How The South Beach Diet Works

The South Beach Diet is truly a food lover’s diet. It’s about living well and loving what you eat. But it’s also practical, flexible, easy, and effective. The South Beach Diet plan is divided into three Phases. Phase 1 lasts two weeks and is designed to eliminate cravings and kick-start weight loss. Phase 2 is intended to produce long-term, steady weight loss. You’ll stay in Phase 2 until you reach a healthy weight. Then you’ll move to Phase 3, the lifestyle Phase. This is how you’ll eat and live 365 days a year — and it’s the key to maintaining your new, healthy weight.

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Diet Features

Phase 1: Eliminate Cravings and Kickstart Weight Loss
Phase 1, the shortest Phase, lasts for just two weeks and is designed to eliminate cravings for sugar and refined starches – and to jump-start your weight loss. The purpose of Phase 1 is to stabilize blood sugar (which minimizes cravings), making it ideal for people who are prediabetic or diabetic, as well as for those who need to lose a lot of weight.

The focus of this two-week period is on eating plenty of nutrient-dense, fiber-rich (and guaranteed delicious!) foods that satisfy your appetite. Your meals include lean protein, such as fish and other seafood; skinless white-meat poultry, and lean cuts of beef (vegetarians can enjoy meat substitutes, tofu, and beans); high-fiber veggies; reduced-fat cheeses; eggs; low-fat dairy; and healthy, unsaturated fats, such as those found in avocados, nuts and seeds, and extra-virgin olive and canola oils.

During Phase 1, you’ll fill up on dishes like Chicken Breasts Stuffed With Spinach and Goat Cheese, Seared Pecan Salmon With Lentils, Garlic and Soy Grilled Pork Chops, and more.

The South Beach Diet encourages snacking, so you’ll also get to choose two tasty snacks each day, like Spicy Nut Mix, reduced-fat cheese, and veggies with our zesty Peanut Dip. Plus, you’ll dine on delicious desserts (every day!), including Chilled Espresso Custard, Heavenly Lemon Mousse, and our famed Ricotta Crème. With all the options – from gourmet meals to on-the-go snacks to quick weeknight dinners – you won’t feel hungry or deprived!

Phase 2: Lose Steadily
Phase 2 is the long-term weight-loss Phase of the plan. It’s also the perfect place to start for those people who have 10 pounds or less to lose, who don’t have problems with cravings, who don’t have excess belly fat, or who simply want to improve their health.

In Phase 2, you’ll eat everything in Phase 1 plus good carbs, such as whole-grain bread, brown rice, whole-wheat pasta, fruits, and even more veggies, like sweet potatoes, pumpkin, and peas. Of course, you’ll continue to enjoy snacks and dessert too, including dark chocolate!

In fact, you’ll eat delicious meals, like Coconut Chicken, Shrimp Scampi, Pesto Pasta Salad, and Pork and Black Bean Quesadillas. Side dishes include Nutty Brown Rice and Baked Sweet Potato Fries. And don’t forget snacks: Smoked Salmon Canapés With Horseradish Cream, Peppery Cheese Popcorn, and black bean dip with baked whole-grain tortilla chips are a few of the many snacks you’ll choose from.

Then, cap off your dinner with a decadent dessert, like Green Tea Truffles, Chocolate Berry Cups, or Dark Chocolate Bark With Walnuts. Best of all, you’ll eat all these delicious foods and still lose weight and get healthier.

By now, you’ve adopted the South Beach Diet lifestyle, making smart food choices that fit the way you live. That’s what Phase 3 is all about, and it begins once you reach your healthy weight. In Phase 3, you’ll continue to follow the principles you learned in Phases 1 and 2, but because it’s the lifelong stage of the plan, it includes almost every kind of food and it allows for additional occasional indulgences. It is the key to maintaining a healthy weight for life.

Phase 3: Maintain for Life
On Phase 3, you can dine on meals like Dutch Apple Pancakes (a terrific weekend brunch), Chicken Pot Pie, Asian Chicken Salad With Wonton Crisps, and Pepper-Spiked Beef Stew. Phase 3-friendly sides include Farmers’ Market Pasta Salad, Apple-Butternut Squash Soup, and corn on the cob. As for snacks, you can choose from fare like Triple Berry Cooler, Pecan-Stuffed Dates, and tropical fruit salad. And you’ll indulge in desserts like Chocolate Pie With Crispy Peanut Butter Crust and Chocolate Fondue. Imagine eating this way for the rest of your life!

Fitness Features

Experience workouts made-easy with South Beach Diet Fitness Club videos.

Support

People who diet with the help of an online program lose more weight than those who diet without one. With customized weight-loss tools and steady, 24/7 support from South Beach Diet online, it’s now easier than ever to lose weight, boost your health, monitor your progress, and reach your goals.

Here are some of the tools you’ll find:

• Meal Planner
• Shopping List Generator
• Recipe Finder
• Discussion Groups
• Dining Out and Fast-Food Guides
• Weight Tracker
• Plus, more …

Dr. Arthur Agatston the author of the best-selling The South Beach Diet, is a cardiologist and an associate professor of medicine at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. He has served on committees of the American Society of Echocardiography, the American College of Cardiology, and the Society of Atherosclerosis Imaging, where he is a founding member of the board of directors. He was recently elected to serve on the board of directors of The American Dietetic Association Foundation.

As Dr. Agatston put it, “The real secret to The South Beach Diet is that it’s not just a diet, it’s a way to eat for life.”