Got a Bit More Around the Middle? Read This!

I have a problematic midsection. It’s not that I’m dogging my body; I just know that when I gain some weight, in turns into an inner tube placed directly over what would be my stomach.

As a sophomore in high school, my mother and I went on this crazy carbohydrate addicts diet (very similar to Atkins) where for 8 months I only ate carbs for one hour a day. At the end of those 8 months, I was the skinniest I have ever been. Despite the fact that for one hour I shoved Stouffer’s Lasagna and chocolate chip cookies into my mouth, I got down to about 105 pounds. My thighs didn’t touch. My stomach was flat. It was awesome.

Of course, when I went off the diet I gained it all back. But there was one component of this “lifestyle change” that actually made a bit of sense. The reason I lost so much weight was because my body was releasing insulin (from the high carb foods) for only an hour a day. And yesterday, as I was making my daily scan of all the papers, I happened upon this interesting article.

Apparently, this whole insulin thing is slightly valid. A recent study found that most Apple and Pear shaped dieters who secreted a high amount of insulin lost more weight and maintained their new svelte figures by eating a diet with a low Glycemic load.

Basically these dieters were trying to eat less refined carbs like white bread, processed cereals and sugary foods and instead eat liberal amounts of good fats like olive and canola oil paired with more fruits and veggies.

Now, I’m not one for science of any sort, but this sounds to me like if you eat healthy and try to limit your late night pizza and snack-o-bell runs, a whittled middle could be ours for the taking.