Healthy Carbohydrates??

JatieKo621
JatieKo621 Posts: 425 Member
edited September 26 in Food and Nutrition
I am trying to incorporate more carbs into my diet (as i've been doing insanity and burning a lot of calories) and I want to know what some healthy options are. Usually I'll have a slice of 12 grain bread but I don't really know much about other sources of healthy carbs. I need some more pre-workout ideas, preferably easy ones that will give me energy when I work out.

I am trying to eat them earlier on in the day so that I can burn them off before dinner, and I am usually on the go so anything I can take with me would help!

Thanks!!

Replies

  • Abrasue
    Abrasue Posts: 218 Member
    whole wheat breads, bagles, pasta, tortillas and of course FRUIT! :D
  • homerjspartan
    homerjspartan Posts: 1,893 Member
    Hommus. Great for you.
  • justinperry
    justinperry Posts: 6
    if you are planning to eat for a general purpose (life, work, homelife etc) then you can eat just about any long chain/complex carbs, fruits and vegetables are great, rice and pasta, pretty mch any breads you like, that sort of thing, however, if ou are going to be eating beore a workout you will find that most of those options are rather heavy and make you feel at least a little boated as well as that they prvide energy on a longer term (hours) before exercise, when you know you are going to burn energy fast and in the very short term somethin with simple/short chain carbs is better as it provides energy faster and thats what yo need when you exercise, basically this studd is anything sugary, cookies cakes pretty ,much anything with more sweetness. and when it comesdown to it, carbs are your friend
  • teneilfoote04
    teneilfoote04 Posts: 2
    Bananas and almond butter, lunch meat, almonds, avocados, or you could even make your own protein bars! Good luck!
  • JatieKo621
    JatieKo621 Posts: 425 Member
    Thanks everyone!
  • pandafoo
    pandafoo Posts: 367 Member
    One of my favorite websites is World's Healthiest Foods, which focuses on the most nutritionally dense foods: http://whfoods.org/foodstoc.php. The foods are grouped by fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, etc.

    There's this great article on there about the healthiest carbohydrates - it doesn't provide a list of foods but it talks about the value of carbs, and mentions how carbs with a low glycemic index (GI - a measure of how fast the carb impacts blood sugar levels) are preferable. http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=114. If you're interested to find out the GI values of various foods, this website is the best I've seen: http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm

    Generally you want to eat foods with a low GI. However, before and after a workout, you want a food that has a high GI value, because those will provide you with a quick source of fuel. Bananas are a good example.
  • peytjalmom
    peytjalmom Posts: 76
    Google "resistan carbs." Good stuff!
  • JatieKo621
    JatieKo621 Posts: 425 Member
    One of my favorite websites is World's Healthiest Foods, which focuses on the most nutritionally dense foods: http://whfoods.org/foodstoc.php. The foods are grouped by fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, etc.

    There's this great article on there about the healthiest carbohydrates - it doesn't provide a list of foods but it talks about the value of carbs, and mentions how carbs with a low glycemic index (GI - a measure of how fast the carb impacts blood sugar levels) are preferable. http://whfoods.org/genpage.php?tname=george&dbid=114. If you're interested to find out the GI values of various foods, this website is the best I've seen: http://www.mendosa.com/gilists.htm

    Generally you want to eat foods with a low GI. However, before and after a workout, you want a food that has a high GI value, because those will provide you with a quick source of fuel. Bananas are a good example.


    THANK YOU! That site is really helpful! I needed something like that.
  • joshandstacy
    joshandstacy Posts: 56 Member
    I am here more for the learning than having much advice but what about Ezekiel bread? I know it's more expensive and lower carb but I think it's supposed to be a very healthy food!
  • pyro13g
    pyro13g Posts: 1,127 Member
    For that type of workout I think it's easier to pre-fuel right before, fuel a little during if you can tolerate it, and slam most of the glycogen back into storage immediately post work out. These all require a recovery drink of your choice, preferably with a very fast sugar like dextrose. Based on your heart rate and calorie burn you should be able to calculate a very good approximation of the amount of stores you depleted.
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