Myth About Carbs....Help!

ThirdEyeOpen

So iv added lifting to my boot camp training and heard I need to eat a good amount of carbs for my lifting..But before iv always been told that carbs are the enemy....what's the truth on carbs...and why should I be eating well over 100 carbs a day when iv always tried to keep them down??

Any insight on this would be so helpful!!!
PS....iv heard the term CARB LOADING used for my weight training...what are some good carbs for doing that & why is that necessary.

editorgrrl

Carbs = energy. I use MFP's protein & fiber goals as minimums and ignore carbs & fat. It will take trial & error to find what works for you.

TAsunder

Never heard of added carbs needed for weightlifting and DEFINITELY have not heard of carb loading for weight lifting. Carb Loading is intended for endurance athletes to help them increase their glycogen stores so that they don't run out of glycogen during long endurance sessions.

If you are doing a lot of cardio, you might need to up your carbs. I normally associate boot camp with high intensity work, so it's possible you would benefit. But I'm confused by the references to "lifting."

SueInAz

What you're saying is a little backward. If you're lifting to build muscle you'd want to eat more protein. Carb loading is for marathon runners, triathletes and those who participate in endurance sports, not for weight lifters. Really, if you're not intending to be a body builder, I wouldn't worry too much about eating a special way just because you're doing a little weight lifting.

I'm not even going to get into the "carbs are the enemy" thing as it'll just turn this thread into another argument.

TavistockToad

Carbs are yummy... That's not a myth, and all I need to know!

TutuMom41

So iv added lifting to my boot camp training and heard I need to eat a good amount of carbs for my lifting..But before iv always been told that carbs are the enemy....what's the truth on carbs...and why should I be eating well over 100 carbs a day when iv always tried to keep them down??

Any insight on this would be so helpful!!!
PS....iv heard the term CARB LOADING used for my weight training...what are some good carbs for doing that & why is that necessary.

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

ThirdEyeOpen

I have my boot camp and then i will do lifting weights after..hence the term LIFTING ;-). Each day is a different zone of body parts (leg day, chest & triceps etc)...but i heard the carb loading is good for high intensity excercise like my boot camp.

i just am having a hard time getting out of the mindset of eating 100+ carbs a day. if i do have alot of carbs im trying to have them come from more COMPLEX carb foods like whole grains and stuff but i just wanted to see if eating 100+ carbs a day will hinder my weight loss.

my macors are 1800 calories per day (which took me awhileee to get over the fact its ok to eat that much lol)
with 50% protein
30% carbs
20% fat

ketoambahh

For exercise, quality carbs beforehand then protein afterward.

Pick complex carbs high in fiber and the energy from said carbs will last longer. Protein helps afterwards for when your muscles are recovering. Put fat into the mix and you'll feel fuller longer.

Boom.

ThirdEyeOpen

What you're saying is a little backward. If you're lifting to build muscle you'd want to eat more protein. Carb loading is for marathon runners, triathletes and those who participate in endurance sports, not for weight lifters. Really, if you're not intending to be a body builder, I wouldn't worry too much about eating a special way just because you're doing a little weight lifting.

I'm not even going to get into the "carbs are the enemy" thing as it'll just turn this thread into another argument.

No no arguments needed lol we are all here for the same thing and should be gathering around singing koombayah hahaha jk jk...no but seriously im just trying to gain information in a world where health knowledge is always seeming to contradict itself. i definitely eat almost 200g of protein a day..i keep my protein high and attempt to have a 3500 calorie/week deficit to try for loosing a pound a week. i havent seen the scale move in a few weeks so i thought maybe i wasnt eating enough..so i upped my calories to 1800...then i started seeing i was intaking quite a few carbs and just wanted to see if maybe that was what was keeping my scale stagnant.

PS....i appreciate all your guys input (^_^)

AliceDark

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

^ This. Give it another 10 years or so, and some crackpot will come up with a low-protein diet. (And all the fad dieters will be buying "low-protein bread" and other such nonsense).

parkscs

What you're saying is a little backward. If you're lifting to build muscle you'd want to eat more protein. Carb loading is for marathon runners, triathletes and those who participate in endurance sports, not for weight lifters. Really, if you're not intending to be a body builder, I wouldn't worry too much about eating a special way just because you're doing a little weight lifting.

I'm not even going to get into the "carbs are the enemy" thing as it'll just turn this thread into another argument.

No no arguments needed lol we are all here for the same thing and should be gathering around singing koombayah hahaha jk jk...no but seriously im just trying to gain information in a world where health knowledge is always seeming to contradict itself. i definitely eat almost 200g of protein a day..i keep my protein high and attempt to have a 3500 calorie/week deficit to try for loosing a pound a week. i havent seen the scale move in a few weeks so i thought maybe i wasnt eating enough..so i upped my calories to 1800...then i started seeing i was intaking quite a few carbs and just wanted to see if maybe that was what was keeping my scale stagnant.

PS....i appreciate all your guys input (^_^)

200g of protein is almost certainly overkill for you. It probably won't hurt, but it's also not needed. You could also go for a higher weekly deficit and be just fine - 1 lb/week seems pretty conservative to me. As for your carb macro, I would set it based on how you like to eat and how you feel. I don't see any harm in doing some self-experimentation with your macros.

ThirdEyeOpen

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

^ This. Give it another 10 years or so, and some crackpot will come up with a low-protein diet. (And all the fad dieters will be buying "low-protein bread" and other such nonsense).

hahahhaaha i know!!! thats why its so hard to get valid info cuz its always changing with whoever wants to come up with a new fad or "truth" about things. too hard to keep up with all this crap floating around lol

EvanKeel

If you were doing a planned bulking, where you were trying to build muscle, I can see increasing your carb intake intentionally.

