Carbohydrate Guidelines
 

I know that SB focuses on "good" carbs versus counting carbs, but as I move into P2 later this week is there a range I should be shooting for? Are there limits to how many should be in a meal?

You never count carbs on South Beach, you just make sure you get the good carbs instead of the bad carbs. Ease into P2 according to the guidelines in the book, and you'll be fine. You're not just adding good carbs back, but adding more calories each week, until you reach the right level for your body. If you add too many, you'll stop losing, then you just cut back a little. The amount will be different for everyone.

Good luck :)

Ciele, I added fruit back first because I was really missing fruit. One serving a day for a week - the rest of my day looked like I was still on Phase 1. When I started adding grains back in, I added in one serving a day every couple days. I discovered that Triscuits and dinner rolls (whole wheat) triggered massive cravings for me and I had a week where I had way too many carbs every day, but then I realized what was going on and reeled it back. Now I have maybe one or two servings of grains (all whole wheat) every day and usually two servings of fruit. I tend to go by the Food Guide Pyramid's recommendation for serving sizes, just to keep myself on track, and I also have to count calories because I was getting too many and my loss stalled.

Hope that helps!

Kara

Cielle, I agree with Kara and Suzanne, there's no need to count your carbs... I don't count calories either... :)

Kara, I'm not sure what the Food Pyramid's Serving Sizes are, but I suspect they may be larger than the serving sizes established by Dr. A...

I know when I look at the manufacturer's serving sizes, they are quite a bit bigger... For example, a box of cereal I looked at showed a serving size was 57 gr and according to Dr. A, a serving is 30 gr... That's quite a difference.

To avoid confusion, here's the information on serving sizes for Phase 2 approved fruits and grains/starches directly from Dr. A...

FRUIT
(Start with one daily serving, gradually increase to 3 total servings daily)

Apples - 1 small or 5 dried rings
Apricots - 4 fresh or 7 dried
Banana, medium-sized (4 oz.)
Berries, all - 3/4 cup
Cactus Pear Fruit (Prickly Pear)
Cantaloupe - 1/4, or 1 cup diced
Cherries - 12
Grapefruit - 1/2
Grapes - 15
Kiwi - 1
Mangoes - 1/2 medium (4 oz.)
Oranges - 1 medium
Papaya - 1 small (4 oz.)
Peaches - 1 medium
Pears - 1 medium
Plantain
Plums - 2
Prunes - 4


STARCHES
(Start with one daily serving, gradually increase to 3 total servings daily.) Unless otherwise stated, choose whole grain products that have 3 grams of fiber or more per ounce.

Bagels, small, whole grain - 1/2, or 1 oz.
Barley - 1/2 cup
Bread - 1 slice (1 oz.)
homemade breads using whole grains (buckwheat, whole wheat, spelt,
whole oats, bran, rye)
multigrain
oat and bran
rye
sourdough (may be used, but whole grain is the best choice)
sprouted grain
whole wheat
Buckwheat - 1/2 cup cooked
Calabaza - 3/4 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Cassava - 1/4 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Cereal -
Hot - 1/3 -1/2 cup, uncooked. Choose whole grain and slow-cooking
varieties (no instant types).
Cold - 30 grams/1 ounce/3/4 cup. Choose varieties with 6-8 grams of
fiber or more per serving and less than 8 grams of sugar per serving.
Couscous, whole-wheat or Israeli - 1/2 cup cooked
Crackers, whole grain with 3 grams of fiber or more per ounce and no
trans fats
English muffins, whole grain - 1/2, or 1 oz.
(most contain 2.5 grams of fiber per half a muffin—varieties will differ
with 3 grams of fiber are the best choice.)
Green Peas - 1/2 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Muffins, bran - 1 small, homemade sugar-free (no raisins)
Pasta
Whole wheat is best choice - 1/2 cup cooked (3 grams of fiber or more
per 1/2 cup)
Soy is second best choice - 1/2 cup cooked (3 grams of fiber or more
per 1/2 cup)
Pita - 1/2, or 1 oz. stone-ground whole wheat
(most contain 2.5 grams of fiber—varieties with 3 grams of fiber are the
best choice.)
Popcorn, 3 cups popped
Air popped
Microwave, plain, no trans fats
Cooked stove-top with canola oil
Potato, sweet, small
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Pumpkin - 3/4 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Quinoa, 1/2 cup cooked
Rice - 1/2 cup cooked
basmati
brown
converted or parboiled
wild
Rice noodles - 1/2 cup cooked
Soba noodles - 3/4 cup cooked
Taro - 1/3 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Tortillas, 100% whole grain, 3 grams of fiber or more per ounce, no
transfats - 1 small
Winter squash - 3/4 cup
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)
Yams, small
(considered a starchy vegetable; count as a starch/grain serving)

Thanks everyone.