So gist of GI diet is to focus on low GI value foods, as these are ones that will keep you going for longer without hunger rearing it's ugly head! A 'low' value is generally thought to be below about 55 on GI scale, while 'medium' foods are between 56 and 69. Above 70, and food is a high GI value. Obviously, on GI diet, you focus on low GI value foods, keeping your blood sugar at a constant level and holding hunger pangs at arms length. You should generally cut down on fat-laden foods too, even if technically they are 'low' GI foods. Milk, chips and chocolate are examples of this.

You have probably already spotted main problem with GI diet - it can be hard to tell what GI value of an entire meal is, given that a meal has several component foods. Unless you are careful, you could end up following what looks like a good GI diet, but is actually packed out with fat and salt - hardly healthy! This is why meal plans are essential on GI diet. On a good GI diet plan, you should expect to lose 1 or 2 pounds a week, and this is a pretty sustainable level to aim for, according to leading nutritionists. A GI Diet may also (although research is not conclusive yet!) help ward off certain types of diabetes, and heart disease too.

Like all diets, you should check with your doctor first, to make sure you aren't running any health risks unnecessarily. A typical 'good' GI diet plan for a day might look something like this (more detailed plans are, of course available at www.supadiet.com ).

Breakfast Oat porridge with skimmed milk and sweetened and a piece of fruit.

Elevenses A low fat fruit yoghurt and another piece of fruit.

Lunch Lentil soup, whole-meal tuna sandwich and some fruit.

Dinner Whole-meal pasta with bolognese sauce (extra lean mince) with salad.

But, if you take out pad and pen and do math, you will quickly decide that a home machine - a good home machine - will pay for itself rather quickly.

Let's assume that you buy just one espresso drink per day at modest cost of $3.50 (I know most drinks run higher and many of us cannot get by on just one per day!) That adds up to over $1277 per year! If you have friends, roommates, family (my wife, oh my wife!), then you can easily see cost-effectiveness of an commercial grade home models.

Plus, when you get good at making drinks (and that's a lot of fun), you can wow friends and family. It beats a card trick most everytime.

A Word of Caution when Buying an Espresso Machine

If you're budget minded, like I am, you might be tempted to snap up a $60 expresso machine at Target. Hey, I love Target too. But you will likely be disappointed by performance of machine. Frankly, I think a good barista can make a decent drink on any machine - but you'll likely wish you saved up a bit over time and purchased a higher quality pump-driven model.

It's true that pump-driven espresso makers are bigger, heavier, and more difficult to use (until you learn to use it). But they'll produce a better cup of coffee. And you will be happier in long-run as a result.