Do you know
the Glycemic Index?
The Glycemic Index (GI) is not something that most of my
coaching clients
are familiar with when I first mention it. Glycemic relates to the effect different foods have on
blood sugar
levels. The Index gives foods a numerical rating. When you consume sugar it hits the blood stream and causes your blood sugar levels to spike upwards. Sugar has an index of 100 and foods are rated as to how they spike your blood sugar in comparison to sugar. The higher the rating the more it causes a spike. You will find that there are foods that will actually cause higher spikes than sugar (my youngest has proven this on many occasions when drinking sparkling apple cider :) Most processed foods, candies and
soda
have high GI ratings. Not surprisingly any food with added
sugar
will usually have a high rating. So it is a good idea to choose your
calories
wisely.
Glycemic Load
The second piece of information that you get is the Glycemic Load of a food. This tells you how long the food will boost your blood sugar levels.When making
food choices,
knowing how high they will spike your blood sugar and for how long, will enable you to choose the foods that impact you in a more positive way. Why should you care about your blood sugar levels? Elevated blood sugar is linked to the following: obesitytype II diabetesheart diseaseproblems with your cholesterol levelshunger (low GI foods don't cause hunger and keep you full longer)hypoglycemiafatigue andrunning out of energy after working out.
What are some of the benefits
of using this information?
When you start using the information available from the Glycemic Index you will be able to
burn fat
more easily as you train your body to use fat for energy rather than sugar (be nice to see your shoes again, eh?).You will also be able to achieve healthy weight loss while you eat enough to satisfy your hunger. No need to try and starve yourself (which isn't healthy and normally doesn't work). From an overall health stand point you will be better able to stabilize your blood sugar levels, which will help you avoid the problems mentioned above.
To access the information.
Go to the following link to access the website and once there click on the database. You can type in the name of a food and it will give you it's rating. Not all foods are there of course, but they have many listed and you will be able to get an idea on the rating of the food you're interested in.
The Glycemic Index
|
