Some people feel the only way to do the hCG protocol is to do it exactly as Dr. Simeon’s wrote it. Others I am seeing feel they can pretty do anything they decide on hCG without consequence.
My personal feeling is that there is a balance somewhere in the middle. I have observed myself as well as a lot of other people doing this protocol now, and by and large the main difference for those who maintain their weight loss or not has not to do with how strictly they followed the protocol per se, but what changes in their eating habits as well as lifestyle habits they make long term. This is not to say that any modification is okay, certainly not. But when I get occasional emails of disgruntled ones saying that only Dr. Simeon’s exact original instructions work, I need only to point to myself as an example to know that is simply not true. With all the modifications I have made, I have been maintaining my weight loss without any additional hCG rounds for two and a half years as of mid 2015, I have an excellent metabolism, and I haven’t been eating “low carb” in over 2 years. Some modifications, done smart, DO work.
Click any topic to go right there:
- Modifications That Went Well:
- Doing a little 7-10 Day Pre-hCG Diet.
- Loading “Clean” on the hCG Protocol.
- Removed the Phase 2 Fruits and Replaced with Veggies or Fat-Free Yogurt
- I DID Mix Vegetables – but there is a caveat
- I Ate Off-Protocol Vegetables
- I Ate Shirataki Noodles Daily During Phase 2
- I Ate 99% Fat-Free Ham
- I used Subcutaneous Injections (SQ), Not Intramuscular (IM) for hCG
- Modifications That DIDN’T Go Well For Me:
- Unintentional Changes
- Replacing Whole Foods with frankenfood.
- Modifications That Don’t Seem to Go Well for Others:
- Doing the hCG diet for longer periods of time
- Taking Shorter Breaks from hCG Than is Usually Required
- Video Feedback from hCGers who did their own Modifications
I’d like to share modifications I have made, and under what circumstances I made them, and how I feel they turned out.
Modifications That Went Well:
There are several little adaptations I’ve used as I went through my own journey that I found to be just the thing for me, but some of them could be considered “off protocol”.
It’s important that you read the circumstances under which I made each of these modifications, because I do believe that makes a difference.
For instance, on rounds where I ate off protocol vegetables, it’s important to note that I was also not eating the Phase 2 fruits and grissini/melba – so if you were to make the same modification without removing the Phase 2 fruits, this may not work as well.
1. Doing a little 7-10 Day Pre-hCG Diet.
The purpose of this was to clear my system of carbs and eliminate sugar cravings.
2. Loading “Clean” on the hCG Protocol.
The purpose of this was a few fold. Mainly it was to ensure that I didn’t experience sugar cravings being a previous sugar addict and binge eater, but also I desired to make sure I could start losing new fat as soon as possible and get into ketosis more quickly.
3. Removed the Phase 2 Fruits and Replaced with Veggies or Fat-Free Yogurt
This is not something I did every round. I did this only when I was breaking my sugar addiction, as I found even the sugar in fruit to cause cravings for me. You can read all about how I incorporated this modification here.
4. I DID Mix Vegetables – but there is a caveat.
Again, this is not something I did every round, but my final round of hCG I chose to allow the mixing of veggies because I was not eating the Phase 2 fruits and I felt this gave me a little more leeway with my vegetables. The key, as you’ll read more about in the actual post on this topic, is to be more conscious of how much you are eating when you mix veggies, so the calorie count doesn’t get out of hand.
5. I Ate Off-Protocol Vegetables
I did this my final round as well. Again, the other factors you should know is that this was done on a round that I did not eat the phase 2 fruits or grissini/melba toast, so I felt there was more leeway for me with the vegetables since I had eliminated a large source of the carbs from the protocol. The reason I chose to incorporate some different vegetables is because a food sensitivity test I took showed I was somewhat allergic to many of the vegetables on Dr. Simeon’s list. This was an experiment that I feel turned out well for me.
