Fast DietaryTrack rules

During this first two weeks you need to:

• Eat about 150g (5oz) of protein per day, which should come from a portion about the size of your palm at each meal, plus two all-protein snacks per day.
• Eat around 20g of carbohydrates per day. A simple way to work this out is to use a set of measuring cups (a cup holds 250m1/8 fl oz). You should aim to eat approximately 3 cups of low GI vegetables or 2 cups of low GI vegetables and 1/2cup low GI fruit — at least half of which should be eaten raw.
• Get 30 per cent of your daily calorific intake from fats, which may include: olive oil, walnut oil, grapeseed oil, coconut oil, homemade mayonnaise, flaxseed oil, small amounts of butter, small amounts of sour cream
• Drink 8-10 glasses of water daily; you can also drink herbal teas, but avoid alcohol, soft drinks, tea and coffee, because caffeine interferes with ketosis
• Avoid artificial sweeteners, which can stimulate insulin secretion
• Rev up your protein levels by including at least one whey-protein drink per day
• Eat enough — otherwise you may start to burn muscle tissue
• Avoid starchy, carbohydrate-heavy foods such as pasta, bread and potatoes
• Beware of hidden carbohydrates in sauces and dressings
• Check the labels of all foodstuffs and avoid all processed foods
• Not give up!
  

Dietary Q&A

Q. I have been restricting my carbohydrate intake for days now and I have no energy. I thought this plan was supposed to make me feel better, not worse.

A. Your body is adapting to the metabolic conversion of burning fat for energy instead of glucose. This takes about three days in most people, which is why it is usually best to start the diet over a weekend when you are able to relax more. After three days you should see a rise in your energy levels, but if you continue to feel lethargic or unwell, stop the plan and check with your doctor.

Q. Will I get enough fibre on this plan?

A. Fibre is provided by the inclusion of fibrous vegetables and fruit, and is increased if you eat most of these raw. However, if you experience constipation during the initial stages, try adding psyllium husks or psyllium- husk powder to your whey smoothies, because they comprise 100 per cent soluble fibre. Psyllium husks are pure dietary fibre, composed mostly of cellulose. They swell when they come into contact with water and release

a gelatinous mass (mucilage) which passes through the colon and aids easy elimination.

Q. Why does a low-carbohydrate diet cause bad breath?

A. When you are on the Fast-Track Plan and restricting your carbohydrates to around 20g (³/40z) per day, you will be burning ketones, which may cause your breath to smell a little unpleasant. Don't worry, this is easily masked by chewing parsley-oil capsules or by using a natural breath-freshener spray. Make sure that you drink plenty of water because this will help to neutralize the odour.

Fast-Track principles

This is a diet, or a way of eating, that will:

• Lower insulin levels and stabilize blood-sugar levels
• Banish food cravings
• Eliminate energy peaks and troughs, and mood swings

Enhance concentration

• Re-educate you into a way of eating that will increase your vitality and improve your overall health
• Help your body to burn fat and normalize your weight.

It is vital that you understand the principles of this diet and follow it responsibly. If you are fundamentally healthy, but insulin-resistant and experiencing any ofthe accompanying symptoms, this plan will help you redress the balance and find a level of carbohydrate intake with which your system can cope. The Fast-Track Plan offers you a kick-start and is aimed at women with a BMI of over 35 and men with a BMI of over 25.

For the period of this plan you base your diet on an approximate ratio of 50 per cent high-quality protein/20 per cent low GI carbohydrates/30 per cent healthy fats. You begin the first two weeks of the diet by restricting your carbohydrate intake to 20g (³/4oz), your protein to 150g (5oz) Biological Value and healthy fats to a minimum of 40g (1 1/2oz). On a very simplistic level this means:

• 3 cups low GI vegetables per day.
• 1 portions of protein three times per day and portion twice per day as a
  snack. (A portion of protein is the equivalent to the size of your palm.)
• Around a half to a whole teaspoon of allowable fats at every meal.

Within 48 hours your body will start to burn its own fat as fuel, as your body switches into benign dietary ketosis.

Ketosis

Being in ketosis means that your body burns fat because it isn't taking in sufficient glucose to meet your energy needs. Under everyday conditions the carbohydrates that you eat are converted to glucose, which is the body's primary source of energy. Whenever your carbohydrate intake is limited to a certain range, for a long enough period of time, your body will draw on its fat stores — turning this into a source of fuel called ketones. When you burn a larger amount of fat than is immediately needed for energy, the excess ketones are discarded in the urine.

