Low GI newby with M.E.

[SHOLMAN]

Hi Guys,
Thought I would post on here, as I originally posted on the newby forum.

Well Hello everyone

I am relatively new to low GI, and I am trying my best, but I thought you guys would be able to point me in the right direction.
I have been diagnosed with M.E. for about 4 years now, and I was previously advised to try low GI, however being young and immature I quickly gave up on the diet. After having a rough period, and I have looked into it abit more and it seems the best option. So far it seems to be working, as I have had less dramatic lows etc, however I am still having a few issues.

Well some info which may help you help me...

I am a PCSO for the police, I walk all day every day, working 7 days on before having rest days (others with M.E will find that hard to believe it has taken me an awful long time to get back to this point).
At work I have access to a microwave, toaster and kettle on meal, that is it.
I don't get breaks, but can hide snacks in my body armour...
I can't drink alot while on duty as it makes you need the loo, and we don't get much chance to go. This is because we walk the streets and there is not may places to stop, or that we trust to stop. Also If we are on a job or scene guard, it's tough, you just have to wait until the job is done (really)

Currently I am between my parents house (I moved back home after splitting up with my ex as it was the best option) and my other half's house (hopefully by the end of this year we will have a house together). Both my parents and my partner are very supportive and helpful.

Ok, so they are the reasons I am struggling, I can't really plan to much, and both houses arn't massively geared up for me, but they are gradually changing. Most of what I eat has to be quick and easy, and snacks have to be easily mobile

I have been dabbling with low GI for a week or so, but have decided to write a food diary to help me see my downfalls and any patterns (as well as keeping me on track).
My main aim is to reduce the highs and lows, as well as the tiredness, however I wouldn't mind loosing a few pounds

Any pointers are greatfully accepted, I have been completely honest, and I know I haven't been strict with it (trying to gradually adjust and make wiser choices)

Yesterday - last shift before rest days 1500hrs to 0000hrs

Breakfast (10am) all bran, semi-skimmed milk with a handful of blueberries.
dinner (1pm) mulit-seed bagel with peanut butter and a activia peach fat free yoghurt.
snack (4pm) conference pear
tea (8pm) Ainsley harriots thai couscous with a handful of cooked chicken pieces, 2 kiwi and 1 large orange.
naughty (11pm) Mcdonalds hot chocolate (got caught in the rain and was soaked through, thought I deserved it.. naughty though)
Snack (midnight) handful of omega seed mix.

drank one small cup of coffee, one large mug of hot water with sliced lemon, and a full bottle of volvic lemon and lime water (large bottle, though out day)


Today - first rest day, at my OHs, busy day trying to get everything done which couldn't be done with we were on duty (OH is Police too)

Breakfast (11am) 2 slices of wholemeal toast with butter and a small coffee.
Dinner (2pm) poached salmon and rocket sandwich on granary bread, small side salad dressed with balsamic vinegar and a very small handful of crisps. Small cappuccino (again a little bit naughty)
snack (4pm) red apple and 3 tortia chips (friends came over, so out came a huge bag of crisps, I did quiet well to resist the full bag)
tea (7pm) small piece of lasagne, salad and warm bread (abit like a chibatta with herbs on, but I resisted the chips).
snack (10pm) 2 oatcakes with peanut butter, mug of hot water with sliced lemon.

Sarah

 

[Lucky7]

Hi Sarah- welcome. The more the merrier. It has been EXTREMELY quiet on this forum for the last few days. I'm also quite new to Low GI, and following the pointers given by Rick Gallop in his Living Low GI Diet book. Not sure I'll be much use for commenting on food as am in early stages. The main thing that strikes me is that there's not a huge amount of fruit / veg mentioned. (I'm coming from the perspective in the book I've got though, and I know there are different takes on the Low GI thing - He says each meal should have at least half of it's bulk made up with Vegetables or fruit). There's also a lot of bread products (albeit wholegrain - still not that Low GI unless accompanied by lots of very low GI stuff to bring the levels down).

Have you tried the Nakd bars? Apparently they're not too bad on the low GI scales. I've tried one and found it nice. Different, but nice.

Anyway - Good luck. It sounds like it's going to be quite tough fitting new food plans around a very busy schedule.

 

[Rhyannasmum]

Hi Sarah

Im an ex police officer myself (did 10 years before I had my family) so I do understand the nature of irregular meal times, difficulty in planning and lack of wee breaks. I'm doing low GL for health reasons too and find it a great motivator.

Im also very new to low GL eating and just finding my feet myself, although I was previously low carbing for 2 months so Low GL is actually easier.

As Lucky has said I think there's room to include some more fruit and veg in your diet. Fruit is a good portable snack, doesn't need much preparing when your at work and if you had it with some protein (maybe nuts or cheese) would make a substantial snack or light meal. Lots of shops and garages sell prepared salads these days, they may not be perfect Low GL food, but OK for those days when it's been work, work, work and no time for a decent grocery shop.