The vegetables I incorporated that were off protocol:
- Broccoli
- Red Bell Pepper
- Yellow Crook Neck Squash
- Zucchini
- Mushrooms (yes I ate these daily in a P2 style soup)
- SMALL bits of raw carrot in my salads – and we’re talking like 1/4 of a carrot, just for flavor.
How did I decide what vegetables to add in? I looked carefully at their carb content and chose vegetables that seemed to be lin line with those on the original list.
6. I Ate Miracle Noodles Daily During Phase 2
This is something I did on 3 of my rounds and I think it helped me greatly! Miracle Noodles also known as the non name brand Shirataki Noodles (caution – NOT the ones containing Tofu!) have no calories. They are simply soluble fiber, made from the Konjac root.
I would eat an entire package daily in soups during Phase 2. This made me feel more full and satiated. The only type of “weight gain” I feel one will experience from incorporating these is the 1. bulk of the noodles themselves (they weigh something), and 2. extra water that the noodles may absorb while in your intestines. This is transitory – it’s not real weight. I do not feel eating this impeded my actual fat loss on the protocol.
I have an entire blogpost JUST about these darling little zero calorie noodles if you’d like to learn more.
7. I Ate 99% Fat Free Ham
The main importance as I see it with the proteins on the hCG diet is that they be extremely lean, with as little fat as possible. Secondly, meats without hormones I feel is probably pretty important as well. Usually the hormones or toxins would be found in the fat part of the meat, so if you are eating super lean meat, this is hopefully not a problem.
With that in mind, I did eat 99% fat free ham during my final round in my salads as a Phase 2 protein – the regular ol’ 100 gram serving. This does contain more salt than some meats, since it’s processed in a way, but I was okay with this as I have a hearty sodium intake most of the time.
8. I used Subcutaneous Injections (SQ), Not Intramuscular (IM) for hCG
This got brought up to me recently as an issue, because Dr. Simeons originally gave his patients the hCG by intramuscular shots and the suggestion was made to me that not doing this will yield results that are not as good. Today, almost everyone uses subcutaneous injection for hCG, and these are the needles that are sent with all U.S. based hCG kits now.
Certainly there is nothing wrong with using IM injections, but in my observation and research, there is really no difference in result using one or the other, and the Sub-Q injections are much easier to handle, since the needles are much shorter and only going into your fat, vs. your muscle.
I used Subcutaneous injections for my entire hCG weight loss journey. In fact, I have never done an IM injection. The main four reasons I feel they are perfectly fine to be the standard today are:
1. Same no-hunger effect on the right dose of hCG.
When your dosage of hCG is dialed in correctly, the no hunger effect Dr. Simeon’s describes hCG producing in the body is the same. As an example, my final round, when I was actually getting quite lean, I injected 125 IU daily, with a Sub-cutaneous needle of about 5/16″ long, and was so un-hungry some days I felt like I didn’t need to eat at all.
2. Weight loss amount is the same
I have gotten feedback from individuals who have used both IM and SQ shots and their weight loss amount was no different.
3. Able to Maintain Weight Loss
I’ve been maintaining my weight loss for 2.5 years as of mid 2015.
4. My hydrostatic body fat testing shows the majority of my weight loss was indeed fat.
The hCG hormone is supposed to preserve lean muscle and go more for utilizing your fat stores on such a low calorie diet than would otherwise be the case if you did such a low calorie diet without hCG. I had hydrostatic body fat testing done before and after every round and the majority of my weight loss has been fat. I maintain a 16-17% bodyfat now (on me this is about 20-21 lbs of fat on my body), which is in the athlete category for a woman. Since I started at 34.5% bodyfat (on me this was 59 lbs of fat), this is significant and shows the level of fat loss I experienced.
Modifications That DIDN’T Go Well For Me:
Some of you know who have been with me awhile know I had 1 round of hCG out of my whole weight loss journey that was a complete fail. I’d like to share some unintentional modifications I used during this time and what happened.
