A question on carbs

grace42d
grace42d Posts: 156 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am trying to increase the percentage of protein and decrease the percentage of carbs in my diet. I am also working on increasing my fruits and veggies. I have been eating a ton of fruit and veggies and almost no bread, cereal, crackers, pasta, etc. yet my food diary still says I am at 50% or more carbs. How do I eat to change this ratio?
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Replies

  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    Eat less fruit, eat more protein
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    Wow, i never knew that bananas were a carb! I just read some information on the glycemic index which explains carbs differently. I am still a bit foggy, but will switch out some fruits for veggies and try to figure out how to add protein with no meat.
  • 1jobean
    1jobean Posts: 84
    There is a difference in how your body processes carbs depending on what kind they are. You should probably research them. Bananas arent going to make you fat but croissants will. I pretty much only eat carbs and I dont eat meat or dairy. Basic rule of thumb if you can grow it, it wasnt refined, and you eat it without frying it, its healthy.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    There is a difference in how your body processes carbs depending on what kind they are. You should probably research them. Bananas arent going to make you fat but croissants will. I pretty much only eat carbs and I dont eat meat or dairy. Basic rule of thumb if you can grow it, it wasnt refined, and you eat it without frying it, its healthy.
    ^^^ 100% unrefined bullsh!t

    Certain foods don't make you fat. A calorie surplus does. I eat pizza, ice cream, crepes, chocolate, etc. and lose weight because I keep a calorie deficit.
  • 1jobean
    1jobean Posts: 84
    True calorie surplus will make you fat however try to eat a whole food plant based diet and gain fat. And you could be more polite.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    True calorie surplus will make you fat however try to eat a whole food plant based diet and gain fat. And you could be more polite.
    I could definitely get fat off of a whole food plant based diet. I could get fat from eating nothing but fruit. I could easily eat an entire large watermelon (~1600 calories) and 20 large bananas (~2400 calories) in one sitting. That's 4000 calories right there!

    Also, I'm not a polite person. I go by facts and disregard emotions most of the time.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I agree with JSRG.

    On a side note, anything that grew in the ground is going to be all or at least mostly carbs. Anything that walked on the ground (or swam or flew) is going to be all or mostly protein.
  • 1jobean
    1jobean Posts: 84
    I believe if you ate that much fruit in one setting your body would naturally dispose of it very quickly. That said I dont think you could eat like that enough to gain fat. But feel free to prove me wrong.
  • BarbieAS
    BarbieAS Posts: 1,414 Member
    Agree, if you really want to cut back on carbs then continue to keep grains out of your diet, be careful with your fruit intake, and keep eating lots of leafy green veggies and protein and fats. Within the veggie world, be careful with starchy veggies like carrots, corn, potatoes, stuff like that. That's not to say never eat them, but just make sure to work them into your day appropriately as they'll have more carbs than other veggies. Also, be careful with your dairy - things like milk and yogurt can have a lot of milk sugars (carbs) in them as well.

    All that said, there's no NEED to reduce/limit carbs in your diet (barring medical reasons, of course). Some people choose to do that (myself included), and that's totally fine if that's an eating style that you think you can sustain and it's going to help you meet your daily calorie goals (which is what it really is for me - keeping high-carb foods out of my diet just allows me more room for more filling foods, and I'm far more satisfied during and at the end of the day when more of my food volume comes from protein, fats, and veggies). But your calorie deficit is the #1 most important thing to meet. Macros and such are important but secondary to that.

    (Edited to fix a small typo that was making me crazy, haha.)
  • mavsteriom
    mavsteriom Posts: 9
    BarbieAS - a sensible, informative reply. Well done.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    Wow, i never knew that bananas were a carb! I just read some information on the glycemic index which explains carbs differently. I am still a bit foggy, but will switch out some fruits for veggies and try to figure out how to add protein with no meat.

    Why no meat? Vegetarian?
  • supermodelchic
    supermodelchic Posts: 550 Member
    Open up your diary so we can take a look, I eat very little friut per day , sugar carbs...
  • m4ttcheek
    m4ttcheek Posts: 229 Member
    I believe if you ate that much fruit in one setting your body would naturally dispose of it very quickly. That said I dont think you could eat like that enough to gain fat. But feel free to prove me wrong.

    If the cals aren't burnt they will be stored as fat. It's as simple as that.
  • lizziebeth1028
    lizziebeth1028 Posts: 3,602 Member
    Like someone else said - eat more protein and less fruit. I looked at your profile and your weight is 115 and your goal weight is 99 pounds? How tall are you? Why are you limiting carbs, bread, pasta?
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    I am a vegetarian. I have tried to incorporate meat into my diet, but it just doesn't make me feel well. I will eat fish and eggs. My food diary is open now. Constructive comments would be great.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I am a vegetarian. I have tried to incorporate meat into my diet, but it just doesn't make me feel well. I will eat fish and eggs. My food diary is open now. Constructive comments would be great.

