Examples of low GI menus

[Article updated on 19/09/2023]

Are you looking to create a low ig menu but you have no ideas? Discover my lower ig menus, which I hope will represent real help for you.

Let’s start by determining what a glycemic index is. The latter translates into the ability of a food to increase blood sugar levels (this is the sugar level present in the blood). Now, find out everything there is to know about low GI menus. I will also give you low GI menu ideas.

What is a low GI menu?

The GI diet (which corresponds to glycemic index) is based on the basic value of foods. Each of these has its GI, and depending on its value it is more or less relevant for optimal functioning of the body according to needs.

The GI diet is essentially a dietary change allowing you to optimize your health. It is strongly recommended not to turn to high GI foods. Thus, there is no secretion of insulin, which as a reminder is the hormone causing the distribution of sugar in the body in order to nourish the cells. Its function does not stop here because it always seeks to reduce the percentage of sugar in the blood. So, if too much sugar is received, the surplus is changed and put into adipose tissue… this is what we call fat storage.

There are foods that can cause a rise in blood sugar levels much more than others (at similar quantities used): this means that they have a high glycemic index (GI). They generate a surplus of insulin and therefore optimize weight gain.

On the contrary, foods with a low glycemic index (low GI) have a limited effect on blood sugar and cause low insulin levels.

Ideas for 3 days of low GI menus

Choose foods with a GI below 70. Every day, turn to the following foods: vegetables, legumes, fresh and dried fruits, pasta, basmati rice, wholemeal sourdough bread, olive oil olive, butter, nuts and seeds.

Day 1: daily menus with a low glycemic index

For breakfast: plain fermented milk (like buttermilk), wholemeal toast with a little almond puree and strawberry salad with mint.

For lunch: cauliflower salad with vinaigrette and chia seeds (with many benefits), cod fillet, buckwheat, spinach, cottage cheese with a little raisins.

And finally, for dinner: endive and walnut salad, omelette with mushrooms and chopped chives and banana.

Day 2: daily menus with a low glycemic index

For breakfast: rooibos (plant infusion) without sugar, rye bread with fresh cheese (in small doses) and apple.

For lunch: green asparagus with vinaigrette and flaked almonds, veal escalope, brown rice, Provençal tomatoes and sheep’s milk yogurt.

And finally, for dinner: sardine rillettes (crushed sardines, cottage cheese and tarragon), lentil dahl (name given to an Indian dish made from legumes) and basmati and kiwi rice.

Day 3: daily menus with a low glycemic index

For breakfast: chicory infusion, mix of oat flakes, mulberries (white blackberries), raspberries, almonds and soy milk.

For lunch: radish with salt croque, chicken breast, small spelt, green beans, pineapple carpaccio and ground flax seeds.

And finally, for dinner: miso soup, buckwheat pasta with peas and strips of white ham and Faisselle (fresh raw milk cheese).

How to start a low GI diet?

I will reveal to you a progressive solution allowing you to adapt perfectly to your nutritional rehabilitation.

Take stock of your eating habits

Over a period of a week, or even two, take stock of everything you ingest throughout the day, including snacks, snacks and drinks. The aim here is not to make you feel guilty but to study all your eating habits.

Ask yourself the right questions to analyze what you eat. Here they are :

• Do you eat a balanced diet?
• What ingredients are consumed (taking into account quantities)?
• Are you feeling sluggish? Do you feel hungry between meals? And what about snacking?
• Be sure to be as specific as possible. This will allow you to make the best possible decisions.

Choose your foods or ingredients

Consult the classification of foods according to their GI and CG in order to choose the best possible ingredients and/or foods. A little further down, I give you foods with a low GI. This way, you will be able to compose your menus also using the three menu ideas proposed a little above.

Anticipate and organize!

The main advice I can give you on this point is to anticipate snacking and cracking. Depending on your relationship with sugar, this may be a little difficult at first. In order to limit cracking, I advise you to eat dried fruits such as almonds, fruits like an apple. Take into account that a square of chocolate (at least 70% cocoa) is also entirely possible.

Also be sure to anticipate your meals and prepare your menus. In addition to saving time, this offers the possibility of balancing your plates and offering an ideal response to your nutritional needs.

What foods have a low GI?

The foods with a low GI that I recommend are unrefined cereals and cereal products, fresh fruits and vegetables, oilseed fruits (such as walnuts) and legumes. Be aware that foods with a low GI may contain fat; as is the case with oleaginous fruits or oil, which even with a low GI, are extremely high in calories. So, be careful with these!

Green vegetables

The majority of green vegetables have a glycemic index of 15. Here is a list of these: endive, broccoli, cabbage, fennel, spinach, zucchini, leeks and snap beans (edible podded peas with flat pods and walls of thin pods). Avocado even has a low GI of 10, while flageolet beans have an index of 25 while green beans have a slightly higher value: 30!

Oilseeds

Thanks to a low glycemic index of around 15, almonds are in pole position among oilseeds. Next are walnuts and cashews and pine nuts. Next come hazelnuts and pistachios with a GI of 20. This index is identical to that of almond and hazelnut purees.

Fruits but not all

Fruits, abundant in fiber and antioxidants, have a contrasting glycemic index, depending on their fructose level. It is a natural sugar that still remains a sugar!

Among the fruits with a lowest glycemic index is rhubarb with a GI of 15, in the same way as blackcurrants and redcurrants. Lemon has an index of 20. Strawberries, raspberries, cherries, blackberries and blueberries have a GI of 25. Apple and pear have an average index of 38.

Here is a list of foods with a fairly low GI (below 35): garlic, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, beets, broccoli, sugar-free cocoa, dark chocolate with 70% cocoa, tomato coulis, barley flour, cottage cheese, most fresh fruits, chia seeds, sesame seeds, most fresh vegetables, mustard, coconut, olives, barley, quinoa, tofu, vermicelli (wheat/soy), coffee , tea or even infusion without sugar.

How to calculate the glycemic index of a food?

The glycemic index is a calculation based on the curve of the percentage of blood carbohydrates tested after ingestion of a particular food. This curve is then compared with that of so-called “reference” foods. This is glucose or white bread. These each have a glycemic index of 100. Please note that each individual has a different metabolism. This is why the glycemic index can change from one person to another.

In order to define the GI of a food, glucose is given to volunteers and a blood sugar measurement is carried out every half hour, for two to three hours. Subsequently, the action is carried out again with the food to be tested. Then, a comparison is made with the two blood sugar curves. The glycemic index is obtained by dividing the areas under the curves.

An individual is asked to swallow fifty grams of glucose diluted in water, which will serve as a reference index (glucose GI = 100), and then the food to be tested having fifty grams of carbohydrates. This way, we have the glycemic index of the food. Finally, be aware that the portions of the foods tested must have the same weight of carbohydrates.