Maximizing Manduu Results, Part 4: A Smarter Way to Measure Nutrition
Manduu’s Electrical Muscle Stimulation (EMS) training is safe, effective and incredibly efficient. But there are things you should be doing outside of the studio to get the most benefits from your Manduu training.
One of the things that makes Manduu’s electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) training so effective is the science behind it. EMS takes advantage of the electricity that’s already powering your body to create the resistance you need to work against in order to build muscle and gain strength.
However, even the most effective, scientifically proven workouts cannot be successful without proper nutrition supporting them. That doesn’t mean you need to be on a trendy diet to achieve all your fitness goals. But, if you want to obtain the results you really want, it may help to have some type of system in place that will help evaluate what you put in your body and hold you accountable on a daily basis.
That’s why using the glycemic index could be a great option to help guide your nutrition in the right direction.
What Is the Glycemic Index?
The glycemic index (GI) is a ranking of carbohydrate levels in foods on a scale from 0 to 100. The ranking is based on the extent to which each food raises blood sugar (glucose) levels after eating. The GI was developed in Sydney, Australia, as a method to help people with diabetes make healthier food choices.
The GI is broken down into three levels:
- Low: GI of 55 or less
- Moderate: GI of 56-69
- High: GI of 70 or higher
According to the University of Sydney’s GI Group, foods that rank high on the index are those which are rapidly digested, absorbed and metabolized—causing fluctuations in blood sugar (glucose) levels. Some foods that rank high on the GI include white bread, potatoes, rice cakes, most cereals, white rice and basically anything with added or processed sugar.
Conversely, low GI carbohydrates (the ones that cause smaller glucose fluctuations) are critical to long-term health because they reduce your risk of type-2 diabetes and heart disease. The GI group also considers low-ranking GI foods, such as fruits and green vegetables, raw carrots, beans, nuts and chickpeas to be pivotal in maintaining weight loss.
Now that you know what the GI is, you can start using it to your advantage.
To Eat or Not to Eat?
To get the most out of the GI, choose foods that are in the low category. Simple, right?
It helps if you can substitute high GI foods for lower GI options whenever possible. For example, if you’re making rice to go with dinner tonight, use brown instead of white. Or, if you’re a fan of oatmeal in the morning, skip the instant oatmeal for the healthier, steel-cut option.
Now, this doesn’t mean that you need to completely remove carbs from your diet. In fact, the GI Group at the University of Sydney believes that low-carb diets are too restrictive and could actually be worse in the long term if saturated fat consumption increases in lieu of carbs. You can eat carbs on a low-GI diet, you just have to choose wisely.
No nutrition plan is completely perfect; they all have their nuances. That’s certainly true for following the GI, as GI values don’t reflect the quantities of each food you would likely eat. However, if stopping to think about the GI value of each food you plan to eat will help you make smarter, healthier choices, then that is a major win. And when you’re making healthier choices in the kitchen, you’ll see greater results in your Manduu fitness program.
Now that you have vital information on the glycemic index, you can supercharge your body at Manduu. Manduu’s incredible technology can increase insulin sensitivity in the muscles, which means your muscles can use glucose in a more efficient way—burning carbohydrates instead of storing them!
Stay tuned for Part 5 of our Maximizing Manduu Results blog series.