Eating the South Beach Diet Way for the past three months has been fantastic and here’s why.
Number one is because I have lost 12 pounds. Secondly I have stopped eating all flour products. Thirdly, I have gained a new respect for my body and fourth I have gained a plan for eating the foods that my body needs every single day, and fifth is that it is fairly simple.
I will touch on these aspects briefly in hopes of helping someone else out there who is looking to lose unwanted “fat”.
The SB diet is a lifestyle, it is not a diet (abstinence from food) otherwise I wouldn’t be doing it. I’ve never had to diet in my life. I started gaining weight after having children in my mid thirties into my 40’s, yes in my 40’s and therefore never quite kept it off. Even if it has been 20 lbs, 20 lbs of fat is not healthy. Have you ever lifted a sack of 5 lbs of sugar? Well quadruple that and imagine if your body had to carry the 20 extra pounds or more if you have more to lose. This plan is a way of life that once you get the hang of it is simple. I’ve lost 12 pounds of fat. Woo Hoo is all I can say. Those 12 pounds of fat has given me a lighter step in my walk and a lighter burden on my heart.
Fat gives off toxins to the body, which is a big topic for another time, therefore the goal is to lose the bad fat. People say to themselves “I need to lose weight”, frankly that doesn’t say it with enough emphasis in my mind. It is “fat” that we are losing, too much extra fat that may cause disease. We need to do it once and for all. Some people get on these roller coaster diets which are very unhealthy for your body. Make a decision today for the rest of your life, you will be happy you did.
Deciding to stop eating flour products didn’t just happen over night. Years ago I knew that yeast and flour were probably not the best items to put into my diet. Then I found out that I am actually allergic to them, that is why I have a new found appreciation for my body, not giving it the items that it is allergic to. Which has caused unwanted weight, unwanted inflammation etc. Growing up and into adulthood I ate bread, and pasta these were foods that I loved and ate them frequently. I even ate them at the same meal.
Learning more about my body has given me more respect for it. I don’t eat any flour products. I just say no and the other phrase I tell my mind is that “I don’t eat that anymore”. It isn’t a struggle just a friendly reminder to old habits, the old way of thinking that I’m changing.
The other food if it is really a food….is sugar. I’ve eliminated added sugar. Before I purchase a food I look to see if it has added sugar if it does I don’t buy it. Even organic and healthy foods have added sugar, so beware. Instead, on most days I have agave, 75 to 100 calories per day is my limit, this is my personal sweet treat added to Greek yogurt with fresh berries and nuts. I eat low glycemic fruits such as berries, green apples and sometimes grapefruit or pears. I don’t feel deprived one bit. On the SB plan there are lists of fruits to enjoy, personally these are the only ones I’ve chosen to have.
In studying foods and what are in the foods we eat I’ve learned that low sodium most of the time if not always means more added sugar, or low fat is also more added sugar. So all the years of the low fat food rage meant more sugar, higher glucose in the diet. Is that why low fat really didn’t help us lose the weight that we thought we would lose by switching to low fat foods?
The South Beach Diet Phase I is where you don’t eat any starch or sugar for 14 days. It may sound scary but it is so worth it. The hardest part is the thought of not having these items before you even start the diet. Once you decide to do it, go for it you will be so happy you did. You will lose all your cravings and you will also lose weight.
The next Phase, Phase II is where you will stay until you lose your desired weight. There are lists of foods, meal plans with recipes from Phase I that you will eat for the first two weeks and there are lists of foods, meal plans and recipes that you will be adding in to Phase II for the remainder of Phase II in other words until you lose your desired weight.
Remember this is a new way of eating, a new lifestyle. You could call it a new beginning. I love new beginnings. They give me a new energy, a newness of life. Life can get stale, which means old, decayed, overused, out-of-date yes these are the meanings of this word so adding a newness to your everyday life can spark creativity, it can spark a new passion, it can spark a new zeal for the fullness of life that you can have for the rest of your life.
Phase II of the SB Diet is adding certain foods back in at a very slow pace, the foods that you have eliminated for the first two weeks. The key here is huge, you watch for cravings after you eat a fruit or a starch. If you feel a craving you switch that particular food to a different meal next time and again watch for cravings. For instance if you have oatmeal for breakfast and you have a craving soon afterwards, the next time you have your starch have it later in the day.
