Foreword
The HCG diet is a program that has generated significant interest from scientists, weight loss clinics and the public. By default, this interest has also generated a ton of information as well as misinformation. The purpose of this article is to discuss my information on the subject in a clear, easy to understand manner.
By the end you should understand what the diet is, what to look out for, who to trust and why to look at studies.
Don’t worry though, you can navigate directly to the part you want to read by clicking your topic of interest below. I will include sources within the article that you can visit if you want to confirm the information. At the bottom of the article there will be links to more topics that relate to this information.
I am writing this as a former industry employee that is having a discussion with a friend. The information is going to be straight shooting and will mix scientific data with opinions based on that data.
My goal is to make sure the reader is well informed about every aspect of the diet and the industry. I believe there will be information provided here that has never been revealed online before due to my experience inside the business.
Pro tip: Click on the table of contents to jump to the section you want to read.
Our HCG Diet Reviews
We breakdown 11 different online HCG sources in our HCG diet reviews post to find out who the best suppliers are.
What Makes Me an Expert in HCG?
First thing is first, I do not think I am an expert in HCG. I am not a doctor or scientist and I do not have an advanced degree in biology, physiology or any field of study that would qualify me to teach or lecture students on this hormone.
Wow, that hurt my pride a little bit. I guess I better discuss what I can offer and why you should keep reading.
My background was getting websites online exposure through search results. It was not always HCG products either. My first real office job in this field involved promoting the online education courses of major US institutions that you all have likely heard of.
My intro to the HCG industry
It was my second in office job that finally exposed me to the HCG diet. In order to get exposure for a website you have to do research and a lot of it! You have to be able to provide content for people who are searching for it because if you do not, you will never appear in search results. No search results means no job!
I spent 45-50 hours a week for several years doing almost nothing but learning about HCG. This includes the diet, the competition, the fakes, the real stuff and the science. To put that in perspective, this is more than 12,000 actual hours of reading and writing about the subject.
I was communicating with affiliates, doctors, customers and I even witnessed legal issues surrounding buying and selling HCG. I intend to talk about all of that because if you are into that sort of stuff, it is pretty interesting.
Now, onto the basics just in case you have no idea of what I am talking about yet.
What is HCG?
HCG stands for Human Chorionic Gonadotropin is a hormone that is prevalent in women when they become pregnant. In fact, when a woman becomes pregnant the pregnancy test is designed to test for HCG. A positive test means “congratulations, you’re pregnant!”
The fact that HCG is present in pregnant women is why the HCG diet is sometimes called “the pregnancy diet”.
This is a little off topic but since we are talking about HCG and pregnancy tests I want to let you know that a pregnancy test is NOT a valid way to test if your HCG is real.
You’re probably asking yourself, why would I think that anyway? Good question.
Testing HCG with a pregnancy test
The answer is that we had an affiliate with a big following that would test the HCG injections with a pregnancy test. Of course, many of her followers would do the same thing. Then when they would receive a vial that did not test positive, they would call us and complain that they did not get HCG and either wanted another vial or a refund.
Let me explain a couple of things before I move on.
First, the amount of HCG a woman produces when she is pregnant far exceeds the HCG in a tiny insulin syringe. The test would have to be extremely sensitive to detect that amount of HCG.
Second and more importantly, HCG requires a prescription and should be coming from a pharmacy. When a pharmacy compounds a batch of HCG, they have to send samples from that batch to an independent testing facility.
That testing facility tests for purity, potency and sterility. If the samples fail these tests the pharmacy has to dispose of that entire batch of HCG. Testing pharmaceutical products is not cheap even if the samples pass the tests. Failing the tests is even more expensive making it a very poor business model to try to sell prescription HCG that does not meet quality standards.
Pounds and Inches: How HCG Became Part of a Diet plan
In order to explain how the HCG diet was developed I have to explain its history.
The HCG diet was founded by a British endocrinologist named Albert T.W. Simeons in the 1950’s. An endocrinologist’s job is to diagnose and treat conditions and diseases that are related to hormonal issues.
According to the information in his manuscript, he first felt that the HCG hormone could aid in weight loss after treating boys that had a delayed puberty condition.
He treated these boys with a small daily dose of HCG via subcutaneous injection (also known as a sub-Q injection). It was during this treatment that he noticed that not only were the boys developing but they were also changing their body composition.
Another observation he made was while he was studying malnourished women who were also pregnant. During the study he found that even though the mothers were consuming very few daily calories, the newborns were healthy and of normal size and weight.
As I mentioned just a moment ago, HCG is produced by a woman when she becomes pregnant. Dr. Simeons felt that there was a connection between changing body shape, being able to sustain yourself with very few calories and the hormone HCG.
The doctor then decided to test his theory on obese test subjects by combining a very low calorie diet and HCG injections. In 1954 he published his findings in a manuscript called “Pounds and Inches: A New Approach to Obesity”.
(There is a copy of the original HCG diet manuscript if you are interested in reading the thoughts of Dr Simeons in the “More Info” section)
Dr. Simeons was given the Red Cross Order of Merit by the Queen of England in 1931 for his work on malaria.
What Exactly is the HCG Diet?
Very simply, the HCG diet is a 500-calorie diet plan that when used in combination of daily doses of HCG is supposed to result in weight loss while also acting as an appetite suppressant.
Sounds crazy right? Eating just 500 calories and not feeling hungry?
Well, that was his theory and what he claimed in his manuscript. The diet is broken up into four separate phases and there are limited food items to choose from. There other restrictions you are supposed to observe which I will mention later.
