Found some info and a 21 day menu plan for low GI/Gl

[Roch]

Hey all my fellow Gi`ers.When i was searching for low GI/GL info i came accross this site and a 21 day menu plan.

I thought it explained things pretty well and easy to understand,so here it is.



21-day low GI & GL menu plan

How to use the menu plansSnack ideasFurther low GI & GL resources Send to a friend Print Vote
Menu plan - week 1Day 1234567Menu plan - week 2Day 891011121314Menu plan - week 3Day 15161718192021
How to use the low GI & GL menu plan


Low GI (glycemic index) and low GL (glycemic load) diets come in many shapes and sizes. Some include medium GI carbohydrate foods such as wholemeal bread and pasta on a regular basis, while others allow these only very infrequently. Some restrict red meat and saturated fats and require all dairy products to be low fat as well. Others are concerned solely with limiting carbohydrates, the only foods which have a significant glycemic effect (ie produce a rise in blood sugar/insulin levels.) Our low GI menu plan is designed to be easily adapted for use with all types of low GI diet.
Not all low GI diets are designed to produce weight loss. Some are seen more as healthy eating plans. Of course, individual metabolisms, activity levels and levels of tolerance to carbohydrates differ, and what works as a weight-loss diet for one person would be a weight-gain diet for the next.
For some people, eating 'good' carbohydrates such as whole grains, wholemeal bread, and fresh fruits may make weight loss impossible, even though these are not high GI foods. If this is you, you can adapt the menus by eating more of the vegetables, salads and protein foods and leaving out the bread, potatoes, pasta and rice. Alternatively, you could try some simple substitutions. For instance, in place of wholemeal bread, substitute bread made with flours from healthy, low carb flax seeds, almonds, soya beans, hemp or sesame seeds instead of high carb wheat, rye or corn.
Similarly, if you can tolerate more carbohydrate foods, particularly if you are very physically active, you can increase these in quantity and frequency (but only the 'good' carbs, and not at the expense of your vegetables and salads!)
Here are some points to bear in mind when using this menu plan:

Meals can be interchanged with meals on another day if desired.

Besides your three meals a day, have two or even three snacks. Low GI diets are all about blood sugar/insulin control, and from this point of view it is better to have a larger number of small meals and snacks throughout the day than a smaller number of large meals. The list below gives you some ideas to get your thinking started.

Try to achieve 5 to 7 servings per day of fruits and / or vegetables for general good health.

The exact vegetables accompanying each dinner meal are not specified unless they are the starchy, higher GI ones such as potatoes, parsnips and carrots. Try to include plenty of non starchy, low GI vegetables (such as cabbage, broccoli, green beans, courgettes/zucchini, marrow/winter squash, asparagus, cauliflower etc) and to eat as wide a variety of vegetables as possible over the course of a week.

Dress salads with healthy fats such as olive or flax oil. Avoid 'diet' dressings which are often high in sugar or additives to replace the fats which have been taken out.

Substitute low-fat spread for butter if you feel more comfortable doing so, but make sure the brand you choose does not contain any trans fats. These dangerous man-made fats may also appear on nutrition labels as hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.

Stewed fruits can always be substituted by fresh fruits. In fact, eating a fruit raw is preferable because this ensures that more of the nutrients are retained and makes it lower GI.
Low GI & GL snack ideas


Have two or three snacks in addition to your three meals each day. Here are some ideas

Cottage cheese and raw vegetable sticks

Cottage cheese with chopped dried apricots

Plain yoghurt with fresh fruit

Fresh whole fruit and a few nuts

Raw carrot sticks and hummus

Celery sticks spread with a little cream cheese

Raw courgette sticks and tzatziki (Greek yoghurt mixed with cucumber, garlic and mint)

Raw red and green pepper sticks with a small piece of cheese

Small quantity of nuts, especially almonds, brazils, walnuts and hazelnuts

Small quantity of seeds such as sunflower, pumpkin or hemp

High protein nutrition bar (but check it is not high in added sugars)

Low carb nutrition bar

No added sugar seed or seed & cereal bar

Small quantity dark chocolate (70%+ cocoa solids)

Rye crispbread with butter and yeast extract or miso spread

Oatcakes with thin slices of cheese

Slice of maltloaf / fruitbread

Half an avocado with vinaigrette dressing

A few olives

Waldorf salad (celery, walnuts and apple in mayonnaise)

