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I was advised to try the South Beach Diet

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propita

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Evidently, it's related to--but not the same as--the "no white diet (no bread, rice, potato, sugar, etc).

I believe Hubby is willing to try it with me, since he's put on some weight lately--as in, we watch "Fanboys" last night and realized that I was right: he has a belly like Seth Rogan.

Anybody here ever try it? Any success, difficulty, or anecdote?

Tomorrow it's back to the cardiologist to hear what's what with that extreme blood test reading. And I've realized that since I got the test results, my bp has stayed around 150/90.

High Ang-zi-ety!



(I was going for how it sounded, not how it's spelled. Gotta love some of Mel Brooks' flicks)
 
I haven't tried that specifically. But I have found that reducing sugars is effective. I've gained around 4 notches on the old belt this summer, without restricting anything, just eating better in general, and not having ice cream in the house. And of course, activity. Also, definitely cut soda, even if its diet, but especially if its regular. A can of soda has like 3 days worth of sugar in it.

My new thing is I recommend going upside-down a few times a week. It feels really good. :)
 
CaptainStoner said:
I haven't tried that specifically. But I have found that reducing sugars is effective. I've gained around 4 notches on the old belt this summer, without restricting anything, just eating better in general, and not having ice cream in the house. And of course, activity. Also, definitely cut soda, even if its diet, but especially if its regular. A can of soda has like 3 days worth of sugar in it.

My new thing is I recommend going upside-down a few times a week. It feels really good. :)
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Very true, I've changed my eating habits just after July 4 and have lost 30lbs and 2 inches.

I believe the South Beach diet is a version of the Atkins diet, reduce bad carbs and drop the pounds and inches. I know cutting out all the whites as you put it will reduce the carbs greatly.
 
Keep in mind:

-- About 454 grams of sugar = 1 pound
-- About 3,500 calories in 1 pound
-- Takes about three hours i na stationary exercise bike for two days to loose 1 pound

That's tyo give you an idea of how hard it is to lose weight. Even running/walking six miles a day, everyday, will only lose you about six pounds at the end of the month.


It's good to cut out that soda, and bread. But don't forget about milk too. Even the best milk, Skim, has 12 grams of sugar per serving. Have a bowl of cereal and one glass a milk each day, and you've gained over a pound in one month. May not seem like much, but when trying to achieve a heafty weight lose goal, it hads up. Heck -- I barely eat anything a month, and I still gain three pounds just from dinner for a month -- which is a very small portion.
 
Don't do diets, they're pointless. Do a lifestyle change. What you need to do is set out a healthy nutritional plan for yourself depending on your daily activities.
 
^Don't let the name fool you, the South Beach Diet is a lifestyle change. Though the first three weeks are very structured the point of them is to learn about how different food affect one's body. After that it's about choosing the right foods with an emphasis on reducing carbohydrates overall and eating primarily complex carbohydrates instead of simple sugars. Eating this way helps to control the blood sugar.
Basically it's the diet that diabetics are put on upon diagnosis. I'm a type 1 diabetic, and have been suffering through nutrition classes and consults since I was diagnosed at 12. Though type 1 is an entirely different ship from type 2, controlling one's diet is just as important. When I started the South Beach Diet a while back my blood sugars instantly evened out. I went from taking upwards of 14 units of insulin per day to control my sugars (already a small amount because I eat right and am very active), to taking only 2.

I'd highly recommend trying this diet. Also, know that after the first few days, restricting carbs isn't actually that hard.
 
Thanks for the input.

My cardiologist got it in his head that I was diabetic or insulin resistant diabetic despite Hubby and I saying no. Test results? "Risk of insulin resist"--NO. Glucose--81.

We're looking at this as lifestyle, not "diet," though I think Hubby will modify it for him a bit.
 
^Even for non-diabetics it's a good choice. Insulin is a nasty little hormone, it causes mood changes, weight gain, and a host of other unpleasant things. Reducing the amount of insulin one's body needs to produce can only be beneficial, and will help protect your health now and in the future. And, unlike Atkin's, South Beach is a heart healthy diet. Go for it!

I'd recommend using a nutrition site like this one as well. It's helps with finding out the calories, carbs, and other nutrition info in foods that don't have labels, and it's pretty comprehensive.
 
I personally find the best diets are the ones that begin with no carbs for the first two weeks and then slowly upping them.

The only disadvantage is at the first week you will feel tired,will have headaches and low blood pressure. After the horror of the first week you will feel like your strapped on to a rocket has your body taps into the vast stores of fat for fuel. The bad breath for me lasts about 3 weeks and then goes away.
 
