Question:
I need help with the foods to eat on the South Beach Diet. This is week two for us and we are not following the meal plans exactly. We eat only what is in the foods allowed columns, but some of it is so vague. Pop? Is it allowed or not? What is chocolate powder, no added sugar? I could use a few more snack ideas if anybody has any.
Answer:
I have been following the South Beach plan for two weeks and have lost 11 lbs. When I say I'm following the plan, I mean I'm sticking to the things on the allowable foods list, though I'm not following their meal plans nor have I made any of the excellent sounding recipes. Rigid diets don't work for me. But what I took away from the book (checked it out of the library, so it was free) is that I should avoid high carb foods like potatoes, breads (other than 100% whole wheat), pasta, rice and other highly processed foods - White flour is NOT our friend -and that I should eat more vegetables and protein and fats that were heart healthy..... all of which is sound advice, no matter whose diet you subscribe to. I've eaten a lot of green things... broccoli, cabbage, green beans, etc. I haven't even looked at a potato during these two weeks. I try to track what I eat at fitday, though I admit I don't do it every day. Now that I'm aware of what's in the food I'm eating, I don't find it as necessary to write everything down. A food diary may work for you, though, so try Fitday for sure. It will tell you what you are REALLY eating. I was surprised to learn, when I finally started using Fitday near the end of week one, that I was not eating very many calories. That surprised me. As for snack ideas, I eat cheddar cheese, boiled eggs, anything on the phase one list is fair game. I'm not tied to rigid meal times or meal plans. I just adapted it to work for me. I eat sunflower seeds when I need to munch something. Buy the ones in the shells. You won't eat nearly as many as you think, and they satisfy the crunchy urge. Pistachios are good for this too, but I get more satisfaction from the sunflower seeds. Takes longer to get as much, and I enjoy them more. And a 3 oz. package only has 1.5 g of saturated fat, and 5 carbs. It takes me several days to nibble away at a whole package
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