Small tin of oily fish in tomato sauce or olive oil such as sardines, herring, mackerel (try to have oily fish once or twice a week)

Low GI & GL menu plan - Week 1

Day 1 Breakfast Granary bread with butter
Scrambled egg Lunch Salmon, mango and buckwheat salad
On a bed of raw baby spinach leaves Dinner Chicken and mushroom casserole
Baked sweet potato
Vegetables
Pears cooked in red wine and cinnamon Day 2 Breakfast Bran flakes and milk
Fresh apple Lunch Small baguette with prawns and mayonnaise
Green salad Dinner Baked fish
Basmati rice
Vegetables
Stewed rhubarb with artificial sweetener and blueberries Day 3 Breakfast Poached smoked haddock
No added sugar fruit yoghurt Lunch Hard-boiled eggs
Lentil and vegetable salad with vinaigrette Dinner Turkey stroganoff with bulgur rice
Tomato salad
Fresh fruit Day 4 Breakfast Wholemeal toast with sugar-free peanut butter Lunch Jacket potato with tuna and mayonnaise
Green salad Dinner Meat loaf (made with large-flake oats instead of breadcrumbs)
Vegetables
Stewed apple Day 5 Breakfast Toasted wholemeal bread with butter
Poached eggs Lunch Ciabatta with grilled Mediterranean vegetables and hummus
Green salad Dinner Grilled fish
Boiled quinoa with onion, garlic and herbs
Vegetables
Gooseberry and ginger crumble, artificially sweetened and with topping made from oats Day 6 Breakfast Bran cereal with fresh fruit and cottage cheese Lunch Tinned mackerel in tomato sauce
Bean salad Dinner Roast pork
Roast sweet potatoes
Vegetables
Banana fool made with plain live yoghurt Day 7 Breakfast Porridge made with old-fashioned large oatflakes and unsweetened unsweetened soya milk or water - add cinnamon and artificial sweetener if desired Lunch Open ham and tomato sandwich made with whole grain bread
Green salad Dinner Chicken curry with brown basmati rice
Vegetables
Stewed dried apricots, cherries and cranberries
Low GI & GL menu plan - Week 2

Day 8 Breakfast Weetabix with milk or unsweetened soya milk
Tomato juice Lunch Home-made chunky lentil and root vegetable soup
Fresh fruit Dinner Wholemeal pasta with pesto and walnuts
Vegetables
Low sugar ice cream Day 9 Breakfast Buckwheat pancake with smoked salmon and lemon
Apple Lunch Tortilla wrap with chicken, salad and salsa Dinner Salmon steak
Canned chickpeas sautéed with herbs and garlic
Vegetables
Lemon sugar-free jelly/jello Day 10 Breakfast Toasted wholemeal bread with butter and low sugar jam
Ricotta cheese with pineapple Lunch Pork and vegetable kebabs with basmati rice
Green salad Dinner Liver and onions
New potatoes
Vegetables
Baked apple filled with sultanas and cinnamon and artificially sweetened if needed Day 11 Breakfast Fresh fruit and nuts
Plain yoghurt Lunch Tuna mayonnaise on wholemeal bread
Green salad Dinner Grilled lamb chop
Sweet potato
Vegetables
Fresh fruit salad Day 12 Breakfast No added sugar baked beans on wholemeal toast Lunch Pitta bread filled with salad
Banana and almond smoothie Dinner Mushroom, beansprout and tofu stir fry
Buckwheat pancakes and fresh berry fruits Day 13 Breakfast Unsweetened muesli with milk or unsweetened soya milk and dried apricots Lunch Shredded ham, pineapple and grated cheese on a toasted wholemeal muffin
Mixed salad Dinner Tuna steak with real tomato sauce
Bulgur wheat boiled with onion and herbs
Vegetables
Sugar-free jelly/jello, made with berry fruits Day 14 Breakfast Grilled bacon and tomatoes
Granary bread Lunch Oatcakes (thin biscuits made from oats)
Thin slices of cheese
Fresh fruit Dinner Chicken curry with chickpeas in place of rice
Vegetables
Fruit compote made with dried apricots, prunes, sultanas, fresh pear and cinnamon
Low GI & GL menu plan - Week 3

