Navigating the Afternoon Slump

Hey there 👋

We’ve officially made it to summer 2023 - happy Memorial Day Weekend.

Since discovering the concept of Wellness Unbound, I’ve been fascinated with the question:

What health decisions provide the greatest value for your time & effort invested?

Through years of self-experimentation, now confirmed by the innovative work of French biochemist Jessie Inchauspé, a set of practices has emerged that offer high-impact results with low-impact exertion.

These practices all revolve around one crucial concept - blood sugar control.

In her new book, “The Glucose Goddess Method,” Inchauspé outlines four hacks:

• 🍳Have a Savory Breakfast

• 🍎Add a Bit of Vinegar

• 🥦Add a Veggie Starter

• 🚶‍♂️Get Moving

So today, we’ll dive into the importance of eating for blood sugar control, how these hacks help you do so, and the eye-opening results from Jessie’s pilot experiment for the Glucose Goddess Method.

Let’s dive in.

During my early twenties, I worked as an auditor at a well-known public accounting firm.

One vivid memory from that time was the lunch outing I had in my first week with my new team.

Everyone was swamped with deadlines, so they decided to order takeout and eat in the conference room, while continuing to work on our spreadsheets.

Craving a glimpse of sunlight, I joined the manager & first-year staff on a trip to Wawa to pick up the orders.

To my surprise, when I emerged from the fridge section with the team’s drinks, I found my manager with his arms full of about a half-dozen chip bags– Doritos, tortilla, potato. You name it, he had it.

It seemed like a lot, even for our team of eight. But it was “to help us get through the week.” Little did I know…

The following morning, the team was discussing lunch & passing around menus by 10AM.

I quickly fell into a rhythm with the team - coffee accompanied by donuts or bagels around 9AM, followed by hunger pangs & lunch discussions by 10:30AM, and an indulgent lunch between 12-1PM.

Like clockwork, at 3:30PM, the dreaded afternoon slump would hit.

Characterized by decreased energy, brain fog, and even sleepiness, the “post-lunch blues” is a common struggle for the American (corporate) workforce.

However, here’s the little-known secret - the afternoon slump is directly related to blood sugar levels.

The biggest difference between me being focused at 4PM or wanting to scream into a pillow, is what I ate for breakfast. How well I managed my blood sugar throughout the day.

Please keep in mind that this is my personal perspective that is by no means advice, but rather an illustration of the wide-ranging impact food has on our daily performance, mood & energy.

Let’s Start by Understanding Blood Sugar

Blood sugar refers to the concentration of glucose - a simple sugar - present in our bloodstream.

We derive glucose from the carbohydrates we consume, and it is a vital fuel source for our cells and bodily functions. To regulate our blood sugar levels, our bodies have a sophisticated system that helps keep them within a narrow range.

Insulin, for example, is a hormone produced by the pancreas that helps control blood sugar by helping glucose get into your cells, where it can be used for energy now or stored for later.

When we eat, the carbohydrates in our food are converted into glucose, leading to an increase in blood sugar levels. Then the pancreas then releases insulin, which helps cells absorb glucose and lowers blood sugar.

Different foods have different impacts on our blood sugar - and that impact is highly unique to each individual. More on that later.

Why Control Blood Sugar?

So what’s the point of bothering about blood sugar? Well, let's run with a quick analogy.

Picture this: you're at an amusement park, riding a rollercoaster.

You’re crawling up, then dropping down. The twists, the turns, and the stomach-churning dips are exciting - right?

Now imagine that same carnival ride is happening inside your body.

The rollercoaster represents your blood sugar levels, when unregulated.

Not so thrilling anymore, huh?

Controlling your blood sugar lets you take control of that roller coaster. Our food & lifestyle choices directly impact how high or low those spikes go, and in my experience, it’s worth taking the reins.

Here's why:

Energy Stability: Remember those times when you felt like a superhero, ready to conquer the world? That's what stable blood sugar does for you. Those afternoon energy crashes? That’s often the result of blood sugar spikes & dips. When you control your blood sugar, you'll have a steady supply of energy to tackle whatever life throws at you.

Mood Mastery: Blood sugar swings can turn even the most laid-back person into a hangry monster. Just ask my girlfriend… By keeping your blood sugar in check, you'll reduce mood swings & become more grounded.

Weight Loss: The ever-elusive goal that so many people are after. Calories in, calories out is the big story here, but guess what? Blood sugar control can be a secret weapon. When blood sugar levels go haywire, cravings are common, which can lead to weight gain & insulin resistance. But when blood sugar levels are stable, your body feels satiated & more balanced.

Long-Term Wellness: Uncontrolled blood sugar can lead to serious health issues down the road, including conditions like diabetes, heart disease, and a bunch of other not-so-fun stuff. Controlling blood sugar is a crucial step in metabolic health - or how well we generate & process energy in the body. This article goes deep on metabolic health and mentions that “Metabolic dysfunction underlies most chronic diseases.” That’s another newsletter for another day, but for now, please know - by taking charge of your blood sugar now, you're investing in a healthier future.

