The South Beach Diet Explained – How to Get Rid of Cravings

Once the South Beach Diet is explained to most people, it is easier for them to accept the restrictions of the plan. Understanding how the South Beach Diet works can also lead to healthier food choices long after an individual stops losing weight. If you don’t understand why certain foods aren’t allowed on this diet, you’re more likely to convince yourself that it’s okay to cheat occasionally, but you’ll soon discover that breaking the South Beach Diet rules can sabotage your weight loss.

The South Beach Diet is explained by some people as a low carb diet, but this isn’t strictly true. Although you will eat fewer carbs when doing the South Beach Diet, the focus isn’t on how many carbs you consume, but on understanding the Glycemic Index, or GI, of the foods you eat.

The lower the glycemic index of a food, the more slowly the carbohydrates are broken down by the body. Slow breakdown of carbohydrates means your blood sugar will not spike or fluctuate widely, both of which can trigger cravings and contribute to weight gain.

There are several advantages of eating foods with a low GI:

• You’ll have fewer blood sugar swings
• You’ll improve your body’s insulin efficiency
• You’ll feel fuller longer after meals or snacks
• You will naturally lose weight

Dr. Agatston, the creator of the South Beach Diet, explained that you’ll naturally lose weight if your body isn’t struggling to overcome a cycle of constantly fluctuating blood sugar spikes. You’ll also tend to feel more energetic and have fewer cravings if you don’t eat foods with a high glycemic index.

The Three Phases of the South Beach Diet Explained

There are three phases to the South Beach Diet for good reason – it helps you stay on track, it gets you off to a quick start, and it is easier to maintain over the long term.

Phase 1 of the diet focuses on reducing or eliminating cravings by forbidding all carbohydrates, including all grains and fruits. This phase is all about stabilizing blood sugar levels and destroying the cravings that explain why many people short circuit a diet.

Phase 2 of the South Beach Diet focuses on more measured weight loss and allows some carbohydrates that have a low glycemic index. This is the main weight loss phase for most people.

Phase 3 is the maintenance phase and can be used indefinitely. Many people stay on this phase permanently in order to keep their healthy new weight in check. Dr. Agatston explains in his book that you can eat some foods that have a moderate GI score, but you should focus on low GI foods. Sweets are allowed during this phase, but only in limited amounts.

The South Beach Diet, when explained as a simple way to stabilize blood sugar and help you destroy cravings for unhealthy foods, attracts many people because there is clear science behind how it works and it addresses one of the most crucial stumbling blocks to permanent weight loss. By getting rid of cravings, dieting becomes more enjoyable and less of a challenge.

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