That said, there's no reason to avoid them apart from a medical condition and/or personal preferences. I find I have more energy when I don't limit my carbs too much, which helps me during my lifting routines.

TutuMom41

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

^ This. Give it another 10 years or so, and some crackpot will come up with a low-protein diet. (And all the fad dieters will be buying "low-protein bread" and other such nonsense).

hahahhaaha i know!!! thats why its so hard to get valid info cuz its always changing with whoever wants to come up with a new fad or "truth" about things. too hard to keep up with all this crap floating around lol

Valid info is common sense. Calories in calories out. A runner will burn a lot more calories than an average person. The longest I have run is 13 miles but I ate what ever the hell I wanted to.

ketoambahh

With "fad" diets come the franken-food that comes with it. The trick is to lose weight with food is to eat mostly foods that you can read and understand the ingredients of. Some know more than others, but the idea is the same. Outside aisles are your best friends.

But I agree with 200g of protein being high. Protein intake normally should be about 0.5-0.8 out of 1 per pound of body weight.

SueInAz

What you're saying is a little backward. If you're lifting to build muscle you'd want to eat more protein. Carb loading is for marathon runners, triathletes and those who participate in endurance sports, not for weight lifters. Really, if you're not intending to be a body builder, I wouldn't worry too much about eating a special way just because you're doing a little weight lifting.

I'm not even going to get into the "carbs are the enemy" thing as it'll just turn this thread into another argument.

No no arguments needed lol we are all here for the same thing and should be gathering around singing koombayah hahaha jk jk...no but seriously im just trying to gain information in a world where health knowledge is always seeming to contradict itself. i definitely eat almost 200g of protein a day..i keep my protein high and attempt to have a 3500 calorie/week deficit to try for loosing a pound a week. i havent seen the scale move in a few weeks so i thought maybe i wasnt eating enough..so i upped my calories to 1800...then i started seeing i was intaking quite a few carbs and just wanted to see if maybe that was what was keeping my scale stagnant.

PS....i appreciate all your guys input (^_^)

Most people here will tell you that you can eat the way you want and still lose weight as long as you stay under your calorie goal. I'm sure that is entirely true for the majority of people. For ME, PERSONALLY, I try to keep my carbs under 90g per day and most days are lower. This is for two reasons: one, I've just found that it's easier for me to lose weight when I stay under 90g. Two, the more carbs I eat the more I want and most of the stuff I might end up overindulging on is high carb sweet or salty snacks. If I just avoid them it's a lot easier for me to stay under my calorie goals on a regular basis. Again, this is just me and YMMV. I do think that 200g of protein is quite a lot but I'm short and don't have much more to lose so I probably don't eat nearly as many calories as you do, either.

I'd say to just go ahead and play around with your macros and see what works for you. If you increase your carbs and find that your weight loss stalls then lower them.

editorgrrl

thats why its so hard to get valid info cuz its always changing with whoever wants to come up with a new fad or "truth" about things. too hard to keep up with all this crap floating around.

Read the Sexypants post: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/1080242-a-guide-to-get-you-started-on-your-path-to-sexypants

FatFreeFrolicking

What you're saying is a little backward. If you're lifting to build muscle you'd want to eat more protein. Carb loading is for marathon runners, triathletes and those who participate in endurance sports, not for weight lifters. Really, if you're not intending to be a body builder, I wouldn't worry too much about eating a special way just because you're doing a little weight lifting.

I'm not even going to get into the "carbs are the enemy" thing as it'll just turn this thread into another argument.

No no arguments needed lol we are all here for the same thing and should be gathering around singing koombayah hahaha jk jk...no but seriously im just trying to gain information in a world where health knowledge is always seeming to contradict itself. i definitely eat almost 200g of protein a day..i keep my protein high and attempt to have a 3500 calorie/week deficit to try for loosing a pound a week. i havent seen the scale move in a few weeks so i thought maybe i wasnt eating enough..so i upped my calories to 1800...then i started seeing i was intaking quite a few carbs and just wanted to see if maybe that was what was keeping my scale stagnant.

PS....i appreciate all your guys input (^_^)

You have 158 lbs to lose but aren't losing weight eating less than 1800 calories a day? That's very strange.

Do you use a food scale? If not, you are overestimating how many calories you are consuming which is why you aren't losing weight.

Also, 200 g of protein a day is a bit excessive. There's no need to be consuming that much protein. Aim for 130-160 g instead.

themedalist

i just am having a hard time getting out of the mindset of eating 100+ carbs a day. if i do have alot of carbs im trying to have them come from more COMPLEX carb foods like whole grains and stuff but i just wanted to see if eating 100+ carbs a day will hinder my weight loss.

My two cents:

I lost all my weight eating 200+ grams of carbs a day (55% of my total). For most people, macro distribution is a matter of personal preferece and will not impact weight loss. For most people calories in/out is all that matters.

0smiile0

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

^ This. Give it another 10 years or so, and some crackpot will come up with a low-protein diet. (And all the fad dieters will be buying "low-protein bread" and other such nonsense).

The low protein trend has already begun with this whole 80/10/10 thing. Soon industries will be catching on and creating the carbiest products they can

TutuMom41

Its all a load of bull****. The USA is in an anti carb mindset at this moment. When i was younger it was all about Susan powder and stop the insanity witch was eat as many carbs as you want just avoid all fats. I have seen many things come and go in the diet world but in the end the only thing that matters is calories in and calories out

^ This. Give it another 10 years or so, and some crackpot will come up with a low-protein diet. (And all the fad dieters will be buying "low-protein bread" and other such nonsense).

The low protein trend has already begun with this whole 80/10/10 thing. Soon industries will be catching on and creating the carbiest products they can

Who knows in another 10 years wonder-bread and Margarine will be back in style. I still wont eat it Butter tastes better