What IS the difference between the major diet plans,please~
 

just make your own.

keypoints:
importance of protein and healthy fats with every meal
control but not eliminate carbs

i tried to avoid going all out with a diet because i dont think i can follow a diet for the rest of my life. but i can incorporate principles into my existing choice for foods.

I wouldn't say all these diets are similar as much as I'd say that many healthy diets look similar. A good diet plan will tap into features of a healthy diet and incorporate them. In fact, I'd be most worried about trying a diet that didn't look much like any other diet!

However, saying diets are similar doesn't mean that you could get good results by mixing them up. People have had good results on Atkins and South Beach (to use two examples). Does that mean I'll have good results if I do Atkins one day, South Beach the next, and a mixture of SB and Atkins the third day. Unless I'm incredibly lucky--no!

In the end, the best eating plan is the one with which you can stick. Good luck!

The endgame (maintenance phase) of most healthy eating plans look incredibly similar. That just makes sense.

Some people do combine aspects of some of the plans. South Beach and calorie counting. Or Atkins and Weight Watchers Flex. I think this is to combine the food choices from the first plan with the portion control of the second. Then the plans vary in the details.
Exactly which foods are included (example SB low fat dairy/WW no fat dairy)
Perhaps proportions of lean protein/carbs/fat
Whether a food is considered in one category vs another (Beans: protein or carbs)
And which foods have limits (nuts)

And even when the plans are very similar, the way they are presented makes a difference too.

For example both SB and WW call for a certain amount of vegetables a day. I managed to miss the WW Guidelines for Healthy Eating the first time I sat through the presentation. I just saw it as a game where I used my points to continue to eat as much the way I wanted to as possible. When my doctor told me to eat more fruits and vegetables, it didn't translate into what I needed to do. When I started SB and followed their menus for the first week, I finally GOT IT. Sometimes you need to hear it more than once or hear it a certain way before it really turns into "what do I need to do right now at this meal or decision to improve my eating."

All diets have one thing in common ,fewer calories, they may use points, count carbs or fat grams but they still lower calories in some way.I agree the plan for you is the one you will stick with.It is OK to experiment a little to see what works best for you.

In agreement
 

When I was going though ALL my 'get back to losing stuff'..It reminds me that the similarities between healthy diet plans are very similar,some go further than others in certain areas. I like the sb not because it's easy,or hard,but because it gets me to focus totally on what I'm putting in,which I can get sidetracked sometimes when so much of everything is available and good,although not necessarily good for me,or anyone for that matter. I began today..the two wks start to sb..i've been there before,and managed to survive,and boy did losing 14lbs.in two wks.feel worth the effort. This time however,I'm going to try a different approach after the two wks.and see if it doesn't work better for me. Thanks for your imput.~choices;)

I like to use the guidelines on this web page instead of a set diet. It's more like a formula to eat healthy. Good luck!
http://www.easy-weightloss-tips.com/eat-healthy.html

Tolstoy's oft-quoted opening sentence of Anna Karenina says it best:
[As best I remember it, LOL]