A frequently asked question to many nutritional experts is why are all the fruit and fruit juices eliminated from their meal plans? The answer to this very popular question is primarily the fructose, which is the sugar found in fruit. Unfortunately, our body must use the fructose within 2 hours of consumption, or it will be stored as body fat. The liver will convert the fructose rapidly into a longchain triglyceride, or otherwise know as fat. Unless timed properly, most of the fruit you will consume will end up as extra body fat pounds and ultimately inhibit your goals. Therefore, elimination of most fruits is suggested if one is needing to lose body fat, wants to compete in a physique competition or one who needs to clear up their complexion.
For an athlete or a body builder, fructose could be detrimental to their success since fructose is primarily for restoring liver glycogen, not muscle glycogen. Glucose is more of a source for athletes to use to restore muscle glycogen. Foods such as yams, potatoes, oats, grains or a glucose polymer drink are much better sources than simple sugars.
GLYCEMIC INDEX
For the average person eating 1-2 pieces of fruit daily, it should not be a problem if maintaining a successful workout regimen of 4-5 times per week. The glycemic index, the process in which carbohydrates are broken down into glucose and absorbed into the blood stream, is a very important tool to use when planning out your meals. Ultimately, controlling the total amount of carbohydrates you eat is important, but you can also control the rate at which it processes through your liver and ultimately converts it into fat.
Some factors that can alter the glycemic index of foods are the timing of your meals, the size of the food particle, the biochemical structure of the food, etc. As you can see, there are many areas to consider when making your food choices. It has been proven that the higher GI meals can lead to feelings of hunger quicker than lower GI meals. The ideal meal is to be satisfied for 3 hours before eating another meal.
Here are some glycemic indexes of commonly eaten fruits and fruit juices:
Moderately High GI
apricots
bananas
grapes
mango
orange juice
papaya
raisins
watermelon
Moderately Low GI
apples
oranges
pears - fresh
peaches
plums
pineapples/juice