Little mini bags of nuts squirrelled away in your body armour would be a great standby for when you can't get back to base for your meal.

I read somewhere that Baxters Healthy Choice canned soups are the best low GL commercial soups so maybe some of those in your locker or in the kitchen cupboard at work would be good for days you've not had time to bring something into work with you. A standby box of porridge oats or some muesli in the cupboard at work would also be good (providing there's some milk in the fridge, there never was where I worked).

On days you've had time to plan, a tuna/chicken/mackerel salad with a small portion of brown rice/pasta/quinoa would be a nice meal.

Beware of those sugary drinks. Seems a shame to eat well all day and then screw up your blood sugars with a drink.

Also accept that your job and your home situation are not ideal for following a dedicated low GL lifestyle. As your home situation stabilises it'll be easier, but the nature of your job will always be unpredictable. In the meantime perhaps try and stick with the 80/20 rule. Aim to eat low GL 100% of the time, but accept that life will get in the way and it'll probably end up more like 80% GL.

Good luck.

 

[SHOLMAN]

Thank you for all your advice. As i have m.e. I have been trying to eat some carbs with every meal, just to try n keep me going especially when I'm work ing. I was previously finding I wasnt eating enough which made me crash (I am hypoglycaemic too, but finding this may be linked to my m.e, although my hypoglycaemia came first), which then yoyoed my entire day.
Is this the wrong thing to do?

 

[SHOLMAN]

This may sounds silly, but is there a rough formula to follow? Again appolgies as i am new, i an still doing all my reading up on it.

 

[Rhyannasmum]

Carbs are fine in moderation. It's not about no carbs, it's slow carbs you want, the ones that don't send your blood glucose levels soaring and crashing.

Ive got a book from the library Patrick Holfords Low GL Diet Bible. I haven't read it all yet, but it's very good if you want the complete low down on Low GL.

Perhaps spend some time reading some of the posts and threads in this forum. There's loads of web links, meal plans and recipes to get you started.

 

[Lucky7]

This is quite a nice basic explaniation...
The GI Diet - About the Glycemic Index and GI Recipes

I found that the Rick Gallop book gave a nice simple (but longer and more in depth) explanation, and has a simple traffic light foods listing (Green, Low GI suitable for people losing or maintaining weight on Low GI, Amber Mid GI and better for maintaining weight on Low GI diet, and Red as High GI and best avoided). There are lots to choose from and other people might be able to recommend others, but the Rick Gallop one is cheap and easy and I think it's given me a good starting point.

LIVING THE GI DIET - RICK GALLOP COMPANION TO THE GI DIET FULLY UPDATED 9780753508824 | eBay

I also bought the pocket book to refer to when shopping / eating out, which has been very handy but not essential for me. Might be useful for you as you're having to buy food to eat when out and about much more than I am by the sounds of things.

GI Diet Pocket Guide, Rick Gallop, Good Book 9780753509104 | eBay

Once you've got your head round the main principles of which carbs are okay and how they affect your body then it's easier.

 

[Plumfoodie]

Hi! I have M.E. too and have been eating low GI for about a year now. It really helps me feel better - I don't have as many bad days and when I do they are not quite as bad as they used to be.

There are a lot of different authors and books on the subject and so rather than confuse things too much I would suggest that you just pick one that will work for you and stick to that. The very simplest I've seen is operating on a traffic light system as described above - in addition to Rick Gallop's books (his express GI diet book is very good too, lots of quick meals) you can buy a Collin's Gem guide that classifies foods this way - and following our own irish molly's advice, which is to split your plate at each meal into half non-starchy vegetables, 1/4 protein, and 1/4 'good' low GI carbs.

I also suggest that you have some protein at every meal and snack, even if it's just a few nuts, seeds, or a mini babybel. You're absolutely right that you need carbs to provide energy, but they should be good low GI carbs and accompanied by protein and a bit of fat to slow the digestion of them and therefore the release of sugars into your bloodstream. Otherwise the sugar highs and lows from an all-carb meal can make you even more tired.

Do you have space to store your lunch at work? I like to make bulk batches of soups and stews and freeze them in single portions, then in the morning heat them up and put them in a food flask. Still nice and hot at lunchtime!

The things I have found of the most benefit to me personally:

- porridge made with half milk/half water, nuts or seeds (usually ground flaxseeds) and a little bit of fruit for breakfast most days of the week. some people even make a big batch of porridge at the start of the week and refrigerate/reheat portions during the rest of the week, but I haven't tried that.

- avoid refined sugar except for in small amounts of dark chocolate (a couple of squares per day), if I want a hot chocolate I make it at home with cocoa powder and Sweet Freedom (a natural low GI sweetener). this is mostly because eating sugar makes me want more sugar; when I don't eat it, I don't have problems with craving it. same goes for things made with white flour. if I need a granulated sweetener I use truvia, as the artificial ones make me feel seriously yucky.

