Q1: a carb is not always a carb, unless that is how you track it. This is the debate on net carbs vrs total carbs. I go by net( total carb - fiber). Others go by total.
Veggies will have other nutrition that the same carb count of smarties will not give you. (Not to mention the other slew of reasons to not have straight sugar) So you should also consider that aspect in picking what foods fill you daily carb count.
Q2: MFP has a 'my recipe' section that you enter your recipes into that will add up the data and then you add that as part of your diary

1 - I use net carbs and subtract fiber from veggies. I think a snack of carrots with 12g carbs is a totally different thing than a snack of m&ms with 12grams carbs. I don't eat a ton of carrots just because they're on the sweeter side, but don't think there's anything wrong with them.

IMO, the only bad carbs are refined carbs: sugar and flours. I don't think those are fine for anybody. Many can get away with eating it but I think it's a crapshoot.

For people with metabolic issues, starchy carbs and high GI fruits are not in our best interests. For those who handle carbs fine, I think those are fine.

Bad carbs are bad because they hurt our health, IMO. If it doesn't hurt your health, it is fine... Carrots and other veggies are not inherently bad at all. I'd eat more of them if they agreed with me better and did not affect my health and cravings.

When I make keto chilli, I lean towards more meat and celery and fewer beans. Keeps it lower carb. Right now I am trying the meativore May challenge and just make a small, meat only batch for myself. Yummy.

I'm new, but here are my current ideas:

TabithaQuinn wrote: »

Q1. Do carbs from vegetables still count as “bad carbs”? Like I munched on some carrots the other day and was proud of myself for choosing a healthy snack, and then I realized that I had accidentally snagged 12g of carbs in the process, which put my slightly over my goal for the day.

For the purpose of keto (not sure if you are aiming for ketosis), there are no bad and good carbs other than if you are in the US where fiber is a carb, it doesn't really count as a carb for the purposes of trying to get into keto.

Otherwise, a carb is a carb, BUT some foods with carbs are nutritious, so even on low carbs are good to have in your diet for nutritional reasons and those are vegetables and, if you like them (as I do) nuts, plus to some degree fruit if it fits (berries, for example).

If you have more carbs, I'd similarly focus mostly on the nutrient dense ones, but you can fit in more, including more fruit and legumes.

Another positive about vegetables is that their net carbs are pretty low (even carrots, although they aren't as low as, say, asparagus).

(I will note that I don't consider legumes, potatoes, or sweet potatoes bad carbs at all, they are just foods I don't currently have much room for in my macros.)

Q2. How do you determine serving size and nutritional information for a homemade meal? I’m trying to figure out how I would log the chili I made last night. Normally my meals are just a few simple and easily portioned ingredients, but this is different I think. Should I still just log each ingredient individually? I’m willing to do it because I want to keep myself honest, but I didn’t know if there was a more efficient technique.

If I'm eating it all or splitting it in an easy to portion way, I log the ingredients (based on the percentage I ate -- i.e., 100 grams of cauliflower if I ate half would become 50 g). If not, I make a recipe, but for me that's reasonably rare because I think it's easier to list and log the ingredients. I note them down when cooking.

It becomes efficient once all the ingredients you commonly use are in your recent or frequent foods.