1. Unintentional Changes
There is a very strong connection I feel between choosing to make an adjustment, vs. the feeling of giving in to something that you hadn’t planned on. When I feel like I “gave in” I feel bad about my choice because it’s the opposite of what I had intended to do.
2. Replacing whole foods with frankenfood.
My only failed/screwed up round was my 2nd one. One of the things I did wrong that I tried to reason away, was the eating of some special “cookies” that were made up mostly of fiber and sugar alcohols. While I carefully checked them and planned on only eating what would amount to the same calorie count as say my Phase 2 fruit, or my Phase 2 vegetable, that is often NOT what ended up happening. This is because they are still essentially junk food, and while on Phase 3, eating these occasionally might be a nice replacement for chocolate cake, they were not a wise choice to be replacing my fruits and vegetables with. I would find myself eating more than I should, because they tasted sweet and sugary. And did I mention I was then not eating whole fruits or vegetables? Yes, not a wise choice.
Modifications That Don’t Seem to Go Well for Others:
1. Doing the hCG diet for longer periods of time
The original protocol was designed to be done in 3-6 week batches, wherein you would then take a break from the low calorie diet for several weeks- in fact with each round, these breaks get longer and longer. You read all about required breaks from hCG here.
Some have chosen to experiment with doing this diet for longer than 6 weeks. This sometimes goes fine. The key word here is sometimes, and really should say rarely. Who does this work for? On a rare occasion there is an individual who is highly motivated, has worked through their emotional issues with food, etc. and just has their nose to the grindstone to get ‘er done.
More often than not though, despite wanting to be this special person, those who attempt rounds of 8-10 weeks find themselves getting really burned out, cheating, and kind of flipping out when the diet is over because they stayed on too long and their will power and self control is totally shot.
2. Taking Shorter Breaks from hCG Than is Usually Required
The reasons this doesn’t often work out well is very similar to the reasons for not doing the diet longer than 6 weeks or so.
This protocol, while efficient and amazing, is still a lot of hard manual labor in a way for your body. The breaks in general are really needed to give your body time to recover and stay stable. The breaks prevent you from developing chronic deficiences. My particular concern with these longer rounds and shorter breaks is the effect it can have on the Adrenal glands. Adrenal fatigue is a very common condition these days, and being on a diet like this can indeed make the adrenals work harder than usual. This is okay as long as you take those breaks and don’t stay on too long. But if you don’t, Adrenal fatigue can easily be the result, which is no small matter to recover from.
More Feedback from hCGers who did some Modifications to the Original hCG Diet Protocol:
Watch Alexandra’s Full Interview here
Watch Tamara’s Full Interview here
Watch Lynette’s Full Interview here
Watch Kimberly’s Full Interview here
Watch Donna’s Full Interview here
Watch Diane’s Full Interview here
Watch Denise’s Full Interview here
Watch Debbie’s Full Interview here
Watch Casey’s Full Interview here
Watch Bella’s Full Interview here
Watch Linda’s Full Interview here
Watch Linita’s Full Interview here
Watch Nathan’s Full Interview here
Watch Melissa’s Full Interview here
Watch Bridgette’s Full Interview here
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Hi everyone,
I finished P2 four days ago and lost 20 pounds. I did the modified version where I skipped the fruit/Melba and varied my choice of veggies.
I am very lost starting my P3, because I was eating my choice of veggies (minus starchy and sweet veggies), I don’t know what to do different now. Should I start adding Whole grain carbs, or maybe fats (avocado, olives… I avoided all fats in P2). Should I just eat as I did, but in bigger amounts? I have your food list for P3 and it doesn’t really look different from what I did in P2.
Any guidance here is very appreciated!!
Kind wishes,
Merm
Hi Myriam,
Please check out this blog post for the best way to do Phase 3: http://hcgchica.com/phase-3-hcg-diet-how-to-best-way/
Hope that helps!
