Michelle Wie Adopts Gluten-Free Diet Plan
US Golfer Michelle Wie has started a gluten free diet after being inspired by the results achieved by Novak Djokovic, the Worlds No 1 Tenmis Player.
Wie recently revealed on a social media website that she is susceptible to allergy and often faces trouble gripping the club.
And commented at on her allergies at the 2012 HSBC Women’s Champions press conference:
“I am allergic to everything in this world, I don’t really digest food very well,” Wie said.
“So I just thought maybe if I cut out gluten, I can feel better because I heard that it causes inflammation, everything… but it’s been week three and I feel a big difference.
“You know, my joints don’t feel sore as much, I digest food a lot better, my hands feel less swollen so I feel really good.”
Will A Gluten Free Diet Improve Athletic Performance?
Was this an advertisement for a gluten free diet?! Gone are the days these two players carbo loaded on pasta…
The World’s No 1 and 3 Tennis players, both follow a gluten free diet plan.
A 29 point rally in the fifth set, in the semifinal match vs Andy Murray at the 2012 Australian Open. Djokovic eventually won through 6-3 3-6 6-7 (4-7) 6-1 7-5 in four hours 50 minutes.
He then goes on to win the final in another fifth setter. Novak Djokovic wore down Rafael Nadal in the longest Grand Slam singles final in the history of professional tennis, winning 5-7, 6-4, 6-2, 6-7 (5), 7-5 after five hours, 53 minutes to claim his third Australian Open title.
Novak Djokovic is undoubtedly the hottest player in professional tennis. Djokovic went on gluten free diet before embarking on run of 57 wins from 59 matches.
Gluten Free Weight Loss Diet
Gluten/Wheat Products can sabotage your weight loss efforts. Dr. Lori Arnold explains how wheat causes you to release insulin which is a fat storage hormone.
Find an alternative to a carb based breakfast such as cereals and toast.
Weight Loss
Herbalife have introduced a Allergen Free version of their popular Meal Replacement Shake. Now you can get all the benefits of the original Formula 1 shake, made free from soy, lactose and gluten. That’s the goodness of 22 vitamins and minerals, fibre, high quality pea protein and plant-based carbohydrates which help you feel fuller for longer and sustain your energy levels. With pea protein, rich in arginine, lysine and branched amino acids.
Gluten Free Breakfast
Following a gluten free diet, breakfast can sometimes be a challenging meal. Cereals and toast, if you find a gluten free option, can often be low in fibre and protein. What type of breakfast do you have?
Is your breakfast carb based? In the morning simple carbohydrates such as sugary refined cereals, white breads, toasts, etc cause an immediate surge of blood sugar level which results in a substantial emission of insulin. The insulin removes sugar from blood turning its excess into fat. The result is a decreased level of blood sugar, and thirst for more carbs. This cycle repeats itself 2-3 more times during the day. This vicious circle constitutes one of the major reasons for diabetes, high blood pressure and extra weight.
Or do you skip brekfast? – When you skip breakfast, blood sugar drops below the normal level, you experience cravings and a drop of energy. You again revert to snacking on simple carbohydrates foods to achieve a quick surge of blood sugar and to overcome hunger and a drop of energy. The insulin removes sugar from blood turning its excess into fat. The body, now low in blood sugar, experiences further cravings and a drop in energy. This vicious cycle constitutes one of the major reasons for diabetes, high blood pressure and extra weight.
The alternative – a balanced healthy breakfast. Such a breakfast supplies our body with all vital nutrients and energy without increasing blood sugar and insulin levels. It helps to avoid dependence on carbs during the day. In this way appetite stays under control, cravings for carb based foods (snacks, chocolate, pastry, junk, soft drinks, etc) diminish and the body uses its own stored fats to get more energy.
Herbalife nutritional shakes combine complex carbohydrates with lean protein, fibre and nutrients to sustain you for longer without needing to snack. Herbalife have recently introduced a gluten free, dairy free and soy free shake so every one can now benefit from these nutritional shakes.
Gluten Free Foods – Watch the Calories
Gluten-free products – everything from bagels to beer– are showing up on store shelves like never before. And consumers can’t get enough. Last year alone, Americans spent $2.6 billion on gluten-free foods, and they’re hungry for more. For those who have a true intolerance or sensitivity to gluten – a protein found in wheat, rye and barley – these foods are blessing. But many of these products are being snapped up by those who tolerate gluten just fine – in the belief that going gluten-free is a great strategy for weight loss. And to them, I say, “buyer beware” – because gluten-free doesn’t necessarily mean low calorie.
This glut of gluten-free products reminds me of the avalanche of low-carb foods that was dumped into stores at the tail end of the low-carbohydrate diet craze a few years ago. When the low-carbohydrate diet was first popular, meals consisted mainly of protein and fat, a very limited number of fruits and vegetables – and not much of anything else. Staying within the day’s carbohydrate allotment was pretty easy – since food choices were so limited – and calorie counting wasn’t necessary. Even with the promise that they could eat all the meat they wanted, people lost weight. But this was due, in part, because boredom set in. With so little variety, people simply ended up eating less. There’s only so much meat a person can eat at a sitting, day after day.
Not wanting to miss an opportunity, the food manufacturers went full tilt and unleashed a torrent of low carb foods into the market – like candy bars, breads, cookies and cakes – all deemed suitable for carb-watchers.
Suddenly, this limited diet became more varied than ever – and people ate up more calories than ever before… and, not surprisingly, they saw their weight start to climb. Why? They’d gotten so used to counting only carbs (and not calories) that they failed to notice that many of these foods – although hyped as low carbohydrate – were loaded with calories.
So it looks like the same thing may be happening again with gluten-free. Since the primary source of gluten in the diet is wheat (and anything made from it), someone shunning gluten would need to give up stuff like bread, rice, pasta, cakes, pies, cookies, pretzels and crackers, and get more of their carbohydrates from fruits and vegetables instead – not a bad strategy for weight loss.
But now we’ve got gluten-free cereal, brownies, granola, cakes and cookies – thanks to the substitution (in most cases) of refined rice flour, corn starch and potato starch for traditional wheat flour. But starch is starch – so simply dodging gluten isn’t going to cut it, unless you’re paying attention to calories, too.
Compare the labels of gluten-free brownie mix or cake mix to the regular versions and you’ll see what I mean – same portion, same calories. Just last week, I spied some gluten-free muffins at the bakery – but with 20 grams of fat and 450 calories each, they hardly qualify as a diet food.
No matter what your reasons are for avoiding gluten, you still need to watch calories. If, like the carb-counters of yesteryear, you’re paying attention only to your gluten intake, a diet loaded with high-calorie gluten-free products could bring your weight loss to a screeching halt.
Written by Susan Bowerman, MS, RD, CSSD. Susan is a paid consultant for Herbalife.