The South Beach Diet: The Delicious, Doctor-Designed, Foolproof Plan for Fast and Healthy Weight Loss
The verdict is in: those simple carbs we’ve been living on are killing us. For good health, we’ve got to get our blood sugar under control and stop the incessant cravings. Or so says Dr. Arthur Agatston, author of The South Beach Diet. The first half of the book details the science behind the diet. Most of the explanations revolve around why things you thought were healthy-orange juice, wheat toast, carrots-are actually evil. To avoid blood sugar surges, Agatston created a modified carbohydrate plan, recommending plenty of high-fiber foods, lean proteins, and healthy fats, while cutting bread, rice, pastas, and fruits. Major differences from other diets include a lack of concern over portion size and a serious indifference to exercise. Feeling full while on a diet is a beautiful thing, but it seems odd that a cardiologist buries his exercise recommendations in a solitary sentence.
The last half of the book covers his three-stage plan; daily diets are mixed with recipes, some of which are from South Beach restaurant chefs. The most restrictive period lasts just two weeks, enough time to stabilize your urges and lose a few pounds; stage two adds fruits and a handful of other carbs, while stage three is meant to last the remainder of your life, with occasional lapses for white bread or birthday cake. While the diet is sound, the book could be better organized. The first half mixes scientific study with anecdote in a seemingly random way, while the mix of meal plans and recipes can be confusing. Still, the recipes are varied and tasty, and you’ll never feel deprived, unless you currently happen to live by bread alone. –Jill Lightner
So Dr. Agatston developed his own. The South Beach Diet isn’t complicated, and it doesn’t require that you go hungry. You’ll enjoy normal-size helpings of meat, poultry, and fish. You’ll also eat eggs, cheese, nuts, and vegetables. Snacks are required. You’ll learn to avoid the bad carbs, like white flour, white sugar, and baked potatoes. Best of all, as you lose weight, you’ll lose that stubborn belly fat first!
Dr. Agatston’s diet has produced consistently dramatic results (8 to 13 pounds lost in the first 2 weeks!) and has become a media sensation in South Florida. Now, you, too, can join the ranks of the fit and fabulous with The South Beach Diet.
User Ratings and Reviews
5 Stars Amazing results!
My husband and I bought this book on the recommendation of family, and the results are terrific! The book spells everything out, provides menus and recipes, and explains logic behind the food changes! It’s fabulous!
1 Stars Get Sally Fallon’s book instead
I did the South Beach diet, and you can definitely lose weight with it (at least in the first phase, which is tough to maintain); but a good diet has to consider much more than that. You need saturated fats, which Agatston has us avoid. He’s right that we should stay away from processed foods and sugary rubbish, but there’s nothing new here. A better way to lose weight is to do some regular fasting, or at least some kind of cutting back of how much you eat, and keep a traditional diet, such as advocated by Sally Fallon or Jordan Rubin.
3 Stars This Diet Is Doable
The diet gave me the impression I could eat as much as I wanted, as long as I ate the right things. I don’t think so. The diet still requires moderation and cutting back on portions. For me giving up bread, beer and deserts, then cutting back on fats and pastas (which I love), is making a differnce, about 5 pounds in two weeks. Have been experimenting with the less fatty (good & expensive) types of steaks for the leaner and cheaper cuts, and trying to tenderize them. Still the easiest way to get the protein. The one glass of red wine, is real easy to end up being two or three. But probably better than 2 or 3 beers. I would like to get off my meds, the weight loss will be the (bonus) deserts that I miss. Good Luck.
5 Stars Great Service on time
This item was received in promised condition, from the source, and was delivered on time.
5 Stars I Lost 15 Pounds in Two Weeks, My Friend Lost Nearly 20 lbs.
I highly recommend this book and the program/diet if your doctor agrees you are healthy and that your doctor agrees that its guidelines will benifit your present health. I find that I can control my eating with South Beach because I never feel truly hungry, I nearly always feel satisfied so I’m not thinking about food,instead I’m thinking about other things in life that I want to accomplish and I can focus on something other than my next meal. FREEDOM is a good word for the South Beach Diet, it will set you free in many ways that will enhance your life. Many people where I work have used these guidelines and were living proof to me that it’s possible to reduce and maintain. Many of the others at work who followed South Beach have maintained anywhere from 1 year to 5 years and they look fantastic. Their weight fits their frames.
Filed under: Weight Loss Book Reviews