Hi there all the way from South Africa
I need some assistance, as i am not 100% sure any more
(We work in Kj and Kilograms) but the plot remains the same.
My first question:
If i have to stay with 500 calories a day, i weigh the veggies but if i stay with 100g per meal i can not reach the calorie count at all! If i increase the calorie count the weight also increase? For instance. 100g lettuce only contains 82 kj (about 20 calories). So, i make a side salad, that weighs about 150g but the calorie count is not even 80 calories.
Which one is then better to follow? Thei weight in total or the calorie count? Please help. Im so confused and i dont have a support person in South Africa
Hi Estelle,
This is Lucelle, Rayzel’s assistant. Nice to meet you! 🙂
It’s better to follow the calorie count. The protocol didn’t say you can only eat 100g of vegetables. Please check the Phase 2 protocol here: https://hcgchica.com/phase-2-hcg-diet-basics-very-low-calorie-diet/
Hope that helps!
Thank you so much for replying to my message!
I have a few more questions if you dont mind?
1. Can an upcoming period cause no weight loss (starting tomorrow or the day after) I have been eating the same as the previous 2 weeks but today I had a 200gram hike in my weight. What a TERRIBLE feeling!!!
2. Should i stop the injections for the time that i have my period?
3. To make up 500 calories, what should i increase on? I only get to about 300cal per day. Can that cause little weight loss maybe? Can i increase by eating more Veggies or can I have more protein? By protein I mean Chicken breast meat. I do mix veggies to make up a salad consisting of Lettuce, tomato, cucumber or Gherkins, green pepper, spring onion, radishes and parsley.
Thank you so much for helping.
1. Yes, it is quite normal to experience this due to water retention.
2. What Rayzel does is she skip only 1-2 days on her heaviest flow days- She felt too nervous to skip longer than that! Some continue injecting through their period, others stop for the full duration. Skipping 1-2 days of heaviest flow is a reasonable approach. Me, I do the same because I noticed I experienced severe headaches when I inject hCG the first 2 days of my period. You do continue to eat P2 foods without hCG.
3. Rayzel answered this here: https://hcgchicahelphub.com/ate-less-than-500-calories-hcg-diet-phase-2/
Hope that helps!
Hi Rayzel, It’s my first time on the HCG,I’m on day 11 and only lost 9lbs, was hoping for more. I’ve been following the protocol and been keeping to the 500 a day sometimes a little under. I just realized today that I’ve been weighing my meat(chicken and fish) after it’s cooked, for ex: instead of 3.5oz raw, I’ve been eating 3.5oz cooked, what’s the impact of that, even though I’m still within the 500 calories a day. Thanks, looking forward to hearing from you
Hi Christina,
First of all, 9lbs in 11 days is amazing result! The average loss is 0.4lb/day and that’s definitely above that! And I don’t think it would be an issue as long as you are within your calorie limit. If I were you, I wouldn’t worry even for a bit.
Good luck!
Li-an, Rayzel’s assistant
I started out this diet at 137lbs…I know it’s not a lot but everyone is different lol. I also had 38.6% Body Fat so there’s thaaat.
Today is day 11( almost two weeks! ) of the HCG diet for me with the first two days being loading days. I will say that on Easter, I did eat a smaller than bite size of cake and a small portion of mac and cheesy potatoes. The next day, April 1st..I didnt gain or lose. However, I have been stuck at 131.5 ( the point has fluctuated ) since the 1st and have been following this diet to a tee. Minus..Today ( with the exception haha of Easter ) I had two slices of salami. Not sure what tomorrow weight will bring. But, I feel stuck. I drink the right amount of water and always weigh my meat and measure the amount of veggies/each day. The fruit as well. Should I expect anything to change weight wise or is this long of a stall…normal?
