I am almost through the second week of the first phase of the South Beach Diet. My husband and I decided to do this because A) we can’t fit into any of our clothes, at least not comfortably, and B) we were developing atrocious eating habits, and by atrocious I mean varying between pizza, Chinese, Ben & Jerry’s, and these boxed Indian meals we bought at Whole Foods. We sort of needed something to jump start a little weight loss, but also better habits. Enter South Beach.
Overall, this diet is very balanced. (No, I am in no way affiliated with this program or the good doctor who developed it.) It’s only for Phase 1 (two weeks) that you are restricted from eating any carbs, but you can still eat things like beans, which are a no-no on Atkins. It’s a little more meat than I like, but lots of vegetables, which I love. And I can still eat cheese! I love cheese!
I thought for sure I would really miss pizza. Pizza and also spaghetti. And bread, specifically the naan we’d been eating with the Indian food. And tortillas. And bagels. And grapefruit juice. And bananas. And, of course, the Ben & Jerry’s.
But I have actually been doing very well. I don’t get hungry. I don’t have cravings. (Except for Diet Coke, which I can have but would like to give up because of the benzene. But I won’t give it up! Not yet! I love Diet Coke! Give me back some carbs first, and then we’ll see.) I no longer turn into a raving bitch if I go thirty minutes past my regularly scheduled meal time. And I am seeing results. My clothes are looser. (We hid the scale…no weighing!)
But I won’t lie. There are things I miss. Things maybe you wouldn’t expect. What do I miss? Cereal. And wine. Cereal and wine. And come next Monday, I get to have both!
Please feel free to send in suggestions for cereal and wine pairings for me to try.
Seriously, though. The wine, I get. I generally don’t drink more than a glass a day, but it’s a nice ritual that we have to sit on the couch after dinner and have a glass and talk about the day or watch a little TV. (Watch my SATC reruns without a glass of wine? Sorry, Diet Coke, I still love you. And water, I love you, too. I’m with you all day long at work.) I miss the ritual of it more than the drink itself, but I do really love red wine (white, take it or leave it; champagne is my favorite).
But cereal? I want my Kashi Go Lean, dammit! I want some raisin bran. I want some of that Health Valley Granola stuff. Yum. This is the thing I miss the most. Cereal. If I can just have cereal, you can keep the bread and the ice cream and the pasta. Okay, maybe not the pasta—but you can keep the potatoes. Who needs potatoes?
Next week, starting Phase 2, I get oatmeal. First thing Monday morning. I love oatmeal. I do! (Despite the title, I’m not much for sugary cereal.) Phase 2 basically goes back to being a regular balanced diet, which is what I’m really after. (Well, that and to be able to wear clothes I bought last year…still can’t wear some of them. *Sighs*)
No, really, what wine goes with oatmeal?