This is the part that you could either sink or swim. The first time around, 2 plus years ago I lost the weight but didn’t get this part of it. I didn’t watch for cravings and I eventually added back in too many starches and sugars which only made me gain back the weight I had lost. Even though these foods were organic or natural I still gained it all back.
So this time around I have a new appreciation for the plan and the guidance that I’ve gleaned from others who have succeeded. Therefore I have taken their advise and now I’m staying focused to reach my goal.
One of the suggestions was to stay with one fruit and one starch for the first two weeks of Phase II. Then I added another fruit and starch for another 2 to 3 weeks and so forth. Knowing myself and my habitual eating of extra starches this was necessary for me. This part is very personal. Some people who start on the SB plan are vegan or partial vegans. You make the plan work for you and you can even have a South Beach nutritionalist help you out for a while if you need the extra help which I did. I had so many questions that got answered which helped me stay on track.
On the South Beach Diet Plan there is no counting calories except for your sweet treat calories and really a very small amount of measuring. I measure my starches and I keep track of the fruit and nuts but that’s it. I know the amounts of food that I need to eat daily, so eating is a pleasure and I can accomplish this now with ease and planning. It definitely takes planning.
One very important key to losing weight that I’ve noticed is that if you eat too much or you eat too little you will not lose weight. Interesting isn’t it?
I continued to learn so many key points being part of the SB on line community that when I got to Phase II I knew exactly when I would add these foods back in. I had my one serving of fruit at around 3 pm with a few nuts and my starch 1/2 cup of rice or another grain at dinnertime. I did this for 3 weeks.
After the first 3 weeks I added another fruit and another starch to the plan and so forth. I’ve kept losing weight. It has been steady although once or twice I’ve been at the same weight for 3 weeks but I haven’t given up or lost sight of my goal. Remembering that it is a new way of life a new respect for the way my body works best. One person who has really encouraged me has lost over 100 pounds and she continues to help those on the SB plan to stay focused and to stick with the plan. You need to stick with the plan.
Rewarding yourself after you have lost weight or have done well for a week, two weeks two months and so forth doesn’t mean you get a cheat meal, reward yourself with something else, a massage, a new item of clothing, or just the satisfaction that you have reached another milestone.
This healthy lifestyle consists of a protein, and a healthy fat, and veggies for breakfast; 2 oz of protein, 1 cup of veggies and a healthy fat, which in my case I like avocados.
My sample Breakfast Menu: Eggs, turkey bacon, one 6 oz glass of organic carrot juice or 1/2 cup of oatmeal, soy sausage, 6 oz of carrot juice, or one egg, 1/2 cup of sweet potato (the only potato that is SB legal), and carrot juice, or a veggie omelet with soy sausage and carrot juice.
Lunch and Dinner consists of 2 tbsp of good fat ( from EVOO) 2 cups of veggies and 3 oz of protein. (you may add a starch at these meals)
The SB Phase II plan is to eventually add back in 3 fruits and 3 starches per day.
My starches consist of ( 1/2 cup is a serving) Basmati rice, oatmeal, millet, or quinoa. Those eating wheat can add in 100% whole wheat breads and pasta items.
Extras items for my daily consumption are 15 almonds or 15 walnuts or 30 pistachios. Dairy is 2 to 3 cups of low fat, fat free milk or low fat or non fat yogurt a day and it addition is 3 fruits a day. One ounce of low fat cheese; such as string cheese, plus beans and legumes, 1/2 cup daily. The variety of protein and veggies in this plan is huge.
There is such an abundance of knowledge to learn from the SB plan for a healthy lifestyle and in turn healthy aging that it is exhilarating. Why you might say, it’s invigorating because you change your body, your body no longer has more fat that muscle. Your body image changes, you look in the mirror and see the “new you”, the healthier you.
Fat takes up more room in the body than muscle so when you start to lose the fat you actually see the muscle coming through. This is inspiring, it adds a fire to your soul to keep you moving forward for the rest of your life.
It is a bit more complex than this so you will need to check out the full plan but I’ve tried to make it brief to show you the basics.
I love Phase II, for me it is the perfect place to be, and I’ve just shared most of the basics.
If you are interested in a trial run of this way of eating you can go on line to southbeachdiet.com, there is a SB book and cookbooks available as well.
One of my mottos is to eat to live not live to eat. A motto I hope I have helped you decide on as well.