HCG Diet Plateaus and How to Deal with them
First of all, let me say that HCG Diet plateaus are normal on Phase 2. The up to a pound a day weight loss you will experience are based on the average over a 23-43 day period. So don’t worry when your weight loss stalls a bit. It’s to be expected and just because you stall out for a few days or even a week is no reason to panic.
I’m going to outline a few of the reasons why you might hit a plateau and also what you can do about it. One of the reasons people plateau is that after a particularly rapid and dramatic loss of weight such as occurs when you first start the diet is that the body just needs to pause and catch up a bit. You may even find that though the numbers on the scale don’t change very much you are still losing inches in your “problem” areas.
Another reason you might hit an HCG Diet plateau is around your menstrual cycle. Hormonal changes and water weight gain are normal at this time so just wait it out and you will begin dropping again.
If you were at a particular weight for a long period of time in your life you may also have a longer plateau when you reach that former weight set point. For example: If you spent most of your 30’s at 150 pounds, when you reach that level again it may take a little extra time to break through that barrier and drop below that.
Most plateaus on the HCG Diet will resolve themselves on their own. Usually in a week or less and then the weight loss will pick up again. However, Dr. Simeons and Kevin Trudeau recommend doing an “Apple Day” to help things move along. This is mostly for psychological reasons as you will drop the weight quickly and feel like you are back on track which helps you stay motivated. To do an “Apple Day”, forgo your regular meals for the day and eat 6 apples over the course of the day. Drink minimal water, just enough to quench any thirst. By the next morning’s weigh in you should see a dramatic drop in weight and your weight loss continues. Only do an apple day if you have 4 or more days without any change in your weight loss.
Hope this information on dealing with HCG Diet Plateaus is helpful for you. The most important thing when following the HCG Diet is to stay positive and focused. Over the course of your HCG Diet treatment you will lose up to 1 pound a day on average. Remember to stick to the program strictly and drink plenty of water to flush out your system. You are a fat burning machine right now so stick with it and you will be successful.
Hi Tammy,
thank you so much for your tips, tricks, and encouragement. I am 42 lbs down since July and am thrilled to have found this. I too had tried what seemed like ”everything” to lose but God opened this door and am i thankful!!
I am craving sugar and carbs like crazy and sleeping icky…. but am determined to try and stay on track. Today i cheated but am regretting it and am looking forward to getting right back on track!
thanks again. i will be frequenting your website for additional help and would love to be on the list for your new cookbook. I need some new ideas. I have about 80 lbs to go.
Hi Christine,
Thanks so much for your kind words and I am thrilled that you’re finding the info you need. I have been working hard on this new cookbook so I haven’t been blogging as much as I would like but I’ll definitely put you on the list. I always send around a free mini book just for fun so let’s keep in touch! I am really really REALLY proud of you. You have done incredibly well so don’t worry about the past now… just get back to it and know that you will reach your goals. On sugar and carb issues you might consider a candida cleanse at some point. A little L-glutamine amino acid under the tongue can help too in a pinch. Try chocolate stevia on fruit when you want something sweet. All the best to you,
Tammy
I read this on another forum and it really gave me comfort as I weathered a 5-day stall (which broke with a 1.2 and 1.6 lb loss):
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In the original Pounds and Inches, Simeons states that the explanation given for stalls or little loss goes like this:
– Fat weighs less than water.
– While the body breaks down fat from cells, some cellular structure is still left behind and as the fat goes, water comes in to fill the space.
– Before the cellular structure is broken down and reprocessed by the body, it has water hanging around in it.
So, the space that was once filled by fat (lighter) is now filled by water (heavier) and THAT is why we sometimes see stalls but lose inches.
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In my experience, when I have a day where I urinate a LOT, I smile and think of all the water being released from those old fat cells being “reprocessed.” And the scale usually reads significantly lower the next day. 🙂
Hi Laura,
I really appreciate your perspective and I agree. The body is dumping fat so much and so fast that water rushes in and is retained. So it’s really just about the body catching up and creating a balance again. This is why we often see a stair step pattern of dramatic loss of weight and periods of plateau. I loved the apple days! Dr. Simeons in Pounds and Inches of course mentions that its helpful mostly for psychological reasons as most stalls will resolve themselves with time but it does feel nice to “break the stall” Thanks so much for sharing your experience 🙂
i’ve been on my second round of HCG injections for three weeks now, losing a pound a day. Now of all of a sudden I am at a plateau for 6 days now. I have had previous experience with plateaus from doing the diet before. unfortunately I only have 11 more days until my injections end and my doctor has told me that because I have been so previously successful, and my weight will be where it needs to be, that he will not permit me any more HCG. I have done an apple day, but had the feeling there was no water retention going on, I tried fiber pills for more frequent bowel movements, and even a laxative. But nothing has worked! I sat down and counted my calories to sadly discover I wasn’t reaching the full 500, so yesterday I made sure I had a full 500 and only lost two ounces! Are these two ounces a sign that tomorrow will be a bigger weight loss? These 11 days are extremely important, I need to loose at least five pounds to at least be near my goal weight range. Please help.
