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Weight Management and the Glycemic Index

By David J Angiolieri

'Eating whatever I want' and 'thin' are the two words that are almost always associated with the person when they were in their teens and twenties. When I was 16 years old, I lived on Snickers candy, Mountain Dew soda and Doritos tortilla chips. As I earned my drivers license and gained my independence, I also became nutritionally unsupervised. I did not gain any weight because at that age I had a high metabolism. We all have a high metabolism around that age. At around 25 years old, our metabolism begins to decline. It is at that time that we need to take steps to increase our metabolic function which include exercise and nutrition. Exercising more days than not is a great rule of thumb. Eating according to the Glycemic index is very productive in losing weight and weight management.

Eating high GI foods is less productive in reaching your weight loss and weight management goals. Basically, high GI foods are more processed. The sugar in highly processed foods causes the body to produce insulin at a higher rate which rushes glucose (sugar) into your bloodstream. When this happens, you initially experience a 'sugar high' and then an eventual 'sugar low'. We recognize a sugar low as feeling of low energy, drowsiness or depression in mood. Switching to eating mainly low GI carbs that slowly trickle glucose into your blood stream keeps your energy levels balanced and means you will feel fuller for longer between meals.

Switching to a low GI Diet for weight management just requires doing a bit or label reading. If you don't read the nutrition labels, how do you know what you are eating? You don't need to count numbers or do any sort of mental arithmetic to make sure you are eating a healthy, low GI diet. The basic technique for eating the low GI way is simply a "this for that" approach - i.e., swapping high GI carbs for low GI carbs. Choosing foods that are less processed are the most productive and most helpful for your nutritional goals.

  1. Use breakfast cereals based on oats, barley and bran
  2. Use breads with wholegrain, stone-ground flour, sour dough
  3. Reduce the amount of potatoes you eat
  4. Enjoy all other types of fruit and vegetables
  5. Use Basmati, long grain, or brown rice
  6. Enjoy wholegrain, spinach pasta and noodles
  7. Eat plenty of salad vegetables with a vinaigrette dressing

If the foods you are choosing can sit on the shelf and still be edible 1 year from now, chances are it is highly processed and would not be productive toward your weight loss goals to consume it. Anything that is made for you, right in front of you is most likely productive. Exception of course is McDonalds and the like.

By now, with health and exercise awareness in every the media form, nutrition choices become influenced by the stresses of a time starved world. The act of committing to be active and making healthy nutrition choices only takes a second but the ramifications of poor commitment choices last years as evidenced by the overweight and obesity rates.

Sure, my monthly visit to McDonald's for any order of a double quarter pounder with super size fries and a vanilla milkshake instead of a soda tastes great for the moment. But it'll take weeks or months for me to work off all those calories. For some it may take years, and that is only if they consume the meal once. Making better, more conscientious nutrition choices at crucial moments can make all the difference in looking good and feeling good. Weight management is a concern for all of us. And if looking better is a priority for all of us, why don't we make our nutrition choices a priority?

About the Author:

David J Angiolieri is a certified personal trainer located in Pittsburgh, PA. He specializes in weight loss and weight management by using encouraging thought and behavior change. Learn more at: www.trainer-dave.com