Weight Loss Guide

Review by C. Lane:

I believe that weight loss is a journey. There are those who simply don’t know enough about how their bodies work to complete this protocol. Please do some research. Those individuals may not feel comfortable with this approach. I, on the other hand, have read Dr. Perricone’s weight loss book – along with Dr. Barry Sears – Zone book and tons of others. I know that refined, processed foods don’t work for my body.

I am very surprised by the negative reviews of Trudeau’s book. Amazon’s suggested tags have words like “fraud” although this book has mostly positive reviews. I have read Dr. Simeon’s original manuscript and I am currently taking HCG that I received from a licensed physician. IT WORKS! I feel great! I have lost 20 lbs in 3 weeks. I’ve got 3 weeks to go. I would also recommend this book because it’s more streamlined than Trudeau’s – although I think Trudeau’s book is helpful because of the in-depth analysis of dangerous toxins in our body. It’s not about weight loss but rather fat loss! I’ve lost inches and reshaped my body. I found a doctor that prescribes HCG in Aurora, IL – I live about 40 minutes away. I only had to see him twice. Once for a consultation and then for a two week follow-up. I know that everyone isn’t comfortable with the idea of a self-injection. Trust me…I’d take this over popping pills anytime. It’s quick and painless. I took Phentermine years ago which is FDA approved. It was prescribed by my primary care physician. The experience is like night and day. I had insomnia, dry mouth, jitters, etc. – it was awful and I loss the wrong type of fat. My face was drawn and I looked tired. I have had absolutely NO side effects with HCG!

Anyway, my HCG doctor was referred by a colonic therapist I found online. Colonics are important too but not absolutely necessary for success. The honest truth is that very few people can actually follow the 50+ suggestions in Phase 1 of Trudeau’s book – but that’s NOT the point. The point is to make some of the changes so you can live a healthier lifestyle AFTER losing weight on HCG. There are things I will absolutely NOT do since reading this book – like eat anything with High Fructose Corn Syrup or MSG or trans fat. I also ensure that I workout daily and I don’t eat out much! Shopping at Whole Foods may be more expensive but the cost has been offset by preparing meals at home! One of the greatest benefits is that I’m no longer drinking alcohol and eating sugar. I would suggest that you Google “Sugar Dangers”.

I don’t understand how can anyone claim that a hormone (HCG is a hormone not drug) is dangerous (it’s actually used as a fertility treatment) and yet they poison their bodies with High Fructose corn syrup, trans fat and bovine injected in cows. Not to mention all the man-made chemicals in our food and toxins in our cleaning supplies. Dr. Simeons graduated summa cum laude – he’s brilliant. This is HIS protocol – not Trudeau’s. This protocol simply builds on what I already knew – refined, processed foods are bad for you. If it doesn’t come from a plant, animal or fish – you’re body doesn’t need it!

UPDATE 10/27/08- I wrote my initial review after about 3 weeks of HCG injections. I have now completed Phase 2 – I loss a total of 31 lbs and I’m into my second week of Phase 3. I must admit that Phase 3 (no sugar/no starch phase) is more difficult than Phase 2 because I’m not sure what to eat. I know not to eat sugar or starch but you’re supposed to consume a minimum of 1500 calories and that’s difficult for me because I’m not all that hungry and I am fearful of gaining weight. That said, I am going to follow the suggested menus in this book and I’m going to begin daily exercise. Having the HCG Weight Loss Cure Guide is crucial in completing this protocol because it is easy to follow with eating charts and food journals.

I am very pleased with the outcome thus far. I can finally fit all of my clothes again. It’s been an entire year since I last wore my favorite jeans. I am planning on doing one more round of HCG just to give myself a buffer. I have to say that I really don’t want to lose more weight but I’d love to lose a few more inches off my midsection. The great thing about the HCG approach is that although I weigh 146 lbs., my clothes fit better than they did when I weighed 135 lbs last year.

