Creating a menu for the South Beach Diet may not be as difficult as you think. If you plan your grocery shopping according to a list, menu-planning becomes second nature.
About the South Beach Diet
Stocking up your pantry and refrigerator with foods to eat on the South Beach Diet takes planning. If you are new to this diet plan, you need to understand the basics first. It is a high protein/low carb diet plan. Throughout its three phases, the amount of carbohydrates eaten is slowly increased. The goal is to rid yourself of the sugar/carb cravings, and to eat more sensibly balanced and nutritious meals and snacks. To get started, purge your kitchen of all "off limits" foods and stock up with those allowed during all of the phases of the South Beach Diet.
Foods for Your South Beach Diet Menu
The South Beach Diet is broken down into three phases. As you progress through them, your food choices available in creating a menu for the South Beach Diet, while not completely extensive, do increase.
Phase One
The first phase consists of eating mainly proteins, excluding most carbohydrates, including fruits. The phase usually lasts about two weeks until your body goes through its "withdrawal" of being dependent on carbohydrates/sugar. This phase is the strictest in terms of what can and cannot be eaten.
Foods allowed to be eaten include:
* All seafood
* Only lean ground beef
* Turkey bacon
* Low- or non-fat deli meats including boiled ham
* Most vegetables except for carrots, peas, corn, beets and lima beans
* Avariety of legumes including pinto beans, chickpeas and black eyed peas
* Low-fat cheese
* Tofu (soft, low-fat or lite)
* Eggs
* Sugar substitutes and sugar-free treats (in limited amounts)
* Fats such as avocados, canola and olive oils
* Spices and broth
Menus featuring these foods can include:
* Eggs with turkey bacon, boiled ham or tofu for breakfast
* Deli turkey lettuce wrap with tomatoes, low-fat cheese, cucumbers, onions and touch of olive oil for lunch
* Broiled salmon with a salad for dinner
* Water, water, water!
The great thing about phase one, is you can eat a variety of these foods together without filling up on starches such as bread, rice or pasta.
Phase Two
By week three of the program, you will be ready to start adding some carbohydrates to your menus. You will remain in phase two until you've reached your desired weight. So, when you hit the grocery store, make sure you stock up on all of the foods eaten during phase one as well as these:
* Fruits that don't have overall affect on your blood sugar (low-glycemic Foods):
* Whole grain breads and pastas
* Sweet potatoes
* Red wine is permissible
* Low-fat or fat-free dairy products
Some delicious menu items could include:
* Fruit salad with fat-free yogurt for breakfast
* Baked sweet potato topped with fat-free sour cream and steamed veggies and chicken for lunch
* Whole grain pizza crust with fat-free feta cheese, spinach and mushrooms for dinner, with a glass of red wine
* Fresh fruit parfaits make great snacks!
Phase Three
Congratulations! You've reached phase three of the South Beach Diet, which means you've reached your goal weight. In this phase, you will find what foods you can eat to help maintain your weight loss. The food list for South Beach Diet's third phase include:
* All food from phases one and two
* Three servings of whole grains and fruits each day
* Pretty much anything else as long as you don't gain the weight back. If you notice yourself putting on a few pounds, go back and review phases one or two.
As for menus, you should stick to what has worked for you during the first two phases, unless you are comfortable trying more new things. Just remember, bad habits are hard to break, so unless you are completely confident you won't top your pasta with Alfredo sauce instead of marinara, then go ahead and try incorporating some of your old menu ideas into your new lifestyle.
Menu for the South Beach Diet Ideas
Now that you are used to eating everything on the food list for the South Beach Diet, be creative and invent a few more menus for you and your family to enjoy. If you need help finding ideas, there are a few Web sites offering recipes to try:
1) South Beach Diet Recipe Collections offers a variety of dishes that can be used in at least one of the plan's phases.
2) All Recipes has several recipes for South Beach dieters that have been tried and reviewed by readers.
3) Kalyn's Kitchen has a variety of "low-glycemic" menu ideas for those on the South Beach Diet.
4) Kraft Foods has not only recipes, but a listing of prepared foods already approved for the South Beach Diet.
Don't Break the Bank With This Diet
It's not cheap to diet. It's also not cheap to have medical bills associated with being overweight. If you really want to follow the South Beach Diet, sit down and plan your meals. Your vegetables don't have to all be fresh -- frozen ones, as long as they are on the list, work just as well. And if you are doing the diet along with a family member or friends, buy in bulk and split the price. Plan a cooking day and have a few friends join you. Making large amounts of South Beach Diet-friendly meals to split among friends helps stay within a budget.
skip to main |
skip to sidebar
The South Beach Diet is one of the most popular diet programs for people trying to lose weight. What is it that makes this diet so popular? Does it work at shedding the unwanted pounds? In the South Beach Diet category, you will discover all the ins and outs of the program, as well as recipes to help you stay the course.