Hey Stephanie! Can you share how many lbs total you’ve lost in how many days on the diet so far? It sounds like you’ve lost 6.5 lbs in 8 days – if today is day 11 and you included the 2 loading days are part of your “days” count. . Is that right? If so that’s a good overall average so far. When stalls happen and you are following the protocol I typically try to look at that big picture to get a better idea of things. I have had some frustrating stalls from minor cheats like you mentioned as well which is a bummer I know. Are you getting enough sleep? That’s the other one we tend to forget that has a big impact on losses – I have a post on this you might find helpful at http://hcgchica.com/sleep – I hope that helps a little!
Has anyone done hcg as the fat source while on keto?
I see some posts about the fat fast but that is not what I am looking for.
It stands to reason,to me, that since keto diet actually needs high fat to work and hcg releases fat into the blood stream that using hcg as the fat source would be like a magical combination of the two.
Any thoughts or experiences?
Feel free to contact my e mail if that is appropriate.
Thanks
Hi there Richard!
This is a very good question- I do know there is a Facebook group designed around a keto approach to hCG you might like to check out- that would be the best place to get help with that approach – it’s called hCG 3.0 I believe- you will have to search that as I don’t have a link at moment but should be easy to find. I hope that helps! I don’t actually know much myself about using this approach with hCG.
So i’m Starting my third round and decided to use diet doc this time. There protocol is totally different from what I am use to doing. You can use lotions, the food choices are more, and they want you to use the mat oil. I start P1 tomorrow and I’m nervous to try the new protocol. I’m sure I will lose weight because I will be in ketosis but can’t I do that without HCG? Will the weight loss be faster?
Anyone tried this protocol?
Thanks
Hi Kathy!
This is Cristel, Rayzel’s assistant. Nice to meet you! 🙂
Diet Doc asked Rayzel what they wanted her to do with the people that got sent from her blog, and she told them it should be up to them- so for you, it’s up to you if you want to follow their unique protocol or the original – Rayzel views all these places as a source of hCG- that’s what the cost you’re paying for is, and you always have a choice about what protocol you follow-
so as far as her input on which way to go, we haven’t gotten enough email feedback from people following their method for us to be able to say one way or the other, so we honestly don’t know. We haven’t gotten a bunch of complaints if that helps. They do seem to have a pretty good track record, doing this online for 9 years now.
Sorry I can’t give you more specifics either way!
Hi there. Going to start in a couple weeks. For my morning coffee, can I substitute coconut oil for the milk? Maybe 1/4-1/2 tsp?
Hi Teri,
Thank you for reaching out to us. Rayzel has a post about using coconut oil while on the hCG diet that you can find here: http://hcgchica.com/coconut-oil-hcg-diet-p2/
If you decide to use a bit of coconut oil for your morning coffee, we’d love to know how it works out for you.
Gen
MCT oil (not necessarily coconut oil- the MCT is the good stuff in there) had absolutely no detrimental effects. I use it normally in maintenance in my coffee every day (helps me stay in ketosis and great food for the brain), but during my recent protocol I used it the whole time. It only enhanced my fasting and fat loss. You body chemically does not recognize it as normal fat.
This worked magnificently!
Thank you for sharing this Jenny! I continue to hear more positive feedback from those using coconut oil and MCT oil on the hCG protocol, which is really great news. Would love to hear you before/after results from doing your round with it? I’m thinking of doing a new post on the mct/coconut oil that interviews a few ladies who’ve successfully used it.
Hey Rayzel! You have been so helpful during my HCG preparation and journey! I’m on day 4 of phase 2 and feeling great! What are your thoughts on a LaCroix a day during phase 2? It is simply carbonated water and natural flavors. Do you have any experience with this?
Hi Lauren,
Thank you for your kind words. I’ll make sure Rayzel gets your feedback. She loves hearing from her readers.
