The South Beach Diet and How it Works

As I settled into my newly married life in 2005, I began to put on a few pounds here and there in places that I never knew existed. It was a fatal combination of my wife's delicious Southern cooking, as well as an extreme lack of exercise that led to my gaining of twenty pounds in just over eight months. I wanted to lose the weight, but between my real estate and writing career I had no time to hit the gym or take a run around the neighborhood. That left me with controlling my diet. My heart was truly broken because I knew that my romance with fatty foods was coming to an end. I heard from my mother-in-law about the South Beach Diet and how it worked wonders for her. I decided to give it a shot and, well, let's just say that it worked enough to prompt me to write this article. If you're curious about the how the South Beach Diet works then this article will discuss just that.

Let's start off with a little history lesson. The South Beach diet is commonly associated with the Atkins diet and both were actually the creation of medical doctors. The South Beach Diet is a book from author Dr. Arthur Agatston, who is a cardiologist from south Florida. He developed the book and diet as a solution to his overweight heart patients in the clinic. The book was released in 2003 and it has consistently been a bestseller. The book's success can be attributed 100% to the diet's success. This isn't an infomercial, folks. This is the real deal.

So how does it work, you may ask? It's really quite simple. The main focus of the South Beach Diet is to restrict carbohydrates. With that said, the South Beach Diet is divided into three different "phases," all of which help you gradually reduce carbs and fat. Each phase includes different foods that are allowed and the book even has suggested recipes.

Phase One lasts for two weeks and is probably the hardest out of all three phases. If you can make it past this stage then you should be fine the rest of the way. Yes, this means giving up potatoes, fruit, breads, corn, pasta, rice, cereal, and a bunch of other delicious foods for the first two weeks. I know that's enough to discourage you, but I urge you to keep reading. Also, alcohol is not allowed during this two week time frame. Dr. Agatston's purpose here is to change the way we think and view foods. Improve our minds, and we improve our bodies. By following a specified plan, we're changing the way our bodies react to food and we won't crave foods that cause us to store fat.

You may be curious about the kinds of things that you can eat. You can still eat meat such as fish, chicken, turkey, and ham. You're also allowed to eat cheese, salads, and vegetables. The purpose here is to eat until you are no longer hungry using the "allowed" foods list. You're allowed three meals a day, with the addition of two snack sessions and a dessert. But you have to be careful with even the type of desserts you eat! The doctor says that after Phase 1 you'll no longer have the urge to eat the fatty foods like you were before.

Phase Two can't come soon enough. The initial two weeks is over with and you're allowed to start adding foods that you avoided the first two weeks. It is your decision on which foods to reintroduce into your system. Obviously, while you can't eat them all, they'll no longer be off limits and you won't feel a strong urge to break the rules if you know you can have them. The important step here is to not splurge on the foods you're not allowed. Think of it as a rewards system for eating the healthier items. Eating these foods in moderation will prevent you from abusing them like you did before.

Phase Three is the last stage in the South Beach Diet. It is very similar to Phase Two because you are allowed to continue to reintroduce the original fatty foods in moderation. If you can follow a casual, controlled diet then it has become your way of life and you will consistently maintain your weight. The thing I learned the most about this diet was self control. During Phase Two and Phrase Three when I would feel the urge to eat pasta or bread I would say to myself "Do I really need that?" It was clear then that my way of thinking had drastically changed, but I would still reward myself every now and then with something fatty. I personally lost fifteen pounds during the South Beach Diet experience over a period of four weeks. I was very pleased with the results, and I have remained loyal to the diet ever since. My weight has hovered around a consistent mark and I've never felt better about my body or the things going into it. I highly recommend buying The South Beach Diet book for a more accurate depiction of the diet. Thank you and good luck!