The New Year's Diet Adventure

I've been studying the hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) diet. When I first heard about this diet, it sounded insane to me. Like so many other things in life, I formed an opinion about it without doing any research, based on very limited knowledge. I mean seriously, a 500 calorie a day diet based on shooting yourself up with a pregnancy hormone? Sounds crazy doesn't it? I saw friend after friend lose an amazing amount of weight, while reporting that they felt great, and weren't hungry despite the tiny caloric intake. They looked good too, none of that haggard, saggy look that dieters sometimes get. It seemed too good to be true, and so I watched, thinking that they would quickly regain the weight they had lost. They didn't. It still wasn't enough to get me to open my mind. Yes they had lost weight, and they looked and felt good, but I just couldn't believe that something that sounded on the surface, so odd, could be GOOD for you. Then my friend Jenn, who has been a competitive bodybuilder and has more than a rudimentary understanding of health and fitness did it. Now honestly, I didn't think she could look any better than she already did, but... you guessed it, she lost those few naggy little pounds she could never seem to take off before. That started to make me think, but only a little, if I'm being honest. It wasn't until Lynn, who is a wellness professional, and one of the smartest and best educated people I know when it comes to nutrition, did the diet and lost seven inches around her middle-aged waist that I had enough belief to do my own research.
I thought this was a new diet, but it's been around since the fifties. The creator of the diet was a British physician, A.T.W. Simeons, who treated countless thousands of (mostly wealthy) fat folks in his clinic in the Salvator Mundi International Hospital in Rome using this method. He wrote a book, "Pounds and Inches", which explains the rationale behind the diet, as well as how to administer the diet itself.
It's fascinating reading - at least it was for me - and makes an amazing amount of sense. Rather than try to explain it here, I'll just point you in the direction of the original manuscript and the very bright Dr. Simeons. Bottom line - obesity is a symptom, and this diet is purported to be the cure. My anecdotal evidence says there is some truth here - I've seen over a dozen friends attempt this diet over the past year with stunning results. They range in age from early twenties to mid-fifties, and include men and women, PX90 freaks and couch potatoes.

Photo by James Farmer

As is true with anything that is not a part of "conventional wisdom" and many things that are, there is a lot of controversy, opinion, and misinformation all over the internet regarding the diet. My belief is that if you want unconventional results, you have to do unconventional things, in the realm of health or anywhere else in life.
So I'm going to try it, and I'll be blogging about how it's working, how I feel and anything else that seems relevant. The planned start date is January 1st, enough time to run through a 23 day cycle (the minimum time to change your biochemistry according to Dr. Simeons) before our TEAM Major Convention at the end of January.  It's a rigorous protocol that requires very specific foods. along with a daily dose of hCG. I think I've got about 25-30 lbs to lose, although the diet is self-limiting; that is, you lose till you don't have anymore extra fat to lose and then you don't. If it works the way it's supposed to I should be able to get it all off within two 23 day regemines. More to come soon on the hGC adventure.