Do I have to follow the menu exactly?

[mschubby]

This may be a dumb question, but do I have to follow the plan exactly as written in the book? I mean, I dont have celery sticks and 1 wedge of laughing cow cheese... can I just eat some string cheese instead?

I dont like eggs, so can I eat chicken and a veggie for breakfast?

Is there a reason they want you to eat certain combinations of foods at certain times?

I was hoping that as long as I stick to the "allowed" foods list I can eat what I want, how I want, when I want.. is that asking too much?

[RedRox]

I don't know why this board seems to post things at odd times. I check it almost every day and now this "new" post is 2 weeks old already.

The answer is that no you don't have to follow any of the menus in the book at all, but yes it does matter what and how much and in what combinations you do eat the foods from the allowed foods lists. For a simple example, nuts/seeds are healthy for you and allowed up to 1 oz per day from any of the sources listed in the nuts/seeds section of the food lists, but if you don't pay attention to the limits, then you can stall your weight loss by overconsuming a fairly calorie dense food group.
????: South Beach Diet Forums http://www.southbeachdietbulletinboard.com/south-beach-diet-forums-phase-1/5880-do-i-have-follow-menu-exactly.html

Luckily there are resources here to help you figure it all out! The updated foods list itself is provided in a sticky topic here and helps identify any specific limits on any particular food group like the nuts/seeds allowance mentioned above. In addition there is also a Meal Model sticky topic here that provides a generalized outline of what foods and recommended quantities to start with for each major meal. So for breakfast it only mentions proteins, veggies, good fats and optional dairy, so your chicken and veggies would work fine in place of eggs. (The meal model never mentions eggs at all!) Actually so would a cup of homemade chili if made with SB friendly ingredients for that matter! There also tends to be a greater emphasis on including beans/legumes and dairy (allowed types of milk/yogurt but cheese is considered a protein for SB purposes) in the meal models to help keep your energy levels up and to keep you out of ketosis.

Best wishes on your SB adventure!