Hi Renee! Not eating the full 500 calories each day could very well be the reason for your stall and it may or may not regulate before you finish your hcg. Also being close to your menstrual cycle could be causing the stall and drinking lots of water could help. Plateaus are normal with the HCG diet. Weight loss usually presents in a stair-step fashion with a consistent large drop in weight followed by a slight plateau or slower loss for a few days. At least 1 significant plateau occurs in the 2nd half of the protocol that often lasts 4-5 days. This is normal and will resolve itself in time. HCG will not allow you to lose too much weight to get that skinny, gaunt look so if your body is close to the best weight for you, it will quit working. Any or all of these things combined could be causing the plateau…
I’m really glad I found this thread. This is my 4th time doing HCG in the past few years and I’ve always had success of about 20 lbs each time. I don’t have more then 30 to lose. I recently had an 8 day stall. Week one I dropped 12 lbs. that was the fastest I’ve ever lost on HCG. On day 8 I stalled out. I hit a weight I used to be for the better part of my 30’s I never cheat ont his diet, sometimes I skip a fruit now and then and I eat my grissini only about 3 times a week. I was so frustrated when every day the scale stayed the same even up a pound one day during the stall. After day 3 I mixed new HCG thinking maybe mine was no good after only one week. ( i use 2000 IU and mix more frequently) Finally on day 8 Of my stall I did an apple day. Next day STILL NO LOSS! Wanting to quit I talked myself into sticking with it for at least the minimum 26 days. Two days after my apple day finally down 1 lb. making it a total of 12 as of day 17 im guessing my body was playing catch up and holding onto water, which I do drink plenty of. This was the longest stall I ever had, so don’t give up, you do recover from it. Because I’m only at 12 lbs by day 17 im going to do the 43 days now which was unintended however I’d rather suck it up now then have to do another round in 6 weeks. I hope my recent experience can encourage those having a major stall to stick with it because when your body is ready, it will happen!
Thank you so much for sharing your experience. It can be really frustrating to have that stall and you KNOW you’re doing everything right and still no loss, sometimes for days. You know what… Not everybody realizes that plateaus are totally normal with this diet. The longest stall I ever had was nearly a week and a half. It sounds like you are doing just great! Hang in there through it all and visit again if you need more support and encouragement. Thanks again for sharing, I know that dieters who read this will be encouraged by your story.
I am on my 2nd round of HCG. The first week of phase 2 was so good that I started dropping 500gms every day but on the 8th day on-wards it stopped. For the last 4 days I have been loosing only about 100gms and its quite agonizing to see my scale with much disappointment. I need to loose another 5 kgs with 12 more days left. I am doing apple day today and hopefully it breaks the cycle. I have been counting my calories and I am not exceeding 500 calories. Infact I don’t feel hungry at all. Anything that I should do?
It is quite normal to reach a plateau around this time although that usually doesn’t happen until the second or third week of your round. It’s kind of like your body decides to pause for a moment after such a blitz of weight loss that you likely experienced those first few weeks. The weight loss will continue. Here’s an article on breaking through HCG Diet plateaus I wrote that might help you. Just remember to keep eating HCG friendly foods, make sure your HCG is fresh and that you are not wearing any lotions or using oils on your skin. Just trust the process. You are doing fine and everything right. Sometimes with a plateau, you just have to wait it out.
Thanks Tammy. With an apple day I lost about 1kg and am sticking to the diet. Hope the weight loss continues. Being a fuzzy vegetarian leaves me with very limited food options and I sometimes go without meeting the 500cal diet. However seeing my weight loss today, I am encouraged to see through till the end of this program.
Thank you again for your encouragement.
Hang in there Hari and I’m here if you have any more questions along the way. The Jay Robb egg white protein shakes are HCG approved and sweetened with stevia or you can use unsweetened pea protein as well. The HCG Diet Gourmet Cookbook Vol. 2 has a selection of egg and cottage cheese recipes for vegetarians. Happy to hear that the apple day broke your plateau! Keep me posted on your progress and all the best with your diet 🙂