You may like it or you may hate it, but I am very sure that if you are looking for weight loss methods, you will never be able to ignore it. The General Motors diet or the popularly known GM diet, ranks first in the most wanted diet lists. Surprisingly, I have yet to find any information about GM Diet on any of the official General Motors sites (let me know if I have missed any).
Several sites, blogs and forums have discussed the GM diet, but in a scattered way. My main intention behind this post is to represent various facets of this diet plan and to provide a complete overview, based on the experiences of both myself and my friends.
BACKGROUND:
This diet plan was presented at a General Motors Corp. general meeting on August 15, 1985, initially intended for use by General Motors Company employees to facilitate wellness and fitness. It was awarded by the United States Department of Agriculture and the FDA, and further tested by the Johns Hopkins Research Center.
It was designed as a ‘detox diet program’, to improve metabolism through its systemic cleansing effects, reflected in a better disposition and a feeling of well-being. As a final result, a weight loss of 4-6 kg was expected within the week of the program.
THE PLAN:
Here is the daily diet plan and its dietary importance. I have added a few things from my experience and experiments, which worked.
Day 1:
Fruits of any kind (except bananas) in any quantity. The most preferred fruits are melons and cantaloupes, due to their high water content. Also, you should drink at least 10 glasses of water.
By eating fruits, you are preparing your system for the next program. Fresh fruits are nature’s perfect food, as they provide all the essential elements necessary to sustain life. Fruits are also a good source of antioxidants and are rich in fiber. Fruits are also considered a negative calorie food, so more calories are burned for their digestion than are provided.
Believe me, I have done the GMO diet twice and this day has been the hardest. First of all, because of the sweet taste of all the fruits and, also, because of an intense craving for bread or spices, which develops towards the end of the day. The solution for this is the Soup to break the monotony of the fruity flavor.
Day 2:
The day can start with a large baked potato with a little butter for breakfast. It definitely fills you up with complex carbs to start your day after the first sweet and fruity day.
During the rest of the day, you should eat all kinds of vegetables of your choice, raw or cooked. Vegetables are very low in calories, rich in nutrients and fiber. There is no limit on the quantity. This should be added by drinking at least 10 glasses of water.
You can also mash a baked potato, add a little onion and curd, and season it with chaat masala and red chili powder and a pinch of salt.
Day 3:
This day consists of a combination of fruits and vegetables of your choice, except banana and potato. Also, you should drink at least 10 glasses of water. Potatoes are avoided on this day as carbohydrates are available in the fruits you eat.
Varieties of salads can be made mixed with fruit slices. If you eat more cucumbers and melons, you are more likely to lose weight than any other vegetable or fruit. Adding a curd to the vegetable salad, in the shape of a raita, will make it tastier for the night, when it becomes monotonous.
Day 4:
A day when you can’t eat more than eight bananas along with three glasses of milk. It is not mandatory to eat 8 bananas; you can also have less. In fact, you may be satisfied with 4-5 bananas throughout the day. This is the day when you can clearly feel your desire for food significantly decrease. It feels divine, to overcome your ‘wishes’. Don’t forget to drink at least 10 glasses of water, as always.
Bananas will act as a provider of carbohydrates that are easy to digest, along with the store of sodium and potassium.
Day 5:
This is considered a “holiday,” where you should eat up to two servings of lean beef (10 oz.) Combined with six whole tomatoes, as a source of fiber. On this day, you should increase your daily water intake to at least 14 glasses. This is to cleanse your system of the uric acid that is produced. You will experience colorless urine on this day.
Beef is a source of protein and iron, so an alternative may be paneer (tofu – soy paneer for best results) along with mushrooms for vegetarians. Many people have recommended rice as a substitute for beef, but when you consider the nutritional content, rice may not be the right substitute.
Day 6:
Another day with meat and vegetables. Today you can eat any amount of beef combined with cooked or raw vegetables. Keep your daily water intake at 14 glasses. You can add the soup to add a little spice to your day.
Iron and protein from beef or paneer-mushroom combination, while fiber and nutrients from vegetables. Until then, you must have experienced an energetic feeling and an awareness of the power of natural foods.
Day 7:
Your food intake on this day should consist of a bowl of brown rice with fruit juices and whatever vegetables you want to eat. Drink 14 glasses of water.
The juices will break the fast (?) Providing the essential nutrients along with the vegetable filling. Brown rice provides the carbohydrates.
Now you should be at least 4 kg lighter than the first day, but more energetic and free from cravings for high-calorie things.
