Read A Bride Worth Billions Online
Authors: Tiffany Morgan
The South Beach Diet consists of three distinct phases including specific acceptable foods, meal plans, and recipes.
Phase One
This is the strictest phase of the South Beach Diet. It lasts 14 days.
In this phase, you eat normal-sized servings of acceptable foods. The goal is to eat three balanced meals per day in order to avoid frequent hunger pangs. The phase is designed to eliminate cravings for foods that have high sugar contents and refined starches to set weight loss in motion. You eliminate nearly all carbs from your diet and focus on eating lean protein. You also eat vegetables high in fiber, low-fat dairy products, and unsaturated fats. During this phase, you are allowed to eat most of the foods you enjoy.
Acceptable foods include, but are not limited to:
Forbidden foods include, but are not limited to:
The expected weight loss at the end of the two-week period of Phase 1 is 8-13 pounds.
Phase Two
This phase is more liberal in comparison to Phase 1. It is a long-term weight loss phase that lasts until you reach your ultimate weight loss goal. You can begin to reintroduce some of the forbidden foods from Phase 1 back into your diet. It is up to you to pick and choose which foods to add back to your diet based on their glycemic index.
In Phase 2, you can eat fiber-rich carbohydrates like whole grain bread. Some additional diet foods to enjoy include 1% milk, most fruits, low-fat dairy products, pinto beans, red wine, and whole grain starches. It is advisable to eat certain foods sparingly such as potatoes, carrots, bananas, beets, honey, and refined wheat baked goods.
Follow the South Beach Diet correctly and you will most likely lose 1-2 pounds every week during Phase 2.
Phase Three
The final phase of the South Beach Diet is the least restrictive. It is a weight maintenance phase designed to last for the rest of your life. Dr. Agatston describes Phase 3 as “a way of life.” You continue to follow the diet principles of the first two phases. In this phase, you can eat all kinds of food in moderation.
To make the South Beach Diet journey easier to follow, here are some tips and tricks of the trade for maximum results:
Losing weight for the first several weeks is a success, but then you hit a plateau in which the scale won’t budge another ounce. This is completely normal, especially during Phase 2 of the South Beach Diet. The key to getting back on track is to acquire the skills and self-knowledge that will enable you to overcome a frustrating weight loss plateau. The following are some strategies that will enable you to get back into the program:
2. Make Healthy Choices When You Eat Out
Frequent eating out can be harmful to your diet. Most foods served at restaurants contain ridiculously high amounts of saturated fats and calories. It is best to cook at home so that you are in total control of how your meals are prepared. Eating at home enables you to choose your own low-fat and low-calorie ingredients. If eating out can’t be completely avoided, keep the following tips in mind:
3. Curb Hunger with Filling and Nutritious Foods
To lose weight with the South Beach Diet, it is important to control your hunger and cravings. It’s difficult, but not impossible. It’s all about eating foods with a high nutritional value, lean protein, unsaturated fats, and fiber-rich carbohydrates. Curb your hunger with these tips:
4. Read Nutrition Labels
If you don’t know how to read nutrition labels, it is advisable to learn, especially if you are following the South Beach Diet. While the diet does not technically require you to count calories, carbs, and grams of fat, it wouldn’t hurt to pay attention to the Nutrition Facts on food packaging and labels in order to ensure that you are getting the proper amount of daily nutrients.
5. Practice Proper Hydration
The South Beach Diet stresses the importance of consuming a minimum of eight glasses of water every day. Believe it or not, water is essential for good health. Every system in the body depends on water to function. Water eradicates toxins in your vital organs and helps carries essential nutrients to your cells. It is advisable to keep a bottle of water on hand at all times, allowing you to sip it throughout the day.
6. You Don’t Have to Completely Eliminate Caffeine
Caffeine is a weakness among the population, and the South Beach Diet knows that. Eliminate soda from your diet, but don’t say no to coffee and tea. The South Beach Diet allows you to indulge in one caffeinated beverage per day. Be sure to save it for that particular time when you are feeling the most lethargic. Also, keep in mind that adding sugar to your tea or coffee is prohibited; use artificial sweeteners instead.
7. Increase Your Vitamin Intake during Phase One
Incorporate a daily multivitamin into your diet during the second week of Phase 1. Before starting to reintroduce the prohibited foods into your diet, it is a good idea to begin taking flaxseed oil and a fiber supplement.
8. Exercise at the Right Time
Regular exercise is essential for anyone following the South Beach Diet. Exercising at a particular time of the day actually makes a difference in how much fat you burn.
Dr. Agatston recommends working out first thing in the morning as you burn slightly more fats when you exercise right after waking up.
9. Get a Sufficient Amount of Sleep
If you want to continue losing weight with the South Beach Diet, then you should not neglect sleep or sacrifice a good night’s sleep. Poor diet and lack of exercise are not the only things that cause you to gain weight; sleep deprivation can cause weight gain, as well. Lack of proper sleep impedes your body’s ability to properly metabolize food.
Condition yourself to wake up at the same time every day. Similarly, you should also go to sleep at the same time every night. Getting into these two habits practically ensures that you regularly get the proper amount of sleep every night.
Creating an environment conducive to sleep will also greatly improve your sleep experience. Having a comfortable bed is important, as well as blocking out unwanted noise and keeping your room slightly cool.
10. Eat Good Carbs
You already know that the South Beach Diet does not rule out carbohydrates; the point of the diet is to choose good carbs over bad carbs. Good carbs actually help you lose weight as they have low glycemic indexes. The best way to identify foods that contains good carbs is to check if the food is still in its natural state, or is similar to its natural state.
Good carbs include, but are not limited to:
Bad carbs include, but are not limited to:
11. Find the Right Fats
The South Beach Diet does not force you to give up fats, but it emphasizes the importance of replacing bad fats in your diet with the good ones. Monounsaturated fats and polyunsaturated fats are classified as good fats that lower cholesterol.
Good fats include, but are not limited to:
Bad fats include, but are not limited to:
12. Eat Fiber-Rich Foods
Dr. Agatston recommends eating more foods that are rich in fiber as doing so will boost weight loss. Fiber-rich foods tend to be filling; thus, enabling you to control your cravings and keeping you from snacking in between meals.
Here’s a list of some foods that are extremely high in fiber:
13. Increase your Lean-Protein Intake
Protein is essential to a healthy diet. However, choosing the right proteins makes a world of difference. Foods that are rich in protein act as a natural appetite suppressant. While hamburgers are protein-rich, it is lean protein that you should be consuming if you are to successfully follow the South Beach Diet.
Lean proteins include, but are not limited to:
14. Stock Up on Snacks
The South Beach Diet allows two snacks per day, so take advantage of it. Just be sure to choose the right snacks. Eating junk food as a snack defeats the purpose of the diet. Any snack you eat should be a good carbohydrate with a low glycemic index. These snacks will enable your body to break down sugar more slowly and efficiently, which will give you a feeling of fullness for longer.
Here are some acceptable South Beach Diet snacks:
15. Reevaluate your Goals
After a month or two into the South Beach Diet, provided that you’ve reached your weight loss goal, it may be time to re-evaluate your goals as maintaining the strict lifelong regimen tends to be a tough task. Continue to eat sensibly, exercise regularly, and allow yourself occasional indulgences.
16. Reward Yourself
There are many ways to measure your South Beach Diet achievements. You might go a week without missing a day of exercise, or you brought a healthy lunch to work instead of eating out. Whatever the accomplishment may be, you can reward yourself without sabotaging all your efforts. After all, you deserve it.