^That's exactly what this diet recommends, although it makes provisions to avoid the lows that completely avoiding carbs will cause. You can eat carbs, just a smaller amount and the right kinds of carbs. Chickpeas are allowed, for example.
 
Low blood pressure would be a positive thing for me.

I think the problem is arterial blockage, like my Dad had.
 
Well. I am basically intolernant to glucose. With diabetes in my family, sugar and me are a dangerous combination... and we fuck all the time.

I firmly believe in low GI.. I, when I am off sugar or high-GI foods, I feel GREAT.

But I decided I do need to cut carbs.

Funnily enough, just tonight, a friend was talking to me about the South Beach Diet. To me it seems sane.. it's not as severe as Atkins, and the initial restrictions are quite short. They basically take you off high-GI, blood-sugar-surging foods and then level you out and make you eat healthy.

So I am effectively going to do this diet the next week. Health eating, but with just an initial reduction in carbs.
 
I tried and loved it.

Three phases, the first being the toughest.

I lost my cravings for the bad crap in about 48 hours.

And I lost 20 pounds in three months without exercise (this was prior to some minor back surgery, so I couldn't exercise, except for walking). I also felt great because it doesn't cut out any category of food. You just eat the smarter proteins, carbs, etc.

For me, it was great. And I never felt deprived or tired.

--Ted
 
So do you recommend buying the book and following that?

Is non-fat milk ok? I drink about a gallon a week. No milk for more than 3 days means that the thumb I broke 43yrs ago starts to hurt (and blood calcium levels were fine).

What CAN you drink on this besides water? I don't like coffee and, as I drink tea with sugar, that's out as too bitter for me without the sugar.
 
My girlfriend and I are on Atkins which is the template that all of these diets are based on. Essentially South Beach is a little more lenient than Atkins after the initial two week induction phase. South Beach allows more fruit and certain types of grains like sourdough bread. Also South Beach is more restrictive of saturated fats than Atkins.

I personally think low-carb diets are a very good way to go. When you reach the lifestyle maintenance part of the program essentially you are just eating the way humans ate for a million years. If you are a person who craves bad carbs like potato chips or sugar you will be amazed at how much those cravings go away after a few weeks on the diet.
 
^I don't know, I'm pretty wary of the Atkin's diet; it's very unhealthy in the long run. I know it's effective in terms of quick weightloss, but the longterm effects on one's heart, vascular system, liver, and kidneys can be devistating. The South Beach Diet is only similar in that it restricts carbs overall, but it doesn't do it in the same way as Atkin's and isn't based on Atkin's at all. SB encourages balanced eating and focuses on lean meats and low-fat foods, for example.
 
My house mate started on the Atkins diet, after a few weeks on it her urine became dark brown and stunk acidic and putrid - and this is after she had flushed the chain!! Can't be healthy at all!
 
Timofnine said:
My house mate started on the Atkins diet, after a few weeks on it her urine became dark brown and stunk acidic and putrid - and this is after she had flushed the chain!! Can't be healthy at all!
Click to expand...

Actually that is a good sign. The smell comes from ketones which is a by-product of burning fat. It is the same thing that causes the bad breadth. It means you are actually burning up your own fat for energy. TSQ I am surprised you have heard so much negative about the Atkins Diet. Like I said it really isn't that much different then South Beach or any other low carb diet. In fact when SB first came out it was nick-named "Atkins with fruit". Why would South Beach be perfectly healthy for you and Atkins horrible if they aren't that much different?
 
^Brown urine is never, ever a good thing! -- it usually indicates kidney trauma. If one's urine is brown, he or she should call the doctor immediately. You are correct that the acidic smell is from the ketones in the urine, but ketones don't change the color of urine; brown color can mean blood or waste.

The Atkin's and SB diets are different in a few very important ways:

- Both diets restrict carbs, but in SB strong restriction (30g or less a day), is only held for the first week, with additional carbs being added the subsequent two weeks, and even more for the maintenance diet. The diet ultimately encourages choosing complex carbs which have a lower glycemic index and release energy into the system more evenly over time, as opposed to the instant rush of simple sugars.

-Atkin's allows for too much protein in the diet. Protein is a good thing, but too much puts a strain on the kidneys. SB encourages protein, but a more balanced amount.

-Atkin's allows for fatty meats, which are bad for the heart, and SB encourages lean meats and fish.

The diets seem the same on the surface, but are really very different. Atkin's is a diet that burns fat, while SB is a diet that helps control the blood glucose, and burns fat in the process. Ultimately, the differences are those between a heart healthy diet and one that puts strain on the liver, kidneys, and heart.

Not everyone who eats Atkin's will experience such dire health effects, but it's not a healthy way of eating.

At least, so says my own research, and my doctor, and my nutrition courses.
 
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