Oatmeal question
 

Hello
I am relatively new to South Beach, and so have a question. I did Phase I for 2 weeks, and though it was EXTREMELY difficult for me as I do not like veggies, I did well on it.

I am now in Phase II and read that oatmeal was a good breakfast, so I tried it this morning, and was the slow cook stuff as recommended--said the instant is not so good for you? But, I compared labels, and the instant we had at home was better in every way-lower calories, lower fat, higher fiber, same sugar--the only difference was that instant had 90 mg of sodium and slow cook had none.........is it ok to eat the instant instead as it tastes about 10000 times better--or any ideas to make the slow cook have some flavor??????

Thanks, Maureen

South Beach focuses on whole foods not just numbers. There is a yummy slow cooker oat recipe in the files. Maybe add some no sugar added dried fruit & nuts. Of course you can also just add something else if the oats aren't your thing :) I can't have grains in the morning but some chicks have ww toast, ww wraps for breakfast burritos, or hot cereal made with quinoa.

If you like peanut butter, get some Natural PB (just peanuts and salt- make sure to check the ingrediants) and add a tablespoon PB and a packet of Splenda to your oatmeal. I think its delicious!

ohh, I forgot the pb, sf sweetener and small amount of cocoa trick :drool: I may have to make that when I'm back home

Thanks!

One important reason for using the slow cooked instead of the instant has to do with the glycemic response in your bloodstream. I'm not sure exactly how to describe it but an "instant" food has been manipulated so it cooks faster. It will also raise your blood sugar more than the slow cooked variety. In weightloss, we are wanting to keep our blood sugar levels more stable. I hope this helps to understand a little bit of the "why".

Best wishes!

I'm not familiar with the South Beach diet guidelines, so ignore this if it's not useful to you. But one of my favorite oatmeal variations is 3/4 cup instant oats + 1 or 2 splenda packets + 4oz of fat free yogurt. It's 300 calories, and this makes a HUGE bowl of oatmeal. I'm a volume eater, aka a botomless pit, and this is one of the few meals that I sometimes simply can't finish. It's also creamy and sweet and fruity. Very dessert-esque.

I like the Bob's Red Mill steel cut oats or 5 grain rolled cereal. I make one serving in the morning, and add a bit of salt to the water. I like to add 1 tbsp peanut butter and sometimes some SF chocolate syrup, or a tiny bit of honey, or some berries or chopped fruit. Yum! The steel cut oats especially will keep me full for a long time.