Soup:
The soup below is a modified version of GM Wonder Soup, as it is not possible to get the Lipton Onion Soup Mix everywhere, as suggested in GM Soup. The modified soup parallels ‘rassam’ or ‘saaram’, which is served in southern India. This soup can be consumed in large quantities throughout the program. It is intended to supplement your diet.
Boil some large onions, tomatoes, cabbage, and celery in water. Add the sambhar masala for flavor. You can also add tomato puree (but with skin) in place of tomatoes to make it thicker. It can be seasoned with herbs and flavorings. You can also add: asparagus, peas, corn, cauliflower, green beans, or finely chopped mushrooms.
General instructions for every day:
- You can squeeze a lemon to flavor the water you drink every day.
- Without alcohol of any kind as it provides empty calories.
- Salt should be used as little as possible.
- Use artificial sweetener, in case you can’t avoid the sweet taste.
- No fruit juices until day seven.
- Black coffee or tea is allowed.
You can repeat the program, if you want to lose more weight, but it is suggested that you take an interval of at least two weeks between two programs.
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Now the most important part: the doubts, accusations and myths.
“It works by simply losing the body’s water content and not actually losing fat.”
For. First of all, there is no mention of restricting water intake on any day. How can we lose only water if we consume at least 10-14 glasses of water a day, added to the unlimited amount of soup and water that melons, fruits and vegetables contain?
B. Basically, it works on the principle of “negative calorie foods”, in which certain foods are consumed that require more calories to burn than they provide themselves. Foods high in fiber feed you, but do not provide the necessary calories, instead requiring more calories to burn, which is derived from stored energy stores.
“The skin dries out and you can lose hair during and after the GMO diet.”
For. At least I haven’t met anyone I know who complains about this, but I did find this on some blog posts. The reason may be an insufficient amount of water intake and not supplying enough protein sources on specific days.
“It is a temporary loss and you regain all the lost weight in a couple of weeks.”
For. Obviously if you resume your high calorie eating one more time. It is not difficult to lose weight, but it is difficult to maintain it. Malvika, my wife who is a dietician, always recommends a maintenance diet program after the GM diet program as follows:
I. Only liquids in the form of soups, buttermilk or fruit juices for dinner three consecutive days a week. This should be continued endlessly, until you want your weight to regain.
ii. Drink lots of water as if you were on a GMO diet.
iii. Get regular exercise.
“It’s just a crash diet and a fad, nothing more !!”
For. First of all, it is not promoted as a weight loss diet, but rather as a detox diet that cleanses your system from within. Weight loss is just a by-product of it.
B. Even if you see it as a ‘crash diet’, it surely won’t hurt you, but it will ‘move’ your weight in the shortest amount of time, thus motivating many who tend to quit their regular diet and exercise regimens for the first time. month. for not obtaining the desired results. Once you can “see” your weight drop, your willingness to keep trying will increase.
vs. As stated above, it is useless unless you back it up with a maintenance schedule. You can’t eat a GMO diet for life, and you can’t and shouldn’t do it every month. Instead, use it as an initial motivator and then switch to a liquid dinner course.
MY OWN EXPERIENCE:
I myself have been on a GMO diet twice. The first time I was very sincere in following him. Thanks to my wife and my mother, who made all the arrangements for the meal each day. I lost 4 kg by the fifth day. I could not lose more in the last two days and I guess the rice I ate, replacing the meat. The lost weight stayed there for a month, despite not actively maintaining it. I could have lost at least a pound more, if I had stayed away from rice, which I don’t like to eat in any case.
The next time I started it, but had to leave it in the middle due to some unavoidable circumstances. But I had seen a significant change in my weight and energy level during the four days that I followed it.
The most significant gain has been the normalization of lipids. I’ve had really bad lipid levels for two years and after following the GM diet twice, taking statins, and taking homeopathic self-prescribed drugs for it, the last lipid levels were perfectly within normal limits. The credit also goes to the transgenic diet rich in fiber.
THE CONCLUSION:
If followed sincerely, the GM diet has a definite positive effect on our metabolism. I agree that it is not an end in itself, and it is necessary to maintain metabolism through proper eating habits and an exercise regimen. The GMO diet may not be a “quick and easy” substitute for “exertions”, but it can certainly be a booster for those who have never seen their weight go downhill, providing a “boost”.
As Malvika says, ‘one must eat a diet that one can follow for life …’ and that’s true! You can never have a GMO diet for every day, as there are so many delicacies to enjoy, but for that we need to have a balanced metabolism, so that we can give them due justice.