The Glycemic Index Diet for Dummies - Meri Raffetto [64]
Making a low-glycemic grocery list and planning your meals each week may sound like a daunting task, but it gets easier each time because you ultimately have a running list of the foods you use on a regular basis.
When making your first low-glycemic grocery list, your goal is to determine those items that you buy regularly (your staples). Then you can simply add other ingredients to that list each week. Here are some steps to get you started:
1. Figure out your staples.
Following are some common staples based on where you should keep them in your kitchen:
• Pantry: Old-fashioned or steel-cut oats, hearty stone-ground whole-wheat breads, low-glycemic cereals, pearl barley, bulgur, canned veggies (watch the sodium!), canned or dried beans, pasta, quinoa, nuts (especially walnuts and almonds), seeds, herbs, spices, vinegar, and oil
• Refrigerator: Eggs (especially those enriched with omega-3s), fish, lean meats, lowfat cheeses, cottage cheese, milk, lowfat plainyogurt, fruits, and veggies
• Freezer: Frozen berries and veggies
In addition to these common staples, select foods from the lists in Appendix A that sound good to you and that best meet the low-glycemic criteria. (Note: Don't feel bad if you have to keep referring back to Appendix A during your first several weeks of meal planning. It takes a while to remember which foods are low-glycemic and which ones aren't.)
2. Purchase a small notebook (something that fits in your pocket or purse) and fill in your staples on the left-hand side of several pages.
You'll refer to your list of staples each week, so using a small notebook and filling in several pages at once helps ensure your grocery list is always on hand. Of course, you may find that you don't need to stock up on all of your staples each week, but your list still gives you a quick outline to determine what you have on hand and what you need to get.
3. Determine any nonbasic recipes you plan to make and add any extra ingredients for that week on the right-hand side of a page.
Although your list of staples will remain constant from week to week, the rest of your grocery list will vary depending on any special recipes and meals you're preparing.
Now that you've chosen your meals for the week and prepared your low-glycemic grocery list, you don't need to wander the aisles wondering what to make this week or trying to remember whether certain foods are low-glycemic. You may even be surprised at how much money you save by focusing on your list and ignoring impulse-based items.
Knowing the best aisles to visit
When you're armed with a grocery list and stick to the right aisles, you can make your grocery shopping trips efficient and avoid any weight-loss saboteurs along the way. Studies show that people have a tendency to buy impulsively — a fact that grocery stores count on when they position tempting food items in your line of sight and offer samples of various foods. Before you know it, you're walking out of the grocery store with goodies that aren't on your list and that may end up creating obstacles to your weight-loss efforts.
Use the following strategies to help you stay on track and avoid what I like to call "grocery store saboteurs":
Don't go grocery shopping when you're hungry. Head to the store after enjoying a satisfying low-glycemic meal. That way you won't be tempted to go for the quick (usually high-glycemic) convenience foods because you're starving and can't wait to crack 'em open when you get home.
Shop the perimeter. The outside edge of a grocery store is typically the best place to find your fresh, healthy food items (think produce, dairy, meat, and seafood). Guess what. These are also the most straightforward categories for low-glycemic shopping, which means you can buy low-glycemic fruits, vegetables, and dairy products with ease.
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