Just four simple hacks with minimal changes to your daily routine promise the potential for improved energy and mood, better sleep, clearer skin and the alleviation of symptoms related to diabetes and PCOS – to name a few. 

Sounds too good to be true, right? When it comes to diets, I’m always wary of the ‘next best thing’, particularly after falling into the trap of disordered eating in the past. But after reading about French biochemist Jessie Inchauspé’s viral Glucose Goddess Method, I was sufficiently curious.

For me, trying the method had nothing to do with weight loss, so as a disclaimer, I won’t be touching on that side of things. I was interested to see how the hacks impacted my skin, mood, energy and productivity, all aspects that as a woman, are intrinsically intertwined with hormone functioning. So, I embarked on a four-week challenge of sticking to the method – here’s how it went.

What is the Glucose Goddess Method?

Before getting into the experiment, let’s run through what the Glucose Goddess Method actually is. Inchauspé’s attempt to better understand the mind-body link began when she struggled with her own mental health after breaking her back at 19. 

To find answers, she did her master's degree in biochemistry and went on to work in genetics, but it wasn’t until she participated in a pilot study where she had to continuously monitor her glucose levels that she noticed the link between her mood and blood-sugar spikes. That revelation led her to dive deep into the research on glucose and find ways to keep her blood sugar levels steady. She shared what she learnt on Instagram, @glucosegoddess, which now boasts an impressive 3.5 million followers, and a few years later wrote her bestselling first book, Glucose Revolution.

While Inchauspé shares many different ways to reduce spikes in blood glucose, there are four key hacks that are the easiest to follow (and were also the easiest for me to incorporate into my own routine). These hacks are:

1. Eat a veggie starter at each meal
2. Try to eat your carbs at the end of the meal 
3. Drink vinegar before your meals
4. Move for 10 minutes after eating

While maintaining steady blood sugar levels is essential for those living with diabetes, spikes in glucose can lead to a range of symptoms for people without diabetes too. According to Melbourne Dietetics Clinic principal dietitian and accredited practising dietitian Sarah Hunter, these symptoms can include fatigue, dry mouth or feeling thirsty, finding it hard to concentrate and in persistent patients, even nausea, vomiting and confusion. 

Luckily, recent scientific studies, which are frequently referenced by Inchauspé when sharing her glucose hacks, show that diet and lifestyle changes can help immensely in balancing glucose levels and easing the symptoms that can come with glucose spikes.

“Including adequate veggies and exercising daily are great ways to kickstart dietary and lifestyle changes shown to reduce high blood glucose levels,” adds Hunter. “Additional strategies would also be needed including maintaining a well-balanced diet, smart carbohydrate choices, and eating regular meals.”

With this in mind, let’s put these hacks to the test.

Glucose Goddess Method Week 1

I was excited to start my Glucose Goddess journey, particularly as the hacks were easy enough for me to incorporate in my everyday routine without changing my diet. I was particularly interested to see how the new regimen impacted my energy levels, as I often struggle with the dreaded afternoon slump, and feel tired even after a full night’s rest. 

Adding vinegar to my routine was by far the easiest hack to start with – I simply mixed a tablespoon of homebrand white vinegar with a glass of water and drank it through a straw (to protect those pearly whites) 15 minutes before my meals. It’s interesting to note, however, that despite claims made by Inchauspé about the effects of vinegar on blood glucose, Hunter says there’s very limited evidence to suggest including vinegar before meals will reduce blood glucose levels. Despite this, I decided to continue the challenge with an open mind. 

I did, however, find it difficult to incorporate a veggie starter before breakfast – I’d only recently started eating breakfast after a few years of being too lazy in the morning, and the thought of chowing down on vegetables at 9am was a bit much to stomach. But according to Inchauspé and Hunter, having a veggie starter is an easy way to increase your overall daily vegetable intake and potentially decrease glucose spikes. 

“A veggie starter may also help promote healthy meal combinations where half the plate or bowl is salad or veggies, a quarter high fibre, low GI carbohydrates, and a quarter protein-containing foods,” says Hunter. “Blood glucose levels are influenced by our intake of foods containing carbohydrates. Balancing the amount of carbohydrates we eat at any one meal, and spreading our intake across the day helps maintain steady blood glucose levels.”

That being said, I didn’t struggle with the veggie starter at lunch and dinner – I armed myself with punnets of baby carrots which I snacked on with some natural hummus after drinking my vinegar water. I often ate a big veggie salad for lunch, which I deemed sufficient in the veg department and opted out of the extra veggie starter (sorry, die-hard Glucose Goddesses). 

As for the symptoms, I was still struggling with afternoon brain fog, and I also found my skin breaking out after about five days. I also found it difficult to fall asleep at night, but I held out hope to see some changes in that department, too.

