Confused over nutrition advice? These simple tips can help you plan, enjoy, and stay on track with healthy eating even after the HCG Diet.

1. Create a list of your eating. I bet that you’ve written something in your journal after months of doing the HCG diet. Creating a list of your “must” eating habits will help you uncover your eating habit even after the diet is over. Also, include in your list the ones that could lead to weight gain like eating too fast or eating when not hungry. Highlight those parts and identify the trigger that causes you to engage in those habits. Common triggers for eating when not hungry includes:
   1. Eating while watching your favorite movies on Netflix.
   1. Opening the cabinet and discovering what you like to snack on.
   1. Swing through the drive-through each morning.
   1. Walking past a candy or chocolate dish on your kitchen counter of your office mate’s table.
   1. Emotional eating
   1. Feeling bored thinking food might be your pick-me-up.
2. Make a positive difference to your health. After adapting to eating healthily, try not to go back to your unhealthy lifestyle. Stay away from unhealthy foods and replace them with healthy alternatives. Replace dangerous trans-fat with healthy fats.
3. Prepare your meal. Cooking your meal at home can help you monitor exactly what goes into your foods and better take control of it. You’ll be able to eat fewer calories and avoid added sugars, preservatives, and unhealthy fats from takeout and packaged foods. Avoiding calorie-dense and chemically laced convenience foods will keep you from feeling bloated, irritable, and stressed out, which could cause weight gain.
4. Eat whole natural foods. The HCG diet helps cleanse your pallet so whole natural foods can taste better than processed foods.
5. Skip breakfast. Sounds contradicting, right? Breakfast is a rather controversial topic these days. However, a recent study shows breakfast in a new light. Removing breakfast as part of an intermittent fasting schedule has several excellent benefits for your health. These include improving insulin sensitivity and allowing your body to burn fat rather than sugar.
6. Choose fruits and veggies you’ve never eaten before. When starting the HCG diet, most dieters didn’t eat all the allowed vegetables. However, many learned to appreciate vegetables such as grilled onions and broccoli, and raw cucumber that they would not have tasted before the diet. Try to have more raw veggies. Raw food is more satisfying to the body than cooked food since it allows for more chewing and crunching. Raw food also takes longer to eat, so you will consume less food overall.
7. Drink plenty of water. Water hydrates our bodies and removes wastes and toxins; yet many people go through life dehydrated, leading to tiredness, lack of energy, and headaches. Keeping hydrated can help you avoid confusing hunger and thirst, which is why getting enough water is also necessary for making healthier food choices.
8. Limit your snack foods at home. The unhealthier snacks you have on hand, the harder it will be to eat in moderation. Surround yourself instead with healthy options so you can reward yourself with a special treat when you’re ready for it.

The HCG diet is not only an effective plan for weight loss, but it also incorporates new eating habits after finishing the diet that will help you maintain your weight for good.

Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary defines a habit as “having a method of doing things that is automatic, and usually not intended to be done consciously”. This means that you don’t have to make a conscious decision to do it, and more importantly, you may feel weird or bad not to do it.

Most of us rely on habits. We rely on the same groceries, produce, and recipes again and again, and live within our familiar routines. But if you are serious about losing weight and change your eating habits, shake things up, change your bad eating habits and start thinking differently about your lifestyle and diet.

If you look at naturally thin people, you notice that many of their eating habits are like what dieters on the HCG diet practice. Basically, their diet includes eating healthy fruits, vegetables, and protein choices. They healthily prepare their food, and they eat only when they are truly hungry.

Switching to a healthy diet

Switching to a healthy diet does not always have to be all or nothing. You don’t have to be perfect or to eliminate or give up foods you enjoy all at once, as this usually leads to cheating. A better approach is to make a few changes one at a time, and you can do this through the HCG Diet. Keeping your goal modest can help you achieve more in the long run. You will feel less deprived and less overwhelmed by a drastic change in diet. When switching to a healthy diet, think of it as a series of small, manageable steps, as if you are adding a salad to your diet once a day. As you get used to your minor changes, you can make more healthy choices.

The HCG Diet and long-term changes

To eat healthily, you need to make some healthy changes in your diet and that’s what the HCG diet teaches you. Changing your eating habits takes time. Some changes are easier to make and can lead to better health. It depends on your determination and your level of motivation. The greater your motivation, the more likely your habit to take hold.

The way the protocol is designed essentially changes your eating habits for you over an extended time. For example, you chose to do the 42-day protocol- you’ll be eating healthily with only fruits, Melba toast, or Grissini sticks as your carb source. The determination you have comes from the rapid weight loss you are experiencing. By the time you finish the protocol, that’s nearly two months of lots of clean eating, you are most likely to not eat any of those unhealthy foods you used to eat a lot. You won’t have those cravings anymore because you’ve been eating long enough that your system is cleaned out. You’re healed and the hormones that tell you to eat are in hiding. You’ve broken the nasty habit of eating way too much, and so are your cravings.

Every culture has put a unique spin on Valentine’s Day, yet the center is all about showing love with the surrounding people- whether that be through food such as an elaborate dinner out, a box of chocolate, an indulgent dessert, or all of them. Love or hate it, Valentine’s Day is still one of the biggest and busiest restaurant nights of the year. The big deal here is that-what if you are on the HCG Diet?

With a few tips and proper planning, you can get through this day without adding too many extra calories. Here are some tips:

• Start health

When dining out, start with a light salad or soup to fill up before going for your entrée. It would also be nice to share it with your partner.

• Think red

Strawberries, cherries, tomatoes, red bell peppers, and red onions are all packed with vitamins. They are rich in cancer-fighting oxidants and cholesterol-busting fiber and proteins. They are HCG diet friendly too. Forget about the margarita or champagne and ask for a glass of red wine. Red wine contains powerful plant compounds and antioxidants responsible for many health benefits, including:

• Lowering the risk of heart disease
  • Reducing inflammation
  • Regulating blood sugar level
  • Lowering the bad cholesterol
  • Keeping you slim
• Abstain completely from all V-Day sweets

Though it may seem impossible, with the right attitude and mindset you can do it. To avoid temptations, it’s best not to touch any sweet treats that aren’t HCG diet friendly at all. If you really can’t help it, we have a lot of tasty and sweet V-Day friendly HCG diet dessert recipes. Try making strawberry sauce over cottage cheese, Strawberry sorbet, or strawberry daiquiri.

• Do not deprive yourself completely

V-day is a time for fun, laughter, and food. If you are on phase 3 of the HCG Diet, having a couple of truffles or a small slice of cake will not make you gain weight. Moderation is the key. If you indulge in chocolates this Valentine’s Day, don’t feel guilty. Research shows that chocolate contains a beneficial compound that may help prevent heart disease, enhance immunity, and make us feel great.

• Don’t be afraid of the waiter

When dining out, ask questions about the dish they serve, even in a fancy restaurant. Feel free to make a special request. Ask whether the entrée is sauteed in butter or olive oil-anything that could help cut down on calories. Request for sauces on the side dishes or trade your rice or pasta for a whole wheat variety. Ask the waiter to substitute vegetables for french fries.

Serving sizes at restaurants are typically larger than those in normal homes. If you go out to celebrate, consider splitting a meal with your date or take half home.

• Non-food Valentine’s Day gift

You don’t have to always show your love with foods or fancy treats. So, ask for a gift that doesn’t involve foods or any sweet treats like flowers, a card, or a gift certificate for a fancy massage.