opinions on carbs..

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Replies

  • laureneliset
    laureneliset Posts: 50 Member
    For strictly weight loss, it's all about the calorie deficit. Body composition is another story.

    This.
  • tedrickp
    tedrickp Posts: 1,229 Member
    From Lehningers Principles of Biochemistry:

    "High blood glucose elicits the release of insulin, which speeds the uptake of glucose by tissues and favors the storage of fuels as glycogen and triaglycerols, while inhibiting fatty acid mobilization in adipose tissue."

    and Williams Textbook of Endocrinology:

    "The activity of lipoprotein lipase (LPL) within individual tissues is a key factor in partitioning triglycerides among different body tissues. Insulin influences this partitioning through its stimulation of LPL activity in adipose tissue. Insulin also promotes triglyceride storage in adipocytes through other mechanisms, including inhibition of lipolysis, stimulation of adipocyte differentiation and escalation of glucose uptake."

    both books are authoritative in their respective scientific fields. Stop with the anecdotal stories here that "prove" carbs are good for everyone. For many, even a "moderate" amount of carbs can easily lead to fat gain compared to eating other macro nutrients.

    I don't think you have a good grasp of how insulin actually effects weight gain - because it is quite a complex issue and is certainly not as bad as many of the LC proponents say.

    http://weightology.net/weightologyweekly/?page_id=319

    And no a moderate amount of carbs CAN NOT easily lead to weight gain in a hypocaloric situation (outside of medical issues).

    IMO - carbs are totally fine. Figure out how much protein you need, how much fat you need (adjust for personal preference: satiety and performance) then feel free to fill in the rest of calories with carbs.

    If you are doing intense exercise - then you will assuredly want to fit in as many carbs as possible. If you are sedentary then you can get away with much less.
  • RHachicho
    RHachicho Posts: 1,115 Member
    Aye the only slightly tricky bit with carbs is that they can only be used for body fuel. Fat and protein can all be burned off as fuel if there is too much for the body to use but carbohydrate can only be fuel and if you overfuel yourself that tends to go straight to your fat deposits. That being said those fat deposits can also eventually be burned as fuel but this is a roundabout process and in general eating too much carbs and not burning them results in weight gain. Especially since that doesn't leave room for enough protein and fat which has our bodies hungering over those macros. This does put carbs in a unique position in that over indulging in them can slow or stall your weight loss even if you adhere to your calorie goal or at least make adhering to your calorie goal difficult.

    That being said without carbs most people can't really exercise effectively and though people like to say that weight loss is 80% about diet I would disagree. I think that plentiful exercise helps you to control your diet and improves the way your body uses the food you take in. For example I had an absolutely BRUTAL abs workout monday last week so much so that my gut was twitching the next day. Result is I haven't been able to do anything BUT lose weight this week because all protein goes straight to repair work. Exercise is about giving your body something to do with the food you eat other than sending it straight to your fat reserves.

    Oh btw I lost 5.4 lbs this week and that is with eating 2200 (sometimes more on exercise days) calories a day and with a massive party on Saturday where i ended up eating drinking 3-3.5k calories. Paired with 8 hours of walking 4 hours of Cardio and 3 strength training sessions over the course of the week.

    Physical activity is paramount anybody who tells you it is unnecessary is indeed correct ... technically. But honestly losing weight without exercise is the stupid way to do it. And carbs are totally necessary for that.

    But weight loss is not linear. You could have done all that activity and gained 1 lb. And the reason to clearly state that exercise is not needed for weight loss is so that people can individually tailor their process to their current situation. For example, Too many people get injured and then cite that as their reason for weight gain, when they could have stayed in a deficit and still lost weight.

    True I had to BE in a deficit to lose weight perhaps I should have made that more clear. All I am saying is that the role of physical activity in weight loss is often downplayed. Also please take note that a good part of my activity is moderate walking :) I do not advocate hammering the *kitten* out of your body repeatedly till it drops weight. Exercise like anything else can be overdone. It's just that often it is tragically underdone and sometimes I feel sorry for people who are crying about how hard it is to stick to their 1200 calorie diets. It just seems like needless suffering especially after you start getting fitter and the exercise becomes more of a pleasure than a hassle.

    As for injury in my own experience that mostly happened at the start of my program. Once I became savvy with my muscles and became good at telling when I was over taxing them all i ever got was doms. But perhaps that is me. The trick is to learn from your mistakes rather than be put off by them and give up. But then again isn't that ALWAYS the trick lol?

    Not only that but a lot of people have certain muscles that are frankly atrophied (I know I did). These will tend to get injured quite a lot at the start of a program. Again the key is careful perseverance.
  • mizzcasual
    mizzcasual Posts: 223 Member
    For me I work best with the less carbs i have I have about maybe between 40%-60% carbs anymore then that it makes me extremely tired . I focus more on eating more fat and protein thats whats worked for me so far.
  • MelodyandBarbells
    MelodyandBarbells Posts: 7,724 Member
    Aye the only slightly tricky bit with carbs is that they can only be used for body fuel. Fat and protein can all be burned off as fuel if there is too much for the body to use but carbohydrate can only be fuel and if you overfuel yourself that tends to go straight to your fat deposits. That being said those fat deposits can also eventually be burned as fuel but this is a roundabout process and in general eating too much carbs and not burning them results in weight gain. Especially since that doesn't leave room for enough protein and fat which has our bodies hungering over those macros. This does put carbs in a unique position in that over indulging in them can slow or stall your weight loss even if you adhere to your calorie goal or at least make adhering to your calorie goal difficult.

