The Carbs/Sugar in Fruit

Add on: I am 5'4 and 165 pounds, I'm looking to lose about 30 pounds. I usually end up in the 200s for carbs, I work out 3-4 times a week about 90 minutes and I eat between 1000-1300 calories a day

With this information, I would say carbs are heavy and calories are very low.

I would agree, especially about calories. You could likely keep your carbs the same and just add more protein and fat and be fine.

you should do some research to figure out which fruits are higher carb vs. lower carb... I try to avoid things like pineapple, bananas, oranges, apples (4 of my favorite fruits) and go for strawberries or other berries that are low carb/sugar because of my insulin resistance.

A medical condition is really the only reason to avoid carbs or minimize carbs. If the OP doesn't have it, there is no reason to avoid high carb fruits.

Unless you find that by eating certain fruits you find yourself hungry and craving more food sooner, thus making it harder to stay at a deficit.

Fair point, if we want to make this discussion about satiety. The same would go for a lot of foods.


But from a weight loss perspective, it really doesn't matter outside of water retention from the additional glycogen stores from a carb heavy diet.

I don't understand this perspective at all. How can satiety not matter for weight loss? Water weight aside, satiety is a very big factor in fat loss.

Nope. You seem to be assuming that someone who is not sated HAS to eat more or something bad will happen. Luckily, as human beings, we possess free will. Not feeling sated does not mean you HAVE to eat. It's a mild annoyance that you can ignore because, living in a civilized society, your next meal is always only a few hours away. You do not lose more or less weight depending on how sated you feel between meals. You only lose more or less weight when you act on your "hunger".

I am here correcting a lifetime of poor decisions fueled in part by self-loathing and depression, in part by antidepressants that sent me out of my mind with food cravings, and in part by a lack of self-control. That said, I'm not really sure why I come to the community section of the site because the fact of the matter is that the vast majority of people have no idea how bodily processes work and the amount of misinformation I see tossed around is staggering. The bottom line is that weight loss of any sort requires some level of willpower. If you don't possess the cursory level of mental fortitude to wait an extra 2 hours until your next meal to eat, or to eat the right amount of food and wait 20 minutes before you decide whether you're still hungry, then to be blunt no method of weight loss is going to work out for you.

Edit: That's a general statement, not pinpointing you specifically.

OP I'd keep your carb intake the same around 200g. Up protein to at least 90g and get at least 50g of fat. Problem isn't to much carb, its to little of everything else.


200×4 + 90×4 + 50×9 = 1610. Much more reasonable.

OP I'd keep your carb intake the same around 200g. Up protein to at least 90g and get at least 50g of fat. Problem isn't to much carb, its to little of everything else.


200×4 + 90×4 + 50×9 = 1610. Much more reasonable.

^ fully agree with this. I'm 5'3.5" and lost a majority of my weight at 1650 net. That ensured I was able to get proper nutrients and not be so very, very hangry. Fast weight loss does not equal good weight loss. Take it slow and sustainable

Proof that not all Sugars are the same ;-)

you should do some research to figure out which fruits are higher carb vs. lower carb... I try to avoid things like pineapple, bananas, oranges, apples (4 of my favorite fruits) and go for strawberries or other berries that are low carb/sugar because of my insulin resistance.

A medical condition is really the only reason to avoid carbs or minimize carbs. If the OP doesn't have it, there is no reason to avoid high carb fruits.

Unless you find that by eating certain fruits you find yourself hungry and craving more food sooner, thus making it harder to stay at a deficit.

Fair point, if we want to make this discussion about satiety. The same would go for a lot of foods.


But from a weight loss perspective, it really doesn't matter outside of water retention from the additional glycogen stores from a carb heavy diet.

Not disagreeing. Just reminding us that there's more to successful weight loss and ultimately maintenance than just counting calories. And, in fact, it can be achieved without any calorie or macro counting. cheers

Nope. You seem to be assuming that someone who is not sated HAS to eat more or something bad will happen. Luckily, as human beings, we possess free will. Not feeling sated does not mean you HAVE to eat. It's a mild annoyance that you can ignore because, living in a civilized society, your next meal is always only a few hours away. You do not lose more or less weight depending on how sated you feel between meals. You only lose more or less weight when you act on your "hunger".

So much of this is such junk - no a bread carb is not the same as a veggie carb - your body processes it WAY different - you will feel much more full eating 250calories of veggies then you would 250 calories of bread - and there is a reason for this.

I wouldn't get caught up in the weeds concerning fruit and veggies - they are vital and provide energy - the breads tho?

SCRAP IT! - I just did again - it is basically glue to the belly and totally stupid unless your in a comp or bulk stage.

Did you just say that bread spot-increases belly fat?

:huh:

-For your health, the source of carbs is only relevant if you’re unhealthy. If you’re already healthy, it generally doesn’t matter.

http://www.simplyshredded.com/the-science-of-nutrition-is-a-carb-a-carb.html

Take Home Messages

- For your body composition, it doesn’t matter if a carb is classified as simple or complex or if it has a high or low glycemic or insulin load or index. Only the total amount of carbs in your diet matters and this only matters because carbs contain calories.

