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When Can You Begin the hCG Protocol Again? You Know, Hop Back on the Wagon?
I know why you’re asking this. I know how you think because believe me my mind has gone there too. You want to get this whole weight loss and getting-beautiful-body thing FASTER if possible. So we’re going to talk original protocol, how some do it faster, but also why I recommend even SLOWER than original protocol in many cases. I’m thinking about our long term future here ladies which requires us to set our antsiness aside sometimes. Stick with me here.
This will be a 3 part series- before we get into the nitty gritty in parts 2 and 3, let’s break down the most basic information for the technically required breaks between rounds on the hCG Diet. Later we will also discuss if/when we can get away from the technical correctness of these breaks and do something a little different (we women like to be different don’t we).
Per Dr. Simeons, Phase 3 is always 3 weeks long.
Time to wait between rounds of hCG:
Round 1 and Round 2: 6 weeks total
Round 2 and Round 3: 8 weeks total
Round 3 and Round 4: 10 weeks total
Round 4 and Round 5: 12 weeks total
ETC…..
As you can see there is 2 weeks added to each successive round.
If you are gearing up to start your next round of hCG now, you can check out my current recommendations for buying prescription hCG online – you do not need a prior prescription to get this, the companies I’ve listed have their own legit medical staff that will approve you through a legal telehealth model and all the hCG sent from them comes from qualified compounding pharmacies in the U.S.
After the 3 Weeks of Phase 3
What do you do during the remaining weeks left after you complete the 3 weeks of P3?
Typically you enter P4, where you can start gradually adding healthy starches/sugars and see which ones your body likes and which ones make you gain, or others choose to live in a perpetual modified P3. I will discuss in another post why P3 might end up being longer than 3 weeks at times in the future. But for now, these are the basic rules.
But you know there is always more to it than the basic rules right?
Questions We Might Ask Ourselves
Often once we discover this protocol and how quick it can be for weight loss, an inner desire to get to our goal weight as fast as humanely possible starts brewing.
This seems natural- who wants to delay achieving the ultimate goal when the path to getting there seems perfectly clear right?
The original diet as Dr. Simeons wrote it called for taking designated breaks of a certain amount of weeks that increased successively with each round you Do. Why did he have it this way? His reasoning was he found some people seemed to develop an immunity to the hormone and this prevented or cured it. To be honest, I haven’t really seen immunity actually happen.
However there ARE reasons that taking these breaks into consideration seriously has merit.
The majority of us follow many aspects of the original diet, but have chosen to try minor changes here and there based on our personal feelings. I’m not against this because I have done this myself and, when the changes are made strategically, can work out well – it has for me.
These are the questions I wanted to answer in relation to that.
These questions are answered in the following posts:
Extending Your Round or Taking Shorter Break
Part 2: Extended Rounds and Shorter Breaks on the hCG Diet Than Usual – this addresses the question of whether it can work well to do the hCG protocol for a longer period of time without stopping OR to take a shorter break than usual between rounds.
Watch Jane’s Full Interview here
Slowing Down Your Journey On Purpose – Read if You Feel Like You Want to Hurry It
Part 3: Why It May Be SMART to Not Rush Your hCG Journey TOO Much – this addresses the question of whether or not taking a LONGER break from the hCG diet can be a wise choice long term.
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Yup, I want this!
Sadly. I just finished my 7th round. I have yo-yo’ed. I did a 60 day round. I went down 31 lbs. I would like to do one more round. I just started p3, LDW 239. How long should I wait?
Prior round was April 2023
Hi Reyn!
If you follow the chart then that would be 14 weeks including the P3.
Hope this helps!
