South Beach Diet questions!

jlkarnes

Hello! I'm 20 years old, and I'm about 5' 0". I weighed my self recently and discovered that I am 150, the heaviest that I have ever been. My mom gave me her South Beach diet book because she lost a bunch of weight a few years ago on the program, so I decided to give it a try. I would really like to lose at least 10 - 15 pounds by Christmas, which is a month. I read in the book that it is possible to lose between 8 - 13 pounds in the first phase alone, so a little more weight could even be possible.

I was just wondering if anyone else on here has tried South Beach and what your weight loss in Phase 1 was like, as well as if it continued in Phase 2.

CoachB6

You may get a lot of negative responses to this post. Not that the South Beach diet is the most horrible in regards to fad diets, but it is just that. Any type of eating pattern that has you get rid of an entire nutrient group, in this case carbs, it is a fad diet. Look into lifestyle changes, not a diet. Do you eat out a lot? Do you get enough water? Etc....

Any time you start a major overhaul to your eating habits, you do drop weight quickly but 15 pounds by Christmas may be a stretch and when you lose weight that quickly you aren't likely to keep it off in the long run.

Ask people on here to "friend request" you for motivation and advice....feel free to request me as well.... I have people on here I've known for years and others are just buddies online.

I wish you the best of luck in whatever you decided to do.

miart65

I've done the South Beach Diet several times and it works really well for me. The first phase is tough, but I usually lose 10+ lbs. The hardest part for me is giving up the fruit. The second phase is a bit easier when you can add in more options. Then the third phase is for life. Mainly just eating healthy for the rest of your life.
I think it's good if you're wanting a quick start and have the motivation to stick with it. But make sure you really watch what you eat in the second and third phase or the weight will come back again. Good luck!

thelawwon

South beach rocks! P1 is hard, make sure you're eating beans and drinking milk. I lost 12.2 in the first phase, and am AVERAGING a lb a week in p2...typical p1 is 5-13, but it's mostly water so depends on how badly you were eating before.

thelawwon

And I tend to disagree, but of course am biased. P1 should not be extended, but p2 is really just healthy eating.

jlkarnes

Thank you all for your opinions! It's very helpful! I am on day 4 and I feel good so far. I'm actually not as hungry as I thought I would be, and aside craving bread all the time (because my roommates have loaves and loaves lying around our apartment) I really am not missing a lot of the foods that I thought I would - and I'm not even a full week in!

I've been eating pretty decently so far, lean meats & lots of beans. I am not a fan of salad because I feel like lettuce is pretty much just like eating water, but I've been having a lot of spinach and kale. I have even been exercising! This was the first day that I haven't exercised yet (but that was because I got virtually no sleep last night).

cmcollins001

I've done the South Beach Diet several times and it works really well for me. . Good luck!

If it worked really well for you...why did you have to do it several times?

thelawwon

I don't know that poster's particular situation, but I think people fall off any eating plan and revert to old habits. They miss a day at the gym, eat a cookie, whatever, and it snowballs.

Low calorie diets work, but people fall off the wagon. Low fat diets work, but people fall off the wagon. Not necessarily the "diet's" fault. People fall off weight watchers daily.

The most important part of any eating/fitness plan is sticking with it, and realizing cheats are merely indulgences-not an excuse to go back to old habits. One cookie or even one thanksgiving dinner will not ruin your efforts in any plan, as long as you get back to it.

Hey op, I think my diary is open, so you're welcome to look. If you go to middle of October you can see my p1, I'm in p2 now, and when I get to my target weight, the only difference between how I eat now and how I eat once I'm there would be some more treats when I want them.

Sbd gets the bad fad rap because of p1, and because people treat that as the weight loss plan. It is NOT. It is intended to reset your tastes and help you get rid of cravings so you can get to the weight loss phase, p2, where you are meant to lose 1-2 lbs a week. A standard daily menu for me in p2 is

B: steel cut oats, 1% milk, edamame, coffee
S: chopped veg or a sf latte or yogurt
L: big salad with mixed veg and protein (I eat out for lunch during the work week)
S: apple with npb
lean protein (steak, chicken, pork chop, turkey meatloaf, fish) At least 2 cups veg, serving of sweet potato
sf fudgesicle or fruit or dark chocolate covered almonds, 1-2 glasses of wine

This is not a mandatory menu, there are no mandatory menus on sbd, (except MINIMUM amounts of veg to eat...is that bad?) what I tend to do as convenience and taste. I don't think it's out of line health wise, I don't think it's extreme, it comes out to about 1400 calories a day, I'm not hungry and am losing weight. Sbd guidelines is the way I stick to the calories mfp recommends (ok, I moved it up) and feel like I'm eating enough FOOD.

Do what works for you, op. don't be discouraged by people trying to tell you their way is the only way. Just keep your expectations reasonable, eat healthy, but 15 lbs by end of December is a lot, you don't have heaps to lose.

samantha1242

I did this diet back in 2006 when I was 20 and looking for a quick loss. Lost 40 pounds and felt like I was gonna pass out everyday. I actually ended up at my doctors and got tested for a bunch of stuff because I felt like crap everyday. I was silly and stayed in phase 1 the entire time because the quick losses were obsessive and I didn't want it to slow down in phase 2. Once I got tired of feeling like crap, I eventually gained back the 40, then 40 on top of that 40 once I went back to eating "normally" for me. Just sharing my experience.

jlkarnes

So I just finished Phase 1 and I've lost about 8 pounds! I'm pretty pleased - now off to start Phase 2.

BalenciaLynn

I've done the South Beach Diet several times and it works really well for me. . Good luck!

If it worked really well for you...why did you have to do it several times?

:laugh:

di1428

I started it in april 2012 and am down 45.5 lbs so far.......once you get through the first 2 weeks the rest
is really not that hard...i dont find it as a fad diet or anything like that. i has taught me how to eat healthier
and substitute foods that are less in sugar...before starting it i was pre-diabetic and now just went for
blood work and came back normal.

read the book though.......it has helped me alot. i read the book and then started and go back
to it for reference...

good luck and message me if you have any questions..the more support the better

di1428

So I just finished Phase 1 and I've lost about 8 pounds! I'm pretty pleased - now off to start Phase 2.

good job!

BlackTimber

I've done the South Beach Diet several times and it works really well for me. . Good luck!

If it worked really well for you...why did you have to do it several times?

Many people here have lost a bunch then gained it all back. Some more than a few times. It takes diligence and a plan that is easy to follow forever. And that is not easy!

hirnsa

I completed the SB diet about 6 years ago. I stayed on P1 for several weeks. I kept the weight off for 2 years as I practiced P3 for the most part. A move, stress and a deployed husband invited me to slip back into my old eating habits. I had lost 50+ lbs. It's time to start the diet again. I'm on day 2 of P1. Oh, in the interim, I learned I have Cardiovascular Disease and suffered a heart attack 1 month after turning 40. I was not obese and did not have high cholestrol. The Heart Program for SB is good too.