How Many Carbohydrates Can I Have a Day With the South Beach Diet?

Understanding how many carbohydrates you can have a day with the South Beach diet--a diet that focuses on low carbohydrates and high proteins and monounsaturated fats--depends on a few variables. Details of the diet and the phase you are currently in will affect how many carbohydrates you can have each day.

No set number

Unlike other low-carbohydrate diets, the South Beach diet does not rely on carb-counting or a set specific amount of carbohydrates consumed per day. By definition, any low-carbohydrate diet relies on less than 10 percent of total calories coming from carbohydrates. With the South Beach diet, the plan breaks into phases, with each phase focusing on a different nutritional or diet goal.

Regardless of phase, however, the South Beach diet doesn't mandate an upper limit on carbohydrate per se--rather, the focus is on choosing types of carbohydrates. For example, the South Beach diet emphasizes choosing carbohydrates based on glycemic index. Glycemic index is a measurement of how a carbohydrate affects the body's blood-sugar levels. Foods that have a low glycemic index do not affect blood sugar levels much at all; foods with a high glycemic index cause the blood sugar to spike and crash, affecting insulin levels.

Phase Makes the Difference

The South Beach diet breaks down into three phases, with each phase focusing on a different nutritional goal. The first phase, which lasts two weeks, has the lowest amount of carbohydrate intake--the only carbohydrates allowed during this phase are ones with a low glycemic index. Frequently this means lean proteins and leafy green vegetables--no sugar, alcohol, rice, pasta or cereals during this phase. The goal of the first phase is to get the body out of the habit of craving sugar, starches and sweets.

The second phase allows foods with a glycemic index in the low to medium range. A few starchy carbohydrates are part of this phase, with suggestions for how to incorporate them into the diet in a smart way.

The third phase mixes low-, medium- and high-glycemic-index foods in a planned combination to still maintain a low-carbohydrate lifestyle. The diet's third phase also offers tips for maintaining weight loss from the first two phases, as well as guidelines for managing foods with higher glycemic indexes.