I’ve totally blown my second round. I thought I planned well and that it would be perfect timing – I didn’t have any travel or social engagements coming up, no major holidays, it was the start of a new year, etc. Then my cat died, my relationship ended, and I caught a terrible virus all within the first week. Around day 3, I ended up in a situation with limited food choices and had some corn chips because I was absolutely starving. I kept on trying to get back on the wagon, though. I would have a few good days, reach a new low, then have a two day carb blowout and gain it all back. Because I wasn’t staying in ketosis consistently, my appetite never regulated and I’ve spent a lot of time on this diet hungry (I also suspect the clinic I was going through had me on the wrong dose). I’ve tried really hard to at least cheat smarter – on protein and fats instead of carbs, for instance – but the comfort food just keeps luring me back. I’ll take my last injection tomorrow and I’m exactly where I was when I finished my first round. I guess I just don’t even know how much good it would do me to try to do the stabilization phase? My second round basically turned into an extended stabilization phase of my first round. I believe in the HCG diet, but timing is everything. I think I want to try again after my birthday in April, which will give me a little more than 8 weeks of “rest” between rounds.
What do you think is the most important thing for me to focus on in the meantime?
FR SW: 218
FR LIW: 195 (this was just a four week program)
2R SW: 199 (203 after loading)
Today: 195.6
Hi Lydia,
Rayzel also failed her 2nd round and here’s what she said to others who had a difficult round like hers: https://hcgchicahelphub.com/if-i-totally-cheated-on-the-first-2-weeks-of-the-hcg-diet-should-i-just-quit-and-restart-later/
I hope that helps!
Lucelle
hcgchica’s assistant
I’m interested in watching the other two videos in this series but I don’t see a link to them anywhere. Can you please provide one for me?
Hi Cara,
The other posts about this topic are here: https://hcgchica.com/length-of-time-on-the-hcg-diet-and-breaks-from-hcg/
Hope that helps!
Hello. I am currently in P2 and have 28 days left..which gets me to Thanksgiving and the day after..I originally figured that I would load up again on these days and start another 21-30 day round after that. I’m seeing now that it’s suggested to take 6 weeks in between, at this point I’m considering just making this a 42 day round..(in order to at least get somewhere I’d be okay stabilizing at) that would then mean, thanksgiving would kinda sorta be a planned interruption? Or cheat days??..not really sure what I should do, stick to my plan of making those loading days or classify these 2 days as either of the above mentioned? Thank in advance!
211 after loading currently 204 day 3 of R1P2 goal weight 148
Hi Jasmine,
Yes, breaks in between are important so I would suggest doing an interruption instead.
hello,
I finished the 40 days HCG protocol June 25th and will be done with my maintaining phase tomorrow July 25th . I want to Start round 2. I read that I should wait 30 days between my last drops and starting again, and also read wait additional 30 days after the maintenance phase, and your blog is telling me 6 weeks. I am so confused. Any guidance would be greatly appreciated!
Hi Leann,
That should be 6 weeks from your last dose. Then you add 2 more weeks for succeeding rounds.
Hope that helps!
Li-an, Rayzel’s assistant
Hello Rayzel I think I’ve become immune to the Hcg. I need help with this issue.
Hi Ashleigh,
What do you mean that you’re immune to it?
Li-an, Rayzel’s assistant
I need clarity. Is the time you wait between rounds counting when you are actually taking the hcg or does it also include the 3 weeks of phase 3?
For example
Phase 1 & 2 end on March 31
Phase 3 start on April 1 – end phase 3 on April 22
is the 6 week break between round from March 21 or April 22?
Hi Alisha,
The 6 weeks should start the day you stopped the injections which is the end of phase 2, march 31.
Hope that helps!
Hi Rayzel,
How are you? I need some inspiration and guidance I did the HCG properly for about 15 days straight and it was great, then I had an emotional setback. Now I haven’t fully stopped taking the drops because I think everyday I am going to get back on the track but haven’t in over 20 days. I keep eating carbs and the food my son doesn’t eat, mostly bread he doesn’t eat, rice, pasta and occasional fries. So those are problems 1 and 2.