-For your health, the source of carbs is only relevant if you’re unhealthy. If you’re already healthy, it generally doesn’t matter.

-For your health, the source of carbs is only relevant if you’re unhealthy. If you’re already healthy, it generally doesn’t matter.

I think there are quite a few nutrition scientists that would disagree with this statement.

don't care

Ok, so all joking aside, carbs are not created equal. Generally speaking, you can categorize carbs into two different types: Complex and simple carbohydrates. Complex carbs consist of grains (bread, pasta, rice, etc) and starch-rich vegetables (potatoes). Conversely, simple carbs are typically found in fruits and plain sugar. Then a chemically simple, usually consisting of only one or two molecules (monosaccharides and disaccharaides) and are easy to digest. The big thing about complex carbs is that they are chemically more complex than simple carbohydrates and therefore take longer to disest, however, they also do not raise the blood sugar levels in your blood as rapidly. This is why it is beneficial to "carbo-load" before big events like marathons, sports games - because it allows your body to store energy for longer periods of time. On the flip side, however, if you are eating many complex carbohydrates but are not partaking in high calorie burning exercises, then you can easily see your body turning the excess carbohydrates into stored fat.

Conclusion: If you are going over your carbo limit per day, my advice is to look at the types of carbs you are eating. Simple carbs that come from fruits are perfectly ok to go over on, especially if you are exercising every day because your body will quickly burn the energy from those carbs first. If you are in excess of complex carbs, however, you need to ensure that your exercises are longer or of higher intensity.

Source: I graduated with a bachelors of science in biology and consulted my textbooks to double check information. If you have any questions about diet and exercise, please feel free to PM me. I'm always happy to help and provide some sort of background information as to why things work they way they do with your body.

Source: I

Ok, so all joking aside, carbs are not created equal. Generally speaking, you can categorize carbs into two different types: Complex and simple carbohydrates. Complex carbs consist of grains (bread, pasta, rice, etc) and starch-rich vegetables (potatoes). Conversely, simple carbs are typically found in fruits and plain sugar. Then a chemically simple, usually consisting of only one or two molecules (monosaccharides and disaccharaides) and are easy to digest. The big thing about complex carbs is that they are chemically more complex than simple carbohydrates and therefore take longer to disest, however, they also do not raise the blood sugar levels in your blood as rapidly. This is why it is beneficial to "carbo-load" before big events like marathons, sports games - because it allows your body to store energy for longer periods of time. On the flip side, however, if you are eating many complex carbohydrates but are not partaking in high calorie burning exercises, then you can easily see your body turning the excess carbohydrates into stored fat.

Conclusion: If you are going over your carbo limit per day, my advice is to look at the types of carbs you are eating. Simple carbs that come from fruits are perfectly ok to go over on, especially if you are exercising every day because your body will quickly burn the energy from those carbs first. If you are in excess of complex carbs, however, you need to ensure that your exercises are longer or of higher intensity.

Source: I graduated with a bachelors of science in biology and consulted my textbooks to double check information. If you have any questions about diet and exercise, please feel free to PM me. I'm always happy to help and provide some sort of background information as to why things work they way they do with your body.

Source: I

Ok, so all joking aside, carbs are not created equal. Generally speaking, you can categorize carbs into two different types: Complex and simple carbohydrates. Complex carbs consist of grains (bread, pasta, rice, etc) and starch-rich vegetables (potatoes). Conversely, simple carbs are typically found in fruits and plain sugar. Then a chemically simple, usually consisting of only one or two molecules (monosaccharides and disaccharaides) and are easy to digest. The big thing about complex carbs is that they are chemically more complex than simple carbohydrates and therefore take longer to disest, however, they also do not raise the blood sugar levels in your blood as rapidly. This is why it is beneficial to "carbo-load" before big events like marathons, sports games - because it allows your body to store energy for longer periods of time. On the flip side, however, if you are eating many complex carbohydrates but are not partaking in high calorie burning exercises, then you can easily see your body turning the excess carbohydrates into stored fat.

Conclusion: If you are going over your carbo limit per day, my advice is to look at the types of carbs you are eating. Simple carbs that come from fruits are perfectly ok to go over on, especially if you are exercising every day because your body will quickly burn the energy from those carbs first. If you are in excess of complex carbs, however, you need to ensure that your exercises are longer or of higher intensity.

Source: I graduated with a bachelors of science in biology and consulted my textbooks to double check information. If you have any questions about diet and exercise, please feel free to PM me. I'm always happy to help and provide some sort of background information as to why things work they way they do with your body.

Source: I

So these complex carbs are broken down into simple carbs for ultimate digestion...got it. And as a result of them taking longer to digest, the blood sugar spike is lower, but the *duration of it is longer*...so the net glycemic load is generally the same. So what is the problem of a higher spike in an otherwise healthy person?

Also, why does it matter the timing of the exercise with the food eaten? If I burn 600 calories in one hour immediately after a meal or burn 600 calories 12 hours later, isn't my net gain/loss identical? In other words, do I care if the body uses immediately available energy or previously stored energy? I don't think I do.