    That being said without carbs most people can't really exercise effectively and though people like to say that weight loss is 80% about diet I would disagree. I think that plentiful exercise helps you to control your diet and improves the way your body uses the food you take in. For example I had an absolutely BRUTAL abs workout monday last week so much so that my gut was twitching the next day. Result is I haven't been able to do anything BUT lose weight this week because all protein goes straight to repair work. Exercise is about giving your body something to do with the food you eat other than sending it straight to your fat reserves.

    Oh btw I lost 5.4 lbs this week and that is with eating 2200 (sometimes more on exercise days) calories a day and with a massive party on Saturday where i ended up eating drinking 3-3.5k calories. Paired with 8 hours of walking 4 hours of Cardio and 3 strength training sessions over the course of the week.

    Physical activity is paramount anybody who tells you it is unnecessary is indeed correct ... technically. But honestly losing weight without exercise is the stupid way to do it. And carbs are totally necessary for that.

    But weight loss is not linear. You could have done all that activity and gained 1 lb. And the reason to clearly state that exercise is not needed for weight loss is so that people can individually tailor their process to their current situation. For example, Too many people get injured and then cite that as their reason for weight gain, when they could have stayed in a deficit and still lost weight.

    True I had to BE in a deficit to lose weight perhaps I should have made that more clear. All I am saying is that the role of physical activity in weight loss is often downplayed. Also please take note that a good part of my activity is moderate walking :) I do not advocate hammering the *kitten* out of your body repeatedly till it drops weight. Exercise like anything else can be overdone. It's just that often it is tragically underdone and sometimes I feel sorry for people who are crying about how hard it is to stick to their 1200 calorie diets. It just seems like needless suffering especially after you start getting fitter and the exercise becomes more of a pleasure than a hassle.

    As for injury in my own experience that mostly happened at the start of my program. Once I became savvy with my muscles and became good at telling when I was over taxing them all i ever got was doms. But perhaps that is me. The trick is to learn from your mistakes rather than be put off by them and give up. But then again isn't that ALWAYS the trick lol?

    Not only that but a lot of people have certain muscles that are frankly atrophied (I know I did). These will tend to get injured quite a lot at the start of a program. Again the key is careful perseverance.

    Your points are well taken :smile:

    I would say the reason for statements like "weight loss is 80% diet" or "you can't out exercise a bad [sic] diet" is to remind people of the importance of the calories in part of the equation. Too many exercise routines are sold with, do this exercise, lose X pounds. Whereas the sellers who just want your money can make no such guarantee because they have no damn idea what you're eating. I can destroy 1200 calories in five minutes, the same amount of calories may take me three hours to burn. I wouldn't say we down play exercise around here. I enjoyed the Fitness and Exercise forum for several months before venturing around these here parts. It's pretty great!

    And oh, but I do advocate hammering the **** out of my body till it yields :laugh: Nah, as you said it's just trial and error and figuring out what you like. I tend to favor the more intense exercises for now :)
  • anna_toffee
    anna_toffee Posts: 31 Member
    i find carbohydrate rich foods like pasta, rice and bread bloat me uncomfortably, but i have no issues if i have a daily diet of 60/40 veg/protein.

    it depends on what works for your body - i find losing weight easiest when i eat less carbohydrates. at most during the day i have two slices of bread. that's the only carb-rich food i really eat and it's because it's easy to throw a sandwich into my work lunchbox. but that's me, not you, and i don't know other people's bodies the way i know mine.
  • hookilau
    hookilau Posts: 3,134 Member
    Weight loss is primarily calories in vs calories out. But, calories in effects calories out.


    My belief is that there is likely some individual variability as far as individual response to carbohydrate and how that effects mood, performance, behavior, and diet adherence which will then effect weight loss.

    :heart: I agree.

    I don't metabolize carbs well, but my daughter does really well on them. My son and husband, not so much. Either way, find what works for you & work it :drinker:

    My son is 18 and carbs are not really an issue for him right now, it may be in the future though judging from his response & our family history. Though he doesn't limit them in a strict sense, he eats less bread & pasta than the average teen I know.
  • TwirleySlims
    TwirleySlims Posts: 112
    I can't go without carbs, makes me ill! My system needs it! Everything in moderation!
  • laserturkey
    laserturkey Posts: 1,680 Member
    Carbs are delicious, and as a vegetarian they are a significant chunk of my daily intake. A calorie deficit is the most important thing for weight loss.
  • snowflake954
    snowflake954 Posts: 8,399 Member
    I prefer a little bit of everything---nothing is bad. This works fine for me, and I live in Italy---carb heaven. When we used to talk about a "balanced" meal that's what it was--a little of everything in moderation. :smile:
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    Carbs are a macro-nutrient...that's my opinion anyway.

    In all seriousness though, most people who eat the SAD could stand to reduce carbohydrate intake in order to balance out their diets. That doesn't mean low carbing is necessary...people just eat in a very unbalanced way. Most people find that when they "clean" up their diets and balance them out, they tend to take in a more reasonable amount of carbohydrates and they tend to be from more nutritious sources which generally results in winning.
  • flumi_f
    flumi_f Posts: 1,888 Member
    Weight loss is primarily calories in vs calories out. But, calories in effects calories out.


    My belief is that there is likely some individual variability as far as individual response to carbohydrate and how that effects mood, performance, behavior, and diet adherence which will then effect weight loss.

    ^^This! I for example have problems, when I eat too many grain-carbs....bloating, gas, less weightloss, water retention. potato and veggie based carbs don't do that to me. A bit is OK, but if I eat to many grain / sugary carbs, that happens quickly. My Digestion seems to need animal based protein to function best. Doesn't have to be alot, but consumed on a regular basis . I also try to limit processed foods due to the hydrogenated fats and high sodium contents. Also things that cause me to retain water, bloat up a bit.

    You need to find out, what is good for you. IMO, a varied diet with lots of veggies, fruits and self prepared meals is best, but there may be some foods you react to negatively.

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