Montignac diet part 1: I don’t do diets!

When my girlfriend first mentioned the Montignac diet (or Montignac method) to me, I was initially sceptical.

I’ve never been a believer in ‘dieting’ and instead believe that you should eat most things in moderation, avoiding the obvious
cakes and chips and eating sufficient fruit and veg, and exercising regularly.

Yet with a combination of a new natural diet drink (I will write another post about this later) and our own take on the Montignac
method, I’ve lost 10kgs – that’s 22lb, or about 1.5 stone – in several months and with a lot less exercise than I usually do. And
I’m still eating very enjoyable meals.

Previously I was having to exercise pretty hard 5 or 6 times a week and struggling to maintain my weight. I’m now just over 2kgs
(5lbs) lighter than that with no effort.

The concept of the Montignac method lies around the understanding of the different types of carbohydrates (carbs) and their
Glycemic Indexes (GI) – a measure of how a food increases blood sugar levels – and avoiding eating those high GI carbs in
conjuction with fats.

When food is digested, carbohydrates are transformed into sugars (glucose) which raises the blood sugar level – and also insulin
levels. This hormone is related to weight gain.

High GI carbs such as potatoes will result in higher blood sugar levels than low GI carbs such as lentils. Note that GI figures
aren’t exact and can change depending on various factors, for example, the foods level of hydration, how it has been processed,
or it’s ripeness. Rice has a high GI yet a long grain Basmiti rice can have much lower GI levels.

One exception is carrots. Although uncooked carrots have a relatively high GI (this increases even more when cooked) they have a
low carb content, so are not considered as ‘bad’ carbs.

In general though, we can define ‘bad’ carbs and ‘good’ carbs.

GI levels were first determined in the ’70s to help diabetics.

Montignac was the first to recommend using the glycemic index to aid with slimming.

His theory is that ‘bad’ carbs, such as potatoes, white rice and white bread, cannot be taken with fats. The thought is that the
combination of a high blood sugar release and fat intake will result in that fat being stored as body fat.

The body still needs fat – the idea is not to consume it at the same time as high GI carbs.

There’s also ‘good’ and ‘bad’ fats, as I’ve already discussed in my Keeping fit – the early days post on health and fitness. Essentially,
polyunsaturated omega 3 acids (fish fat) as well as monounsaturated fatty acids (olive oil) are ‘good’ for you, whereas you
should try and avoid saturated fatty acids such as butter and animal fat.

Montignac appreciated that most dieters suffer from a lack of food satisfaction and feeling hungry. He produced a book with
French and Meditterean recipes that were suited to his method – and sold 15 million copies! (Montignac Diet Cookbook)

However, as with most diets or health theories, there is plenty of debate and opposition.

Some scientific studies would appear to disprove it. Many nutrition experts claim that ANY calorie intake that exceeds the amount
that the body needs is converted into body fat, regardless.

Yet other studies disagree.

Let’s step back a moment.

There are so many different diets, health theories and lifestyle choices, proliferated by the popularity of the internet, that
there’s always going to be differences of opinion.

Mankind has evolved due to our ability to communicate.

But not our ability to agree. Hence wars. But that’s a bit deep for now… I can feel a separate post coming on 🙂

Anyway. My opinion is that you can’t take anything you read on the web at face value – especially regarding health and weight
loss. Hell, I don’t trust what my doctor says either.

For a start, EVERYONE IS DIFFERENT. I’ve highlighted that because it’s not just relevant in health, but in all aspects of life.

People have different metabolisms and react differently to various foods.

But lets state one clear fact: The human body is not designed to consume ‘junk food’. It has evolved over many thousands of years
to adapt to a changing diet since our monkey fruit picking days, but it can only evolve so quick; and it’s pretty clear in
today’s age of fast food, junk food and processed food that there will quite simply make you fat – or more importantly – die
quicker.

So I’m going with the premise that eating well is a good idea.

None of this ‘your body is a temple’ business, as I can’t help treat myself to the odd glass of wine. Or three.

Everything in moderation 😉

There’s nothing extreme about the Montignac diet – avoid high carb foods, particularly with fat. Fat can be eaten but without carbs.

Sounds fine to me… so why not try it?

Again, there’s so many opinions out there that you only ever know if something will work for you if you try it.

I did.

See more in my next post to follow shortly…

I just want to point out again that I am not a nutritionist, a dietician or a doctor. I’m a computer scientist! So this is just
my take on things and it’s worked well for me. When dieting you should always seek professional help if in doubt.

One of Michel Montignac’s best sellers: Eat Yourself Slim: The World’s BEST Method to Lose Weight and Stay Slim

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