If you ever feel like your body is clinging on to fat, no matter how healthy you eat, how much you exercise, or how many different diets you have tried…that is not all in your head. Your body can store fat much faster than it will let it go when hormones, metabolic adaptation, or even years of dieting have worked against you. For nearly 50 years, MD Diet Weight Loss & Nutrition has been able to help patients in Salt Lake County overcome that struggle, and the HCG diet protocol is one of the medical weight loss services that they offer.
What is the HCG Diet, and Why does it Work So Well?
The HCG diet is a doctor-supervised weight loss program that uses human chorionic gonadotropin (HCG), a naturally occurring hormone, along with a specific calorie restricted eating plan to help promote accelerated weight loss. The program is not designed to restrict calories in the traditional sense, but to use calories to target abnormal fat stores while preserving lean muscle mass.
When you just reduce the calories you eat, the body has a tendency to slow metabolism, use up muscle mass to fuel itself, and just generally not lose any more weight. This is one reason that many people start out losing weight, hit a plateau, and then begin to gain it back. The HCG diet works differently in that the HCG encourages the body to go ahead and burn up those stores of stored, abnormal fat (typically around the belly area, hips, thighs, and upper arms) while preserving the structural fat and muscle mass that the body needs to function normally. At MD Diet, this process is overseen by experienced physicians and nurse practitioners.
Why does Physician Supervision Matter with HCG?
The internet is full of HCG drops, homeopathic HCG remedies, and self-guided HCG diet kits…but they are not the same as an HCG diet that is physician-supervised. HCG used for medical weight loss must be prescribed by a doctor and overseen with close clinical attention and a structured protocol.
When beginning the HCG protocol at MD Diet, a comprehensive bio-analysis is performed. The team looks at body composition, various other health data points like your metabolic state, any relevant history, and your goals to determine if the protocol is a good fit for you. If the protocol is deemed appropriate for you, you will be put on a customized program based on what you physically need.
You will also see the medical provider once a week to track progress with weigh-ins and progress notes and will receive B-vitamin injections as part of your HCG program to help with energy, red blood cell production, and healthy fatty acid metabolism during your accelerated weight loss phase. You will have regular contact with the medical team to ensure that you continue to do well, and to make adjustments when necessary.
What to Expect on the HCG Diet Program
The HCG diet is an intensive, highly structured, physician-prescribed HCG weight loss program that works best for patients who are able and willing to follow the protocol closely. It requires a strong commitment to the process. When that commitment exists, rapid, visible weight loss will occur and the program can build momentum and help you develop new healthy habits to keep the weight off.
When you see progress week after week…when you see the way your clothes fit, and you see yourself in the mirror and can’t believe it’s you! It all adds up to building new, positive habits. Many MD Diet patients have lost 30, 65 and even 76 lbs on their weight loss program. Your results will vary, but the clinic average weight loss is 8 to 10 lbs/month on all of their programs, and the HCG program may be an option to speed that up for you.
Is the HCG Diet Right for Me?
The HCG protocol is not right for everyone. A licensed physician at MD Diet first reviews your health history, goals, and status before prescribing a regimen. Some patients are well-suited for GLP-1 drugs such as semaglutide or tirzepatide. Others may respond to appetite-suppressant medications such as phentermine, Qsymia, or Contrave. Others do very well with our medical weight loss program. The HCG diet isn’t a drug. It’s one option within the context of the physician-supervised medical weight loss program, and you really have to be assessed in clinic and get a bio-analysis done before you can know for sure if that approach is right for you.
MD Diet: 46 Years of Utah Weight Loss Success
At MD Diet Weight Loss & Nutrition since 1978, thousands of patients throughout the Wasatch Front have enjoyed improved health outcomes through a physician-supervised, evidence-based weight loss program. MD Diet has a clinic location in South Salt Lake and provides telehealth services throughout Utah to bring care wherever patients may be. MD Diet offers month-to-month programs that carry no contracts, meaning patients can discontinue the programs at any time. This flexibility is a sign of the clinic’s confidence in the outcomes it has achieved in years of patient outcomes. HCG isn’t some fleeting fad at MD Diet, it’s one protocol the medical team at MD Diet has employed, tailored, and evaluated over time as part of our medical weight loss offerings.
MD Diet Weight Loss & Nutrition’s HCG Diet FAQs
- Is the HCG diet safe? When implemented under the supervision of a licensed physician within the context of a physician-supervised medical weight loss program, the HCG weight loss protocol is a physician-monitored weight loss program. Your medical history, goals, and current status are reviewed prior to starting a treatment, and progress is monitored throughout the program as well. As in any medical treatment, results and patient experiences will vary from patient to patient.
- How much weight can I lose? Weight loss outcomes depend on a variety of factors including starting weight, program adherence, metabolism, and general state of health. The average weight loss for an MD Diet patient across our various programs is 8 to 10 pounds per month. The HCG weight loss program may yield weight loss at a faster rate for the right candidates. There is no way to promise results for patients.
- Do I need to come into the clinic? The medical team at MD Diet is in South Salt Lake and offers telehealth visits throughout Utah for our medical weight loss program. Patients are seen in person or via telehealth by a licensed medical provider, and patients receive tailored treatment plans and continuous support throughout their programs.
- Is the HCG diet covered by insurance, and how much does it cost? We offer our month-to-month medical weight loss programs on a contract-free basis, so patients may opt-out at any time. We’ll discuss the cost of the program during your consultation to find the program that best fits your needs and budget.
- What happens after the HCG program? Lasting success with weight loss is largely about maintaining healthy lifestyle habits after the intensive phase of the program, and at MD Diet, patients are provided nutritional coaching, lifestyle support, and continuing care to help maintain weight loss after the program ends.
MD Diet Weight Loss & Nutrition Help Me Lose Weight Fast Now
Don’t waste another moment with another diet that promises the world and delivers the nothing, and experience the benefits of a physician-supervised medical weight loss program. Whether the HCG program or one of our other protocols is best for you, the team at MD Diet Weight Loss & Nutrition will determine the right choice for you! Call MD Diet today or visit mddietclinic.com to schedule a free consultation at our South Salt Lake clinic location. We offer telehealth appointments throughout Utah.
Let the Skinny Out!