Questions, answered.

For decades the advice was to cut fat, but the evidence has moved on. In the PREDIMED trial, people who added 50ml of extra virgin olive oil a day to a Mediterranean diet, with no calorie limit, were about 40% less likely to develop type 2 diabetes than a group advised to cut fat [3].

Fat also slows how quickly carbs reach your bloodstream: adding oil to mashed potato lowered its GI from 108 to 71 [1]. And your body needs fat to absorb vitamins A, D, E and K. The fat in our recipes comes from foods like olive oil, avocado, eggs, oily fish and cheese.

The Randle cycle describes how cells burn less glucose when there’s a sustained excess of fat in the blood, as happens with long-term overeating or obesity [2]. It isn’t about a single balanced meal, and protein isn’t part of it.

When researchers measured real meals in 11 healthy adults, mashed potato on its own had a GI of 108. Adding rapeseed oil brought it down to 71, adding chicken breast to 64, and chicken, oil and salad together to 54 [1]. Pairing carbs with protein, fat and fibre gives a lower, slower rise, which is the whole idea behind every recipe here.

For your weight, yes, calories still count. But they don’t tell you everything: two meals with the same calories can affect your blood sugar and how full you feel very differently.

Protein is a good example. When people raised protein from 15% to 30% of their calories, they ate about 441 fewer calories a day without being told to eat less, and lost about 4.9kg over 12 weeks [4]. That’s why every recipe shows calories alongside protein, fibre and real-life GL.

Because they’re built to keep you full. I’m not trying to squeeze the most protein into the fewest calories. A 400-calorie lunch that leaves you hungry by 3pm usually ends in a snack, then another.

A proper meal with protein, fat and fibre digests slowly, keeps your blood sugar steadier and keeps you satisfied for longer. In a study of over 1,000 people wearing glucose monitors, bigger blood sugar dips 2 to 3 hours after a meal were linked to feeling hungrier, eating sooner and eating more over the rest of the day [5]. Protein on its own helps too [4].

These are meals, not snacks. NHS guidance is around 2,000 calories a day for women and 2,500 for men, so 600 to 800 calories a meal fits comfortably into three meals a day. Every recipe lists its calories, so you can adjust the portion to suit your day.

No. Glucose Steady isn’t a diet, and nothing here is about cutting foods out. The aim is steadier energy and fewer crashes. If weight loss is your goal, the calories on every recipe make it easy to fit them into your plan.

Glycaemic load (GL) estimates how much a portion of food is likely to raise your blood sugar. Our real-life GL starts from the standard calculation, then adjusts for the protein and fat on the plate, using a published method. See exactly how we calculate it.

No. Measurements are there if you want them, but it’s often easier to watch the reel, judge it by eye and have a go. Every recipe also has a “Swap it” box with like-for-like swaps. Just keep the protein, fat and fibre on the plate. The macros and real-life GL are for the recipe as written.

No. Everything here is general information. If you have diabetes, PCOS or another condition, or take medication that affects your blood sugar, speak to your GP or care team before changing how you eat.