The South Beach diet was invented by Dr. Agatston as a way for people to lose the extra fat around their middles and get in shape for beach season. It works by “weaning” you off the sugars and starches you intake in your daily life in order to minimize cravings. The program is a three-phase affair, with the first one being the most restrictive, and the third being the maintenance phase. I tried it out to see how it worked, so here are my findings!

Phase 1 – “Eliminate Cravings to Kick-start Weight Loss”
Mood:  Homicidal
Findings: Phase one lasts two weeks, and takes a ton of willpower. Since you’re not allowed to take in any sugars, it cuts off not only the cookies and candy that are bad for you, but also the fruits and juice that are good for you. You are also banned from having pasta, bread, rice, or potatoes. By the end of the second week, I’m pretty sure I would murder someone for chocolate.

The good news? Yes, I lost some weight. Was it worth it? Well, no one will miss that drifter, anyway.

Phase 2 – “Lose Steadily”
Mood:  Determined
Findings: I didn’t get all the way through phase one to quit now. Too many people have died. The good news is that some pasta has found its way back onto my plate, same with certain fruits. No bananas, though, and that makes me sad. Fewer homicidal moments, though we did have a hostage situation a few days ago. All I wanted was a mango.
Good news again! More weight gone, and the charges have been dropped.

Phase 3 – “Maintain for Life”
Mood: Intrigued
This is the maintenance phase, and almost everything has made it back into my diet. EVERYTHING. I fell off the wagon around the time I went to the store and started rolling in bananas. I’m not allowed in there anymore, but I got some bananas out in the usual places.

Conclusion: Not the diet for me, but an interesting exercise. Some people can do the restrictive diets, and this one is better than most because it isn’t restrictive forever. So, if you’re ready for a dramatic change, then this might be the one for you. If you know that you’re like me and if you completely remove sugar from your diet people will die, then you may want to skip this one.