1. Do I have to stop the drops all together?
2. For how long do I have to wait before I can start again?
3. How do I deal with getting rid of my dependence on carbs/sweets etc?
Like you I love crossfit, so if I can’t get rid of my dependence on carbs should I just go and workout double time?
Need something positive to help me, I want to lose at least 70lbs.
Sincerely,
Mags
Hi Mags,
This is Li-an, Rayzel’s assistant. Nice to meet you!
If you have so much going on, it would be better to stop the drops completely as doing the diet incorrectly with the hCG in your body is not good for you in the long run. You should do the transition to P3 and do it for 3 weeks, then wait for another 3-4 weeks before starting another round. I was also a sugar addict and the only way to get rid of it personally for me was stopping it completely. Sugar tends to cause addiction that’s why it’s very difficult to remove it gradually for me. And this is same with Rayzel’s experience. I remember there’s this one lovely lady that Rayzel interviewed, she said she literally threw away all the sugary foods in her pantry – I know it’s hard but I get her point that you won’t want it if you don’t have it.
Unfortunately though, if you can’t eliminate the bad carbs, hCG may not be for you. the hCG diet is so strict and we’re trying to get rid of all these in those 3-6 weeks of the protocol. But of course, you can definitely do other diet that you think is easier and bearable 🙂
Hope that helps somehow!
Honestly I would buy from you but your blog IS THE MOST CONFUSING thing I have ever read.
Lol! Well…thanks for taking the time to write in Stephanie. I’d agree with you except that I’ve had literally thousands of people tell me otherwise. Best of luck finding another blog that suits you better. 🙂
Rayzel you are a wonderful detailed informative resource. You have gone to extensive time and effort love and dedication to bring to us so many resources that are free. I applaud you for your dedication and in sharing all of your wealth of knowledge with us all while raising a family. Your time and effort and genuine care for people comes across wholly and completely.
So I have a question about the 3 days between phase 2 and 3 when youre supposed to let the hcg get out of your system? Im scaed to eat anything for fear of gaining weight… Today is day 1 and so far ive only eaten an 🍎. Am i still just doing 500 calories? What can i add.
Hi Liz,
This is Lucelle, Rayzel’s assistant. Nice to meet you! 🙂
Here’s a helphub article that can help answer your question: https://hcgchicahelphub.com/how-to-eat-during-the-72-hours-after-my-last-hcg-dose-and-how-do-i-transition-into-phase-3/
Hope this helps!
I agree! I do appreciate all the information here and I can tell that the website creators have put in so much effort but the blogs get confusing and a little overwhelming. It might be helpful to start by clearly explaining what the phases mean exactly? I’m currently on HCG but I have no clue what phase I’m on. I just know the loading days, HCG days, and B12 days. Or maybe utilize graphic organizers (charts and tables). That would make it simpler for everyone! We aren’t experts. I’m literally looking for a HCG-For-Dummies kind of guide. As Michael Scott said, “explain it to me like I’m five”. 😂
Hi Mia,
Rayzel has the basics of hCG here: https://hcgchica.com/learn-the-basics-of-the-hcg-diet/ 🙂
Do you recommend to take longer breaks between rounds only if we do the rounds immediately after one another? I haven’t done HCG in several months. (5 months- and when I did I had to stop about 12 days into it because I got strep throat and was advised to stop). So now it’s going to be June by the time I start… So I’ll do 30 days (1 vial)… then a break … then the next vial. Can I go back to the 6 week break? Or is 3 weeks ok?
Also, I want to do 30 days because if I do 42 days, I feel like it is a waste of 18 days of HCG which is left over. Would I be likely to lose more by doing two 30 day rounds, verses one round of 42 days? Thanks!!!!!
I did over 40 days on HCG and lost 20 pounds. I didn’t do the maintenance and have gained 12 pounds back. I went back on HCG for 30 days through a different company than this one and did not lose anything. I also wasn’t eating perfect either.
I feel like I’m in a place to try another round. How long do I need to wait to go back on the HCG?
