A few weeks ago, my boyfriend and I decided to try the South Beach Diet, where for the first two weeks, all carbs are cut from your diet and then gradually allowed back in during phase 2. We were very excited with taking on this new “lifestyle” and even went so far to say food would be our new hobby – this, because, all we did was think about our next meal.
All went well the first seven days. As expected, pounds were melting off Tim a little too fast for my taste, but I kept up the pace the best I could with the metabolism I have. After the first week, however, you get a little tired of eating spoonfuls of peanut butter for snacks, eggs and turkey bacon every morning and at least two cups of vegetables for two meals a day. I literally became nauseous thinking of eating greens so much.
I started working at Saucy Swan in the village of Manlius about the same time I started this diet. While I only work a couple nights a week if that, let me tell you, it’s a difficult task to maintain a no-carb/low-carb diet at an authentic Italian restaurant. I would make a mental checklist of all the savory foods I was serving and needed to try once I “could” again. And when would that be? At the rate I was going, not for months. I want my tomato pie now.
You probably won’t be surprised to hear the diet failed before we even reached the second part. We slowly allowed ourselves the foods we craved and now we eat moderate portions of whatever we’d like. I don’t think denying yourself certain food is altogether good for you – psychologically or physically. Yes, we did lose some weight, but research shows that most people who go on fad diets such as South Beach or Atkin’s usually gain back more weight than what they initially started at – which, to me, is completely discouraging.
My opinion? I’m all for the old-fashioned “eat right and exercise.” That too can be a challenge but at least it’s a reasonable way to live. And now when customers ask me what I would recommend to try at Saucy Swan, I’ll be able to describe the wonderfully delicious pastas and specials that owner John Aliaso prepares daily.
