Your HCG diet is over and now it’s time to return to the real world of food, where it’s up to you to decide what to eat and how much of it. For many dieters, HCG phase 4 can seem a little intimidating, after all, now it’s your responsibility to maintain your weight and figure out meals that will help you achieve that.

What most people don’t realize is that no diet is without maintenance, and if you were hoping that the HCG diet would keep your weight off indefinitely, without any work on your part afterward, you will be disappointed and right back into your “fat jeans”. Maintenance doesn’t have to be boring, or even difficult, since the HCG diet already made you aware of the type of food you are putting into your body. Sure you’ll need to cut back on some carbs, count your calories, and check labels, but there are so many great food choices out there from brands that understand that healthy food can satisfy your sweet tooth too.

For some people, once the diet is over then it’s over, and they’ll continue to go back to HCG injections or drops whenever they regain weight. Although the diet is healthy to do after a six week time period, at some point you’ll need to learn how to maintain that weight on your own. That’s not to say you won’t ever do the HCG diet again, more likely you will, but going forward with a healthy lifestyle is goal number one now. 

When you are transitioning, it can be easy and tempting to “treat yourself” for all of your hard work. That’s a completely natural mindset, after all, people love being rewarded for a job well done! An easy way to transition is to count your calories each day, and with the technology we have these days it’s fairly simple. There are plenty of apps and websites that will give you a complete calorie breakdown of the food you are planning on eating, or have eaten, all with just the press of a few buttons.

These items will be your best friend for the next couple of weeks, so be diligent about keeping track of the food and drink you take in during phase 4. Your doctor will be able to give you a better picture of how many calories you should be taking in each day, based on your current weight and other factors. For most people, the maximum amount of calories to be taken in each day is around 2,000, so for your first week you would be advised to take in only around 1500 calories.

If you're wondering how others are doing on phase 4, check out this open and simple video:

During this time you’ll be reintroducing carbs and sugars into your diet, but do so carefully. Stay away from “white” foods like breads, rice, pasta, flour, chips, and sugars, as well as fast food restaurants. Avoid processed foods, and try to eat organic when possible. Your carbohydrates should come from fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

If you find that you have gained weight, do a steak day like you would do when on the HCG diet and be sure you are counting your calories and carbohydrate intake each day. Lots of people have to readjust while on phase 4, especially when it comes to meal planning. There are hundreds of recipes online from dieters just like you who enjoy food and want to be able to do so without worrying about gaining weight. If you feel like you’re in a slump, set up a meal plan for the week using their online recipe books, that way you get the right amount of carbs and calories.

Conclusion

The plan set up for HCG phase 4 sounds simple, but after the HCG diet you may be longing for that big plate of spaghetti and meatballs, and understandably so! You can prepare that tasty recipe, you just need to make some modifications. When you transition back to “the real world” it can seem really worrying since you don’t want to slide back into old habits.

Phase 4 is meant to help you understand how to think of food differently in regards to the way you are planning out your menu and also maintaining your weight without putting your body out of balance. Keep that balance up, you’ll see the rewards in no time, and that donut in the break room? You won’t even think twice about passing it up.