La Croix, from looking at the ingredients that make up its natural flavors right on the website, it says that it has essential oils. Rayzel does see that oils do affect things on hCG. She’s not sure how much of an effect the essential oils would have. She thinks it might have to do with just how much is used. Like one person told her they put 1-2 drops of essential oil to make their own P2 soda and they lost fine but that’s only 1-2 drops. So if you take like 3 capsules for a total of mayb 1/2 tsp. of oil, that might be different story. I can’t really say for sure if La Croix is okay for P2 but if the oil there is in very minute amounts like 1-2 drops then it should be okay I guess.
If you do end up drinking La Croix regularly, I would love to know how it works out, any feedback would be nice.
Gen
I drank LaCroix all day long while on P2 on 2 rounds and still lost about 1/2lbs a day.
It states La Croix is made up of Essences: Essence is created by heating items such as fruit and vegetable skins, rinds, and remnants at high temperatures, producing vapors. These vapors are condensed and then sold by the barrel.
“The flavors are derived from the natural essence oils extracted from the named fruit used in each of our LaCroix flavors,” the La Croix website reads. “There are no sugars or artificial ingredients contained in, nor added to, these extracted flavors.”
If it’s from the fruit, it’s not fat since fruit has no fat content so I don’t think we can consider it an oily fat? It’s just a highly condensed form of the fruit… probably more like perfume.
This is my first time doing the HCG diet, I’ve just started P2. I have about 20lbs to lose. I do want to continue with some moderate exercise, so I was considering adding a protein shake for recovery after my workout. My preference is an egg white mix. A lot of them are loaded with sugar. I found one that looks promising and has 4g of sugar per serving. Is this ok? How much sugar is reasonable? and should I cut a serving of fruit out?
Hey there Dawn- hmm you know that are just so many brands these days that have no sugar at all, I don’t think it’s necessary to use a protein shake with sugar- do you? 4g of sugar if it helps is 1 teaspoon of sugar if you can picture that. My favorite egg white protein that has no sugar is by Julian Bakery – these ones:
Unflavored: https://www.amazon.com/Paleo-Protein-White-Powder-Servings/dp/B06XF5GT2G/ref=sr_1_2_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1502787712&sr=8-2&keywords=julian+bakery+egg+white+protein
Chocolate: https://www.amazon.com/Paleo-Protein-Powder-Chocolate-Whites/dp/B00H4A06XK/ref=sr_1_1_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1502787712&sr=8-1&keywords=julian+bakery+egg+white+protein
Vanilla: https://www.amazon.com/Paleo-Protein-Powder-Vanilla-Whites/dp/B01L24QZC4/ref=sr_1_3_a_it?ie=UTF8&qid=1502787712&sr=8-3&keywords=julian+bakery+egg+white+protein
These have 1 gram of sugar only. The 4g might be okay, I’m not totally sure, but ideally the less the better and it does seem like so many brands these days are sweetened with stevia or erythritol instead. I hope that helps a little! I wouldn’t cut out a serving of fruit myself with this in mind – I think you might end up getting hungry if you did that because the fiber in the fruit would be much more filling than the 4g of sugar in the protein shake. Of course I have removed fruits before myself, but always added P2 veggies and/or greek yogurt to compensate for those calories, so I supposed you could do that as well. Love, Rayzel
I mixed things like lettuce and cucumber together for a salad (to add up to only 3.5 oz total…I bought a food scale…so helpful). also used a calorie tracker so I knew that I was at or under 500cal. I also used flavored vinegars (balsamics with no added sugars – only a TBS for my “salad” or when I would oven roast things like asparagus and Brussels sprouts) I lost 40lbs in two rounds. Im 5’4 and started at 180. Going to do round 3 to hopefully lose my last 15lbs.
I recently gained 5 pounds and lost muscle mass so I am going back on the protocol to drop the total of 10 pounds over my goal weight. I do work out three times a week and I play tennis twice a week. Any advice?
I am hoping to continue my HIIT workout at a lesser intensity and still play tennis (I am 58, I don’t over do it on the courts haha!!)