The upside is that the diet only lasts between 26-40 days before you are supposed to take a break.
One point I would like to make before we move on. It is the diet that causes the loss of weight but it is the HCG that causes your body to change and helps fight off hunger.
This is important because it will come up later.
HCG Diet Food List
The original Simeons protocol is very particular with its approved food list. He claimed that deviating from his program could cause weight loss progress to stall for several days. Dr. Simeons also wrote that sometimes during the second half of the program that some patients may plateau. His plan had solutions for this situation as well.
Breakfast- Coffee or tea, no sugar allowed, only one tablespoon of milk per 24 hour period.
Lunch/Dinner- A serving of lean meat weighing 100 grams or approximately 3.5 ounces. Remove all visible fat.
A fruit.
A vegetable.
A bread stick or a piece of Melba toast. That’s al folks.
HCG Diet Approved Meats
- chicken
- veal
- beef
- white fish
- shrimp
- crab
- lobster
HCG Diet Approved Vegetables
- green salad
- chard
- spinach
- chicory
- beet greens
- tomatoes
- onions
- fennel
- celery
- red radish
- asparagus
- cucumbers
- asparagus
- cabbage
HCG Diet Approved Fruit
- apple
- strawberries
- half of a grapefruit
That is the list and you are not allowed to modify the choices. You can spread out the food to suit your needs however. For example, if you want to skip your apple at lunch you can save it for a snack in between lunch and dinner or for before bed.
The original Dr. Simeons diet plan did not allow substitutions.
The Four Phases of the HCG Diet
Phase one of the diet plan is commonly called the loading phase. This is when you start taking your HCG injections but you DO NOT start the diet yet. You not only can eat whatever you want anytime you want; you are encouraged to include high fat foods. It is not until you take the third injection of HCG that you start the 500-calorie diet.
Phase two of the diet is the time you are following the HCG diet plan. The food selection comes from the approved food list. This period is known as the weight loss phase. Depending on how much fat you are carrying you should lose an average of a pound a day according to the Simeons manuscript.
Phase three of the HCG diet is the maintenance phase. This is where you stop taking HCG and you slowly begin to add calories after three days. Even though you are not taking HCG anymore it can stay in your system for an additional week. A couple of notes about phase three: It is a three-week phase in which you continue to limit your sugar and carbohydrate intake. Also, you should continue to weigh yourself daily and you should not gain more than two pounds in the three weeks since you stopped the HCG injection.
Phase four is not always mentioned because it is the rest of your life phase. According to the literature, this phase comes after you have reached your goal weight. If you have not you can do another round of HCG after you take at least six weeks off. You still should be close to the weight you ended at after phase two but you should get to your goal before moving on.
Transition to lifelong healthy eating habits
The rest of your life phase is about healthy eating habits which believe it or not you were taught in phase two. Let’s break it down for a moment.
A lean protein with every meal, a serving of veggies with every meal, a fruit with every meal. That sounds pretty healthy right? Also, limit fats including oils and butter when preparing food and be careful with carbs, especially sugar. Any opposition to this type of diet? That’s exactly what people on the HCG diet have been doing all along. The only difference is instead of eating only 500 calories a day you will eat as many calories that you need to eat to stay healthy and fit yet keeps you within a couple of pounds of your goal weight.
The other difference is you no longer will be taking HCG.
HCG Diet Stalls and Plateaus: Apple Day and Steak Day
The HCG diet has recommended adjustments should you experience a stall in weight loss. One occurs during the weight loss phase, the other during the maintenance phase.
Apple day comes during the weight loss phase or phase two of the program. If you experience a stall in weight loss for two days in a row you can eat 6 large apples the next day. You are allowed to drink as much water as you like that day but nothing else.
Steak day comes during the maintenance phase or phase three of the program. If you have gained more than two pounds during this time you should skip breakfast and lunch and eat a large steak for dinner. You can add an apple or large tomato to this meal.
Now that we have covered the basics we can get into the more interesting stuff. Well at least it is more interesting to me.
More HCG Diet Information
HCG Weight Loss– Part II of the HCG diet Manifesto.
HCG Prescription Guide– Part III of the HCG Diet Manifesto
HCG Diet Book– HCG Diet Manifesto on AMAZON
HCG Injection Buying Guide– Still interested buying HCG online? This guide walks you through the process. Includes what to expect, what you get and the best online source for real US HCG shots.
Mikes HCG Diet Before and After 30 pounds in 30 days– My buddy Mike tried the program while I was working in the industry. He allowed me to use his pictures.
My Diet Doc Review– Easily the best online HCG supplier for US HCG shots in the industry. Full review.
NuImage Medical Review– A review of a company that no longer sells HCG.
Riverfront MD Review– Review of another vendor that no longer sells HCG
Original Dr. Simeons Pounds and Inches HCG Diet Book– The Official HCG Diet manuscript
HCG Diet Basics– More about the famous Dr. Simeons and the plan.
Phases of the HCG Diet Plan– A recap of what we already discussed here.
Another HCG Diet Before and After– Some HCG shot information with examples.
HCG for Men– Additional information for men.
Alternatives to the HCG Diet and other Weight Loss Info
Buy Semaglutide – Recently FDA approved for weight loss drug. Called a game changer, learn more about it here. No need for a very low calorie diet.
HCG Diet Alternatives – Some options if you do not want HCG
MK-677 Ibutamoren – Growth hormone releasing product that has been studied with a low calorie diet
Dr Urshan Review – An overview of a local non HCG clinic
Lipo B12 Injection Info – A summary of Lipotopic injections
Very Low Calorie Diet Info – Research results of VCLD’s