Factors Influencing Blood Sugar Levels

There’s a wide range of factors that influence blood sugar levels.

Some of the most common include Nutrition, Physical Activity, Stress, Emotional Well-being, Medications, and Health Conditions.

Because of the complexity of these factors and the fact that I’m not a doctor, we’re going to stick with the first two pillars for the purpose of this newsletter.

Nutrition: The type & amount of carbohydrates we consume significantly impacts blood sugar levels. Simple carbs, like those found in sugary foods & refined grains, are quickly broken down into glucose and can cause rapid blood sugar spikes. Complex carbohydrates, such as whole grains, legumes & veggies, are digested more slowly, resulting in a more gradual rise in blood sugar levels.

The Glycemic Index measures how quickly & significantly a particular food can raise blood sugar levels. While I believe there’s a time or place for every kind of food, a strategy that’s worked well for me over the years is this: saving high-Glycemic foods for the afternoon or pre/post workout.

Exercise: Regular physical activity can have a positive impact on blood sugar control. When you engage in exercise, your muscles use glucose for energy, which helps lower blood sugar levels. Additionally, exercise can improve insulin sensitivity, allowing your cells to utilize glucose more effectively.

Before moving into the strategies section, it’s important to mention - if you have diabetes or any other health diagnosis, it's important to work with doctors or registered dietitians, to meet your individual needs.

This is simply my experience experimenting with some things I heard on a podcast 🤷🏻‍♂️

Strategies for Blood Sugar Control

Over the past decade, I’ve realized that what I eat for breakfast has a massive impact on the rest of my day.

If I eat something sugary or loaded with carbs - I have a gnarly afternoon crash. Every time. Shoutout public accounting for that lesson.

But if I choose something satiating & protein-packed, on the other hand, I’m clear. Calm. Collected.

Coming across the Instagram account, Glucose Goddess, solidified this inner knowing with some actual science.

It’s run by Jessie Inchauspé, a French biochemist and bestselling author, who has sent the last half-decade studying glucose and its impact on the body.

For a quick intro, check out this video:

In her new book, she recommends four hacks to help mitigate blood sugar spikes:

🍳Have a Savory Breakfast: Avoiding the sweet & embracing the savory is a key to stable blood sugars through the day. Instead of a bagels or cereal, opt for a more nutrient dense breakfast such as eggs and/or an avocado. If you’re in the mood for something sweet or starchy, add in some fat, protein, and/or fiber to slow the processing of glucose… adding protein to oatmeal or avocado to toast two are great examples.

🍎Add a Bit of Vinegar: Whether it’s a vinegar-based dressing or a little of apple cider vinegar before a meal, incorporating vinegar can lead to reductions in blood sugar swings. Inchauspé recommends dissolving a tablespoon to a cup of warm water 15-20 minutes before eating.

🥦Add a Veggie Starter: We’ve all heard that adding vegetables to our diets is healthy, but when it comes to carbs, it helps to have veggies first. Check out the graph below. Historically, this makes a ton of sense - so many cultures begin their meals with veggies. For me, growing up Italian, this was olives, Bruschetta, and/or a Caesar salad. Eating fibrous veggies before carbs enables your body to process carbohydrates more effectively and fend off a big glucose spike.

🚶‍♂️Get Moving: Using your muscles for just 10 minutes after eating helps to significantly reduce the glucose response. This can be something as simple as walking around outside. When you move your body, your muscles use up the remaining glucose in your bloodstream, reducing the spike & rebalancing the energy.

The Results:

To test out these practices, Inchauspé put together a pilot experiment on 2,700 people.

For four weeks, each participant implemented one of the habits outlined above, sequentially, by stacking the habits on top of one another.

Week 1 starts with just a savory breakfast, week 2 adds in vinegar, week 3 tries veggie starters, and week 4 begins moving after meals.

By the end of the month, participants were engaged in each habit daily and experienced the following results:

• 90% of people are less hungry all the time

• 89% of people cut their cravings

• 77% of people have more energy

• 67% of people are happier

• 58% of people are sleeping better

• 58% of people improved their mental health

Note that these results were all achieved in JUST ONE MONTH and the methods are relatively easy and free to implement.

While I haven’t yet read the book, I’ve listened to her speak about these practices and am ecstatic that there’s now science behind the gut-feeling I had that quick-carbs in the morning were bad news bears.

No more cereal with orange juice or oatmeal with honey… and HELLOO avocados 🥑

I’ve linked a podcast that’s a great resource for deeper learning, if you feel called.

Full credit & much gratitude to Jessie Inchauspé and her Glucose Goddess movement for making this information accessible.

Thanks for Reading

Have a great holiday weekend.

Aidan