Weary of fads? March to G.I.
February 6, 2004, BY SARA FIEDELHOLTZ Staff Reporter Advertisement
http://www.suntimes.com/output/life...r-gidiet06.html
Atkins, the Zone, South Beach, Weight Watchers, and Jenny Craig: There probably isn't a diet you don't know about (or haven't tried.) But according to Rick Gallop, author of The G.I.: Glycemic Index Diet (Workman, $18.95), these types of programs don't work long-term for many people.
"Anyone can lose weight on a fad diet, but the difficulty is maintaining the weight loss,'' Gallop says. "People fail on diets for two reasons: One, they feel hungry and food-deprived. Two, the diets are too complicated."
According to Gallop, our obsession with the latest diet is because of a fundamental misunderstanding. "Diet really means a way of eating. When people are eating to lose weight that is the weight-loss phase. After they've been successful, they then create a diet that allows them to maintain the loss," he adds.
We got the lowdown from Gallop on his addition to the well-fueled diet book industry.
Q. What is the Glycemic Index (G.I.)?
A. It is the relationship between food and the speed at which your body breaks it down, converting it into energy. The faster the body absorbs the food, the higher the G.I. Index. If you eat foods that break down slowly, you can lose weight without going hungry.
Q. What are some examples of food with high and low glycemic indexes?
A. Low G.I. foods include most fruits and vegetables, grains, low-fat dairy and nuts.
High G.I. foods include items that are processed --doughnuts, granola bars, white bread, fruit juices and sweetened juices. You should definitely stay away from anything processed ... anything that comes from a manufacturer. It is always better to eat the fruit than drink the juice.
Q. But this isn't a new way of dieting.
A. Correct. The idea of thinking about eating foods by the way they break down in the body was discovered in 1980 by Dr. David Jenkins. Dr. Barry Sears incorporated the G.I. index with his food blocks to create the Zone diet.
Q. So how is your book different?
A. The key principle to creating a diet is to keep it simple. The Zone is just too complicated. I've used a simple color coding system using the traffic light. Green foods, eat as much as you want; yellow foods, be a bit more cautious; and red foods, stay away from.
Q. When you say eat as much as you want, isn't that part of the problem? People in the United have portion distortion. Is it really enough to just eat certain foods while avoiding others?
A. No, you need to use moderation. We are definitely a supersize society. The way you need to think of the G.I. diet is as a dinner plate. Dish out enough vegetables to cover 50 percent of your plate, enough meat, poultry or fish to cover 25 percent
and enough, rice, pasta, or potatoes to cover the remaining 25 percent. But don't break the rules by piling the food too high.
Q. Why do you think the general population is getting fatter?
A. It is because we are eating so much more processed foods. We have a supersize mentality. It is because food is viewed as a commodity. It really doesn't cost the fast-food chain [much] to super-size your meal, but you think you're getting a deal.
Q. What are your three key suggestions to weight loss and lifelong healthful eating?
A. One, understand the G.I. principles. Two, look at and control your portions. Three, get all the red foods out of the house so you won't be tempted.
Q. What about exercise?
A. Exercise is definitely essential to maintaining the weight loss. If you stick to the diet, you will lose the weight. But absolutely, exercise is essential to maintaining your new weight.
"Weary of fads? March to G.I."
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