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My Fourth Week on the South Beach Diet

Here I am at week four of the South Beach Diet. I haven't felt deprived of food these past three weeks. I'm never hungry, although there are times when I want to have some of the "outlawed" foods, especially Coke, candy, and cookies. Actually, I can have these things as long as I choose the sugarfree substitutes, but I'm not particularly found of artificial flavorings for the most part.


However, I've learned to enjoy sugar-free fudge bars and puddings.

DAY 22

Morning Weigh-in: -1
Breakfast - 2 poached eggs, white seedless grapes
Mid-Morning Snack - nut cup (included 3 M&M peanuts)
Lunch - skip
Mid-Afternoon Snack - skip
Supper - Crab Cobb Salad (recipe in book), glass of Hearty Burgundy wine
Dessert - skip

DAY 23

We have plans to take my daughter, who is visiting us from out of town for the weekend, out for dinner tonight at a new restaurant that has recently opened in our community. I plan to skip lunch so I can indulge a little at supper.

Morning Weigh-in: -.5
Breakfast - lite yogurt
Mid-Morning Snack - cheese stick, hardboiled egg
Lunch - skip
Mid-Afternoon Snack - skip
Supper at local restaurant - Creamy cheese/vegetable soup, grilled pork loin medallions with applesauce, rice medley, steamed vegetables, bread, glass of Merlot
Dessert - skip

Our dinner at "The Drake on the Riverfront" turned out to be a delicious one, but also a major cheat on my diet. The waitress raved about the cheesy vegetable soup so I ordered it in place of the dinner salad.

When it arrived I saw that the only vegetables in it were big chunks of potatoes and carrots. Both potatoes and carrots are outlaw veggies. I was expecting broccoli, cauliflower, and maybe carrots. I must learn to ask about specific ingredients before ordering. I ate about one third of my soup and left the rest. The dinner came with a bread stick which I quickly gobbled up. The bread was also a naughty choice because it was made from white refined flour... but tasty!

DAY 24

I crinched when I read the scales this morning... up two pounds as penalty for my misbehavior at supper last night. Oh well...

Morning Weigh-in: +2
Breakfast - 2 strips bacon, 2 egg omelet stuffed with mushrooms, green onion, diced ham, sundried tomatoes, cilantro, and low fat cheese
Mid-Morning Snack - butterscotch pudding (sugarfree)
Lunch - skip
Mid-Afternoon Snack - Fudge Lite
Supper - two generous bowls of homemade chili (made with kidney beans)
Dessert - skip

DAY 25

Uh-oh, I caved to having my favorite breakfast drink this morning. I suppose it was going to have to happen sooner or later. I woke up terribly thirsty, that is my only excuse, and I'm sticking to it. I feel so guilty!

Morning Weigh-in: -.5
Morning Breakdown - 12 ou. can of Cherry Coke (sugared and caffeinated)
Breakfast - 2 strips bacon, 2 fried eggs (over easy)
Mid-Morning Snack - skip
Lunch - small green salad with assorted raw vegetables
Mid-Afternoon Snack - Fudge Lite
Supper - leftover chili
Dessert - fresh Bartlett pear
Bedtime Snack - small bowl of Grape-nuts

DAY 26

Morning Weigh-in: -.5
Breakfast - lite yogurt
Mid-Morning Snack - protein bar (Balance - Mint Brownie)
Lunch - turkey roll-up, pear
Mid-Afternoon Snack - popcorn, two M&M peanut candies
Supper - Grilled chicken breast, steamed zuccinni and yellow squash, cottage cheese, slice of tomato
Dessert - half a Snickers candy bar