UPDATE 03/10/09- I just completed a second round of HCG. I lost 27 lbs. I would recommend that you do NOT start this protocol in September because you will not finish Phase 3 (the 2nd 3 weeks) until the week of Thanksgiving. This was the mistake I made last fall and I gained weight during the Holiday season as a result. In addition, please adhere to the “Steak Day” if you gain more than 2lbs in one day. I failed to do this. It’s much better to complete this protocol in the spring or summer months when you’re most active (exercise is crucial). Actually, a great time to start is the month of January. As I’ve stated previously, Dr. Simeon’s protocol works great for losing weight. I cannot say that it “resets” your metabolism. If you immediately start eating an abundance of highly refined, processed, inorganic foods, you will regain the weight. This is because of reasons explained in metabolism book I recommend below. Times have changed quite a bit since Dr. Simeon’s days. I would suggest that you IMMEDIATELY start Phase 4 or some lifetime plan after completing Phase 3 (three weeks no sugar/starch, followed by three weeks low sugar/starch). Please follow the Phase 3 menus outlined in this guide. They are great!! I was reluctant at first because I thought I would gain weight but I didn’t. Peanut butter, apples and trail mix are quite yummy.

If you start Phase 4 (your lifetime phase), you should immediately begin a weight training and cardio fitness regimen. This will help rebuild muscle.

Don’t go back to your old ways of eating! Our genes can’t handle it. Try to prepare meals at home as much as possible. I know it’s difficult because I love going out to eat. The problem is that you don’t know how your meal is being prepared (or exactly what is being prepared). Not to mention to temptation of bread and alcohol. If you have reservations about Kevin Trudeau, then read the book “Ultra-Metabolism” by Dr. Mark Hyman. It basically states the same thing (with meal plans) – like the importance of whole foods, supplements, herbs and exercise (plus saunas) in maintaining a healthy weight. It’s more scientific which is quite helpful as Trudeau spends a lot of his time ranting (although understandably).

If you follow the recommendations in “Ultra-Metabolism”, you will have no problem maintaining your weight loss. I can’t necessarily say the same thing about Trudeau’s Phase 4 because it’s not an actual meal plan. The nice thing about the HCG protocol is that you lose weight quickly so you are naturally motivated to maintain your new physique. There are tons of books on gluten-free and sugar-free desserts if you love sweets. Losing weight with HCG is the easy part. Maintenance is a different animal. I am currently reading “The Raw Food Detox Diet” and “The Complete Beck Diet for Life”. You really need a plan you can follow for life! I can’t stress that enough. Whatever you decide, just make sure you can stick with it. HCG is for weight loss but not maintenance! I would also recommend Paul McKenna’s book “I Can Make You Thin” because it teaches you how to think about food differently. The Beck Diet Solution also addresses emotional eating. Have a great spring and summer! Most of our challenges are emotional and until you deal with what’s eating you, all the protocols, detox plans and recipes in the world won’t help. I’m running an 8K at the end of March which is a great way to kick off the season!

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Review by Pamela J. I. Towne:

I can hardly believe I made it through 3 rounds without having this book! I strongly suggest it if you are on the protocol and for life after the protocol! Thank you, Linda Prinster, for taking the time to share and put into words all the helps! I would love to meet you someday! I just reached 100 pounds lost!

Review by J T Cooper:

I have been in bariatric medicine for 39 years and this is the first book for teen-aged girls that makes sense. This is partly because of Dr. Bartell’s advisory panel of a dozen girls and partly because of her extensive knowledge of behavioral management of obesity. The book is easy to read and understand and is practical in her choice of subjects to cover. Healthy eating, understanding of eating disorders, exercise and management of family interactions that could ruin a diet are covered extensively and intelligently. This book is comparable to the one for smaller children written by Leonard Epstein (The Stoplight Diet) that is out of print now. Parents with overweight teenagers need to get this book and share it with their daughters.