I would love to know the answer to this as well. I did one round but gained all the weight back. I want to start again . How long should I wait.?
In general In find that regardless of whether a round went well or get’s aborted, it’s best to wait the full time as mentioned in the blogpost, or even longer- this seems to make it so that you have better more consistent weight loss results on your next round- when done too close together, people seem to struggle with stalling and feeling not well on the diet because they are stressing their body out too much and not giving it time to recover. I hope that helps you decide!
My question is why don’t they sell the HCG in the increments we need….it’s either too much or too little
Hi Cindy,
It would actually be more costly to custom create each vial based on each person – the cost for hCG in the U.S. is not really from the hCG itself, it’s from the educated medical staff that are legally required to prescribe it – the hCG isn’t that expensive. It’s must faster to make 1,000 to 10,000 vials of hCG at one time all with the same amount in them. When you throw excess away, that’s a VERY tiny amount of the cost you paid for your kit.
Gen 🙂
Hi HCGChica! Maybe you already covered this, but I bought 2 vials of HCG for the discount. If one vial of .125 injections lasts me the first 28 days (which is what the label says its good for until it loses it’s effectiveness) do I need to mix the second $180 vial to use for the last 12 injections to follow Dr. Simeons 40 day protocol (wasting 2/3’s of the HCG?) If so, you’re saying after shot 40, I do the 2 days of continued 500 calories, then the 3 weeks (no starch, no sugar) and then 3 more weeks like that of Phase 3 before I can buy and start a new bottle to continue with my weight loss? I finished shot 10 this morning (2 days loading and 8 days/500 cals) and am down 14 pounds but I want to lose 50! 🙁
Hi Michelle!
Yes, you’re correct. I know, it’s such a waste.. that’s why others who don’t want to throw away the hCG choose to do 40+ days in one round ( this is hard because you will need a lot of will power to stay on protocol for a long period of time) or they just stop after 4 weeks after finishing the first vial then take a break and then start another round using the 2nd vial.
Hope that helps you decide!
Lucelle
My first time doing the 23 days HCg program didn’t go very well because I skipped couple of days injection and cheated a lil bit every now and then. I only lost 9lbs and know I could have lost more if I were to stick to the strict diet plan. It has been three weeks since my last injection of the 23 days and I would like to give it another round and this time be more disciplined and stick to the 500cal diet and not skip a day. What happens if I start on four weeks after my last injection? My wedding is in late December and I’m hoping I get to lose few more pounds before the big day. I’ll be changing doctors as well and wondering if I should inform him about the first round I did.
Hi Soraya!
Rayzel has a blog post that might help you here:
http://hcgchica.com/extended-hcg-diet-rounds-short-3-week-hcg-diet-breaks/
-Lucelle
After I start the second round of injections (following a 6 week Phase 3 diet), what Phase diet do I eat? Back to 1 or move to 2? Sorry if that seems like a silly question.
You will have to do Phase 1 again when you start a new round. Hope that helps!
With a 6 week break in between rounds 1 and 2, do I do 3 weeks Phase 3 and 3 weeks Phase 4 or just 6 weeks phase 3?
Hey Christina- it’s your choice really. Many do stay in Phase 3 just because many eat low carb in general. But you can enter Phase 4 and start trying out small amounts of grains and higher carb foods again as well if you choose and see how you body responds- I still recommend to do this cautiously though!
can i start another round in two days after i close my first round
How long is a round? I did 2 20 ish days. Toward the end it stopped working. So was that one round or two? Should have I waited 6 weeks?
Hello, I am 14 days in and I am only losing .2 lbs a day. I am super strict with the diet and follow protocol a 100%. I’m super frustrated and went to quit. I’m worried if I stop now I’m going to gain weight. Is this likely? Anyone stop before the 23 days? What was your experience like? I am not over weight, I did this for the stubborn 5-10 lbs I have tried to lose naturally.