Day 15 Breakfast Oatmeal porridge topped with dried blueberries or cherries Lunch Tuna, bean and sweetcorn salad Dinner Pork chop
New potatoes
Vegetables
Ricotta cheese flavoured with coffee and artificial sweetener Day 16 Breakfast Tomato juice with dash of Worcester Sauce
Wholemeal toast with tahini (ground sesame seeds) Lunch Pumpernickel bread topped with salmon and cucumber
No added sugar fruit yoghurt Dinner Home-made fish cakes
Vegetables
Stewed pear and banana Day 17 Breakfast Ryebread with butter and yeast extract or miso spread
Sliced tomatoes and cucumber Lunch Lentil, chicken and bacon salad Dinner Pearl barley risotto with peas and mushrooms
Green salad
Strawberries dipped in dark chocolate Day 18 Breakfast Mushroom and tomato omelette
Banana Lunch Wholemeal pasta salad with pesto and walnuts
Half avocado with vinaigrette Dinner Chilli con carne with bulgur wheat
Vegetables
Fresh fruit salad Day 19 Breakfast Tomato juice with a dash of Worcester Sauce
All-Bran with milk
Banana Lunch Chicken Caesar salad with anchovies and Caesar dressing (no croutons) Dinner Baked white fish
Baked potato
Vegetables
Poached pears with ginger Day 20 Breakfast Flat brown mushrooms grilled with thin slices of cheese
Banana Lunch Tomato, mozzarella and olive salad with chickpeas Dinner Steak with onions and mushrooms
Home made chips/fries
Green salad
Baked egg custard Day 21 Breakfast Toasted wholemeal bread and butter
Omelette Lunch Thai noodles with tofu, mangetout and beansprouts Dinner Lamb stew
Mashed swede
Vegetables
Ricotta cheese flavoured with cocoa powder and artificial sweetener
Further low GI & GL resources

For further menu ideas, check out our free 14-Day Atkins & Low Carb / GI Menu Plan. Menus and recipes primarily designed for those on low carb plans are by definition also suitable for anyone following a low GI or GL diet - if foods are very low in carbs, they cannot have an appreciable glycemic effect.

If bread, cookies and cakes are what you yearn for, there's no need to miss out on these when you are doing a low GI diet. By substituting high carb wheat flour with low carb and low GI flours made from super-healthy ingredients such as flax, almonds, soya, hemp or sesame, and sugar with sweeteners, your favorite treats immediately become low GI, as well as a lot more nutritious. Learn how easy it is to make these in The Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook. The Cookbook also contains lots of other clever substitutions for lowering carbs and GI, such as using cauliflower instead of rice in risottos and cabbage strips instead of pasta in lasagna. All recipes in The Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook are suitable for low GI and GL diets.

 

[Eclipse]

Wow Roch

What a fantastic site. How clever you are.

 

[lardass]

What a fab post, thanks alot really useful

 

[chicken on a mission]

I like it. Thanks for posting it.

 

[Roch]

Am pleased u like the post i think it is one of the easiest explanations of low GI/GL.
Am going to try some of the receipes,happy Gi/Gl eating !!

 

[debz32]

WOW ! definitely one to try when I stop CD - thanx Roch

 

[lavender]

Lookis really good and as a veggie i should think i could addapt it !! Thanks for that .

 

[nadhak]

love your avatar Heidi - it looks amazing!​

 

[lavender]

Thanks Nadine,
i have a really clever friend who can do all sorts with photos and computers!!! And blackberries!!!

 

[lardass]

i can only make crumbles with blackberries !

 

[Roch]

Found a bit more info for those who have not got the low GI/GL book yet.

