A New Kind of "Diet" - the HCG Protocol

I can't say that I've had many weight problems growing up.  I was thin and perfectly content with my weight until I got married.  It may have been my new husband's mad cooking skills or the fact I was a professional nanny sitting around watching children and eating all day, but whatever it was, I was finally educated in the lifestyle, habits and emotions of the overweight.  Even with my extra padding, I couldn't complain all too much as I never achieved the clinical status of obese (adj. very fat or overweight; corpulent).  But not feeling good about your body, whether because it's too fat, thin, unhealthy, whatever, is not a fun place to be in.  Thus began my journey to becoming thinner and healthier.

I first started with eating healthier food and working out at a gym almost every day.  I'm sure I became healthier and ended up trading some fat for muscle, but it was still discouraging to not lose any weight.  After getting pregnant with Jayce, I stumbled upon the Atkins diet which a friend of mine had tried successfully.  I thought I'd give it a shot, and as I'm a protein body type and didn't have to limit the amount of fat, I was extremely successful at it, losing about 15-20 pounds pretty quickly.  I felt so good with so much more energy, I just knew this was going to be my new lifestyle.  After another pregnancy and another successful course of low-carb dieting, I was able to keep most of the weight off and feel pretty good.  However I have never been able to get past my plateau weight - you know, that weight you could possibly be content at for the rest of your life, but you'd prefer to lose more.  Plus the low-carb, high-protein lifestyle is one you have to be pretty good about all of the time - any cheating or gorging on sweets/carbs, and you've got another couple pounds to lose again.

After my fourth pregnancy which ended in my first C-section ever, my body rebelled.  The trauma it had endured rendered my body unable to lose even one pound afterward, and I ended up holding on to the weight as well as that unhealthy "off" feeling for another year.  Visiting my naturopath and going through a cleanse, taking supplements and exercising every day did wonders for getting me back on my feet and back to health again.  In conjunction with the Atkins, I ended up losing the 20 pounds of pregnancy weight of which my body had refused to let go.  Finally I was headed somewhere!  But I hit my plateau again and haven't budged since.  No matter how much I exercise, how little carbs I eat, I can't lose any more weight.  Enter the HCG Protocol...

Upon first hearing about the HCG diet regimen, I dismissed it immediately, thinking it sounded illogical and unhealthy - another dangerous fad which the desperate dieters were willing to try.  Never would I subject my body to the loading required in the first couple days and then the starvation afterward.  How could that be healthy??  But knowing someone who went through it and had great success piqued my curiosity enough to want to know more.  Luckily, she was about to visit NH and was willing to teach us all about it.

Affordable HCG through whom I'm doing the diet, puts it like this:

Of the three kinds of fat, structural fat is essential because it cushions our organs. Then there's the kind of fat that gives us a reserve of energy, fueling the body between meals. But a third kind of fat-the unsightly fat that ruins our appearance-is totally unhealthy. This unwanted fat is not only unhealthy, it just happens to be almost impossible to lose. It can be mobilized only in times of starvation and pregnancy.

In a non-pregnant state, HCG as a weight-loss aid, helps reduce the craving for food by making stored fat available for metabolism, thus aiding in the ability to adhere to a rigid diet program. HCG accesses unnecessary fat stored in the body just as it does in early pregnancy.  Abnormal fat deposits disappear; the double chin, potbelly and fat around hips and thighs are the first to go. HCG does not deplete subcutaneous or other essential fat.

Most HCG Weight-loss participants see a loss in girth (inches) before they see any substantive drop in the scales. When properly supervised, the result is rapid weight loss and improved body shape during and after treatment. Reshaping of body contour is quickly noticeable in those patients who struggle with fat located in buttocks and hips area. As the HCG metabolizes stored body fat, about 2000 calories are released into the bloodstream, thus allowing for a low calorie per day diet without experiencing fatigue, weakness or hunger.

So by severely restricting your caloric intake while taking the HCG, your body loses the weight that is locked away and is typically inaccessible.  The all-natural HCG drops that you put under your tongue three times a day before meals help you not to feel hungry as the pounds melt away.  This diet not only helps you to lose weight, it reshapes your body and makes it extremely difficult to put the weight back on after the diet is complete.  It finally started to make some sense, and though still a bit of a skeptic, I signed up immediately and looked forward to starting the HCG Protocol. 

Today is my first day and am on Step 1, the first of the loading days. More on this later...