Any thoughts or comments on my first meal plan

[skinnybird]

Hi I'm new and would like other members opinions on my first day, I know I'll have to improve but any suggestions are welcome:)

Breakfast
2 eggs
1/2 Tomato
Back Bacon Rashers x 2
Fat-Free Cottage Cheese x 50 g

Snack
Suger Free Jelly

Lunch
Cooked chicken breast, 130 g
1/2 Tomato
Little Gem lettuce x 10 g
Olive oil x 1.5 Tbsp
Balsamic Vinegar x 1.5 tbsp
Pumpkin Seeds x 15 g

Snack
Suger Free Jelly
Fat Free Natural Yogurt x 100 g
Splenda Sweetener x 4 Tsp

Ricotta pudding:
Ricotta Cheese x 50 g
Half fat Soft Cheese x 40 g
Splenda Sweetener x 4 Tsp
Bournville Cocoa Powder, 5 g

Dinner
Pork Loin Chop x 2
Brocolli and cauliflower
Beef Tomato x 1/2
light Mozzarella x 85 g
Parmasan Grated Cheese x 2 tablespoons

Ricotta pudding:
Ricotta Cheese x 50 g
Half fat Soft Cheese x 40 g
Splenda Sweetener x 4 Tsp
Bournville Cocoa Powder, 5 g

Drinks
Tea with semi-skimmed milk x 1
Fruit tea x 2 (Am i allowed these or not??)
Water x 4
Green tea with mint x 2

I know now that the snacks may be a tad excessive
But other than that, how am I doing??

[Jaylah]

Hi Skinny

I think that mostly sounds good.

I'm not exactly certain what "back bacon" is. If it's actual bacon (from pigs) and not a lighter-fat version like turkey bacon, then your breakfast is going to be WAY heavy on animal fats.

I'm also a bit concerned about your "Pork Loin Chop x 2" for dinner. One serving of protein is about 4 ounces, which is about 115 grams or so. They'd have to be awfully small chops for two of them to only be one serving. It's true that the Phase 1 guidelines say that protein for each meal is "unlimited", but that's assuming that you start off with your 1 serving of protein as well as at least the minimum of veggies at the meal. If, 20 minutes into the meal, you're still hungry, you can go back for "seconds" on protein. (Veggies on the "Food To Enjoy" list are, of course, unlimited ... unless it says otherwise like limiting tomatoes to one whole tomato per day.)

Your dinner also seems a bit heavy on the cheese: Mozzarella, plus Parmesan plus Ricotta pudding.

And sugar-free jelly doesn't really count as a snack. Snacks should actually provide some nutrients, which is why the book recommends some cheese, or nuts or whatever. The yogurt for your afternoon snack sounds good (make sure it's sugar free and use your Splenda if you want), but I think you need something else for your morning snack. Sugar free jelly is sort of a "freebie" so you could still eat it for your morning snack, but you need to add a piece of reduced-fat cheese, or some nuts, or perhaps a few celery sticks stuffed with natural peanut butter, etc.

Yes, fruit teas are allowed, as long as they don't contain sugar.


Whoops, just noticed you had half a tomato for breakfast, lunch and supper. You'll need to cut one of those, as only one whole tomato is allowed per day.


Edited to change the spelling of "you're" to "your." I'm an English major. I know better than that.

[Kimboroni]

It does look really protein heavy, and like there's not enough vegetables. Since we measure veggies by volume, not weight, I'm not really sure. But dinner, for example, should have about 3-4 oz of protein and at least 2 cups of veggies. 2 cups is around half a liter.

A serving of cheese is 1 oz, or about 30g, for block cheeses. The recommended limit is 2 servings daily. So the 85g of mozzarella at dinner is already more than you should be eating in one day, and there are so many other cheeses listed throughout the day.

[Kimboroni]

Whoops, just noticed you had half a tomato for breakfast, lunch and supper. You'll need to cut one of those, as only one whole tomato is allowed per day.