Summary


Low GI (glycemic index) diets come in many shapes and sizes. Nevertheless, all low GI diets are based on the same principle of balancing blood sugar. The foods which are restricted on low GI diets are those which cause your blood sugar and insulin levels to rise fast and high. This rise is measured using a scale called the glycemic index (GI for short), which is how Low GI diets got their name.
It is only carbohydrates which affect blood sugar and insulin levels to any significant degree. Foods containing high amounts of carbohydrate include flour and sugar, potatoes, rice, corn and other grains and the many foods made with them. In general, the GI of a carbohydrate food becomes higher the more highly processed it is. So for instance, mashed potatoes have a higher GI than boiled potatoes, and white bread made with highly refined white flour has a higher GI than whole grain bread. Lesser amounts of carbohydrate are found in peas and beans, nuts and seeds, fruits and vegetables and milk and milk products.
Carbohydrate-free foods (eg fats and proteins such as meat, poultry, fish and pure protein powders) and foods containing so little carbohydrate that their glycemic effect is not measurable (eg cheese and eggs) are not limited from the glycemic index point of view. However, there may be other reasons to avoid the food - for instance if it is a trans fat.
The basic rules of any low GI diet plan are to:

Reduce intake of concentrated sugars and starches

Swap highly refined flour products such as white bread, low-fibre breakfast cereals and quick-cooking starches for grain products produced using traditional methods (eg wholewheat pasta, stone-ground flour, old-fashioned oatmeal)

Choose whole grains such as brown rice, buckwheat and quinoa instead of potatoes and white rice

Increase intake of peas and beans, nuts and seeds and most vegetables and fruits
Many low GI diets also advocate choosing lean meat and low fat dairy products in order to keep intake of saturated fat low.
Not all low GI plans are specifically aimed at weight loss. Some are simply aimed at healthy eating, which is important for your long term health even if you don't have any weight to lose. The foods that cause the highest rises in blood sugar and insulin levels are bad for you in general, as they tend to be highly processed. This strips them of the vitamins, minerals, enzymes and fibre that your body needs in order to be healthy. By eating the low GI way, you are reducing your consumption of unhealthy foods such as white flour, sugar and white rice and replacing them with nutrient-dense, fibre-rich whole grains and other unprocessed foods such as fruits and vegetables.
The main difference between a 'healthy eating' low GI plan and a 'weight reducing' low GI plan is the degree to which carbohydrates are restricted. Just switching to a lower GI way of eating than you are currently following may be enough to produce weight loss, but this depends on your individual metabolism and how sensitive you are to carbohydrates. For many people, losing weight on a low GI diet means choosing one that restricts carbohydrate foods quite severely.
Here we are assuming that you are considering a low GI diet because you want to achieve weight loss as well as better health. We have created two methods of following a low GI diet so that you can choose the one which best suits the way you like to do things. The first will suit you if you prefer to approach things in a very exact and detailed way. On the other hand, if you are the kind of person who prefers a less detailed approach, then our second method may suit you best.

Method 1 - the detailed approach


If you wish to follow a low GI diet in a very exact and detailed way, you will need to plan your menus by looking up the GI ratings of all the carbohydrate foods you plan to eat at each meal.
It is probably best to start your diet by eating only those carbohydrate foods which rank Low on the GI scale. If your individual metabolism does not require such a strict approach, you could choose Low GI foods most of the time and Medium GI foods some of the time. If you are very lucky, you may even be able to add High GI foods occasionally and still lose weight.
GI rating ranges


Most GI rating tables give values on a scale of 1 to 100. Deciding at which points on the scale a Low GI score becomes a Medium one, and a Medium one a High one can only be arbitrary - the difference in glycemic effect of two foods with scores either side of a category limit will not be any greater than the difference between two foods that rank next to each other in the same category. The Low, Medium and High categories can therefore only be an approximate guide.
The following categories are the most common among low GI plans:
Low0 to 55Medium56 to 70High71 to 100
Points to remember:

Proteins (such as meat, poultry, fish, cheese, eggs) and fats are free foods as far as GI is concerned. You can eat these in normal portions. An adequate quantity of protein is essential for health, and so is fat (but there are 'good' fats and 'bad' fats.

Remember that your health depends upon an adequate intake of vitamins, minerals, enzymes and fibre. Eating plenty of vegetables and salads in addition to protein foods and fats is an important way of ensuring you get the wide range of nutrients your body needs. Fruits are also valuable providers of vitamins, minerals and fibre, but experts confirm that vegetables contain just as wide a range of nutrients as fruits do, if you cannot tolerate fruits.

