Im never really hungry just have cravings but not real hunger. The hardest part is making meals for my family. My week went like this.
Day 1- 2.6
Day 2- 1.4
Day 3- 1.2
Day 4- 2.0
Day 5- 1.2
Day 6- 0.0
Day 7- 2.2
I'm SO happy I decided to do this. I wish I had started a few months ago. My energy level is fine and I feel good. I even kept going to the gym. The next day is the day I showed my 3 biggest loses.

4gotin1- Im glad you got everything ordered. Im excited for you to get started and cant wait to see your loses.

Cowgirl07- 5.5 for your second week is GREAT! Keeping my fingers crossed I can have numbers like that next week. Have you found a meal you really lke yet? I bought the HCG cookbook and I think it will really help make my meals more exciting.