South Beach Diet?

[mollycase]

Has anyone here tried the South Beach Diet? Is it effective?

[VoldtaEngler]

it was effective until it started making people ill. thats the price you pay to look good *_*

[mollycase]

it was effective until it started making people ill. thats the price you pay to look good *_*

How did it make them ill? What went wrong?

[the_darkness_calls]

i had a college prof that was on that diet, it seemed to be working ok for her, but i don't know about the long-term effects..... i also know it's a really popular diet right now, i've been selling south beach diet cookbooks like crazy lately

i know exactly how the atkins diet will make you ill, but i'm not sure about south beach

[VoldtaEngler]

How did it make them ill? What went wrong?

people got on the carb atkins thing and basically it screwed/screws up the way your body is supposed to be intaking proteins and vitamens. basically once you start that diet..you CANNOT stop..one hamburger will make you poof out again..its crazy..plus once people eat normal non carb food after being on a carb diet their body doesnt get used to it and makes em ill. just google it and research

personally carb diets are non effective in my opinion...you'll always crawl back to that delicious...moist..tender juicy steak..with baked potato..glazed in a warm..smooth i cant believe its not butter...butter...and topped off with a slice of chocolate french silk creme pie ...ala mode.......yep..sucks to be carb dieters.

[mollycase]

people got on the carb atkins thing and basically it screwed/screws up the way your body is supposed to be intaking proteins and vitamens. basically once you start that diet..you CANNOT stop..one hamburger will make you poof out again..its crazy..plus once people eat normal non carb food after being on a carb diet their body doesnt get used to it and makes em ill. just google it and research

personally carb diets are non effective in my opinion...you'll always crawl back to that delicious...moist..tender juicy steak..with baked potato..glazed in a warm..smooth i cant believe its not butter...butter...and topped off with a slice of chocolate french silk creme pie ...ala mode.......yep..sucks to be carb dieters.

I have not finished reading it yet, but I believe South Beach is low carb, meaning that it involves no baked potato and a great deal of hamburger. I am not sure which diets are carb ones.

[vinylkitty]

Both the South Beach and Atkins diets limit carbs. From what I understand, South Beach isn't as restrictive as Atkins, but they both basically work by fooling your metabolism into kickstarting. When your body is deprived of carbs, it begins to burn body tissue (in theory, fat) for energy. It can be effective, but it can also cause permanent kidney damage. If you do not have a high percentage of body fat, your body can burn muscle tissue, that is why the books tell you to exercise as well (build more muscle). Usually, doctors only recommend such diets to people who are obese, and then it is only for a short period of time. A healthier alternative would be the blood sugar stabilizing diet by Dr. Dean Ornish, if you are dead set on a diet. Most of the time more exercise will raise your metabloic rate, and you can still eat some junk food in moderation. I had to quit drinking sugary drinks and caffeine for medical reasons and lost 20lbs in about two months just from that. Most of my friends/clients are always dieting. I think its a conspiracy to keep women too busy to think about important things, like why the fuck are we still making 36% less money for the same jobs as men? And why are dildos illeagal in Alabama? If you really overweight, and wish to be healthier, a lifestyle change is the only permanent way to lose weight. If you are doing it because you feel inadequate on some level, buy yourself some really big boots and adopt an attitude. Either way, good luck!

[Phoenix Blue]

Any diet that is not balanced will eventually harm your body. Stick to the basics - lots of fresh leafy green and orange/red/yellow veggies, a little fresh fruit, very little red meat, a little poultry and fish, some pasta/potatoes/rice, some whole grains (oats, whole wheat, etc.), lowfat dairy, a little "good" fat (olive oil mostly - margarine is BAD for you - tranfatty acids) and lots of water, fresh air and regular exercise.

Did you know that celery really has a "negative" caloric content?? It requires more calories of energy burned to chew celery than it has in it!

[Toe Cutter]

Any diet that is not balanced will eventually harm your body. Stick to the basics - lots of fresh leafy green and orange/red/yellow veggies, a little fresh fruit, very little red meat, a little poultry and fish, some pasta/potatoes/rice, some whole grains (oats, whole wheat, etc.), lowfat dairy, a little "good" fat (olive oil mostly - margarine is BAD for you - tranfatty acids) and lots of water, fresh air and regular exercise.

