The hCG Program 500 Calorie Diet

Ok, I’ve finished the 2 days of gorging, and I’m ready to start the 500 calorie a day diet! I’ve heard from other people who have completed the hCG program that they were not hungry, felt great, and had lots of energy. The only way this can be true is if hCG actually does force the release of 1,500-4,000 calories a day from your fat stores as Dr. Simeons suggests. So I am going into this diet with a lot of optimism.

One thing I would like to emphasize here, it’s important to do the entire hCG +Diet protocol under the supervision of a physician. First, it’s important that you get pharmaceutical strength hCG (which is only available through a prescription). Secondly, if you only do the hCG or the 500 Calorie diet, you will not lose weight, and you may be putting your health at risk. The key to success is using hCG in combination with a specific 500 calorie diet in order for the protocol to work. The fact is if you go on a 500 calorie diet without hCG you will initially lose weight, but then your body will go into survival mode and start using your muscle as fuel, which is the last thing you want to do! If you use only hCG, nothing will happen (you’ll probably even gain weight).

In order to lose about a 1/lb a day (slightly less for women), you need to follow the diet exactly. Any deviations will cause a stop in loss, or even a slight gain. Trust me, when you are eating this only 500 cal/day in food for 2-3 weeks, the last thing you want to do is add another week! The nice thing about the diet is that it is all normal food you can find at your local grocery store or natural food store. I’ve read Trudeau’s book “The Weight Loss Cure they Don’t want you to know About,” and he goes into great length about the importance of eating organic food. I don’t 100% disagree with his position, but you need to do what works for you. One thing that I think can harm your loss is using growth hormone injected meat, since I’m quite confident in 1954, when Dr. Simeons created this diet protocol, injecting meat with hormones was not a standard practice with meat producers. As well, much of the grocery store chicken today is injected with water to increase its weight. I don’t want to get into debate, so you can choose what fits your budget and conscience.

So, what is this diet? Here it is:

Breakfast: Tea or coffee in any quantity without sugar. Only one tablespoonful of milk allowed in 24 hours. Saccharin or Stevia may be used.
Lunch:

1. 100 grams of veal, beef, chicken breast, fresh white fish, lobster, crab, or shrimp. All visible fat must be carefully removed before cooking, and the meat must be weighed raw. It must be boiled or grilled without additional fat. Salmon, eel, tuna, herring, dried or pickled fish are not allowed. The chicken breast must be removed from the bird.
2. One type of vegetable only to be chosen from the following: spinach, chard, chicory, beet-greens, green salad, tomatoes, celery, fennel, onions, red radishes, cucumbers, asparagus, cabbage.
3. One breadstick (grissino) or one Melba toast.
4. An apple or a handful of strawberries or one-half grapefruit.

Dinner : The same four choices as lunch.

The juice of one lemon daily is allowed for all purposes. Salt, pepper, vinegar, mustard powder, garlic, sweet basil, parsley, thyme, majoram, etc., may be used for seasoning, but no oil, butter or dressing.

Tea, coffee, plain water, or mineral water are the only drinks allowed, but they may be taken in any quantity and at all times.

In fact, the patient should drink about 2 liters of these fluids per day. Many patients are afraid to drink so much because they fear that this may make them retain more water. This is a wrong notion as the body is more inclined to store water when the intake falls below its normal requirements.

The fruit or the breadstick may be eaten between meals instead of with lunch or dinner, but not more than than four items listed for lunch and dinner may be eaten at one meal.

No medicines or cosmetics other than lipstick, eyebrow pencil and powder may he used without special permission. Every item in the list is gone over carefully, continually stressing the point that no variations other than those listed may be introduced. All things not listed are forbidden, and the patient is assured that nothing permissible has been left out. The 100 grams of meat must he scrupulously weighed raw after all visible fat has been removed. To do this accurately the patient must have a letter-scale, as kitchen scales are not sufficiently accurate and the butcher should certainly not be relied upon. Those not uncommon patients who feel that even so little food is too much for them, can omit anything they wish.

There is no objection to breaking up the two meals. For instance having a breadstick and an apple for breakfast or before going to bed, provided they are deducted from the regular meals. The whole daily ration of two breadsticks or two fruits may not be eaten at the same time, nor can any item saved from the previous day be added on the following day. In the beginning patients are advised to check every meal against their diet sheet before starting to eat and not to rely on their memory. It is also worth pointing out that any attempt to observe this diet without HCG will lead to trouble in two to three days. We have had cases in which patients have proudly flaunted their dieting powers in front of their friends without mentioning the fact that they are also receiving treatment with HCG. They let their friends try the same diet, and when this proves to be a failure – as it necessarily must – the patient starts raking in unmerited kudos for superhuman willpower.

It should also be mentioned that two small apples weighing as much as one large one never the less have a higher caloric value and are therefore not allowed though there is no restriction on the size of one apple. Some people do not realize that chicken breast does not mean the breast of any other fowl, nor does it mean a wing or drumstick.
The most tiresome patients are those who start counting calories and then come up with all manner of ingenious variations which they compile from their little books. When one has spent years of weary research trying to make a diet as attractive as possible without jeopardizing the loss of weight, culinary geniuses who are out to improve their unhappy lot are hard to take.

So as you can see, there is not a lot of choice! Before you start the diet, its vitally important you know what you can eat and do a grocery shop for the items. I know fresh is always best, but I buy a combination of fresh and frozen meats so in case I didn’t make it to the grocery store, I have a backup!

In the next entry, I’m going to discuss my experience as well as share some tips on how to survive the 500 calorie/day diet.

You can read more details about our hCG weight loss research on the IAPAM’s website, as well, physicians wanting to learn details of the how to incorporate hCG into their practice can also attend one of the IAPAM’s Medical Weight Management training programs.

I hope you’ll enjoy reading about my experience with the Simeons’ hCG weight loss protocol! And please feel free to leave a comment or question.

Cheers,  Jeff Russell

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