Dietary ketosis has received a bad press because it is often confused with ketoacidosis, a life-threatening condition most often associated with insulin- deficient, type 1 diabetes.

Benign dietary ketosis, however, is a natural adjustment to the body's reduced intake of carbohydrates, as the body shifts its primary source of energy from carbohydrates to stored fat. The presence of insulin keeps ketone production in check so that a mild beneficial ketosis is achieved. Blood-sugar levels are stabilized within a normal range and there is no breakdown of healthy muscle tissue, as long as sufficient protein is included in the diet.

Measuring ketosis

On a rapid weight-loss diet you will usually start to burn fat instead of sugar within the first 48 hours. To measure the ketone levels in your urine, buy urinary test strips, called lypolisis strips, from any pharmacy, which will show you if your carbohydrate/insulin balance is at optimum levels for fat burning. You should do this twice a day: before breakfast and before your evening meal. Your levels need to be between trace and small (0.5-1.5 mmol-l).

Caution: if your levels rise to above moderate (4 mmol-l), you are not eating enough and should increase your low GI carbohydrates until the ketones are reduced to between trace and small (0.5-1.5 mmol-l). Always drink plenty of water: at least eight large glasses per day.

The carbohydrate jewels

By upping your intake of low GI fruit and vegetables, you will not only be on your way to becoming leaner, but you will have a profound effect on your health. The amazing phytonutrients (plant nutrients) that you find in brightly coloured raw organic fruit and vegetables are clever little substances that can protect you from ill health in various ways, although many people's diets are sadly lacking in them.

Phytonutrients can help regulate the immune system, stabilize vitamins in body tissues and protect from serious illnesses, such as such as cancer. They do this by working as antioxidants alongside vitamins A, C, E and D, and the minerals, selenium and zinc. As a team, these powerful compounds have the ability to slow down the damaging oxidative process caused by those 'enemies of a healthy state', the free radicals. Antioxidants can also rid the body of these free radicals, which are the natural waste products of metabolism, which, if left unchecked, can lead to degenerative disease, by causing imbalances on a cellular level.

Take note that these free radicals are also found in overheated oils and fried foods, another good reason to kiss junk food good bye.

They aren't classed as essential nutrients, but without phytonutrients your sense of wellness would be severely compromised.

They work in the body at deep physiological and biochemical levels, and luckily enough are to be found in low-density/low GI fruit and vegetables. Eating these raw wherever possible is the key to maximizing their life- enhancing qualities. Cooking destroys many of the benefits that you will reap if you include a colourful array of energy-boosting raw fruit and vegetables in your daily diet.

Life is a balancing act

So now you have a better understanding of the impact that the wrong carbohydrates can have on your body, and have established that you need to incorporate more of the colourful and low GI fibrous fruit and vegetables in your diet. But man cannot live by carbohydrates alone. You will have to take a close look at the two other macronutrients that work hand-in-hand with carbohydrates to provide energy and nourish the body: protein and fats.

The key to balancing blood-sugar levels, banishing insulin resistance and losing excess weight lies in successfully balancing these three macronutrients.

The GI of food: How low should you go? continue...

Insulin and carbohydrates

Your pancreas produces the hormone insulin. Of all foods, carbohydrates stimulate the secretion of insulin most.

Eating carbohydrates with a low GI causes slow absorption of the food and so, slow entry of glucose into the bloodstream, with a gentler rise and fall in the curve. This means that the pancreas is not over-taxed and can produce less, and more consistent levels of insulin.

To recap briefly on what was said in What's wrong with sugar and starch?: if the pancreas is over-stimulated for long periods of time, because of mostly eating foods with a high GI (such as refined starch and sugar), it may become exhausted and insulin resistance or even type II diabetes could develop. Even if they do not cause diabetes, high (and unnecessary!) insulin levels are undesirable and dangerous. And similarly, high glucose levels in the blood are as dangerous. And we know for a fact that it seriously affects your body fat percentage!

It is sensible to know and understand and to remember when next you crave foods with a high GI (such as bread or refined sugar) that insulin plays a direct part in how your food is metabolised. It also determines whether your body will burn fat or carbohydrate to meet your energy needs. And finally, it determines what your body will do with the available energy in your blood - use it, or store it as body fat.