Did you know that celery really has a "negative" caloric content?? It requires more calories of energy burned to chew celery than it has in it!

That's what I do too! (except the meat)

[Phoenix Blue]

Are you vegan, vegetarian or ovo-lacto vegetarian Toe Cutter?

[Toe Cutter]

Just vegi. I love cheese way to much to give that up.

[VoldtaEngler]

[cOrE_dUmPeR]

I do the low-carb thing...call it south beach if you will. I love it. In the short term, it is GREAT for wieght loss, especically when combined with exercise. When you do both the lo-carb diet and exercsize the weight loss can be dramatic, more so than just the sum of wieght lost by diet plus weight lost by exersize....hmmm, what is that phrase...the combination is "more than the sum of its parts". The reason seems to be that the lower your blood sugar is during exercise, the more the body has to draw on fat stores to sustain itself during a workout. I workout a lot...no really, A LOT, so it does wonders for me.

Again, in the short term, there are a couple of side effects I have observed in me and several of my friends who are on the diet as well, some of which are good some not so good..however none of them are bad (IMHO).


1. during the first few days of the first phase of the diet, you will get headaches. this is your body getting used to the lower blood sugar levels. Literaly, this is a "withdrawal" symptom from being a carb fiend/addict.

2. at first your breath will be stank, like you took a bit out of a bug turd, no way to say it but that. Its like having "hunger" breath all the time. It goes away after a week or so. My advice, carry a toothbursh and some chewing gum everywhere.

3. your hands will often feel chilly due to reduced circulation. This is NOT a symptom specific to this diet, rather it is a symptom of weight loss in general. Any diet where you lose wieght at this rate will cause the same effect. It doesn't bother me too much.

4. your skin will feel soft and radient (no, im not kidding). dont ask me why or how, but it feels like you have been moisturizing and exfoliating the heck out of your skin. I love the feeling.

5. you will be uber energetic. everyone i know always feels super energetic all day long. I was one of those people who would get "food coma" very often after big meals...or at times just feeling sluggish in general. On the diet you always feel like you have tons of energy or like you just did a line of blow. The flipside to this seemingly positive side effect is that it can be difficult to sleep at times cuz you'll be hyper...however, it also seems like you need less sleep to not feel sleepy the next day, so i "guess" it balances out.


I guess thats about it for the side effects. weight loss at first will be fast. the first 2 weeks expect to lose 5-10 lbs...and I dont mean in water wieght, i mean actual mass.

I have been on the diet for a couple years now. I go on and off it depending on whats going on. Usually if an event is coming up, (fetish ball, big club night, party, etc.) where I have to be topless or show some skin of something, I'll go back on it 'till the event is over. The day after the event I treat myself to pizza and cheesecake

I don't totally stay away from carbs when I'm not being strict with my diet, I do "moderate" my carb intake however. This is really all you need to maintain it. With all due respect to VoldtaEngler, the comment above about eating one hamburger and "POOFING OUT" again is poopycock. Its simple not true for me, or any of my friends who also ar on the diet. The comment about becoming "ILL" once you ingest carbs again is also false.

But on the theme of moderation, I would not recommend to anyone to be strict with the diet (as in taking in NO carbs) for an extended length of time, as with everything in life, moderation is always the best policy.

[ForrestBlack]

I did the no-carb thing hardcore a while back and the withdrawal was horrible. People have no idea how strong their body wants those carbs. Never thought of myself as likely to want to kill someone for a donut, but there it was. I did like where my body and energy level were at once I got through the initial difficult (physically ill) period.


I have no idea what the South Beach Diet is though. Not sure if it's related. All I can think of is Carl and his South Bronx Parasites...

[cOrE_dUmPeR]

ya, i have to admit the intial withdrawal made me feel like total crap. after that it wasnt a biggie.

[mike pullen]

i prefer the see food diet sorry mike goodnight mike