There isn't a limit on tomatoes-- that was removed in around 2004. But I agree with most of what you said.

[Jaylah]

Ah, thanks Kimboroni.

I do have the books, but I also have http://www.southbeach-diet-plan.com/shoppinglist_p1.htm bookmarked, and it doesn't include the changes.

[Magna]

In phase 1, yogurt should be plain and unflavored - but you can add your own flavorings and sweeteners if you want. (The problem is with the things that are added to flavored yogurts, not the flavoring itself.) The fat-free yogurt you listed might be fine, as long as it's plain.

Another thing to remember is that yogurt will never really be sugar-free. If you look at the nutritional information, it will list some sugars, because sugars naturally occur in milk. Those are fine. It's added sugars you don't want.

Edit: This may be useful to people reading the post who are wondering what kind of yogurt to eat. See Kimboroni's post, below.

[Kimboroni]

I've gleaned that in other countries, "natural yogurt" is equivalent to plain yogurt.

Jaylah, you should use the food list in the FAQ instead, as it's up to date. We don't have any control over the content in the tabs at the top.

[skinnybird]

Ooh lovely, thanks for the help.

So it's more veggies (groan )
Easy on the protien
Limit cheese.

My problem is that because I've done Atkins I assumed that this was similar, but after reading up on this diet it's different
even though at first glance they seam the same.

Thanks peeps for the help.

BTW I made some of those pastry-less quiches last night and they were lovely, even husband loved them!!

[Jaylah]

My problem is that because I've done Atkins I assumed that this was similar, but after reading up on this diet it's different

Yes, they're actually basically polar opposites.

Atkins is high protein (and fat) and seriously low carbohydrates.

Since South Beach concentrates more on vegetables (which are carbohydrates), it's almost a high-carb, low-fat plan.

I say "almost" because SB concentrates on the higher fiber, less "starchy" carbohydrates. It tends to be the more starchy carbohydrates that causes the spikes and dips in blood-sugar, and therefore the cravings, particularly for sugary/starchy foods.

[Kimboroni]

It's not even low-fat either, although it is low in the bad fats that are okay on Atkins. We make sure to add good fats like olive oil, avocado, and the like, and it's good to eat things like salmon and nuts/seeds. Those would never be allowed on an actual low-fat plan, except maybe in very small amounts.

[DCLissa17]

......essentially SB is the GOOD everything diet! Good fats, good carbs, good starches.

[Jaylah]

It's not even low-fat either, although it is low in the bad fats that are okay on Atkins.

True and true.

Although I suspect doing South Beach as written is still lower fat (and yes, definitely lower saturated/animal fats) than the "typical" American diet.

[Kimboroni]

Yeah, true-- it's lowER carb and lowER fat than the typical diet here (I've seen it called "SAD"-- the Standard American Diet. It really is sad!) that is making people so unhealthy. It's just not truly low on either one since it's so balanced. I see a lot of people who think they are on SB but they are avoiding both good carbs and good fats, and then it's just a starvation diet. You can only eat so much protein, and your body can only use so much.

[Jaylah]

You can only eat so much protein, and your body can only use so much.

True dat. And I seem to recall that too much protein in your diet can actually lead to kidney problems eventually.

I guess I pretty much think of SB as a balanced, "high fiber" diet. As you say, it's balanced with carbs, proteins and fats, but most of the "good" carbs are "good" because they contain more fiber. Although it may take a few days to adjust to eating more fiber, I've never heard of any actual health risks from doing it.

I'll confess, just the idea of Atkins scares the bejebers out of me. I've already had one stroke when I had heart valve replacement surgery. I can't imagine anyone sitting in a hospital bed realizing that they not only have no idea what their own name is, but don't know any other words either, ever wanting to do it again.

[Kimboroni]

Fiber isn't the only good carb-- starches and sugars are actually good for your body as well-- the good carbs are the ones that are low glycemic. Fiber is just one aspect that can help with being low glycemic, but it isn't the only aspect.