A couple of years back I wanted to lose the weight I hadn’t been able to lose since I had my last child, so I decided to check out the South Beach Diet.
The First Phase of this diet is to stop cravings, it is fourteen days without bad carbs, bad fats, baked goods, alcohol, fruit or sugar. The purpose again is to stop cravings.
The Second Phase you gradually add some foods back in, SB has daily meal plans to help you. They also have lists of foods that you can enjoy on each phase and foods to avoid.
Phase III is designed for maintenance, and designed to last the rest of your life. It worked for me. Unfortunately over a two year period the weight crept back up. It’s because I was unaware of a few food allergies that I had and adding these foods back in brought the weight back up. I could probably live with this extra weight for the rest of my life but a few pounds off will definitely be better for healthy aging.
I just read an article from Real Age and just a mere 4 pounds can have huge benefits.
This new study “showed that dropping a mere 4 pounds could cut hypertension risk by 8 percent in middle-aged people and by 11 percent in the 50-plus set.”
“Of course, bigger weight loss had even better blood pressure benefits in the 8-year study. For example, losing 15 pounds reduced high blood pressure risk by 21 percent in the middle-aged folks. Better yet, people 50 to 65 who were 15 pounds thinner enjoyed an even more impressive 29 percent risk reduction. And isn’t it great to know that a realistic mini goal of 4 pounds will still bring big health benefits on the road to 15 lbs.”
I’ve never had to diet so thinking of a diet kinda spooked me, a week without fruit or bread, potatoes, rice and pasta? As if the world would come crashing down after 14 days without these foods. It is crazy the way we think isn’t it?
Healthy Aging is my theme here on the Ideal Scents Blog and I have come to the conclusion after starting this new way of eating again that it is truly a great way of eating. I once heard this and totally agree; eat to live, not live to eat. Makes perfect sense to me. Since I eat mostly natural and organic foods anyway it may seem strange that those of us who do eat very healthy may still need to lose weight but we do. We can still eat too many natural grains or sugar, even if it is honey or organic sugar. It still adds pounds.
In the South Beach Diet Book it talks about emotional eating, this is a whole other topic but one that is crucial in our thinking if we are going to succeed, so I highly recommend reading the book if you are planning on starting this new phase of your life.
So I started this new plan again 8 days ago and it is remarkable what I have discovered for myself. I have discovered that the fiber in the vegetables is what fills me up, plus the protein I eat at each meal. The sweet treats that you can have with this first phase are also new for me. For the past couple of months I had decided to make my after meal sweet treats fruit, low glycemic fruit, so I’m looking forward to phase two so I can add those back in.
What definitely has helped this time around is the on line support from the South Beach community. It is fantastic to be able to ask questions and get answers within hours of asking. You get support from those who have lost any where from 5, 10 or even 100+ pounds. They help you stay on track with encouragement, experience and great ideas. It’s a win win situation.
So is the South Beach Diet a diet or a new way of living? It is definitely a new way to eat. Eating this way keeps the balance that we need without over doing it.
It has been so successful because people lose weight, stop cravings and learn the healthy way to eat, live healthy food.
Ideal Scents has always taught that we need to eat properly to live a long healthy life and this support from the South Beach Diet, I guarantee can change your life.
Adding exercise to this program can get you on track for a new you, a brand new life with a healthy outlook. Free from the diseases that being overweight can bring.
I would consider this a preventative medicine lifestyle.
In his book James Geiger MD, The oilMD discusses Worldwide Wellness, he speaks about obesity.
I like this quote that he mentions in the beginning of chapter three.
“The art of healing comes from nature and not from the physician. Therefore, the physician must start from nature with an open mind.” Paracelsus
There are many diets out there, the problem I see with some of those diets is that you are eating pre-packaged food, its processed. We need live healthy fresh food daily.
Even with these good fresh foods we still need to use supplements because of the depletion of nutrients in our soil, so it is crucial for preventative living that we eat sensible, not just for satisfaction. Eating for satisfaction will just keep us over weight and in risk of disease. Remember our goal is healthy aging. Imagine at 80+ enjoying your life with friends and family.
Here’s to healthy aging, a new way of living for more energy, feeling good in your clothes, and the satisfaction that you are in control of your life.