Surviving the First Week of the VLCD

The first five days of the HCG Very Low Calorie Diet can be the absolute toughest days you might experience on the HCG Diet. HCG affects all of us differently, but in general, there are three primary reasons for the headaches and hunger pains felt in these first few days of the VLCD on HCG.

1. Psychological hunger. It’s all in your head! Well, it might be anyways. Many people have found that distracting their mind plays a big role in keeping their hunger at bay. Keep a positive outlook. If you tell yourself that you are satisfied with your HCG meals and remind yourself that the HCG is releasing between 1,500 and 4,000 calories a day into your bloodstream, it can really take the edge off the hungry feelings.
2. Not enough water/liquids. You should be drinking at least 2 liters of water per day on the HCG Diet if not more. If you’re not drinking enough water on HCG, your body will not be able to flush out all the fat and toxins that it needs to and you won’t lose as quickly as you could. Just make sure that any coffee or tea you drink is in addition to the 2 liters of water. Also, hot liquids will make you feel more full than cold liquids.
3. In America, we consume such an inordinate amount of fat, sugar, salt, caffeine, and carbohydrates on a daily basis, that when you hit the VLCD/Phase 2 of the HCG Diet, you’re basically going cold turkey from all of these things (well, maybe not the caffeine). This is why most people experience headaches in the first week. As your body begins detoxifying, you may find yourself experiencing symptoms similar to withdrawals. This is totally normal! Feel free to take an aspirin or ibuprofen (not gel caps and watch out for sugar coating) if you have a headache and know that your body is going to love you for making the choice to get all the junk out of your system.

A few more tips for making it through the first week of the HCG Diet…

• Did you know that green vegetables on HCG can be eaten in unlimited quantities? They must be eaten at mealtime and cannot be snacked-on. So, go crazy on all that lettuce, spinach, celery, etc. until you’re full.
• If you miss having breakfast on the VLCD of HCG, know that you can split your fruit and Grissini breadsticks away from your lunch and dinner. So, for example, you can have a half of a grapefruit for breakfast, then just leave fruit out of your HCG Diet lunch. Similarly, if you’re an evening snack person, you can skip your fruit and Grissini at dinner and make an “HCG dessert” later in the evening (try not to eat too late at night though).
• Remember that the hardest part of the HCG Diet is in the first few days. After that, it gets much easier. Plus, the VLCD is only for a few weeks and you’re going to lose weight like crazy!