to carb or not too carb?

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FaerieCae
FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I am a carb fiend, I eat potatoes, rice and pasta, generally I'm in my MFP settings, but I was just wondering.
Why would I lower my carbs? I dont understand why people do... as far as I know I need carbs for energy, but thats as much of my knowledge. Can someone help gimme an education as to why you would lower it?

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  • shitletsbepretty
    shitletsbepretty Posts: 1
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    carbs are a source of energy, and so is fat. the different between them, though, is fat gives 6x the output in energy! however, the body tends to use carbs before it switches off to fat burning. because of this, people generally find if you eat little to no carbs, your body will strictly burn fat. people who eat low carb diets generally also eat high fat (scary, but harmless and effective!!) and protein diets. this makes for good weight loss!
  • Requiembell
    Requiembell Posts: 106 Member
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    carbs are a source of energy, and so is fat. the different between them, though, is fat gives 6x the output in energy! however, the body tends to use carbs before it switches off to fat burning. because of this, people generally find if you eat little to no carbs, your body will strictly burn fat. people who eat low carb diets generally also eat high fat (scary, but harmless and effective!!) and protein diets. this makes for good weight loss!

    You also do not build with carbs. If you want to build, you need the amino acids that are in proteins and fats. If you have very high carbs and nothing else, you will not improve your performance significantly.
  • LauraW1219
    LauraW1219 Posts: 71 Member
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    I try to keep my carbs under 50 so I can burn more fat. It's hard to do, but for me to see the results it's a must. 50 or less extreme loss. 51-100 slow weight loss. 101 and up maintaining.
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
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    Some people find reducing them helps control appetite and cravings.

    In some cases reducing them, particularly the refined carbs, can help with metabolic conditions which are hindering fat loss.

    Some people don't need to.

    S'all individual innit? :)
  • FaerieCae
    FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
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    Thanks everyone, that makes it really simple to understand why I shouldnt eat too much of it :)
  • XXXMinnieXXX
    XXXMinnieXXX Posts: 3,459 Member
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    If I eat 100-120g of carbs per day I lose weight, if I eat more it stops no matter what my deficit. Every very successful friend on here Ihave does the same thing, all the ones qwith higher carbs seems to go around in circles. I also enjoy the way of eating now, much better than how I used to eat.

    Zara :-)
  • capergirl770
    capergirl770 Posts: 23 Member
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    Becareful with low carbing.. I did it for quite a while, lost weight very easy. 25lbs in 2 1/2 months BUT low carb diets are linked to Hypothyroidism and thats what happened to me. Now I gained all the weight back and its a big struggle to lose. I think as long as your careful and dont go too low for too long you will keep your metabolism working properly.
    Cut out all simple carbs, like white rice, white bread etc. I find that really helps.. I will not eat anything that is made from white flour, whole wheat everything for me. this way I have way more energy at the gym..

    Good luck!
  • SonicDeathMonkey80
    SonicDeathMonkey80 Posts: 4,489 Member
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    I try to stay away from "junk" carbs such as potatoes, bleached-flour pasta, white rice, cheap breads etc. Try sweet potatoes, squashes, whole grain pastas/rice/breads, et. al. You'll get the carbs still, but you'll get a better macro spread. Also, you can start to be more aware of your sugary "quick energy" stuffs - you can get carb energy without having a 1:1 ratio of carbs to sugars. If you're semi-active, carbs aren't a bad thing.
  • FaerieCae
    FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
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    I've eaten wheatmeal/multigrain bread and brown rice for years, think my problem there is portion control! Will have to see if I can find whole wheat pasta at the supermarket. Ive got my macros set at 50%...or 181 g but I rarely ever hit that or go over so I might lower it a bit more. If I do that, do I up both protein and fat or just one? Whats wrong with going over your macros on protein? I seem to do that more often then not, also with sugar, but I think thats the fruit.
  • favreervaf
    favreervaf Posts: 54 Member
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    Always remember, fat burns in the fire of carbs. Carbohydrates (glucose) is the only macronutrient that can cross the blood brain barrier. Protein and fat cannot. With low carbohydrates, especially if you are active, your central nervous system and body may not have enough carbohydrates to run properly. Stay within normal means. 55% of your diet should be carbohydrates.
  • tamrod2
    tamrod2 Posts: 83 Member
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    A lot of overweight people become insulin resistance. Leads to diabetes. When some people (myself and husband) eat processed carbs...sugar, flour, pasta, processed carbs it spikes your blood sugar levels and your body stores it as fat and doesn't burn it off like slim people do. Eating carbs like fruits, veges, sprouted grain breads, and organic dairy products are good however because they do not spike your blood sugar levels to high:)
  • FaerieCae
    FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
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    Hrrm, okay, so stick with complex carbs.... but dont eat too little of them. Thanks guys :) hope I got that right, if very simplified hehe :smile:
    Edit typos
  • JessHealthKick
    JessHealthKick Posts: 800 Member
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    carbs are a source of energy, and so is fat. the different between them, though, is fat gives 6x the output in energy! however, the body tends to use carbs before it switches off to fat burning. because of this, people generally find if you eat little to no carbs, your body will strictly burn fat. people who eat low carb diets generally also eat high fat (scary, but harmless and effective!!) and protein diets. this makes for good weight loss!