Glucose Goddess Method Week 2

On day 8, I woke up feeling refreshed. Now, this was an extremely rare occurrence for me – no matter if it’s 7am or 10am, whether I’ve had six hours of sleep or nine, I almost always felt groggy upon waking and could continue sleeping for hours if I wanted to. But on this day, I felt well-rested and ready to rise. 

However, I did still hit a wall around 3:30 pm and was almost falling asleep at my desk – apparently, fatigue was not a small feat to overcome. As for the hacks, I was finding the 10-minute post-meal walk the most difficult habit to stick to. Yes, it’s only 10 minutes, but it’s important to understand just how lazy I am. Paired with a full belly, getting up to move after a meal was not an easy task. But alas, we persisted, in the name of science, of course. 

Hunter explained to me that being active on most days can assist with reducing blood glucose levels. “Thirty to 60 minutes of exercise a day is great, but any physical activity is better than no activity,” Hunter says. “So, if a 10-minute walk after each meal makes this target achievable and prompts you to take those steps, fantastic.”

Post-breakfast and lunch walks were relatively effortless, but post-dinner walks were harder, particularly if dinner was a bit later than usual. Also as a woman living in a high-traffic Melbourne neighbourhood, if it was after dark and my partner wasn’t home or didn’t feel like walking, I would usually skip it. Mine is not the safest of suburbs, and I didn’t feel comfortable wandering alone at night, even if it was only for 10 minutes.

All in all, the challenge was going surprisingly well. I woke up fresh on several days and the cystic pimples that had arisen the week prior were starting to clear (disclaimer: my menstrual cycle was mostly to blame for the acne – I got my period at the end of the first week). 

Glucose Goddess Method Week 3

By the third week, I was really getting in the swing of things. I didn’t even have to think twice about making my vinegar water and was mixing up my carrot and hummus snack with a viral Asian-style carrot salad I made after finding myself on the Glucose Goddess side of TikTok. There were definitely still days where I was feeling tired upon waking, but I was starting to notice a bigger gap between the timing of my morning coffees (yes, plural) – I’d usually have one upon waking and another immediately afterwards. Now, I was waiting an hour or two before the second coffee. A minute win, yes, but a win nonetheless. 

I also started to wake naturally at about 7:30am, which in turn meant I was getting tired earlier at night and found myself asleep around 10:30pm (usually I would get into bed at this time and struggle to fall asleep until around midnight). 

There were some hiccups this week, though, due to a busy social calendar. I had an event, a dinner and a weekend getaway with my family, which made drinking vinegar water before meals and walking afterwards tricky. I did try, conspicuously of course, to eat vegetables on my plate first and eat carbs last, where possible. I didn’t want to be too strict and was happy to stick to the hacks in some way (although I did consider, briefly, bringing vinegar water in a small, discreet bottle in my purse – but a woman has to have some dignity). 

Glucose Goddess Method Week 4

On the weekend, I miraculously had the energy and motivation to do housework. Shortly after waking up, I vacuumed and cleaned my apartment, did the grocery shopping and went for a long walk (after breakfast, of course). And much to my former 21-year-old self’s dismay, I was asleep by 11pm on a Saturday night. 

Throughout the entire month, I fortunately did not have to try hard to eat carbs last – although Hunter says this hack might not have the most significant impact anyway.  “Studies around the effect of eating foods in a particular order are limited, with inconsistent findings,” she says. “It’s better to focus on regular, well-balanced meals rather than the order you eat the food.”

But, as I said, I was keeping an open mind. On most days I cooked HelloFresh meals, which usually consisted of protein, vegetables or salad, and carbs such as rice or potatoes. This made it easier to eat in the Glucose Goddess order, especially if I had run out of carrots and I could eat the salad as my veggie starter. But of course, I didn’t stress if dinner was something like pasta, where eating carbs last was virtually impossible. I love food and cooking, so I made it a focus to still enjoy my meals without being too strict on the rules. 

All in all, following the Glucose Goddess method for a month was a relatively easy challenge that may have had some positive benefits on my lifestyle. I saw the most noticeable improvement in my sleep patterns and fatigue levels – I was still a bit tired in the afternoons but by the end of the fourth week I wasn’t falling asleep at my desk, and getting up in the morning was easier. One day I even had a lash appointment in the afternoon, so I  avoided coffee beforehand to ensure my eyes were calm and still for the treatment. Much to my surprise, I made it to 3pm without feeling overly fatigued. 

My mood was also more stable by the end, although this difference could be explained by heightened mood swings in the first week (thanks, PMS). Plus, seeing as the hacks were effortless to include in my daily routine, I’m looking forward to continuing on my glucose journey and seeing if I notice any other changes going forward.