[emmysmommylovesher]

I was wondering if any of you JM ladies had tried the HCG hormone diet? My MIL and my husband's aunt and step mom are all taking it. My MIL has lost 12 lbs in a week and my hubby's step mom has lost 10 in the 4 days she's been on it and his aunt in a month lost 30.... So I took the plunge and bought a bottle today is my first day on in and it's 1 of 2 load days ...Where you eat anything before day 3 when you follow the diet... and I guess to make a long story short I was wondering if any of you had tried it or will try it... why/why not?

[plan4fate]

I don't have enough control to eat 500 calories a day.

Plus diets like this rarely work long term. Basically you go from eating what you want, to eating 500 calories, to needing to have a perfect diet and exercise regimine or you're just gonna gain it all back in the long run.

[mrs.klynn]

As someone who has been overweight the majority of my life, I understand the wanting to lose weight, wanting to be thin, feel better, etc. etc. BUT these kind of diets are not the answer. What does it teach you? Does it encourage you to learn how to eat good nutritious whole foods? portion control? to get active and stay active? Not from what I've heard. And every single time I've seen someone on these diets lose weight, once they stop? the weight comes back. Why? because they didn't learn the principles of living a healthy lifestyle.

Nothing comes for free.

I say ditch it.

[cocosmumNco]

i've done a low cal diet on shakes and soups nad piled it back on quick wish i nevr done it cause i gain weight quicker now

[SammyJ]

I guess I am in the minority here but I've actually heard of a couple friends and family members who have had great success with HCG, not just in losing weight but in keeping it off long term. However, I really don't think a lot of people that do the diet have the resolve it takes to really practice the diet "maintenence." This must take place for way longer than what the diet actually encourages you to do. That is tough for most people, which is why fad diets are so largely unsuccessful in the long term.

Most of the people I know that lost a lot on this diet and kept it off joined a program like Weight Watchers to maintain their weight loss. I think diets like HCG and the 17-day diet are awesome at kick starting that weight loss, but the real work comes when the diet is actually over.

[plan4fate]

i don't agree with the diets.. but I may give it a try regardless. I've modified my diet, upped my exercise and packed on almost 10lbs... I'm at a point dragging my body cuts my exercise short, and I'm so sore I have to skip days at a time.

My doctor does monitored hcg with her morbidly obese patients. The real hormone too, not the anmio acid. They only get enough to last them a certain amount of time, and she'll only give them another supply if they keep off a reasonable amt of weight between spurts. She's had people use several hundred pounds. For her it's used to get people to the point they can qualify for gastric banding or bypass. But she monitors them very closely.

[Popper]

Where did you buy your HCG?

I've just recently joined a gym, and have already been changing our eating habits as a family, but I'd love to look into doing this and seeing results sooner. What better motivator? I've lost 8lbs so far but would love to lose more quickly!

[plan4fate]

This is what was explained to me by a fitness expert.

The HCG does nothing. For one, it's illegial to sell true HCG over the counter. Two, what causes you to lose weight is the 500 calorie intake that you're supposed to do while taking the HCG.

So basically, pocket the $20, and just eat 500 cal. LOL.

BUT

I'm currently taking HCG. I did lose a pound a day for the first 4 days. It does supress your appetite/ makes you not want to eat because it's awful. lol. Reminds me of unsweet gripe water. I fell off the diet, because it's hard stuff to take. 1ml under your tongue for 3-5 minutes. Nothing to eat or drink for 15 minutes before or after. Nothing but water to drink. I got hungry, so hungry I was gagging. My husband and his eating habits do not help any either.

We're going to start hitting the gym later this week. We'd been waiting for my vaccination pain to ease before I got in the pool.

I'll let you know in 2 months how it works. I have 60 lbs to lose before August.

[Kittily]

I probably couldn't limit myself to just 500 calories a day if I'm honest - Sounds too difficult. I am doing a lot of exercise right now which seems to help enough anyway. Hoping it'll continue to work for a while longer... Next year I am upping my game a bit and aiming to do much more exercise and healthier eating.

[Trish36]

I have lost 35lbs in about 3 months and have been trying to maintain it. To tell you the truth you have to make a lot of sacrifices to get what you want and unless you have the willpower to do it, it's not gonna happen.

This is what I did:

cut out all sugar (I only use splenda in my tea and and I don't drink coffee)
no cookies, cakes, chips....any kind of snacks
no starches - no potatoes, pasta, breads, bagels. the only kind of bread I'll eat is light rye.
no meats except turkey or chicken breast
no butter
no pops, juices, or dairy products
no fruits
nothing salty
and most importatly, read every label for fat, sugar, calories, sodium.

I try to stay under 1200 calories/day.
I'll have oatmeal for breakfast and lunch, I will eat a turkey breast sandwich on light rye, I will eat rice cakes, melba toast, tuna, peanut butter, I will have eggs on weekends. I drink lots of water and I do have tea a couple of times a day.
I do eat some veggies, try to stay away from carrots. I will have a low fat muffin.
I will have low fat chicken breast with rice.

Yes it isn't a lot of choice, but it really helps. And I can't keep that up for too too long. after a while I have to eat some stuff that I haven't had in a while.

Another thing that I do is drink 2 glasses of water a day with a tea spoon of apple cyder vinegar in it. It has helped me digest and it has made me really regular. It's kind of like a natural colon cleanser.

And of course some excercise at least 2-3 times per week is a must to burn the calories and tone your body.

So far this has worked for me and I've gone from a size 10 to a size 4. I have about 3lbs to lose for my goal weight of 120lbs. I haven't been that small since before my wedding.

Oh and NO ALCOHOL! that really has a lot of calories and sugar.