The South Beach Diet: The Delicious, Doctor-Designed, Foolproof Plan for Fast and Healthy Weight Loss

In brief, the South Beach Diet was originally developed by a Cardiologist (DR. Agatson) in conjunction with a Nutritionist as a diet to recommend to his patients who needed a diet to help alleviate their heart problems. It proved successful for many of its target audience. It's a low carbohydrate diet that differentiates between "good" carbs and "bad" ones. Simplistically speaking, good ones are found in vegetables, some grains, etc., while those that we can categorize as "bad" are most often found in flour based products (bread, cereals, cakes, etc.) and in starchy foods such as potatoes and rice.

The diet itself is broken into three phases which I like to compare to the gears in a car:

Phase one, the two week phase, is comparable to first gear. It gets you off to a start from a stndstill, and lasts for about two weeks. It is the most restrictive phase, and the average dieter loses around ten to twelve pounds during this start-up phase.

Phase two, like second gear in a car, is used to get you up to full speed in automobile terms, or down to your desired weight in diet terms. It is less restrictive than the first phase, and lasts, as I mentioned, until you are up to speed, or in dieting terms, down to goal weight.

Phase three is sort of like cruise control. You use cruise control to maintain a steady speed on the open road, and you use the even less restrictive diet in this phase to maintain your weight loss.

Yes, as mentioned in other reviews there are daily meal plans for each phase, and some of the foods are expensive and some of the recipes are complicated. I personally looked at these meal plans as guidelines to be followed, not as absolute requirements. I stay away from all the forbidden foods, eat a few more of the foods I really like, particularly salads, and avoid those too complex menus, etc, and it works out very well.

A little personal background, I am diabetic, have hypertension, and was considerably overweight. I am also not young and not particularly prone to exercise other than taking daily (or almost daily) brisk walks a half an hour or so in duration.

Last May (2004) some routine blood work indicated that my cholesterol was out of whack, and my physician said I really needed to lose weight. He thought weight loss might handle the cholesterol problems without my taking additional medication. After some discussion, we, together, decided that the South Beach diet was probably the best approach for me.

I got the book, read it, and started on the diet. In the first two weeks I lost the ten pounds that are expected. Over the next four months I lost an additional forty pounds for a total of fifty. I have maintained this weight loss easily by avoiding those foods that are "no-nos," and I never go hungry or feeling unsatisfied.

Additional benefits are that controlling my diabetes now requires less medication, and my blood pressure has dropped considerably. This is the only diet plan I have ever tried with which I am comfortable enough to believe that I will never return to my old eating habits.

Are there any disadvantages? Yes. I've had to buy a whole new wardrobe due to my six inch smaller waistline and proportionately smaller chest size, etc., and have had to have my wedding ring resized. Other than that no complaints.

Based on my own experience, I wholeheartedly recommend __THE SOUTH BEACH DIET__.

I'm 52 and have had a slight to moderate weight problem my entire life (about 25 lbs.) Have been on many diets and always lost weight but never could make it a "lifestyle change". This is so simple - I think some those who have given negative reviews are reading more into it and making it more complicated than it is. Who cares if it is a little like the Atkins diet in the first couple of weeks - at least I don't have to do any carb calculations!! I've been on it for 5 weeks, have lost 12 pounds and have lost my usual cravings for candy, cookies, and chocolate. I am able to totally ignore the Krispy Kreme donuts in the employee lounge. You don't have to eat the menu plan - those are just suggestions for people who don't have any creativity when it comes to cooking. Just eat the things on the allowed list and don't eat foods on the "may not eat" list and make sure you eat your snacks and eat enough at mealtime to satisfy you. Yes - once in a while I feel hungry because I've been too busy to eat what I should - so I just catch up by eating allowed foods. Up until now I've always been a "carboholic" and it's really an odd feeling to not need that. I find the Atkins plan too complicated. I have found that most people doing the Atkins plan don't really follow the "rules" but modify it to suit their needs, and I've never met anyone who has stayed on it permanently - so, to each his own!

I can only tell you my personal experience with this diet and you can take it from there. I have tried several diets and they never worked because you couldn't stay on them long plus I stayed hungry all the time. I counted calories and exercised for two years and only lost 20 pounds and then stopped losing for months. With this diet, I have lost 27 pounds in 6 weeks and am still losing. The best part is that I can see myself doing this the rest of my life. The first few days is a little hard but you get excited because you will be amazed at how little you get hungry. I ate three large meals a day plus two snacks. I definitely had plenty to eat. Best part is that although I occasionaly have dessert, I don't crave them! And like the book says - I lost weight in my belly first (I am a forty-plus year old woman). It might not work for everyone - no diet does but this one is healthy and worked for me. It's worth a shot if nothing else has worked for you - trust me!

I started The South Beach Diet with Phase Two and I continue to lose weight steadily. This diet has balanced my cravings for foods high in sugar. I no longer obsess over food or when I can eat again. The South Beach Diet is not based on fads. It is not about eating a diet of fatty meat products, drinking glass after glass of water, eating expensive prepared foods, preparing time consuming recipes, counting calories or counting points. It is about eating familiar, unprocessed foods that are accessible in all grocery stores and all restaurants. Dr. Agatston has researched and developed a diet that is simple and logical. That's why it works.

i read this book and it finally put everthing under perspective. i understand the body chemistry and have started the diet. it works wonders. though i personally dont have a heart condition, it does run in my family and i an a young female so you never know what will happen in the future. i have both my parents on this diet. my mother has a heart condition and my father is over-weight. the diet itself is very hard the first week but it is worth the weight that you loose. no fruit,BAD carbs (like starch and beer)and no dairy in phase one. i even started to work out too. i think if you dont get diets, get this book, it will tell all. Good Luck!!!