    it is very very harmless for your body in the long run. Bye bye muscles! did you know your heart is a muscle too?

    Japanese are longest living, very slim (I live here and am reminded of this fact daily). Why? They have much fewer processed foods than us, lots of fish, lots of rice, but a lower number of calories. 60% carbs diet so I have read in recent research (sorry I can't quote).

    Carbs are your friend :) lose weight the healthy way, not short term silly diets that confuse your body and your mind.
  • Shadowknight137
    Shadowknight137 Posts: 1,243 Member
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    I am a carb fiend, I eat potatoes, rice and pasta, generally I'm in my MFP settings, but I was just wondering.
    Why would I lower my carbs? I dont understand why people do... as far as I know I need carbs for energy, but thats as much of my knowledge. Can someone help gimme an education as to why you would lower it?

    Depending on what you typically eat, carbs should really be the only thing you need to lower.

    Minimum requirements for protein and fats are 0.82g and 0.45g per lb of lean body mass respectively, with the remainder of your calories filled with carbs - to create a surplus or deficit, carbs are altered.
  • FaerieCae
    FaerieCae Posts: 437 Member
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    Howl... I wouldnt even know how much of me is lean bm to work that out....

    Im not doing a silly diet... I just wanted to know why other people do it....low carbs I mean. I didnt understand the thinking behind it, now I understand it a bit more, win. If I have been doing it, its been completely unintentional cause I didnt know enough about it. With everyones help I think I have a much better grasp now.
  • TheVimFuego
    TheVimFuego Posts: 2,412 Member
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    I try to stay away from "junk" carbs such as potatoes, bleached-flour pasta, white rice, cheap breads etc. Try sweet potatoes, squashes, whole grain pastas/rice/breads, et. al. You'll get the carbs still, but you'll get a better macro spread. Also, you can start to be more aware of your sugary "quick energy" stuffs - you can get carb energy without having a 1:1 ratio of carbs to sugars. If you're semi-active, carbs aren't a bad thing.

    A potato is junk?
  • Lupercalia
    Lupercalia Posts: 1,857 Member
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    I stay pretty low carb because I have health issues (PCOS and insulin resistance) which a diet low in carbohydrates helps to manage. I also have various food allergies that dictate what I can and cannot eat (gluten and lactose intolerant, allergic to a few fruits and nuts).

    I get my carbs from veggies and certain fruits.

    People who are healthy apart from being overweight don't need to restrict carbs in that way--eat what fits your macros/calorie goals and you will lose weight. If you want to be healthy, watch the refined carbs and added sugars, eat lots of fruits and veggies, protein at every meal, a bit of healthy fat. Keep things simple if you can...no reason to complicate the process of losing fat unnecessarily.

    Don't fear carbs--there is a lot of over the top nonsense about this way of eating that makes it out to be some sort of miracle weight loss solution. It's not, and people who are not diagnosed with some sort of metabolic disturbance do not need to eat this way.

    Potatoes are not "junk", no. That is stupid.

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