Any help is welcome…..
Hi AJ!
Rayzel is used to doing Crossfit 3-4x a week in her regular life but she did not exercise on hCG. For help with deciding on that for you she has a series on that here:
http://hcgchica.com/exercise-on-the-hcg-diet-possible-pros-and-cons/
Hope that helps!
I have a hard time understanding the whole purpose of not working out…it seems counterproductive. Why?
Hi. Can we use Pam on the protocol? Are there any protein shakes that we can use as a protein substitute??? I don’t really have an appetite? Thanks
Hi Demytrik,
Rayzel does see that oils do affect things on hCG – some even stall from using lotions. She’s not sure how much of an effect the PAM would have because it’s just a small amount. She thinks it might have to do with just how much is used. If you decide to experiment with using it, can you let me know the final results/feedback so I can pass this on to others?
As for protein shakes as protein substitute, Rayzel said that as long as it doesn’t contain any sugar or carbs, it should be okay. There are lots sweetened with Stevia and Erythritol which are considered healthier. Rayzel’s favorite brand is Julian Bakery – you can find it on Amazon. She like their plain egg white protein one. She adds her own sweetener and flavoring to it, and believe it or not, their grassfed beef protein! Yes it’s really grass fed beef – tastes just like vanilla protein powder.
So if she used one, that’s what I would do but ideally real food in Rayzel’s opinion is always best and the protein powder is great as a fall back when rushed to keep things on target.
Hope that helps 🙂
Gen
I am doing hcg for the third time and will hit my target weight two weeks in. In fact, I only have two more pounds to lose. How do I adjust to maintain that weight for the final week? Should I keep taking the shots but increase my calories for the last week + 72 hours?
Hi Louise!
Yes, you’re correct. When you reach your goal, you continue the shots up to the last week and eat more of the approved foods.
Hope that helps!
I am on day 21 of my first round (with a clinic, I just found your blog). My only issue so far has been no alcohol. I do need to wind down with alcohol a couple of times a week. I have been drinking like rum or gin mixed with club soda and stevia. Only about 3 shots of alcohol per time (that’s two drinks). It’s just enough so that I can wind down and relax. I am very high strung and have my own clothing store so it can be stressful. So far it has not slowed down any weight loss. What do you think about this? I am too afraid to tell the nurse at the clinic – I don’t want a lecture – and I’m afraid she’ll tell me not to do it. Be honest at least you’re not standing in front of me looking at me like I’m an alcoholic or something.
Thanks
De Anna
HI Rayzel
First, I’d like to thank you for all you do, read your blog has kept me on track. I have a question, yiu say yiu ate 99% fat free ham, but your workbook says 97% fat free. Is one a typo, or is 97% or less fat acceptable (as a p2 modification food) in your experience.
Thanks again.
Hi! Thanks for your awesome website! I am going to start HCG soon and am interested in losing weight a little slower – around .25lbs per day rather than 0.5 (to help avoid loose skin, which I am prone to – my skin is already a touch loose). I am mainly doing HCG because it is rigid and exact and should be more predictable in results. I am doing the 800 calorie plan. If you found yourself in a situation where you were following the plan, but losing a bit quicker than you would like, how would you handle it? I want to have a game plan so I can lose weight steadily 😀 thanks again for everything! I love your videos!
Hi HCGChica!
I have been going over your site for a few weeks now, I’m currently in my third week of VLCD and have been losing almost equal amounts of lean and fat pretty much the entire time, the only time this changed was the 2 days following the removal of fruit and melba which was a week and a half ago. Otherwise I’ve been POP with the exception of 2 days when I went to a bbq and a girls night, one was a small deviation, the other was larger and I defnitely gained fat those 2 days however the lean loss has been consistent before and since then. HELP!!!!! I know this protocol works to keep you out of starvation but it’s just not working for me.
