Prepare/eat foods that have the lowest glycaemic index and should you occasionally indulge in simple carbs lower the glycaemic load of that meal by having a smaller portion, drinking water and adding healthy fats and lean protein to the meal.
- Glycaemic Index
1. Carbohydrates (carbs) release sugar into blood stream when digested.
2. Simpler carbs release sugar faster than complex carbs – blood sugar is spiked more by simpler carbs.
3. Glycaemic index is a measure of influence of carbohydrates on blood sugar: 100 is pure sugar and causes a rapid rise in blood sugar.
4. All other carbs are compared to sugar
5. Foods that cause bigger influence on blood sugar are your risk foods, foods that will hold you back. The energy lift they give is temperate, they are rarely filling and the frequent glucose fluctuation result in fat storage (Won’t go into detail for the benefit of this post. It’s much more complicated and boring, and we are just talking about getting you lean and mean)
6. Eat foods from the lower index for best benefits.
GI range examples:
- Low GI 55 or less: most fruits and vegetables, legumes, whole grains, nuts
- Medium GI 56–69: whole wheat products, basmati rice, sweet potato, sucrose, baked potato
- High GI 70 and above: white bread, most white rices, corn flakes, glucose, maltose
Glycaemic Load
1. Like Glycaemic Index but takes into account how much carbohydrate is there in 100g portion of the food. The lower the Glycaemic load of your meal the less impact that meal will have on the
sugar, the better.
2. For example GI of watermelon is 75(v high) but in 100g most of it is water so the load is about 3-4.
3. >20 is high, 11-19 is medium, 10 or less is low.
4. Mixing the carbohydrates with proteins, fats and water further reduces the glycaemic load of the meal.
5. You can calculate the Glycaemic load of a meal but this is unrealistic in practice. If you want to know more here is a link to a nice article with more detail and an extensive list of foods www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm
Eat foods with low Glycaemic Index or if not possible reduce the Glycaemic Load of your meals.
With healthy wishes,
Dmitri Tkatchev
Read on:
Introduction to the 31 Day Fitness Kickstart
Day 1 – Water
Day 2 – Protein at breakfast
Day 3 – Meal frequency
Day 4 – Sugar
Day 5 – Lifestyle
Day 6 – Carbohydrates
Day 7 – Sleep
Day 8 – Start easy with Cardio – frequency not the quantity.
Day 9 – Get clever with your fats!
Day 10 – Find or become a role model
Day 11 – Coffee
Day 12 – Exercise improves your appetite response.
Day 13 – Consistency over intensity
Day 14 – Add cinnamon to your diet
Day 15 – Energising morning fix
Day 16 – Active rest
Day 17 – Holistic fitness.
Day 18 – Minimise muscle loss.
Day 19 – Don’t forget steady paced cardio
Day 20 – Eat plenty of fibre
Day 21 – Take up a physically demanding hobby.
Day 22 – Hire a qualified and an experienced Personal Trainer
Day 23 – Eat Cake
Day 24 – Don’t forget that the feeling of hunger is the best cue for when to eat
Day 25 – Tune in to your training
Day 26 – Sort out the calorie density of your meals.
Day 27 – Eat more grapefruit
Day 28 – Eat within an hour after your workout!
Day 30 – Cycle crunches.
Day 31 – Learn to listen to your body