Today my ovaries must have been on overdrive because I was ravishingly hungry for something to satisfy me, but nothing curbs my cravings during this cycle which normally lasts 24-48 hours. These cravings surface about once a month when I'm ovulating. I'll look in the kitchen high and low to find whatever I can to hopefully satisfy my taste buds. It is not about hunger so much, it is about getting the right formula of ingredients to satisfy my body. I'll try both salty foods (popcorn, salted tomato) and sweet foods (brownine bar, candy), also tart foods such as vinegary choices sometimes. Nothing by itself will ever fill the bill. I often end up having sampler size bites of many things. It was helpful to know that my cravings were the result of my body's normal cycles and not an effect of the diet. I somehow managed to stay away from the ice cream that is hidden away in our downstairs fridge. I would have eaten the whole Snickers bar if I hadn't offered to share it with my husband. That was a good decision.

DAY 27

Morning Weigh-in: -.5
Breakfast - two egg omelet stuffed with mushrooms, tomatoes, cilantro, and non-fat swiss cheese, V8 juice (hot and spicy variety)
Mid-Morning Snack - Fudge Lite
Lunch - bowl of Cheerios with 1/2 cup blueberries (skim lactose-free milk)
Mid-Afternoon Snack - nut cup
Supper - grilled chicken breast, baked sweet potato, steamed asparagus, glass of hearty burgundy
Dessert - butterscotch pudding (sugar-free)

DAY 28

Morning Weigh-in: no change
Breakfast - 2 scrambled eggs, fresh pear, V8 juice
Mid-Morning Snack - Blueberry popsickle (sugarfree)
Lunch - bowl of chili, cheese stick
Mid-Afternoon Snack - tsp. peanut butter (chunky style)
Supper - grilled Mahi Mahi, rice medley with shrimp, steamed zucchinni and yellow squash
Dessert - skip

The Morning After Day 28 - My final weigh in on the morning after Day 28 indicates no change from yesterday. Once again I'm staring at the same read out on the scales from the past two weekly readings. I don't know whether to be disgusted that I'm stuck on this plateau, or be happy I've not regained my initial losses from Phase I.

Total loss for days 1 through 14 (Phase I) of SBD - six pounds.

Total loss for days 15 through 28 of Phase II - zero pounds.

My husband, who has been dieting along with me, has lost a total of twelve pounds, nine pounds during Phase I and and another three pounds these past two weeks on Phase II. His initial goal was to lose ten pounds, whereas my goal was to lose fifteen pounds. If this was a race, he definitely won! He is extremely happy. He surpased his goal, while I'm still looking at nine pounds I'd like to see gone. His weight loss is in alignment with what the SBD book suggests. The book says that the average weightloss in Phase I is 8-13 pounds, and 1 to 2 pounds a week during Phase II. His metabolim has always been higher than mine so I'm pretty sure that was a primary factor in his success. This week I received an email from a reader named Adrienne offering me some tips that have worked for her in increasing her metabolism while being on a low carb diet. Right now I can use whatever tips offered to help get me past this plateau.

Perks:

• Weight loss: Although I haven't managed to lose any weight since moving from Phase I to Phase II I am glad I started this diet. The six pounds I have lost has made me feel better both image wise and energy wise.
• Healthy Eats: My body is liking the foods that I'm feeding it with. Cravings for the bad stuff still continues to surface, but not so much.
• Robust Compost Pile: Along with all the healthy eating my compost is full of goodies, nutritious egg shells and assorted veggie scraps that will breakdown and feed my garden soil!

Downsides:

• Plateau Misery: This impasse is making me second guess the goal I originally set for myself. Was I being too optimistic or unrealistic?
• Scales: Weighing in daily has made me as anxious as watching the stock market. My anticipation each morning has been met with disappointment too often.

Since I am at a stalemate (weight-loss wise), I think it is time for me to re-group and look closely at my reasoning for wanting to lose weight in the first place. I may need to set a new goal for myself, or at the very least change my attitude. I do want to continue on this diet because I feel it is a healthy one. I'm going to take today to figure out a new plan.

Next: Fifth Week of the South Beach Diet, plus setting new diet goals