- try to keep 'good' carb portions small, usually to a half cup or so cooked - brown rice, quinoa, barley, wholewheat pasta, 4-5 baby new potatoes or a small sweet potato, one piece of wholemeal or dark rye bread, etc, and try to stick to three portions a day. this takes some getting used to if you're used to eating these foods as a large part of your meals (I certainly was) but eventually just seems normal.

- try to eat more vegetables than fruit, and mostly stick to low GI fruits like apples, pears and berries of all kinds

- avoid caffeine. this is hard when you have M.E. and you just want to prop yourself up sometimes, and it's also hard to wean off of as you get headaches etc. however once I managed it I found I had more energy, more steadily and consistently.

- personally I calorie count (using myfitnesspal) in addition to eating low GI foods (many people don't). I found that M.E. made it more important for me to eat just the right amount of food. Even a little bit too much and I don't lose well, but too little and I feel like complete rubbish. This way I know I'm eating the right amount to avoid both of these challenges. This can be tricky if you're so busy with work, but I find that if I plan ahead on my days off then work days are easy because I just have to follow the plan.

I also really recommend the book 'From Fatigued to Fantastic' - this not only explains why M.E. makes it so easy to gain weight (apart from the obvious low energy, fatigue and pain) and hard to lose it again, but also provides suggestions for supplements to get your body back on the right track which I personally derived a lot of benefit from.

Sorry I've waffled on! Good luck with your changes, even easing into things gradually by making changes one at a time should provide you with benefits. Looking forward to hearing how you get on.

plum x

 

[SHOLMAN]

Thank you so much for your replies they are very helpful.
I'm going to invest in a few books.
At minute i am just making do with what is in the house, from monday till at least friday i will be at my OH, so have decided to go shopping and get a few bits in, then i can have a good run at it, and i will be on an early shift so should be easier to get into a routine.

 

[SHOLMAN]

Plum- roughly what calories do you stick too? I do find it hard to get the balance right between energy n weight loss.
I have been trying to cut caffeine out, so far i have limited myself to a max of 2 coffees a day, sometimes i don't have any. Any any teas have no tea our caffeine in then (don't like tea yuck...)

 

[Plumfoodie]

Have you tried barleycup? The granules (not the powder) is what I have now instead of coffee. I wouldn't suggest going cold turkey with the coffee because of the headaches you can get, but maybe instead of 2 coffees try one coffeet and one substitute and cut it down gradually.

I eat at a 15-20% calorie deficit. This way I lose weight but also have enough energy. At the moment this is an average of 1475 calories/day for me, and then if I exercise I eat those extra calories back. Your level would be different though, especially as your activity level sounds much higher. If you want to work it out, get out your calculator and (this might seem complicated but once you start it will make sense!):

1. go to this page and work out your BMR (this is the number of calories you burn in a day if you slept the whole time, i.e. NO activity at all):

BMR Calculator

2. go to this page and figure out your activity level (you might have to guess which one is closest to your circumstances):

Harris Benedict Equation

3. multiply the figure you got in number 1 by the activity factor you decided on in number 2. this gives you the total calories your body burns in a day, taking into account activity.

4. finally you need to calculate your daily goal which will give you a deficit and result in weight loss.

take the figure you got in number 3 and multiply it by either:

0.85 (for a 15% deficit) or

0.8 (for a 20% deficit) to get the total number of calories you should eat each day.

I usually use a 15% deficit myself.

5. This is the most important! Once you've got the calorie goal from step 4, it's easy to say 'that seems really high, I'm only going to eat 1200 calories per day'. Don't fall into this trap. Especially with M.E. it's important to fuel and listen to your body. Start eating at your calorie goal and see how things go. A lot of different things can effect your metabolism and so you may need to tweak the number up or down or adjust the activity factor based on your results.

So an example just based on the figures in your stats and your first post might be:

1. Calculate BMR = 1566 (I put a random age of 25 into the calculator)

2. Find activity level = moderate maybe? this is just a total stab in the dark on my part so the factor would be 1.55

3. Find total daily calories burned = BMR x activity level = 1566 x 1.55 = 2427

4. Calculate a weight-loss goal = 2427 x 0.85 = 2063 (15% deficit) OR 2427 x 0.8 (20% deficit) = 1942

Note if I do this again with a 'light' activity level (1.375) I get 1830 (15% deficit) or 1723 (20% deficit) as a daily goal to lose weight. But light activity doesn't seem to reflect that much walking!

 

[SHOLMAN]

Thank you that's fantastic! Well give it a go

 

[SHOLMAN]

Right having a mad purchase moment. Any other good books i should get?
Currently got waiting in the basket, rick gallops living the gi diet, gi diet express, gi pocket book, the gi diet...
From fatigue to fantastic.
Low gi cook book (got kiwis on front).

 

[Rhyannasmum]

I've got one of the rick gallop books, but it's at home and I'm not. Sorry that's not much help is it.