Disclosure

Mrs. Exile and I have been dieting for the past six days. On the recommendation of her ob/gyn, we picked up The South Beach Diet by Dr. Arthur Agatston and took the plunge. Although similar to the Atkins Diet insofar as carbohydrates are identified as the primary culprit in the modern-day phenomenon of obesity, South Beach recognizes the value of complex carbohydrates in a healthy eating regimen and gradually reintroduces such things as whole grains and fruits after the first phase of the diet is completed (usually in two weeks).

I have to admit that the first three days were Hell on Earth for me, as I'm all about the carbs. My idea of snacking is to munch my way through an entire box of Cheez-Its or a bag of pretzels, so I was positively jonesing for my fix by the end of Day One. And though I wasn't actually hungry -- one of the cool features of the South Beach Diet is that it discourages the starvation approach that tends to make other dieting methods unsustainable in the long run -- I kept feeling vaguely empty no matter how much I ate, so much so that I had serious doubts about my ability to stick with the plan.

After the third day, however, suddenly that weird emptiness was gone, along with my snacking instinct. It's been a breeze to stick with the diet since. And already I feel different -- I have a lot more energy, and I'm already feeling more confident about my ability to lose weight and perhaps this time even keep it off. I guess time will tell. But one of the critical components of a diet like this is that you really need to know how to do more in the kitchen than simply boil water. Healthy eating requires actual cooking, and fortunately South Beach permits recipes which are more or less like the food I'm already accustomed to making, just without the starch on the side.

For instance, last night we had marinated sirloin tips broiled with peppers and onions. Normally I'd serve this with white rice, but even without it the meal proved to be just as satisfying. It's taken me only a little bit of time to adapt my existing culinary repertoire into something more South Beach-friendly. Granted, I find myself missing fruit, but fortunately that'll return in the next phase of the diet, along with my morning oatmeal and some nice whole wheat bread. Who needs that Wonder crap anyway?