Thick & Thin Part 1: The GI Lean diet
Chereen Harding writes about her experiences trying out the GI Lean diet
Making a plan
I learned that I crave novelty and can't stay on a diet plan like GI Lean for very long because I get bored. I learned that I prefer structured plans to more free-form dietary changes because I'm a structured, rule-following kinda gal.
So how could I give myself the structure I crave while still allowing for change and new experiences? Simple: I'd try them all until I found something that worked. I'd stick with something for a month and then, if the philosophy didn't fit, I'd move on to something else.
So here was the plan:
- Select a diet
- Read the material and plan to implement it for 1 month
- Track my progress
- Evaluate my emotional and physical response to the plan
- Decide: Stay or try something new
Luckily, my oh-so-supportive other half (Darius) agreed to go on the diets with me, so no two-meal cooking.
Implementing the plan on the GI Lean diet:
What is the glycaemic index (GI)?
The glycaemic index (GI) evaluates how the body handles different carbohydrates in foods. This is done by comparing the rise in blood sugar after eating two different foods, the particular food being measured and the same amount of carbohydrates in a standard food, usually white bread. The higher the blood sugar spikes compared to the standard the higher the food's glycaemic index.
1. Select a diet
I chose GI Lean to be my first diet. I knew my first obstacle would be tackling my overactive sweet-tooth so I thought it best that my first diet not permit sugar at all. I also felt that a more structured approach was best towards the beginning when my judgement compromised by cravings. GI lean was being advertised quite heavily at the time, so I decided to give it a bash.
2. Read the material and plan to implement it for 1 month
GI Lean basics:
- Follow a low-GI eating plan (provided in the book) consisting of 3 meals and 2 snacks a day
- First 3 days are a detox. (Similar eating plan to the rest of the diet, no coffee, lots of water and some effervescent tablets 3 times a day)
- Take a pill in the morning ( some kind of metabolism booster they make)
- No more than 3 cups of coffee or tea per day
The first thing I realised once I studied the booklet was that it would be very expensive to follow on an ongoing basis. It made a number of practical errors which dietician-designed plans often make. Like saying that you should have half an avo for lunch and then avo isn't mentioned again for another 5 days (what do I do with the other half?). Variety was fantastic but impractical. I am not willing to spend R25 on a bag of low-GI muesli and then only eat 100g of it in a month. It also prescribed GI Lean soup once a day (this is R5 per serving cuppa soup - I'd rather have fruit) The list goes on...
So, I had to adjust it a bit to suit our lifestyle. I picked a breakfast that worked and arranged to have it every day. I arranged to have fruit for some snacks instead of low-fat plain yogurt. I'm not fond of the stuff and 4 litres a week (the amount needed for a couple) would have been too expensive. I stuck to the meals provided but rearranged them to make them more practical (like using up that half an avo...).
3. Track my progress
GI Lean was very easy to follow. The meal plans are already provided so it takes the thinking out of it to a great extent. During the first few days (the detox phase) I had quite a few headaches - but that probably had to do more with sugar and caffeine withdrawal than anything else. Drinking 3 litres of water a day was also quite new to me so that was a challenge.
The recipes provided in the book are delicious and filling though quantities were a little inconsistent at times. Some dinners are large, and others rather small, so if you are used to eating roughly the same amount of food every night you may need to adjust it a bit. Overall Darius' favourite recipe was the 'Macaroni cheese with tomatoes' (a healthy substitute for normal macaroni cheese) and mine was the 'Feta, spinach and walnut pasta'. I would make these even if I wasn't on diet.
Part of the GI Lean range is a 'Hunger Buster Tea', but I never needed to try it – I had plenty to eat. The regular meals and snacks kept my blood sugar more stable than it's been in years – so those 'I must eat everything in sight' blood sugar crashes were a thing of the past. For those of you who like numbers: I averaged 1470 kcal a day.
On the few occasions I needed to eat out I chose meals that would look at home if they were presented in the book (low GI, low fat) so I didn't really have a problem with it. And sugar? I fell off the bandwagon once – a slice of chocolate cake when having coffee with a friend. I was surprised that I didn't cheat on sugar more, but after the first 2 weeks my cravings started to subside. I never did go back to coffee after the detox, the water was plenty to keep thirst at bay. I've had a couple of cups of decaf since, but nothing close to the amount I used to drink. Overall, I think there were 5 days on which I ate something that wasn't on the diet plan (biltong, sugar-free ice-cream or protein bars, alcohol, a particularly wicked meal out – that kind of thing).
And how much did I lose? 4.3kgs over one month – not too shabby if I say so myself. The weight loss was pretty stable. Nno major drop at the start - which is a good sign if you followed it for a longer period of time.
Darius' Comments:
I enjoyed the recipes, and the portions were good. The only recipe that was lacking something (maybe meat?) was the vegetable briyani. I did get a bit hungry around 5-6pm though.
4. Weighing it up
Evaluate my emotional and physical response to the plan.
Why GI Lean was good:
- Meals were good (mostly)
- It was easy to follow
- I wasn't hungry
- Weight loss was excellent
- I felt healthier: no blood sugar crashes, more energy
- I learnt some good habits (eating more regularly, more water)
- On a scale of willpower required to stick to it (1 being none and 10 being superhuman) I'd give it a 4
- No calorie / carb gram / points counting needed. (I counted calories for fun)
Why GI Lean wasn't perfect:
- There are a limited number of recipes and options so boredom may set in if you don't go beyond what is provided
- I didn't think the supplements did much at all
- A lot of customisation is needed to make it practical and cost-effective
- There is no mechanism for dealing with celebrations / eating out so anything you eat there will feel like 'cheating'
- I cheated towards the end as I got progressively more bored
- No sugar? EVER?
5. Decide: Stay or try something new
It's not perfect... so, onto something new.
Chereen Harding
Try the GI Lean diet with these products
Buy G.I. Lean products online at Fitfuel.co.za
G.I. Lean 3 Day Detox Effervescent Capsules 325g
While detoxing, your body - and especially your liver - will need all the help it can get. With the help of mother nature, G.I. Lean has developed a 3 Day Detox supplement to give you the support you need during your detox. The effervescent tablets are formulated with some of nature's most effective cleansing ingredients.
G.I. LEAN Morning Kickstart 250g
Often the beginning of a new eating programme is the most difficult. While your body gets used to different portion sizes and different types of food, you may initially experience difficulty in adjusting. G.I. Lean supplements have been formulated with ingredients that assist in combating these difficulties.
G.I. Lean Morning Kickstart capsules assist in supporting optimum metabolism.
G.I. Lean Fat Burn Herbal Drops
Thermogenics stimulate the burning of fat cells and increase the metabolic rate of the body. The caffeine in G.I. Lean Fat Burn Drops is the naturally occurring caffeine in Green Tea which together with other active ingredients provides a thermogenic effect. With G.I. Lean Fat Burn Herbal Drops you can control your dosage to suit your body's needs.
Please note: Feed and Eat.com are neither manufacturer nor distributor of these GI Lean products. If you need specific product information please contact Fitfuel.co.za or G.I. Lean.
We would however love to hear what your experiences are or were while trying out the GI Lean diet. Contact us and tell us how it worked for you.