If you can't go low, go without

Which means go without the fatty topping or other additions to the carbohydrates. By now we all know, GI aside, that what we odd to our carbohydrates is usually what adds to our weight. And by now we also know that carbohydrates - either sugar or starch - don't taste as good without those little additions. They require that 'little something' to make them more palatable: cream with the pasta, gravy on the rice, butter on bread, cheese on pizza and of course dollops of cream on meringues. These succulent little extras not only make the food taste more delicious, which makes us eat more of it, but the fat also aids excessive fat gain.

Go slow, go low!

Believe this: if you can control your food intake in such a way that you eat mostly low GI carbohydrates, your weight will decrease steadily and rather satisfyingly. Your health will improve and your moods will be better. You will have fewer mood swings and you will feel less exhausted. Your appetite won't get out of hand and you won't have those dangerous food cravings. You will enjoy a better quality of life for longer and have the energy with which to enjoy it!

These are not unfounded claims - they are provable and based on scientific trials, conducted worldwide by independent universities and medical authorities.

The magical benefits of low GI foods were discovered when clinical trials proved that the GI of food influences the rate at which animals gain body fat and develop abnormalities in insulin secretion. These trials were extended to humans and proved how the GI of food influences sport performance and appetite control. From there it expanded into lifestyle improvement and more effective body weight control and thus the GI revolution was born. It changed the way in which millions of dieters selected and ate their food. It also changed their body weights for life - downwards!

Yet, it is not always possible to avoid the foods we love; and as far as I'm concerned, it isn't advisable either. We are sensual beings and to ignore or not to respect the cravings for foods that please us sensually, is a sure way of falling back into those old habits of bread and honey and chocolates and all the other high GI foods.

The answer is therefore to combine your foods wisely. One can have high GI bread, topped with low GI cooked beans or humus. At breakfast time, for instance, one can have low GI oats with high GI toast to follow, Combined, the overall GI will be lower than simply having toast with jam and cheese or wheat cereal and toast.

The GI of food: How low should you go?

Just as all kilojoules are not equal, so all carbohydrates are not equal. Extensive and in-depth clinical trials and studies over the past decade or so have brought about what has become known as The Glucose Revolution, which also happens to be the title of a world best-selling book by Australians Professor Jennie Brand-Miller, Kay Foster-Powel and Dr Anthony Leeds.

Carbohydrates always used to be regarded as the main reason for obesity. Regrettably that theory has remained stuck in the minds of many people in the medical profession and slimming industry and to this day many dieters are following low-carbohydrate diets - much to their detriment, as you know.

Well, here is what every dieter should know about starch: forget all that tripe you were taught and start eating your starches, but eat them wisely. Eat mainly starches with a low GI (Glycaernic Index).

The GI of food indicates the way it scores according to its effect on your blood sugar levels. Carbohydrate foods that are rapidly converted to glucose during the digestive process and therefore rapidly increase your blood sugar (glycogen) levels, have high GI values. Carbohydrates that break down slowly, naturally release their glucose into the bloodstream at a slower rate, therefore raising blood sugar levels at a slower rate. At the school we call this the 'carbo speedometer'. Of all foods, refined sugar (sucrose) and glucose have the highest GI, namely 100. All other foods are rated on a scale from 0 to 100 according to their effect on the blood sugar levels, or to put it plainly, the rate at which they drip into your bloodstream.

Much has been said about the incredible weight-loss benefits of the so-called Mediterranean diet. The popular belief is that it works so well because of the good fats found mainly in the olives and the oily fish prescribed in this diet. Yes, that is true. However, the other main reason for its success seems to have been overlooked. In fact, it is probably the most important reason why it is such an effective, healthy and delicious diet - it also offers loads of (and mainly) low GI starches. That includes beans, pulses and pasta to name but a few, Paradoxically, the one flaw in this diet is the fat: too much of the 'good' fat can make you as fat as bad fat does. And on this diet you are allowed to consume far too much of that lovely good fat! Just think of those tables groaning with tappas and antipasti.

That diet aside, following a low GI eating plan will, in my opinion, be the very best you can do for your weight loss efforts, mainly because of the way in which you are able to manipulate and control your blood sugar levels and consequent insulin production.

The main benefits of low CI foods

• They cause a gradual rise and fall in blood sugar levels, thereby causing lower insulin levels, which makes it easier for fat to be burnt and less likely to be stored.
• They assist in lowering blood fats.
• They are more bulky and are therefore more satisfying.
• They reduce the risk of diabetes and heart disease.

