From the book “Pounds and Inches” by Dr. Simeons, vegetarian must drink milk as a protein substitute. The rest of the diet is the same as the standard HCG. But with the recent slight changes, you can get protein in your diet from legumes, soybeans, protein meal replacements and dairy products. Dairy products include milk and non-fat yogurt.

Vegetarian Loading Days

You can eat anything that is high in fat protein from a full-fat dairy product in preparation for your VLCD. After your VLCD, which lasts about 3-6 weeks, you will have more options available during P3.

Avoid Grains

While on the HCG diet avoid grains even though they are your major source of protein. You can substitute this with whey protein meal or non-fat dairy products. Once your diet with HCG is over, you can resume having your grain shares again.

Weight loss results may vary

Your weight loss results may vary. You may experience a slower weight loss compared with non-vegetarian dieters.  According to Dr. Simeons, the rate of weight loss of a vegetarian is slower because of the carb content in milk. However, you can avoid this if you use whey protein replacement. But if you want to stick with the protocol be sure that you’re using organic non-fat milk. Non-organic milk can affect your metabolism because of the hormone and the antibiotics.

Whey protein products

Be cautious when choosing whey protein products. Some have unnatural ingredients like additives and preservatives.

Vegetarian protein options

On-protocol options:

Cottage cheese– You can have about 100 grams of cottage cheese. But use this sparingly because it can cause a stall in your weight loss.

Egg– Eggs are allowed for both vegetarian and non-vegetarian. You can substitute 3 egg whites plus 1 whole egg for your portion.

On protein replacement:

500 cc of skimmed milk– Use 500 cc of skimmed milk every day. Part of this ration is curd.

Protein shakes– Protein shake is one of the fastest meal replacement option. It readily mixes with water. Each serving is about 8-10-grams.

Tofu– Tofu is allowed on the HCG diet but in moderation. Like cottage cheese, tofu can cause a stall in your weight loss. Because it produces estrogen which can affect how your body burns fats.  The best way you can avoid a stall if you want to eat tofu is to limit them to at least once or twice a week only.

Non-breaded veggies patties– There are several kinds of veggie patties. From feedbacks from other vegetarians, they don’t seem to give many problems as far as weight loss stall is a concern. Just be sure you get the non-breaded one.

HCG diet protocol is pretty simple. Every day you get two servings of protein, two servings of fruits and vegetables, and two carbs. Because of these restrictions, a lot of vegetarians wonder if it’s possible for them to do the HCG diet.

The answer is-YES it’s possible! If you are a vegetarian, you can safely do the diet. Your protocol doesn’t require you to eat meat.  But how… well, there are few modifications only. Since most of the calories in the original protocol doesn’t come from meat sources. One of the modifications is to substitute your meat choices into other HCG approved protein source.

Protein shakes for meat

This is the best option for you. Drinking one or two protein shakes each day will provide your body with all the protein requirements you need on your VLCD. The highest quality substitute that you can use on the HCG diet is the whey protein.

Recipes without meat on HCG diet

There are lots of HCG recipes which don’t include meat that you can try. No matter what modifications you make, be sure that you’ll include fruits and vegetables in your meal plan. Be careful too with the number of calories you take every day. Do not exceed the 500 calories whether you eat meat or not.

It’s easier than you think

The vegetarian version of HCG may even be easier for you. Aside from the filling fruits and veggies, you need to take whey protein. This will ensure that you will get the maximum amount of protein each day.

Increase your veggie serving

You need to increase your veggie serving to compensate for the lack of protein in your diet. Vegetables like spinach and asparagus are high in protein. And these vegetables will be your major source of protein while on the HCG diet. You can drink skim milk as recommended by Dr. Simeons. But the whey protein replacement is far better.

Do not use protein powder that isn’t sweetened with Stevia

There are several protein powders that aren’t sweetened with Stevia. They use ingredients like aspartame and sucralose that causes metabolic issues which can affect your weight loss.