There is one big diet plan everybody I know has been going on lately, or at least everybody I know over the age of 40.  This being said, the HCG diet is extremely popular, and it has been for a while.  They say that basically speaking you are injected with a pregnancy hormone, which is legitimate considering HCG is measured in pregnancy tests, but it keeps you from feeling hungry and simultaneously speeds up your metabolism.  Basically, you go on a 500 calorie diet, and then you ideally speaking do that for a few weeks and then go off for a few weeks, eating regularly and then go back on and off in cycles. 

 The amazing thing is everybody is falling for it.  People lose weight, I won’t deny that, and a good friend who is doing it is within 10 pounds of his goal weight, which is amazing.  But he always looks tired, which is not amazing.  He is eating 500 calories a day and exercising.  And yet he’s only losing ½ a pound to 1 pound per day total.  I mean when you are basically burning off your intake that is only nutrient dense foods in a couple hours, and then you are exercising and going throughout the rest of your day on top of that, I can guarantee that you should be losing more than that. 

And let’s be honest, pregnant women don’t lose weight or lose tons after.  It takes them months or they don’t lose the weight again at all.  It’s bunk.  As far as speeding up the metabolism, if it was doing that you would actually be losing more weight rather than less.