When beginning an HCG Protocol the best advice that we can offer is to be intentional!  This applies to everything you eat, any supplements you take, and for some patients even the products you put on your body.   If your weight loss begins to slow or stall, do not panic!  If you have hit a lull in your weight loss due to cheating, your fix is easy – stop cheating!  If you don’t think you have done anything wrong but are still experiences plateaus or slow weight loss then start by asking yourself these questions:

Are you weighing your meats raw?

Are you eating foods not allowed on your phase 2 foods?

Are you eating over 500 calories?

Are you drinking your gallon of water daily?

It is extremely important to weigh your meats raw.  Any variance, no matter how small, from the approved phase 2 foods will cause a stall or halt weight loss in some patients.  Dr Simeon developed this protocol over 40 years, if broccoli, corn, mushrooms, or olive oil were allowed on the diet he would have thought of them 40 years ago.  The nutritional composition of the approved foods list is extremely important to follow for success on the protocol.   Eating over your 500 calories can pull your body out of its fat burning mode.  If this occurs you will experience more hunger than usual, if you are hungry drink some wu long or green tea, eating that extra snack to soothe your hunger will only increase it.  Throughout the protocol our bodies are releasing fats to burn as energy and flushing the excess through our urine.  The gallon of water daily will keep your kidneys clean and help the body to flush these excess fats.  Don’t skip out on your water!  If you don’t think you are doing anything wrong and are following the above guidelines then review the most common errors list below and consider some of the following ideas.  Keep in mind that plateaus are not uncommon, and if you stick to the protocol they WILL pass.  The following tips can help you both psychologically and physically and make it through the slow times:

• Try adding a glass or two of green tea to your day.
• Don’t eat 2 apples for the two fruits or cut down on the size of the apples.
• Cut American beef and/or buffalo down or out.
• Consider that Melba toast, tomatoes, and shrimp stall some people.  Therefore, if you eat these food items quite a bit and your weight loss is slow, you may want to try cutting these foods down or out to see if your rate of loss increases.  You may not be affected by some or all of these, so you should check one food at a time.  To test yourself for sensitivity (slowed weight loss), have only one of the foods three days in a row, then repeat those three days’ menus changing only the one food being tested.  Compare the average weight loss from the first three days to the second three days.  If there is no difference, consider the food safe.  If there is a significant difference, drop the food that caused the sensitivity.
• Check all condiments for any form of sugar.  ‘Garlic salt’ may list sugar as an ingredient.  Any seasoning salt or seasoning product must be carefully checked.
• If mixing your vegetables in a meal, stop.
• If having trouble with constipation, try Smooth Move tea or an over the counter suppository.  Be cautious of laxatives as they can also cause a stall in your weight loss.  Constipation on the protocol is defined as going more than 4 to 7 days without a movement.
• Try leaving out some or all of the allotted breadsticks or Melba toast.
• Make sure there are no additives in chicken or other protein sources – many times these are injected with some form of sugar even in the grocery store.
• For women, your cycle may be coming into play – review Dr. Simeons’ manuscript or contact HCG Medical Patient Services.

Thank you to Linda Prinster for the information provided above!  Read Linda Prinster’s book “HCG Weight Loss Cure Guide” for more tips and tricks!