The South Beach Diet
Author – Arthur Agaston
Diet fads come and go faster than our high school waistlines. While
there are many pie-in-the-sky (or carrot stick-in-the-sky) questionable ideas of what a healthy
weight-loss regimen is, the South Beach Diet is not among them.
Arthur Agaston, a cardiologist and director of the Mt. Sinai Non-invasive Cardiac Lab in Miami, Florida, wrote the book after a surprising discovery during his research. Despite being committed to the traditional low-fat diets and regular exercise, many of his high-cholesterol (over 200 points) patients were frustrated because they could not reduce their cholesterol level. This perplexed Agaston. After many modifications to their diets, Agaston made an interesting link to
carbohydrates – specifically what he calls “bad carbs”. Bad carbohydrates are foods that are either simple (non-complex) carbohydrates or complex carbohydrates that have been processed: instant oatmeal, anything containing bleached flour, white rice, potatoes, anything with sugar, and some fruits and vegetables. When his patients began following the modified no-bad-carb diet they reduced their cholesterol to healthy levels. Agaston was delighted in the improvement of his patient’s heart health. But if that were not enough, there was an interesting side-effect: they all lost weight. The way our body processes carbs, especially the “bad” carbs is eye opening. Our body gets used to the simple carbohydrates and simple sugars. These items are absorbed too easily into our bodies. Instant oatmeal, white bread, and orange juice might sound like a ‘balanced’ breakfast but the Krispy Kreme® might put less stress on your system. These processed items, because they are simple in molecular structure, get converted to sugar (i.e. raw energy) in our system very quickly that our bodies temporarily go into overdrive to handle them – high sugar equals high insulin. The body takes the sugar it needs and the rest gets put onto our thighs. Yuck!
Dr. Agaston’s diet is set up into three stages. The first stage involves (are you ready for this?) a total fast from carbs over a two week period. This includes items such as bread, potatoes, anything containing sugar, carrots (high-glycemic means high-carbs), all fruit and their juices, etcetera. During this period, your body cleanses itself from the cravings of bad carbs and from the ineffective digestion that has gone along with them. This is the toughest part of the diet but it still is not bad. Following a list of specific recipes for reference, you can eat as much healthy meats, veggies and cheeses as your heart desires. If you feel hungry you can eat more veggies, however, your body will still be giving you strong urges for the simple carbohydrates – comfort food – that you’ve come to know and love. These cravings soon go away completely.
Phase two of the diet reintroduces carbs. Good carbs. These are the complex carbohydrates our bodies need as nature intended. Items such as whole grain breads, fruit (not all fruit at this stage), vegetables, meats, eggs, and, if you’re craving sweets there are plenty of Splenda® inspired recipes in the recipe section of the book to satisfy your sweet tooth. Phase two continues for the remainder of the diet until you reach your goal weight. In phase one you will see a dramatic drop in pounds as your body shifts digestive gears but now, in phase two, it’s a carb-processing machine.
Lastly, after you reach your goal weight, it’s onto phase three. Your body has been reshaped and reprogrammed. You feel alive again and full of energy (not to mention seeing that sexy figure in your bathroom mirror and I don’t mean the pin-up in the corner). In phase three you have the most freedom in your (wise) food decisions. Still choose the complex carb (e.g. whole grain bread) to the simple (e.g. donut) and you still avoid the sugars as much as possible, but now the South Beach Diet has become a lifestyle. Best of all, you are allowed thee occasional indulgence. Cheesecake anybody? But if the pounds you lost rear their ugly heads, just repeat phases one and two and you’re back to your goal weight in no time.
What separates this book from all other fads is the motivation of the author. Dr. Arthur Agaston was looking to reduce his patient’s cholesterol level and improve their overall heart-health in ways that traditional norms were not working. Out of that desire came consistent weight loss as well. The South Beach Diet is the only ‘diet’ book a person needs for lifelong health and vitality.