    I only looked through a week or so of your diary, but your macros could definitely use some more attention. Swap out some of the fruit/veggies for dairy and fish. Lots of good stuff in things like milk, cheese and fish, including the fats.
  • magerum
    magerum Posts: 12,589 Member
    There is a difference in how your body processes carbs depending on what kind they are. You should probably research them. Bananas arent going to make you fat but croissants will. I pretty much only eat carbs and I dont eat meat or dairy. Basic rule of thumb if you can grow it, it wasnt refined, and you eat it without frying it, its healthy.
    ^^^ 100% unrefined bullsh!t

    Certain foods don't make you fat. A calorie surplus does. I eat pizza, ice cream, crepes, chocolate, etc. and lose weight because I keep a calorie deficit.

    ^This. I like you. :flowerforyou:

    ALLTHECARBS_zps89494765.jpg
  • 1jobean
    1jobean Posts: 84
    I agree calories that arent burnt will be stored as fat. I was just trying to say that carbs arent bad, you dont have to limit them if you are eating the right ones. Im on a whole food plant based diet and I find it practically impossible to eat enough to gain weight. I know its possible to eat enough fruit, beans, whole grains, and veggies to gain weight. However, I think it would be difficult to maintain eating at a surplus this way for an extended period of time.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Wow, i never knew that bananas were a carb! I just read some information on the glycemic index which explains carbs differently. I am still a bit foggy, but will switch out some fruits for veggies and try to figure out how to add protein with no meat.

    If it's not protein or fat, it's a carb...anything with sugar is a carb. Fruit is a carb...veggies are carbs...legumes (while providing some protein) are largely carbs...obviously grains, pastas, etc are carbs.

    Honestly, it's very difficult to go low carb when you're a vegetarian. I concur with jacksonpt that if you want to reduce your carbs and up your protein, you're going to have to do a lot more dairy, eggs, fish, etc and cut back on the fruits and veg.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I agree calories that arent burnt will be stored as fat. I was just trying to say that carbs arent bad, you dont have to limit them if you are eating the right ones. Im on a whole food plant based diet and I find it practically impossible to eat enough to gain weight. I know its possible to eat enough fruit, beans, whole grains, and veggies to gain weight. However, I think it would be difficult to maintain eating at a surplus this way for an extended period of time.

    Calorie sparse foods (is that the opposite of calorie dense foods?) are going to be "harder" to gain weigh off of because they require so much more volume to equal the same total calories... but cals in vs cals out works the same way regardless of the type of calorie. IME, people with bad eating habits will find a way to overeat regardless.
  • 1jobean
    1jobean Posts: 84
    Agree
  • JCES10
    JCES10 Posts: 37 Member
    How would I like my heart attack? By eating the unhealthy pleasures of life or by stressing out on what to eat? Definitely by eating what I like, just kidding! Life is to short and youth even shorter so just have whatever makes you happy with MODERATION.
  • kristi321
    kristi321 Posts: 71 Member
    And don't be scared of FAT! I eat 5% carb, 65% fat and 30% protein. If you reduce carbs, the fat keeps you satiated. If you find yourself sensitive to grains and sugars that trigger cravings, then this is the way to go. Research it for yourself.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    I am a vegetarian. I have tried to incorporate meat into my diet, but it just doesn't make me feel well. I will eat fish and eggs. My food diary is open now. Constructive comments would be great.
    I'm a vegetarian, too. I eat tons of egg whites because they're all protein and I add protein powder to my oatmeal. There are tons of way to reduce carbs/increase protein on a vegetarian diet. I did vegan keto in the past (carbs >50g net). It was hard, but it's possible.
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    And don't be scared of FAT! I eat 5% carb, 65% fat and 30% protein. If you reduce carbs, the fat keeps you satiated. If you find yourself sensitive to grains and sugars that trigger cravings, then this is the way to go. Research it for yourself.
    Fat is actually super satiating. I can eat a tsp of peanut butter and some fried seaweed and be full for quite a while.
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    Kristie,

    Could you give me an example meal for these percentages?
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    I am only 5' 2". I was at 108 for most of the last year. I would be happy with 105.

    I am limiting carbs for several reasons. My son was diagnosed with severe food allergies a few years ago. He can't have gluten, eggs, corn, eggplant. So the household is generally gluten free because it is hard for him to have it in the house. Now, when I do eat wheat, I have a hard time digesting it. I must have lost some ability to deal with it since the household diet has changed. Lastly, I am trying to eat more protein, veggies, fruits and fiber but my appetite is generally really poor. So I have to cut out some things to make room to eat other things.

    I just found a recipe for baked hard-boiled eggs, so will try to increase eggs, protein powder and fish.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    I am only 5' 2". I was at 108 for most of the last year. I would be happy with 105.

    You do realize you're talking about 3lbs, right? Most people fluctuation that much daily... how are you going to evaluate progress in such small increments?

    Additionally, will 3lbs really make any difference? Is that even noticeable?
  • grace42d
    grace42d Posts: 156 Member
    115 to 105 is 10 pounds. Or about 10% of my body weight. It will make a difference to me. Especially if I can eat healthier and drop a few pounds.
  • jacksonpt
    jacksonpt Posts: 10,413 Member
    Sorry, I thought you were at 108 tryign to get to 105.

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