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Ok, this is the difference between Atkins and South Beach. With Atkins you are very limited to the "good carbs" you can eat after your 2 week induction phase. With South Beach, after your 2 week phase cutting out virtually all carbs, you are able to reintroduce good carbs back into your diet, such as fruit, 100% whole wheat breads,whole wheat pasta and brown rice, and beans. Still, you need to cut out all white refined flour, sugar and potatoes (that is the hardest for me, however I just read an article that said they have created a lower calorie, lower carb potatoe. Waiting for it to hit the market, haven't had one since January). The key is moderation, even with the "good carbs". It takes a little while to get used to the taste and texture of whole wheat pasta, but once you do, you will love it and probably not want the other stuff. I know I don't. I have not had any sugar either since January, I use Splenda for virtually everything. It is very good to bake with. There is a very good pizza recipe in the South Beach Diet cookbook. Also, they make a great frozen South Beach pizza. It is very good. Anyway, cutting out all white refined flours, all white rice, potatoes, and sugar has helped me to loose 35 lbs. and counting. I feel so much better and have a lot more energy!!! Good luck to you Phay and KY Oyster!!!!

You might want to reconsider your use of Splenda and any other artificial sweeteners. Just do a google search.

I don't know why everything has to be so sweetened. If you go awhile without sweeteners of any kind, you discover that many natural foods become to you sweeter than any desert you ever had.

You might want to reconsider your use of Splenda and any other artificial sweeteners. Just do a google search.

I don't know why everything has to be so sweetened. If you go awhile without sweeteners of any kind, you discover that many natural foods become to you sweeter than any desert you ever had.

kurt is right on with the Splenda thing. That stuff is pretty bad for you.

kurt is right on with the Splenda thing. That stuff is pretty bad for you.

I'm on the liquid diet.

Gosh, thanks for all of the great advice!

My sister told me last year about the negatives of artificial sweeteners. I will definitely experiment with giving those up.

Whole wheat pasta ... oh, yeah. We've missed pasta so much that we made homemade ww pasta on Saturday. It tasted like butt, pardon my language, and looked sort of purple next to our homemade sauce of vine-ripened tomatoes, basil from our garden, garlic, and shrimp. I'll try the boxed pasta that was suggested - definitely a lot easier than making it ourselves.

I will definitely try the pizza from the South Beach book - thanks.

I'm on the liquid diet.

Churn the hops to simple sugars internally :lolabove:

You might want to reconsider your use of Splenda and any other artificial sweeteners. Just do a google search.

I don't know why everything has to be so sweetened. If you go awhile without sweeteners of any kind, you discover that many natural foods become to you sweeter than any desert you ever had.

I agree. However, if you cannot break the habit of sweetend foods (it is a habit), try Stevia, which can be found at your local Health food stores. Info regarding Stevia, an herb, can be found at www.stevia.net Please note that

"since the passage of the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA), stevia can be sold legally in the United States, but only as a "dietary supplement." Even so, it can be found in many forms in most health-food stores, and is also incorporated into drinks, teas and other items (all labeled as "dietary supplements"). It cannot, however, be called a "sweetener" or even referred to as "sweet." To do so would render the product "adulterated," according to the FDA, and make it again subject to seizure."

Just the Man trying to keep a brotha down. The sugar lobbyists push hard against Stevia. It is something like 300 times sweeter than sugar, and taste slightly different, so it may take more than a few attempts to calculate the amount to add for your likeness. Also, it can be difficult to use in baking due to recipes not easily being converted.

Back to Kurt's message, just slowly cut back on the sweet stuff, no matter what it is, and soon, you will find yourself being liking sweets very much.