Keep in mind that some foods are a ready-made mixture of carbohydrates and protein and often, fats too (eg nuts and seeds, peas and beans, grains, milk)

It is the overall glycemic effect of your meals that counts. When you make a meal that contains foods from different GI categories, the overall glycemic effect will be the average of the ratings for the individual foods. So coupling a High GI food with a Low GI food will have the approximate effect on your blood sugar/insulin of a Medium GI food. For instance, a baked potato (High) eaten with baked beans (Low) will give an overall Medium GI effect. Similarly, pour milk (Low) on cornflakes (High) to achieve a Medium GI effect.

Don't forget that you can get an even better GI-reducing effect by coupling a carbohydrate food with a carbohydrate-free food - in other words, eating protein and/or fat with your carbohydrate. For instance, you could accompany a potato with a portion of GI-free food such as meat or fish, or put olive oil on your rice salad to bring down the overall glycemic effect.

The GI rating for a food remains the same, however much of it you eat in your meal. But this does not mean you can have a double size portion - if you do, the increased quantity will still cause a higher glycemic effect than you would get if you ate a normal portion.More tools to help you

Method 2 - the approximate approach


If you prefer a less detailed way of planning your menus the low GI way, you can simply make your carbohydrate choices according to the 'Eat more', 'Cut out/severely restrict' and 'Swap' lists below.
If you don't see a particular food listed, and it is a salad or non-starchy vegetable, you can be sure it's in the 'Eat more' category. If it's white bread, white rice, sugary drinks, cakes, biscuits/cookies, pastries, desserts or sweets, then you should assume it is in the 'Cut out/severely restrict' category.
Keep in mind that foods marked * such as whole grains, starchy vegetables and some fruits are in between on the GI scale - treat them cautiously until you know you can include them in your diet and still lose weight.
Points to remember

Proteins (such as meat, poultry, fish, cheese, eggs) and fats are free foods as far as GI is concerned. You can eat these in normal portions. An adequate quantity of protein is essential for health, and so is fat (but there are 'good' fats and 'bad' fats. Keep in mind that some foods are a ready-made mixture of carbohydrates and protein and often, fats too (eg nuts and seeds, peas and beans, grains, milk)

Remember that your health depends upon an adequate intake of vitamins, minerals, enzymes and fibre. Eating plenty of vegetables and salads in addition to protein foods and fats is an important way of ensuring you get the wide range of nutrients your body needs. Fruits are also valuable providers of vitamins, minerals and fibre, but experts confirm that vegetables contain just as wide a range of nutrients as fruits do, if you cannot tolerate fruits.

It is the overall glycemic effect of your meals that counts. So coupling a 'Cut out/severely restrict' food with an 'Eat more' food will reduce the overall effect on your blood sugar/insulin of the High GI food.

Don't forget that you can get an even better GI-reducing effect by coupling a carbohydrate food with a carbohydrate-free food - in other words, eating protein and/or fat with your carbohydrate. For instance, you could accompany a potato with a portion of GI-free food such as meat or fish, or put olive oil on your rice salad to bring down the overall glycemic effect.

The GI rating for a food remains the same, however much of it you eat in your meal. But this does not mean you can have a double size portion - if you do, the increased quantity will still cause a higher glycemic effect than you would get if you ate a normal portion.
Choosing your carbohydrate foods by the approximate method


Eating in a healthy low GI way means:
Eating more of the following carbohydrate foods:

All green vegetables including broccoli, courgettes/zucchini, green beans, kale

All white vegetables including cauliflower, white cabbage, mushrooms, radishes

All salad vegetables such as lettuce, cucumber, peppers, tomatoes

Whole fruits such as apples, cherries, grapefruit, pears, plums, oranges, strawberries, peaches

Pulses such as lentils, chickpeas and dried beans

Seeds such as linseeds/flax, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and hemp

Nuts such as almonds, brazils, walnuts, pine nuts, macadamias and peanuts

Plain yoghurt

High fibre, unsweetened cereals such as All Bran and muesli

High fibre, whole grain bread *

Sweet potatoes *

Whole wheat pasta *

Brown basmati rice, buckwheat grains, quinoa, bulgur wheat, pearl barley *
* whole grains, starchy vegetables and some fruits are in between on the GI scale - treat them cautiously until you know you can include them in your diet and still lose weight
Cutting out or severely restricting the following carbohydrate foods:

