Tuesday 28 February 2012

Saying "hi" to the G.I. way of life...

Is it OK to detail your dieting journey on a blog originally meant for cushions and frugality?? Well it is now!
I'm fed up and feeling bloated - maybe due to not really doing anything about it since Christmas, and maybe also because it's been cold...??? - and so I was searching through my bookshelf this weekend just gone and rediscovered by G.I. dieting book.
 
The thing I find hardest about dieting is breakfast time. I like cold cereals for breakfast, and on most of them it is very limited - maybe one or two Weetabix or porridge. On the G.I. diet, I can have All-Bran... not the most exciting cereal, but with a bit of sweetener or honey on it it's really nice, and it fills you up, and properly sets you up for the day!!
It basically means you eat foods that take a long time to digest in your stomach, and foods that are very low in fat and as many sugar-free foods as possible. Lots of fibre is also essential, and no alcohol either. Most fruits are fine, but bananas and mangoes are evil! New potatoes: you can have 3 or 4 a meal. Baking potatoes are also evil, because their size means there's more starch in them and so that turns into more sugar once in your tummy.
Luckily it's not all doom and gloom though: the book above has several recipes for G.I. friendly treats. I had a go at making some tonight...
Apple Bran Muffins with spices, honey and currants

These are Apple Bran muffins. Made mainly from oat bran (Tescos), All Bran cereal, wholemeal flour, sweetener and apple. The batter was the weirdest batter I've ever seen - it audibly swells when you mix the whole lot together!! But incredibly, there's not a grain of sugar or a slither of butter in them, so very healthy indeed. One of these with a low-fat yogurt over it is delicious.

I was going to post a starting weight photograph (I don't weigh myself, I haven't done since I was 20, because I'm a believer in it's how you feel, how your clothes feel on you, that counts, and not a number on a machine.) but I don't have the guts at the moment!!
 
I have a pair of light coloured skinny jeans, that have lycra mix, and at the moment they simply don't button up around my spare, sugary, fatty tyre. Once they fit, I will post a photo, and with any luck I'll look a little like the skinny cow pictured above.

Wish me luck!! And if you have any recipes for G.I. treats or meals, post in the comments below!
BBxxxxx