working out regularly and turning into a semi-vegan for about a year didn’t really help in shedding down to my old weight. not a single pound lost. so i turned to the south beach diet. at first i was of course apprehensive because when i hear about low carb and high protein diets (like the atkins diet in particular), what comes to mind are the health hazards associated with it like perilously high bad cholesterol levels, as well as liver and kidney damage. there was no way that i will get into such a diet. instead of killing myself, i’d rather be overweight and maybe i’ll just sweat it all out in another year or two.

through some local magazines that i’ve read, i’ve learned that the south beach diet may have an edge over the atkins diet. i like that it’s not another high protein diet, and it emphasizes on controling bad carbs, bad fats, and sugar. i also like that i will only totally avoid carbs, fat, and sugar for just the first two weeks (phase 1). eventually i was able to buy the paperback version and then read about the whole deal.

so i started. it wasn’t easy. the first two days was tough and it left me cranky, because in this country, there aren’t a lot of choices if you eat out. filipinos just love rice, and a lot of local restaurants don’t offer an alternative such as mixed vegetables, and if they do, it consisted of corn, carrots, and green peas cooked in butter. because of the rise of the popularity of this diet, some local entrepeneurs have started offering pre-packed south beach meals which are delivered to your doorstep everyday for 800 bucks. that’s 11,200 buck for the 2-week span of phase 1. geez! that’s my entire food budget for a month or two, and i’m going to wolf it down in two weeks?! utterly crazy. i carefully read what foods were allowed and then i shopped for the food myself. i may not have adhered to the prescribed menu, but i did only eat what was allowed for phase 1. i had my mom prepare steamed mix veggies consisting of tofu, bean sprouts, green beans, broccoli, and cauliflower, and tomatoes (plus diced chicken sauteed in olive oil and garlic). at work i would just buy fish or chicken from the cafeteria.

after phase 1 i’ve lost about 8 lbs and then lost about 2 more in early phase 2. even tho phase 2 allows more types of food, most of my favorite food are still discouraged. like tempura, japanese soba, chinese fried rice, sushi, pizza, italian pasta, etc. it drives me crazy sometimes. especially if you appreciate good food and love to cook as i do.