doctor recommended South Beach

The first weeks SUCKS but you will see big results if you can stick to it.

Ask yourself: Are you willing to follow this eating plan for the rest of your life? If so, then have at it. If not, then you will likely end up right back where you are now. That's why I'm not a big fan of "diets". Most people find them too restricting, and eventually give up. Find a lifestyle that will get you to your goal weight and keep you there, and you'll be successful. Good luck!

Ask yourself: Are you willing to follow this eating plan for the rest of your life? If so, then have at it. If not, then you will likely end up right back where you are now. That's why I'm not a big fan of "diets". Most people find them too restricting, and eventually give up. Find a lifestyle that will get you to your goal weight and keep you there, and you'll be successful. Good luck!

Phase III of south beach is basically: eat healthy, aim for whole foods.
It's not really a "diet" by then.

i have to kind of ditto the diet as a lifestyle comment above. it might be best to approach this with a "this is my detox" mindset for the first phase. that being said once you get past the first two weeks you'll be golden. a LOT of those cravings will subside. keep tracking your calories because i find its really hard to MEET my goal and feel like i'm starving while on SB so make sure to get in A LOTS of protein (like with every single meal and snack) in order to keep that hunger away. also rely on healthy fats to help you feel full longer as well. also about the coffee thing, i use stevia, its a natural plant extract that tastes like sugar but isnt a sugar, its wonderful! try it!

South Beach phase 1 was recommended to me too, but only for 2 weeks. I had serious problems with water retention, which was the main reason for the recommendation. I dumped 13 pounds really quickly. But 2 weeks was long enough to break the worst of my sugar cravings too. After the 2 weeks I switched over to counting calories and had little difficulty sticking to a moderate carb, highly restricted processed sugar diet.

Isn't it generally ONLY recommended for two weeks? I mean for everyone (except those who are told to skip it).

I don't really think of South Beach as a diet. As someone mentioned above, Phase 3 is your way of eating for life, while being able to have treats occasionally. It really is just healthy eating....lean protein, veggies, fruits, healthy fats, whole grains, seeds, nuts. And you eat six times a day, so I have never been hungry. Desserts, white breads and pastas, as well as white rice will be occasional treats for me down the road. I have been perfectly satisfied with my whole grain pasta, brown rice, and Ezekiel bread, and I never would have thought that possible. Obviously I am a fan! I urge you to give it a try, at least a week or so I to Phase 2 and see if it works for you.

Also, it seems to me that if you only do the first two weeks (phase 1) and then go back to eating all the things your formerly craved, those cravings would come back, defeating the purpose of ever doing Phase 1. Just my two cents. We all need to do what works for us and what we feel is best for us, and what works for us. Good luck to you all, however you choose to lose.

Cliffs: Why don't you just try tracking calories anyway? The only way to lose weight is to burn more than you consume.

The only way to lose weight is to consume fewer calories than you burn. There are no foods that are better than others, and if you could get all of your vitamins and minerals from supplements, then you could very safely and healthily lose weight eating nothing but butter, white sugar, and a protein source of some kind. This assumes you get daily essential fats and amino acids from such a diet. I personally have full fat ice cream or cookies every night before bed. Unless you have diabetes or another metabolic disorder, your body functions normally and can process carbohydrates just like virtually everyone else; look at the billions of lean people in India and China living on a white rice based diet. Cutting out carbs may help you to consume less for psychological reasons. Perhaps it's because you're eliminating an entire class of foods from your diet; but it's not at all necessary.

If you choose to do it, good luck. Perhaps try regular calorie restriction through this site first. A lot of people find that once they start seeing what they're putting into their body, it's very easy to stay in line with a preset daily calorie goal. I switched over to a ketogenic diet for a while and found that it worked just exactly as well as a regular "balanced" diet. In a sense it was "harder," because social situations can be weird without carbs (bagel breakfast at work/school for instance). However, I didn't find it any "easier" in terms of eating less. It's just as easy to overeat eggs as it is pasta. After an adaptation period where your body learns to use ketones and fatty acids for energy you'll find it no different than any other diet/eating protocol.

If i may recommend, do take a look at Cohen. My cousin is a living testament. She inspired me.

Excuse me, Sabine....sorry to have accidentally spoken incorrectly and angered or offended you. I should have said no fruits, breads, pastas or rices. But then, the OP would know this, assuming she has read the book. No need to be so mean.

I wasn't mean. I pointed out that you were wrong when you stated that there were "no carbs".
It gives everyone the wrong idea about the diet. It's not a low carb diet, as you know (since you've read the book).

PS: I was neither offended nor angry. Just correcting the misinformation (which is so common when folks talk about low glycemic eating...)

South Beach phase 1 was recommended to me too, but only for 2 weeks. I had serious problems with water retention, which was the main reason for the recommendation. I dumped 13 pounds really quickly. But 2 weeks was long enough to break the worst of my sugar cravings too. After the 2 weeks I switched over to counting calories and had little difficulty sticking to a moderate carb, highly restricted processed sugar diet.

Isn't it generally ONLY recommended for two weeks? I mean for everyone (except those who are told to skip it).

The South Beach diet was recommended for only 2 weeks and I skipped everything after phase 1. It's not that I think it's necessarily a bad diet as laid out in the book. It just wasn't the way I was advised to go, past the second week, or wanted to go.

Oh, got it. Thanks for clarifying.

but then I wonder if I *should* be following it long term . . . sigh

phase 1 is only recommended for the first 2 weeks - to get you over your cravings. After that you gradually add in GOOD carbs. SB is not a diet, it's a way of eating for life. As you get further into it, you're allowed wine and dark chocolate. I think it's a great eating plan, but if you want to eat chips, white pasta, white flour, etc. on a daily basis, it's probably not for you.

Right. I recommend South Beach to lots of folks as a tutorial on eating healthy, reasonably.
It's not a super rigid, super clean approach. It's very doable, and flexible.