Hi Rochelle,
Actually, if you are only 10 lbs overweight, weight comes off really slower. You cannot compare the weight loss of someone with 50+ lbs to lose to your 10lbs. Basically, the larger the amount of weight you need to lose – which is mostly fat, the larger the amount of weight loss in a short span of time is expected when following the protocol.
Rayzel has a discussion here about the weight loss on hCG: http://hcgchica.com/how-quick-is-hcg-weightloss/
Re: the stopping, the shorter hCG round is actually 21 days (3 weeks) & you definitely won’t have a problem if you will do the Phase 3 (stabilization phase) properly.
Hope this helps!
Li-an, Rayzel’s assistant
hello Hcg Chica! I have recently finished my first round…and reached my goal for weightloss. i am a crossfitter too and work out and eat healthy. I totally dropped the ball and binged out on peanut butter during maintenance phase and had drops left so i started injections again (per my coaches recommendation). I basically have cheated every single day since (on hcg) and went from 124 to 129. i did not do the loading phase and I don’t think it was quite 3 weeks on the stabilization phase. I am concerned I totally jacked up my metabolism! so what should I do? stop injections and do the 72 hours of 500 cals and start stabilizing now at this new weight?! i also went up almost 2 % body fat. :((( I want to cycle the hcg for body fat loss only…do i need to do loading days?? (how did you feel okay with this when you were already at your goal weight and eating so well?!)
Hi stopped my hcg drops and diet for two weeks can i restart and do another round?
Hi @Elisa Eguiarte – yes people do this successfully fairly frequently – in fact my latest interview did this:
http://hcgchica.com/hcg-diet-interviews-episode-27/
I hope that helps!- Rayzel
Hi.i have been on hcg for 3 mnths now.i have come down to 143.3lbs from 176.37. I took my last injection today as i am planning to stop here,maintain this weight and then try some other diet in order to loose another 22.05lbs,and that will bring me down to the perfect weight.
Quite honestly,i am scared to get off this diet after my 72 hours are over.I am scared i would gain back alllllll that i have lost.i need guidance. What diet should i follow after this time period and for how long in order to keep this weight put.Once my weight gets stable,what other diet would you suggest for further weight loss.the reason i do not want to continue this is that i cant afford it.it weighs heavy on my pocket and i want to try other methods now. HELP PLEASE!
Hi @Arj I know it really can be a bit nervewracking to begin Phase 3- but it will be okay. For right now, I have all my posts which gives some guidance on navigating Phase 3 in this section of my blog here: http://hcgchica.com/phase-3-questions/ I think that will help you make a few decisions.
For further weight loss I have a SUPER cheap suggestion for you – in fact, it’s free- intermittent fasting. I follow Brad Pilon’s method called Eat Stop Eat and it’s been the way I”ve not only maintained for almost 3 years now but also periodically lost 5-6 lbs of fat when things got out of whack with either my eating or my hormones/body. I think it’s the best thing since cheese. :)-
Hey hcg chica!
You how finally laid it out for me in a way I can understand but I have a question or two! First, I only want to do phase 3 before starting again… I do not want to wait 6 whole weeks. So my plan is December 1st – January 2nd I do stage 3 and one week stage 4… Secondly do I have to load for 1-2 days again?
Thanks!!!!
hi, i am on my hcg diet round 1, day 30 ( still on the diet ) and i have lost 24 lbs so far. i am so excited because it would have taken me a long and tiring 6 months to lose this weight. i have no side effects to the hcg injection i am using and i feel great. my start weight was 243 lbs and now i weigh 218 lbs. my question is, i have been hearing of the FAGE DAY and EGG DAY for hcg part two, should i try it because my weight has been stalling for three days now. the apple day is definitely not working for me.
