Weight: 172.5
172.5 is my LIW from the last round! For me, anything below this weight is new territory, and, looking forward, I could be 7 pounds lighter by next Friday... woo hoo!
My mom sent me an article from one of those doctor columns she saw in the newspaper raising alarms about the hCG diet. Here is my response back to her about her concerns, editing to include only the info on hCG:
Hi Mom,
The article you sent me about the hCG diet is pretty typical as far as the criticisms of it goes. One of the main ones that I find quite stunning is that anyone could, or would, try eating only 500 calories a day to lose weight and would succeed without hCG. I know you've had a lot of experience with 1000 calorie diets; seems to me that you were hungry on that amount, correct? I had a problem the last round with being hungry, and we finally corrected it with increasing the dose of the medicine. I can't imagine being that hungry and not eating more for a long period of time, typically 40 days, such as the critics suggest, and I definitely would say that your body will go into starvation mode with that methodology.
One problem with any diet is when you look at "weight" lost is that people don't look at the fact that you lose quite a bit of muscle on the extreme diets and therefore your lean body mass goes down, which is what perpetuates the ongoing dieting cycle. With hCG, at least in my experience, my muscle mass has not decreased and the fat stores have. So, I disagree with his assertion that "the reason for the weight loss is starvation". Granted, I did not have my body analysis done prior to doing this diet but I have in the past couple of years. I also have the comparisons from when I had it done when I was lifting. Once I get done getting rid of the fat, I plan to get my body analysis done again so I will be able to tell you a comparison from a range of years, and I suspect it will be consistent with anyone who has stopped lifting on a regular basis.
Regarding the symptoms that he lists which are "the symptoms of pregnancy, such as swollen, tender breasts and water retention" I have not experienced those myself and have only heard of a couple of people that might have had an issue with that. Some people have said that they get their period early, more often in a month than normal, or that they have a heavier flow and cramps. I've had a heavier flow and cramps, but I also am in perimenopause and that isn't uncommon either. I've heard many women have hormone related headaches and so I'm sure this protocol could trigger such a problem. Typically, the first week you try the diet you can get a headache, and that is generally attributed to toxins being flushed out of your system. If you think about withdrawal symptoms many people get by not drinking coffee or having sugar, you'll know what I'm talking about. I haven't had a headache this second round.
I haven't heard anyone say they were more depressed or restless by using hCG, but that doesn't mean it doesn't happen. The author also lists an increased risk of blood clots; I suppose that makes sense if you consider birth control pills will do the same thing and I'm sure there are people out there that are taking this that have that risk in their family and shouldn't be. There are lots of people doing similar things with similar other products.
One point he makes in the article is that you have to get the hCG from a doctor and that is not true, although I have, because I think that's the smart way to go. As I said before, if my doctor had not suggested this diet I would have dismissed it as crazy and never tried it either. Is it a fad? Well, I looked up the definition “fad" and on dictionary.com I found: a temporary fashion, notion, manner of conduct, etc., esp. one followed enthusiastically by a group.
So, I suppose it is a fad because it comes and goes out of popularity, much like following a political figure or the controversy over eggs are good for you, eggs are bad for you now, oh, no, wait eggs are okay. I don't know how long hCG has been around "this time" or if it will really go away or not. I can't even speak to the long-term effects when it comes to 10 years down the road. I do know, however, that I could develop diabetes in that time if I don't get this weight off, have irreparable joint problems, heart problems, or any number of other health issues that could cause long-term damage.
My hope, and goal, is to avoid those things by getting the weight off and keeping it off, and it has been extremely difficult, and disheartening, to get it off with normal methods. If a hormone is going to make me sick, then I would probably already be at risk since I was on birth control for over 20 years, so it would be extremely difficult to attribute an illness to hCG being the specific cause in that regard. I think I'm not alone in that scenario.
"Normal weight people" don't seem to have the compulsion to eat lots of sugar, they stop eating when they are actually full, and if they do have occasional caloric increases like going out to lunch once in a while or having some birthday cake, their body can accommodate them and they don't gain an outrageous amount of weight. This hCG diet is supposed to also reset my body to work like a normal weight person. But, if I went out and ate a bunch of junk food on a regular basis I would definitely regain the fat. Good habits are important, which normal weight people have, and even something as simple as watching portion control on my good food choices is significant and relevant.
I think it's a good thing to look at, and consider, criticisms and concerns of something that is admittedly extreme. I think you can tell that I've thought about it quite a bit, but I'm confident in my decision. I think it's extremely important to continue regular exercise and monitor my diet for overall good health and to maintain my new weight, and that's what I plan to do.
Love and hugs,
Connie
