The South Beach Diet book became seriously successful as soon as the diet book by similar name was finally published and picked up with rapid succession among a dedicated inner circle. Armed with dieting success stories to tell everyone about, the South Beach Diet book, authored by Doctor Arthur Agatston, The South Beach Diet: The Delicious, Doctor-Designed, Foolproof Plan for Fast and Healthy Weight Loss, is still growing in passion, but the South Beach Diet Phase 1 continues to confuse readers.

The South Beach Diet Phase 1 is designed to be the shortest of phases 1, 2 and 3 of the diet, lasting for a fourteen day period. It was created to be confrontational, kick-start your body and how you think about dieting from that now on. The myth to popular thinking and one of the stickier parts to Phase 1 of the South Beach Diet, you do not have to limit yourself only eating low carb foods.

In a nut-shell, Phase 1 force feeds you the thinking to: get rid of bad carbs that are not providing anything nutritionally for yourself, replace the bad carbs that are abundant in the American diet with ample amounts of protein, good fats and low glycemic index (G.I.) carbs that solves your hunger and balances your blood sugar.

Foods that do more harm rather than benefit: fruit, candy, cereal, potatoes, grains, etc. all are eliminated, or the dieter must phase themselves off of during the South Beach Diet Phase 1. A safe bet, if you should have any difficulty, just eat as much salad, greens, and (most) vegetables you want, as they are right in line because of their dietary benefit.

It's during this stage that Doctor Agatston believes that one's body resistance to insulin will decrease, thus depending on your current weight and current health, you may lose 7 to 9 pounds initially, just in the first two weeks right off the bat, as your body begins to shed excess body weight.

The major goal of the South Beach Diet Phase 1 is two fold: to throw you into a routine that you stick with which keeps you free from hunger and to lay the groundwork for a mindset that ensures you get rid of the bad foods and gravitate towards the food that sheds pounds, deliver energy and improve your quality of life.