Falling back on the horse

 

I was so proud of myself. I’d lost so much weight. I had energy. I felt terrific.

I’d been on the low GI diet for 2 years and I couldn’t really believe how easy it was. Just miss out the carbs and watch the weight fall off. It felt ridiculous that I hadn’t realized before. How could I have put on so much weight when it was so easy not to? And there was a fabulous upwards spiral of the more weight I lost the more energy I had, the more energy I had, the more I moved, the more I moved, the more weight I lost and everything felt great. So many people commented about my weight loss. It felt fantastic.

The only drawback was meeting up with friends. Eating at home was easy, but I was tired of being a high maintenance customer at restaurants. Could I have this but could I replace the potatoes with an extra egg? Any chance of swapping the bread or couscous for extra veggies? With one exception (and it was at a restaurant that has since closed down) everyone was so lovely about it. It did make it easier but I hated asking. And then there were the drinks. Neat, unsweetened spirits are fine, and soda is a carb free mixer, but vodka soda isn’t my favourite.  And there are only so many bubbles you can drink in an evening.

I decided to add a little normality back into my life. I’d eat low carb at home but whatever I wanted to eat or drink while I was out. It’d be fine. Only it wasn’t. Turns out I’m one of those people who isn’t great at moderation (anyone who knows me already knows this, of course). So the carbs returned, the weight piled back on, the energy levels decreased, and the upwards spiral went into reverse. The more weight I put on, the less energy I had, and so on.

I have to do something! First step was to stay away from temptation. It is easier to find low GI food, than low GI drinks. It was with this that the wonderful Andrew Mullins, from The Spirit House came to my aid. He devised some cocktails that are delicious and low carb. I went round for a tasting and he took my basic idea of earl grey tea with vanilla vodka and worked his mixologist magic, creating a stunning cocktail for me with the addition of flavour punches like orange oils. And then he reached further into his bag of tricks creating a basil gin blend and a fruity blend which uses fruit teas as a base. In the end we had four utterly delicious cocktails that I will struggle to choose between.

And then his fabulous right hand man in the kitchen came out with some new dishes he’d prepared after research into all things GI. The food menu will offer a couple of options to start with, and then hopefully will expand as it becomes more and more popular. I can’t wait to try it!

I started the low GI diet because of diabetes. It is a fabulous way to control your blood sugar, and the weight loss was a (very much desired) by product of this. It is a great way of eating for anyone wanting to cut carbs, to lose weight, or just to feel healthier. I’m hoping The Spirit House will be the leader in its field here in Laos and will inspire other restaurants to follow it.  I’ll keep you posted.