261. That’s my number. Not the number of dollars I have in the bank. Or the number of times I’ve ridden a roller coaster. Nor is it even the number of babies I’ve delivered (that number should be at least 10 fold higher by now…got to start keeping a tally). 261 lbs. On Jan 2, 2015 that’s where I tipped the scales at. Now, this isn’t my heaviest. I got up to 267 at one point before I said, “I’ve gotta lose weight.”

As an African American Male, Husband, Father, and Physician I feel that I’ve got a few responsibilities. First responsibility is to my family and wife. Next, as a doctor I know that obesity (my BMI at my height is 35.4) is a killer. Increased risks of hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, sleep apnea, stroke, gallbladder disease, elevated trigylcerides, erectile dysfunction (THAT should wake you up if nothing else does!!), and fatty liver disease.

So, I can either wait for one of these diseases to catch up with me OR I can make some changes before the diseases come a knocking.

To look at me, you know I’m a big guy, but I don’t know if the average person would refer to me as obese.

But by the books, with a BMI of 35.4, I am. Now that takes some retrospection … “I’m obese?” I think more people need to say this out loud to themselves. The words sting at first, but I think that they will hopefully start you on a journey. The journey NOT TO DIET, but to change the way you approach food.

Like most people I have tried Weight Watchers (thanks to a gentle prodding from my lovely wife… Love you, Char), 40-30-30, some abbreviated Atkins, and calorie counting with exercise. Each has brought dividends but I’ve always managed to obtain the lost pounds back :).

Recently my colleague Dr. Rowser (check her out on Facebook) introduced the office to HCG. The concept involves daily HCG injections and a 500 calorie per day diet for 30 days. 500 calories!! I eat 500+ calories with my Chipotle burrito (brown rice, double chicken, fajitas… sorry, I started ordering in my head). She explained that the HCG will quiet the hunger pains and liberate fat from the hard to lose regions. I spent time researching the topic and read Dr. A.T.W Simeon’s original research. Yep, 500 calories and daily HCG injections for 30 days. The average patient will lose around 20 lbs in a month.

The biggest part of this is the boot camp mentality that 500 calories a day opens you up to. You HAVE to approach food smarter. The list of foods is WAY to small to approach any other way. Our plan with patients is to open their eyes to a new way of looking at food. Anything that you can do for a month you can turn into a habit. So I decided to give it a whirl. Over the next month I will check in and give you the perspective from a big guy on HCG trying to become a medium-sized guy. And by the way – I weighed in today (1/6/15) … 255.6 is my new number (for now!).

dr. h