Dr. Simeons' HCG Protocol
The HCG Diet is a weight loss protocol originally developed by Dr. A.T.W. Simeons over fifty years ago. His clinical experiences in treating overweight patients lead him to view obesity as a disorder caused by a malfuntioning of the body's regulation of fat storage.
He believed that when our bodies have fallen "out of order" in such a way, there are certain "abnormal" fat amounts that we simply cannot lose, regardless of our attempts to reduce caloric intake and/or exercise. Instead, our bodies would first release the "normal" fat stores that we actually need to remain functioning and healthy. No wonder so many of us have been frustrated again and again with all manner of weight loss programs!
The diet itself involves a 23- to 40-day course during which the subject receives a dose of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) each day and follows a restrictive diet, consuming no more than 500 calories per day and avoiding all sugar and starch. Under normal conditions, limiting oneself to only 500 calories per day would trigger a starvation reaction by the body and would lead one to become exceedingly weak. However, Dr. Simeons theorized that the presence of Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (HCG) in the body stimulates the body to release abnormal fat deposits, providing approximately 2000 calories of nourishment per day.
The HCG can be taken once a day by intramuscular or subcutaneous injection or several times per day using the sublingual method (drops absorbed under the tongue). Users can directly purchase supplies and follow the protocol on their own or can choose to enlist the assistance of a doctor or clinic.
While many sites, particularly those selling HCG products, promote the "average weight loss" statement of 20-30 pounds per course, a more accurate average is for losses of .5-.75 lb per day for women and up to 1 lb per day for men. Additionally, these per day losses are often lower for those who are close to a normal or goal weight.
After concluding a course, you seek to stabilize at your new weight for a period of at least three weeks. During this time, you are allowed to slowly increase the variety of meats, vegetables and fruits back into your diet, while continuing to avoid all sugar and starch. This period presents a significant opportunity to discover food sensitivities or intolerances of which you were previously unaware.
Once stabilized, you can move on to the final stage where you slowly introduce sugar and starch back into your meals. For those who wish to continue to a second course of treatment, Dr. Simeons recommends that individuals spend at least three weeks in this stage before reintroducing HCG to their system.
If you are considering following this weight loss method, we HIGHLY recommend that you read the entire protocol beforehand to become familiar with the process. The full document is provided here, broken down into more manageable chunks of information. Just click the links at the top or the right to move from section to section. You can also choose to download the Pounds & Inches manuscript in PDF format.
