South Beach vs. Weight Watchers
In the comments to this post, composer asks:
I know you've done a bit of South Beach too. Can you tell me what you think of each and why you chose WW again? I've been a WW, done well, and then had a baby and it just doesn't seem to work for me anymore. It's like a game, but I know all the ins and outs and so I cheat. I was wondering if South Beach may be a good alternative, even if just to jump start me into better habits. Just curious of your thoughts. Thanks.
Well, good question! I read the South Beach book and the logic of the diet made a lot of sense to me. When I started the diet, the first phase was really difficult but it did indeed help jump start me—I lost about 10 pounds in those first two weeks, and learned some good habits about cutting down carbs. I still eat far less bread than I did before I did South Beach and it has changed my life regarding sugar (see below).
However, I learned some bad habits also. Once I was out of the first phase, and could eat whatever low-carb foods I wanted, I found that there were no built in controls, like the points in Weight Watchers, to tell me when enough is enough. Probably my downfall was low-carb ice cream, but I also ate way too much cheese and other fatty, high-calorie foods. I began to gain weight again and in the meantime, had developed a liking for things like 2% milk (when I'd only had nonfat before) and an addiction to cheese that also I'd never had before. Ultimately, I decided that I needed the structure and accountability of Weight Watchers. It worked for me before; I assume it will work again. And so here we are.
One thing that South Beach did for me was to teach me that my body reacts badly to sugar. In fact, when I cut down on sugar for that diet, my chronic, constant cystitis completely cleared up. This is the only thing that has ever helped me, apart from antibiotics, which I'd been taking for at least five years on and off. As a result, I have continued to eat a low-sugar diet. I still love sweets, but I eat them in very limited quantities, or Splendafied. If I spend a day eating a lot of sugar, I have to take my antibiotic again. This is not something any doctor predicted and I did get my blood sugar tested for diabetes as a result of this strange phenomenon. I did not have elevated blood sugar, but obviously a low-sugar diet is better for my body, and so I've stuck with it.
I hope that answers your question! Again, I can only speak for myself; you might find South Beach to be just the diet you need. I found it to be on the whole a very logical, sensible, and liveable approach to changing your diet. It just wasn't for me.
I know you've done a bit of South Beach too. Can you tell me what you think of each and why you chose WW again? I've been a WW, done well, and then had a baby and it just doesn't seem to work for me anymore. It's like a game, but I know all the ins and outs and so I cheat. I was wondering if South Beach may be a good alternative, even if just to jump start me into better habits. Just curious of your thoughts. Thanks.
Well, good question! I read the South Beach book and the logic of the diet made a lot of sense to me. When I started the diet, the first phase was really difficult but it did indeed help jump start me—I lost about 10 pounds in those first two weeks, and learned some good habits about cutting down carbs. I still eat far less bread than I did before I did South Beach and it has changed my life regarding sugar (see below).
However, I learned some bad habits also. Once I was out of the first phase, and could eat whatever low-carb foods I wanted, I found that there were no built in controls, like the points in Weight Watchers, to tell me when enough is enough. Probably my downfall was low-carb ice cream, but I also ate way too much cheese and other fatty, high-calorie foods. I began to gain weight again and in the meantime, had developed a liking for things like 2% milk (when I'd only had nonfat before) and an addiction to cheese that also I'd never had before. Ultimately, I decided that I needed the structure and accountability of Weight Watchers. It worked for me before; I assume it will work again. And so here we are.
One thing that South Beach did for me was to teach me that my body reacts badly to sugar. In fact, when I cut down on sugar for that diet, my chronic, constant cystitis completely cleared up. This is the only thing that has ever helped me, apart from antibiotics, which I'd been taking for at least five years on and off. As a result, I have continued to eat a low-sugar diet. I still love sweets, but I eat them in very limited quantities, or Splendafied. If I spend a day eating a lot of sugar, I have to take my antibiotic again. This is not something any doctor predicted and I did get my blood sugar tested for diabetes as a result of this strange phenomenon. I did not have elevated blood sugar, but obviously a low-sugar diet is better for my body, and so I've stuck with it.
I hope that answers your question! Again, I can only speak for myself; you might find South Beach to be just the diet you need. I found it to be on the whole a very logical, sensible, and liveable approach to changing your diet. It just wasn't for me.
Labels: south beach, weight watchers
