One of my best friends was doing this diet a little over a year ago and lost weight....she has since gained it all back, though. I worried about her eating so little and getting the injections. I don't think that a person should mess around with a pregnancy hormone.

I bought the drops and tried it for one day...it made me feel so sick. I was dizzy and really feeling funny. I didn't take it again. I lost 60lbs a few years ago by cutting portions and lots of walking and cutting out all soft drinks and fast food. 500 calories is just not enough to sustain a person. It just doesn't seem safe to me. I do know some people who have used it and had lots of weight loss, but I don't know if they will be able to keep it off in the long run. You have to make a total lifestyle change in order to keep the weight off. I kept the 60lbs off for over 5 years and slowly started back with the bad eating habits and I have gained 30lbs of it back. :(

I would be very careful with this diet. Although the body can withstand some fasting and there is some benefit to fasting (or, partial fasting)...it can cause your metabolism to dive, so then when you go back to normal eating, your body will need less calories due to the changed metabolism - and you could gain back the weight+++ due to this.

It can then take quite a lot to get your metabolism back up, bc the body thinks it's been in a crisis mode and is storing what it can as fat stores.

IMHO, the best diets are The Zone or Zig-Zag eating (calculator).

Since you're seeing results though, it can then be very tough to just give up the diet. If you realllly want to use the HCG diet, then I'd recommend you do some low calorie days (at the most 2-3 days in a row) alternating w/ high calories. This is sort of like Zig Zag eating, but the HCG dives much more in low cal days. This confuses the body, and avoids plateaus (but also doesn't cause the metab to dive).

Remember, the HCG itself is likely doing very little. It's the extremely low calories that are really causing you to lose body mass (unfortunately, you'd be losing more muscle than anything else...which in turn causes the body to burn less once you return to normal eating).

I am doing weight watchers and exercise. I feel great, I am eating plenty, and it WORKS!

Jennifer Hudson looks great, don't you think?

Gotta be careful, I don't trust anything that makes you eat so little and do nothing else to lose unwanted pounds. The key is exercise, you don't even have to have a strict diet...just self control and normal sized portions instead of the mui grande one's. No matter what diet you try, once you lose the weight, and go back to eating normally, and haven't added an exercise routine into the mix, that weight is coming back and then some. I wish you luck...

Sorry, but the HCG diet is bad, bad, BAD for your health! Messing around with one hormone throws the other ones in to a tizzy.

I agree with this... 13 pounds in one week cannot be good for you. I have a feeling people will just gain the weight right back once they stop. Lifestyle changes are what make you lose weight and KEEP it off.

I agree...I know its not great! But, heck tried it anyways!! I usually exercise at least 3-5 days a week....but the past 3-4 months have been insanely crazy! I quit taking the hcg...went back to my normal routine...Ive lost 3 more pounds, and i really dont need to lose much more! Again, Im not at all overweight...but when those jeans begin to get tight, its time to diet some! Luckily for me, (or unlucky, not sure) I gain weight evenly all over....so even if I put on 20 or even 30 pounds, no one notices...except me of course!!:)

Thanks for all the replys!!

My dad's secretary did it, she lost like 64 pounds. I'm not sure on the timeline of the weight loss. I do know that once she quit she gained 48 of the pounds back, quickly. I haven't talked to her lately to know anymore.

My neighbor started the diet within the last month or so, she has lost a ton of inches and weight. She is still currently on it.

Our family doctor was talking about the poor diet that goes along with it, eating the 8,000 calories or 5,000 or whatever it was the first few days and then going to 500 isn't healthy. I know it's something that isn't for me, but I'm happy that you are having such good luck with it! That's awesome on the weight loss.

i agree with those that say it's dangerous and not at all a healthy way to loose weight. maintennance afterwards is too hard for most people and they almost always gain all the weight and MORE back. not a good diet if you ask me if it'll make you starve your body half to death and then gain MORE weight later. as a pregnant woman, these hormones are NOT something to be playing around with just to loose weight. the hormones make your body starve and that's never good. people need 2000 calories per day on average, dropping to 500 is very dangerous. it's like being anorexic but trying to confuse your body to be that way.

i highly recommend a different plan such as weight watchers or any other diet/exercise. EAT HEALTHY and MOVE UR BUTT and you'll have a much better lifestyle forever and not just for a few moments in life. :D