Hi @hcgdietchica:disqus I completed phase 2 and got to my goal weight of 113 (I am super short). However half way through phase 3 I totally gave in and went bing eating crazy, I was on vacation 🙁 Now i’ve gained all of it back and fast. It’s been close to 6 weeks since I stopped phase 2 can I go a head and start over or do I need to wait longer? Thanks
Hi, I am so happy to see true success stories. I have lost 50 lbs on HCG drops in the last year. I did a short round 4 over the holiday’s but did have “wine” and began p3 on Christmas Eve. I had family arrive the next day and we ate out for a week. I did stabalize and have maintained my LDW until a couple of weeks ago. My weight has been creeping a up and I am now 4 lbs over ldw. Even though my eating hasn’t changed. I want to start round 5, 2 weeks early. I plan to do another short round. Any advice?
Hey @triciawon:disqus hmm- what would like to hear? I’m glad you are encouraged by the success stories! Helps keep us all motivated and inspired to keep trying and making good decisions. I guess one little piece of advice is if you haven’t tried it already, I highly recommend loading for hCG clean – here’s my article on that: http://hcgchica.com/loading-low-carb-clean-hcg-diet/ I hope that helps!
My question will be answered in the next video. I can’t wait. Can I stay
on HCG for 50 days?????? Or how about…. I’lI keep going until I get
hungry? I’ll report my results. It will be an experiment for everyone.
It is so cool how this video is exactly what I needed right now. Thanks
Chica
Would love to hear your experiences with whatever you choose to do- that enables me to pass the info along to others!
After your videos (Thank You!) I decided to stop my injections at the 42 days. YEAH! I was not hungry after… I lowered my dose from 2.5 down to 1.66 abt.That was hard to do. Who would think less was more?
I’m on p3d14. I went from 258.4 to now 225.2. I really wanted to lose 40 lbs. LOL! Don’t we all! I’m pretty good at losing on this diet. & I’m GREAT at gaining it back! Since I gained back 60+ lbs. in 2 years after HCG success of losing weight. I need to do something different. I’m going to try to learn how to stabilize this time. I always have a hard time stabilizing, so I usually skip that part and move onto P1 again.
Right now No sugar, No carbs and eating about 1100 – 1500 calories. I had to do 1 steak day and 1 protein day already to get back to my LIW. I’m going to do more reading on p3. I Like P3 I need to get to P4. HELP!
Hey Brenda- how is it going now? Hope you are stabilizing well- I think you were smart to try that out this time. Also just making sure you have the correct LIW #- it’s the weight you were the morning OF your last dose of hCG- not after the 3 days with no hCG- sometimes people get this confused and then have a really tough time trying to stick to that final number.
I’m confused as to how people are doing the 40 days on hcg? Does that mean you are not going into phase 3 and just keep injecting for the remainder of the time? Are you stopping at 23 days and redoing phase 1? Are you decreasing your dose during that time?
Also, I am done with P2, lost 20 pounds and start P3 tomorrow. When do I start counting the 6 weeks until I can restart the injections?
Hi Christy!
You can stay on hCG (Phase 2) for 40 days without stopping and you start counting the 6 weeks when you start Phase 3.
Hope that helps!
Great post, Rayzel! I’m getting ready to start round 5 (95 pounds lost so far) and I’ve always taken the breaks. I think I really needed that time to prepare myself mentally for the next round. On one of my rounds I took a longer break so I wouldn’t be on P2 over the holidays. I didn’t want to set myself up to fail. I have known of people who did get immune, but it didn’t last forever. Eventually, they were able to use hCG again.
Thanks lisa! wow 95 lbs down- that is simply amazing. Yes I think for me it has been the same- good you knew that about yourself. You are very smart to think ahead like that.
Thanks, Rayzel!
Hey lisa- how it’s going? I was thinking to myself- since you have lost 95 lbs with hCG (probably more now- I’m guess your 5th round is over) what would you think of doing an hcg interview with me? I need some new people- everyone finds the interviews so inspiring and it’s time I came out with some more- you don’t have to make a final decision right away- I can explain it to you a little more if you like if you feel nervous- it’s really no big deal at all- let me know k? You can email me [email protected] and we can chat more about it. Pretty please? 😉