Review by Stu Yurman:

As the mother of a 15 year old ninth grader, I was relieved that my daughter embraced Dr. Susan’s Weight Loss Guide. Of course, I would like to say that my daughter devoured this book, and then stopped devouring everything in sight. It hasn’t been quite that easy, but this Guide has made a significant difference in the way my daughter views her body, her image, and her relationship with food.

The book’s format is fun and easy to read, filled with clever hooks that grab a teenage girl’s fleeting attention. Lots of quizzes and self-ratings allow girls to be honest with themselves as they evaluate their thoughts about why and what they eat, and their food/friends/family issues.

I especially appreciated reading the thoughts and feelings of Dr.Susan’s group of young teenage girls with their own real issues. Learning that my daughter is not alone in the teenage whirlwind of body image and popularity made me (and my daughter) take it all in stride.

This book is a must for all teenage girls, whether or not they are battling weight issues, since at its core, this Guide offers the roadmap to a healthy lifestyle.

Review by veggie girl:

The negative review posted by the last person is so totally out of line. You really have to do the exercises and follow the program to understand how wonderful it is. I doubt that person tried the exercises or the eating plan. I will admit, it probably could have been written better, but English is not Nan Lu’s primary language. If you are looking for some “literary masterpiece” it’s not, but it wasn’t meant to be. You need to go past the superficial to the message of the book which is total health. It is unfortunate that it is written with a weight loss title because this book is primary about getting healthy which will inevitably lead to weight loss if you need to lose weight. Even if you don’t need to lose weight this book can help you become healthy. I just recommended this book to my dad who isn’t overweight, but who is a diabetic with high blood pressure. I definitely believe the exercises will be able to help him. That’s what brought me to this page, and when I saw that negative review I just had to respond.

I have been doing the exercises for about 3 or 4 years. They are extremely easy and only take about 20-25 minutes. They are definitely very effective – you can feel the change of energy throughout your whole body after you do them.

When I first bought the book I needed to lose weight. I hit a plateau and could not lose any more weight. This book, along with the video by the same name that I purchsed through his office listed in the book, helped me break the plateau and lose weight and inches. You don’t need the video – you can easily follow the exercises in the book, but I like something to follow along with, like I am taking a class.

The diet is excellent – I didn’t even follow it perfectly (I would have a bowl of high fiber cereal per day with some soymilk besides following the rest of his suggestions) and I still lost weight. Another amazing benefit to the diet is I totally lost my desire for sweets and snacks! If you know me, it’s definitely amazing because I have a very sweet tooth and like my snacks. Because I was eating so well I had no desire at all for junk food. After I lost the weight, I still continued to do the exercises to maintain my weight and my health. There were times when I would do them in my office during my lunch break if I was having a stressful day.

I definitely would suggest to anyone that they try the exercises in this book and if they need to lose weight, then follow the eating plan as well. Peace.

Review by anjlmuzik:

I am currently half-way through Nan Lu’s six-week program and I am pleasantly surprised at how good I feel. Working in the finance industry in NYC can be very stressful, yet my head is clear, I feel calm and balanced, an my body feels much stronger. This program is helpful in addressing much more than weight issues. After only four days of practicing the Wu Ming Meridian therapy (Qigong), an ache I had in my shoulder for a few months disappeared. To date, I’ve lost 5 lbs and 4.5 inches. The exercises are the foundation of the program. They are amazingingly effective for dealing with hunger. In fact, I no longer get really hungry. I like all of the foods on the recommended list and have been so much fun creating my own receipes for my vegtable stir-frys, that I haven’t gotten to the recipes in the back of the book yet. The book does gives you tips on how to get through each week, so you feel supported as you go along. He also explains TCM in very simple terms so you can appreciate the process because you are learning why it works. I’ve had success using TCM years ago for migraines so I didn’t have to be sold on it’s effectiveness. I just wish I had started using it sooner to address weight management.