hCG Dieting: Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3 and Phase 4 Explained
The hCG dieting phases make the program work. Understand the phases to decide if the diet matches you. Interestingly, phases match the lifestyle of ancient hunter-gatherer communities. Some experts believe we need to eat this way to be healthy. Of course, you’ll find other experts who completely disagree.
Pre-Phase: Some hCG dieting regimes consider this phase one. Added by Kevin Trudeau’s book, colonic cleansing was not part of the original plan. Many people benefit from beginning the diet with this process. Constipation is a common complaint early in the diet. Pre-phase cleansing may help relieve this problem.
Phase 1, Loading: Each weight loss cycle starts with two days of eating high fat, high calorie foods. The goal is preparing your metabolism to be reset during phase two. Literally eat anything you want and as much as you want during these two days.
Phase 2, Calorie Control: Low-calorie portion of the program, no sugar, fat, and highly limited amounts of carbohydrates with virtually no simple carbs such as grains. This phase will be at least 21 days long, perhaps as long as 40 days. Longer is not recommended. Multiple cycles are the way to lose additional weight if not reaching your goal during the first cycle. This is the actively loosing cycle.
Phase 3, New Normal: Many sites and experts call this maintenance. During this time you’re doing re-setting mental and physical expectations to a more normal level of daily intake. This will be lower than life-maintenance and definitely higher than during Phase 2. This phase typically last three weeks, and additional cycles will each be a week longer than the previous Phase 3.
Phase 4, Life (Maintenance): True maintenance happens during this phase. During the final phase you adjust to what will maintain your achieved weight loss level indefinitely. The level is usually a slightly higher daily calorie amount that any other phases. In addition, this Phase is skipped if you are repeating weight loss stages to reach your overall goal through hCG dieting.