Starchy vegetables such as parsnips and cooked carrots

Ripe bananas

Fruit yoghurts and desserts high in sugar such as imitation mousse

Fruit juices

Dried figs, dates

White bread, baguettes, bagels

Cream crackers, white rice cakes

Iced cakes and pastries, filled biscuits/cookies, doughnuts

Scones, crumpets, waffles

Sweet pies

Fruit canned in syrup

Breakfast cereals containing sugar

Baked and mashed potatoes, chips/fries

White rice

Corn and rice pasta

Pizza

Popcorn

High sugar jams/jelly

Crisps/chips and other potato- and corn-based snacks

Fruit drinks containing added sugar

Fizzy drinks containing sugar

Sweets/sugar candy and chocolate bars/chocolate candy

Thickened soups

Table sugar

Ice cream containing glucose syrup or high levels of other sugars
Swapping high/medium GI for medium/low GI foods:Swap this ...... for this ...

Refined sugary cereal

Old-fashioned oatmeal porridge

Cornflakes or rice krispies

All bran or muesli

White bread sandwich

Whole grain / granary bread sandwich

Baked potato

Basmati rice, wholegrain rice or sweet potato

White rice

Basmati rice or wholegrain rice

Biscuits/cookies

Small handful of nuts, or raw vegetable sticks with cheese

Cola or other regular fizzy drink

Artificially sweetened fizzy drink (or better still, water)

Sweets/sugar candy

Apple or pear or other low GI fruit

Fruit-filled chocolate bar

Plain dark chocolate (70% or more cocoa solids)

Jam/jelly or marmalade on toast

Egg on toast

Curry with rice

Curry with chickpeas or lentils

Rice cakes

Oatcakes

Milk chocolate bar

Fun-size Snickers bar, a few chocolate peanuts or dark chocolate

Pretzels

Walnuts

More tools to help you


To make it even easier for you to achieve success with your diet, we have developed the following tools to help you:
Finding low GI recipes


You don't necessarily have to look for 'low GI' recipes to be sure that a recipe is OK for you to use on your low GI diet. All very low carb recipes are also suitable for low GI diets - if a food is very low in carbs, it cannot have an appreciable glycemic effect. All recipes in The Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook are suitable for low GI diets.
If you are not losing weight on your low GI plan


Keep in mind that many people have a low level of tolerance for carbohydrates, even the 'good' or Low to Medium GI ones. If your low GI plan allows a level of carbs which is too high for you as an individual, this may stop you losing weight. If this happens, try substituting the higher carb items for lower carb foods. For instance, instead of wholegrain bread, substitute bread made with flours made from healthy, low carb flax seeds, almonds, soya beans, hemp or sesame seeds instead of high carb wheat, rye or corn. Delicious and easy to make breads made with these low carb, super-healthy ingredients can be found in The Low Carb / Low GI Cookbook.

 

[caroline_ireland]

great thanks a million for this

 

[angie-bum]

excellent find =-)

 

[PamelaViktoria]

low gi definately works!

I eat 97% raw, which is low GI. I lost most of the weight i need to, 2 pounds to go, but it also helped my chronic fatigue and hypoglycemia.

 

[irish molly]

Well done on sorting your health issues through a raw food approach. Least processed food is so much better for us.
Keep well.

 

[Batman]

Just been advised by Dr to consider a lower GI diet to lose weight while TTC. This has been a GREAT help, thanks!!

 

[Lucky7]

Thanks - very useful info. Have been looking at Low GI diet info due to PCOS - have been on SW on and off for years, and a lot of the allowed / restricted look similar looking at this. Have ordered a book but want to get on with it NOW!!! Lol.

 

[wannabeonstage]

Losing weight with Chronic Fatigue

I eat 97% raw, which is low GI. I lost most of the weight i need to, 2 pounds to go, but it also helped my chronic fatigue and hypoglycemia.

Does this really help symptoms and overeating? I was bit skeptical when GP suggested low GI might help with energy levels as well as helping to lose weight.
How have you found it?
Currently in a bad relapse so starting Low GI tomorrow in attempt to help ease symptoms of hauling my large (ahem) frame around too.

Was great to see someone mention CFS in relation to weight loss. Thanks

 

[wannabeonstage]

Thank you. That makes it much clearer.

 

[PamelaViktoria]

Good info!