How do you determine the GI of FOOD?

There are no exact GI values available. In order to arrive at the average GI value of specific foods, various repetitive tests are done. Volunteers involved in the tests are exposed to six stages of testing. One might therefore find the values to differ somewhat from one reference source to another. I have used various sources, which makes the list below as representative of those averages as possible. But in general, the steps listed here are the most commonly used way in which the GI of food is determined.

During a test, a sample of blood is taken from a person who does not have diabetes and then he/she is asked to eat an amount of food containing 50 g of carbohydrate. (As a mailer of interest, that amount of carbohydrate is equivalent to 45 ml of pure glucose powder.) A 200 g portion of cooked spaghetti, for instance, will provide 50 g of carbohydrate, equal to 45 g of pure glucose.

During the first hour after the consumption of the carbohydrates, a sample of blood is taken every 15 minutes and for the following hour, every 30 minutes. The blood is analysed and blood sugar levels are measured and recorded in a laboratory. These levels are plotted on a graph, which will indicate the rate at which they rise.

The volunteer's blood sugar response to each particular kind of food is measured against the response to 50 g of pure glucose -the reference food.

The reference food is tested similarly on two or three separate occasions on the same person and from those readings an individual average value is calculated. This is done to minimise the effect of any daily variation in blood sugar responses.

The same tests are carried out on 8 to 10 different people, using the same kind of food as reference. Thereafter the overall average GI of that particular food is calculated.

Following is a list of the average GI values of our most popular and commonly eaten carbohydrates, to be used as a guide. Although all foods have GI values, those of carbohydrates are what affect us most; more so than protein, fat or dairy products and for that matter, most low-carbohydrate vegetables. Those foods in general have very low GI values and I see no point in including them on the list.

Experts advise that it is best to eat those carbohydrates with a GI below 55 at least 80% of the time. The list is therefore in ascending order to make your choices easier.

What is worth knowing at this point is that although a combination of certain foods can lower the overall GI of a meal or a snack, fat remains the danger zone for your weight and your health. Eating a croissant, for instance, will result in a slower rise of your blood sugar than any other kind of wheat-based bread, because the croissant contains loads of butter, which slows down the GI of the wheat flour, whereas ordinary bread does not contain much fat. Similarly, eating a fat-free baked potato will produce a faster rise in blood sugar levels than fat-rich potato crisps or chips would. But in these instances the harm done by the fat literally outweighs the lower GI and unfortunately the fat that goes with the croissant and the chips will soon attach itself to your hips, rendering your careful plans to eat low GI foods utterly fruitless.

The ideal way is to eat mostly low GI foods with a low fat content. That will slim you down faster than any diet you've ever been on Guaranteed.

Unlike the popular myth that fruit makes you fat because of its sweetness, fruit in general actually has a low GI value. It therefore combines well with high GI cereals. Although fruit is sweet, it contains fructose - pure fruit sugar. Compared to sucrose (refined sugar), it is the preferred sugar when you want to slim and be healthy. I urge you to use fructose in all your beverages and foods that need sweetening. It has a low GI value and is all round much better for your health than sucrose. You can buy it from most chemists, health stores and supermarkets (where you will find it on the sugar or health product shelves). If your local suppliers don't stock it, ask them to order it for you. Demerara (raw) sugar is your natural second choice. The latter resists heat better than fructose does, so its ideal for baking. However, demerara also has a GI of 100, so use it as the exception rather than the rule.

Dairy products in general have low GI values (artificially sweetened, low-fat yoghurt has a GI of 14) and so they combine well with high GI breads and cereals to slow down the overall rate of such a meal or snack. A good example of this kind of combination would be white bread with fat-free cottage cheese, tomato and herbs. The overall GI of that snack will be lower, and so -thank goodness -will be the fat content. If you added butter and/or cheddar cheese to the bread, you would also slow down the overall GI, but at the expense of your fat intake and your weight loss efforts,

Vegetables and protein foods such as meat, fish and chicken also have generally lower GI values. They therefore combine well with high GI carbohydrates in order to reduce the overall GI value of the meal in which they are combined.

But remember, foods that slow down the overall GI of a meal do not justify an overload of fat. Which means that fat, oil, fatty meat, buffer, cream cheese and solid cheeses such as cheddar remain firmly within the 'be cautious' zone!