How to do Glycemic Index Dieting
Hello
This journal entry is in response to those friends who've asked me exactly what I'm doing with the GI, and are toying with the idea of doing it themselves.
To get full lists of foods ranked Low, Medium, and High on the GI, google "Glycemic Index Diet". The idea is to stick mainly with those foods marked Low.
I'm not currently eating bread, but the breads lowest in GI are sourdough rye and dark pumpernickel rye. WORST (highest GI) are white bread, bagels, and French bread (baguette).
Also avoid these high GI snacks: pretzels, rice cakes, jelly beans, hard candy. Those go right into sugar.
Apples and pears are both low GI, contain lots of fiber. Generally speaking, foods with fiber LOWER the GI of a snack or meal, which is what we want.
Most breakfast cereals are medium to high GI. If you want cereal for breakfast, eat an egg first, and buy a cereal with a lot of fiber. I like FIBER ONE honey clusters, 13 gm. per serving.
Old-fashioned oats are better than instant. "Instant" stuff, including instant rice, instant mashed potatoes, is already broken down and the sugar goes right into the bloodstream.
There is not any ONE RIGHT WAY to do the GI. It can be adapted to what you're already doing: counting calories, POINTS, or carb gms. You'll just be making a few substitutions. You'll be eating mainly the foods marked LOW GI on the Internet lists.
This is how I personally have been eating. Been limiting my calories to 1500-1600 and my carb gms. to 100 - 120. When I had eggs & cheese, I was making a cheese omelet for breakfast, which only contains a few carb gms. Having a very low GI breakfast with few carbs allows me to save my carbs for the other meals and snacks.
This is the MAIN RULE I follow. I do not eat a sugar or starch food alone by itself. Always with a protein. It's OK to have fats, because you need the Omega 3's, MUFA'S, to be healthy. NUTS and olive oil are good, but measure your quantities for calories sake! :)
Fettucini, spaghetti, and macaroni are all LOW GI, BUT COOK THEM AL DENTE. Mushy pasta goes right into sugar.
To keep calories and saturated fat down, I use turkey meatballs or turkey bacon if I want those foods. I use low fat cheeses and skim milk. DOESN'T MATTER FOR GI. All protein foods like meat, fish, fowl, eggs, nuts, milk are low GI. But since we're trying to lose weight, the lower fat versions are recommended.
Google all the foods you can eat -- I've only mentioned some of them! Adapt it to your calorie level and when you eat carbs, eat a protein with it. SOUNDS SIMPLE? it is!
This journal entry is in response to those friends who've asked me exactly what I'm doing with the GI, and are toying with the idea of doing it themselves.
To get full lists of foods ranked Low, Medium, and High on the GI, google "Glycemic Index Diet". The idea is to stick mainly with those foods marked Low.
I'm not currently eating bread, but the breads lowest in GI are sourdough rye and dark pumpernickel rye. WORST (highest GI) are white bread, bagels, and French bread (baguette).
Also avoid these high GI snacks: pretzels, rice cakes, jelly beans, hard candy. Those go right into sugar.
Apples and pears are both low GI, contain lots of fiber. Generally speaking, foods with fiber LOWER the GI of a snack or meal, which is what we want.
Most breakfast cereals are medium to high GI. If you want cereal for breakfast, eat an egg first, and buy a cereal with a lot of fiber. I like FIBER ONE honey clusters, 13 gm. per serving.
Old-fashioned oats are better than instant. "Instant" stuff, including instant rice, instant mashed potatoes, is already broken down and the sugar goes right into the bloodstream.
There is not any ONE RIGHT WAY to do the GI. It can be adapted to what you're already doing: counting calories, POINTS, or carb gms. You'll just be making a few substitutions. You'll be eating mainly the foods marked LOW GI on the Internet lists.
This is how I personally have been eating. Been limiting my calories to 1500-1600 and my carb gms. to 100 - 120. When I had eggs & cheese, I was making a cheese omelet for breakfast, which only contains a few carb gms. Having a very low GI breakfast with few carbs allows me to save my carbs for the other meals and snacks.
This is the MAIN RULE I follow. I do not eat a sugar or starch food alone by itself. Always with a protein. It's OK to have fats, because you need the Omega 3's, MUFA'S, to be healthy. NUTS and olive oil are good, but measure your quantities for calories sake! :)
Fettucini, spaghetti, and macaroni are all LOW GI, BUT COOK THEM AL DENTE. Mushy pasta goes right into sugar.
To keep calories and saturated fat down, I use turkey meatballs or turkey bacon if I want those foods. I use low fat cheeses and skim milk. DOESN'T MATTER FOR GI. All protein foods like meat, fish, fowl, eggs, nuts, milk are low GI. But since we're trying to lose weight, the lower fat versions are recommended.
Google all the foods you can eat -- I've only mentioned some of them! Adapt it to your calorie level and when you eat carbs, eat a protein with it. SOUNDS SIMPLE? it is!
Replies