I’m using the hunger scale to determine how much to eat and on average, and with this method I’m eating between 300-400 cals or so.
I’m also on youtube as zzChickiezz
Hey @Chickie – I think we may have discussed this on periscope but some additional info you may find useful would be here: http://hcgchica.com/hcg-diet-faq/category/addresses-common-concerns-and-objections-to-the-hcg-diet/ Read the posts on muscle loss and see if that makes sense- but also remember that since you are using BIA it may be totally inaccurate. However, as you’ll read, some muscle loss when a person is very heavy is going to be completley normal, which my links explain I think. Hope this helps set your mind at ease! – Rayzel
THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!!
I had totally forgotten that you had lost muscle on the first round (yes I watched all of your rounds, except the second), that Q&A list made total sense to me about essential muscle etc etc. I’ll see if I can get a hydrostatic sometime soon. althoug I’m already at VLCD 26. But I’ll definitely use it for my next round and compare with my scale. I’ve got the fitbit Aria scale, which according to reviews was relatively accurate compared to hydrostatic. But I dunno, I’ve never done anything other than BIA. My previous naturopath had a really fancy BIA that broke down everything into fat, visceral fat, water (inside cell vs outside cells), organs, muscle and bone. But that was a long time ago and I’m not sure where she is anymore. Anyway. I want to thank you again for all your videos, your website etc. they have been immensely helpful.
welcome girl! I really hope you can find a hydrostatic test nearby – that is the best! – Rayzel @chickie
I am trying to do this Vegan. I have been thus for 20 years and am not ready to change that. What Protein recommendations would you have? (currently I have been eating “Chops” 120 cals 9g carbs and 19g protein or “Boca” burgers I usually eat 2 fora total of 140 cals 12 carbs and 1 gram of fat and 26g protein.) I have looked at other things and they either have fat in them or they are full of carbs… Any help or reassurance would be great!
Can a glass of wine or a shot of vodka with water and lemon replace a fruit during P2?
Hi @Robin I sure wish! Those who have done things like this always have a pretty large gain, so I would not advise it at all. Sorry! Bummer huh. – Rayzel
Thanks Chica, this is the first time I have done HCG correctly. Mostly because of your info. Getting ready to start round 2, this time with the Rx, instead of HHCG. Looking forward to it, and much more relaxed about the whole process. Thanks again, I know this has all got to take up a lot of your time, but I, and the others on you site really appreciate it!
I have a question, I just realized that the product I’ve been using is hormone free, the company says that the product does the same thing w amino acids and herbs, make the body burn stored fat , I think I want to try the shots, my question is this, I’ve been using the drops and following the p2 protocol foe almost 3 weeks, I’ve lost 9lbs including the 4 I gained during my load days, so should I start all over and do 2 load days now? My goal was to lose 15lbs so istll hav 10lbs to go…any feedback would be greatly appreciated…ps I love thus site!
Why can’t your heart rate get above 120
Hello Everyone. This is my fifth day of the HCG diet. I loaded for two days. So far I have lost about a pound a day. I am not hungry at all and can not even eat all the food allotted for the diet. Do you think it’s going to cause any problems down the road because I’m not eating everything we’re allotted for a day or for the meals? I’m just not hungry. Also, I plan to do the long round. Do I count the day I break from the first shot or the first day on the VLCD, or does it matter as long as I do it on the same day every week after I begin a skip day?
Hi K. I’ll jump in here for you and tell you to count your injections (regardless of loading day or skip day) up to the number of injections you’re doing (40?) and be sure to stay on the VLCD for 2 additional days after your last injection (72 hours), i.e., count injections, not days. I also had no hunger and sometimes skipped a food item rather than feel I was stuffing myself. Maybe save it for later, or not, but don’t combine with the other meal. Just be sure to eat all protein prescribed. Have you read Dr. Simeons’ book? It’s short and free on the web. He explains about skipping food and how to count your injections plus so much more.