HCG and Me

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I've been hesitant to write about this because when it comes to diet, fitness and lifestyle changes, everyone has an opinion and those opinions can really affect others who are trying to implement changes. So while I appreciate your opinions, I'd really just like support in what I'm trying to achieve.

So I've had a weight problem for at least half of my life. 

I've constantly assumed that it was me. I was doing something wrong. I made a lot of changes last year and lost 17 pounds. 17 pounds in one year. It was great, but slowly it came back and flipped back and forth between five pounds or so. I did not go back to my bad habits though.

This really made me dig deep into my past, my habits, and my genetics. 

While the majority of my cousins are all thin and fit, the women that gave birth and raised them (my own mother being the exception) all have figures and bone structures like me, even the ones who are not overweight, are still curvy and have a larger shape. Another of my cousins who is similarly shaped also suffers from PCOS (an illness that doctors constantly insist that I must have because of my symptoms, but have yet to properly diagnose.)

When I was sixteen I went on a new birth control drug that immediately sent my hormones flying in the wrong directions. Because I didn't know much about hormones and genetics back then, I assumed I was doing something wrong and that killed my self esteem, which only made me create bad habits and ride them out the rest of my youth, ultimately gaining a lot more weight.

I'd always been made fun of because I was "fat", though looking back at photos, I wasn't fat at all. I was curvy, developed, proportionate and voluptuous compared to my peers who were often trying to rock the model look of the late 90's. Because I was short and had big hips, I was deemed overweight (no matter what the scale said).

So after all these years of breaking bad habits, increasing exercise, drinking water, counting calories, etc. I've decided to go back to where it all started: hormones.

During my recent trip to Utah I discovered that several members of my family had been working a diet that I'd never heard of before (but boy has the internet heard about it!). HCG1234 diet is an extremely low calorie diet combined with daily dosages of the HCG hormone. Basically the hormone your body produces when you're pregnant. If you've ever wondered how pregnant women can throw up every day for six weeks and somehow not starve to death, it's because of the HCG hormone which tells the body to feed and live off of the storage fat in our bodies instead of what we're ingesting.

The science behind it is detailed, and I've literally spent the last month researching this every single day. I've read the official websites, the reviews from professionals, strangers, friends and family members. I've read the good and the bad, and ultimately I decided to take a leap of faith.

The diet is very strict, allowing only a handful of certain foods, which is a relief to me. Any time in the past when I've tried counting calories, I've become overwhelmed. It's harder for me because of my obsessive compulsive disorder. Creating my own diet is difficult. It means not only do I have to concentrate on my physical self, but my mental self - and one usually suffers. The HCG diet is all set out in front of you, but still gives you the options to pick and choose your own menu so long as you follow a set of rules. It gives my mentally ill brain a nice rest.

The weight comes of fast and in large amounts, which is usually discouraged because it loses muscle mass (not so with this diet), and there are a number of other complaints that people have in regards to HCG - however, I needed something drastic. I'm twenty-eight with hormone imbalances, a family history of heart disease and diabetes, and physically limited to exercise because of my chronic illnesses. So this is my big leap to kick start my body into repairing itself. I don't know if it'll work in the long run, but I do know that it's working for me right now.

And I'm going to blog about it.

I'm going to blog about it because if it works great for me, then people should be able to search for testimonials that are honest throughout the process. If it doesn't work for me, then people can see for themselves (especially considering this is certainly not a sponsored post). Either way, I'm willing to jump in.

For those who are interested in reading what I'm doing, I have actually created a PDF that puts all the HCG information in one place (which I gathered from other participants, family, other blogs and the official website). I'd be more than happy to email the PDF to you. Just leave a comment with your email address.

I'll try to update on my progress weekly so show the difference.

So far I am on Day 2 of Phase 2 and I've lost four pounds as of this morning. I feel good too, despite the calorie restrictions. I don't feel sluggish or even hungry, and the food I'm making tastes fresh, light and clean. No fats, no oils, no sugar, no starch. Just fresh and good.

Starting Weight: 246 lbs
Current Weight: 242 lbs