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Guilty about whole grains and carbs..

fbmandy55
fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member
edited October 2024 in Food and Nutrition
I'm slowly coming off a plateau and I'm feeling really guilty about the amount of carbs I've been eating. It doesn't help that I have PCOS and any kind of carb might as well get glued to my belly. I've decided to cut back as much as I can on the carbs and get in more veggies and protein.

So should I be feeling bad if I'm eating whole-grains rather than white? I made the switch about a year ago (before MFP) to whole grain or wheat bread/pasta/crackers anything. The only time I have white grains is when someone else is preparing the food- not too often.

I also worry about carbs from fruit, but try to limit myself to one piece a day.

Replies

  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member
    You have PCOS and I can't speak on that, but generally speaking, no. Whole grains (complex carbs) actually promote weight loss and you need carbs to fuel your brain and for energy for a workout!
  • murf19
    murf19 Posts: 453 Member
    I'm primal (as much as possible) I limit man made carbs and my carbs overal to 125grams a day.
    Here's an interesting article on carbs.

    Everyone is different and it may or may not work for you or whoever reads this. This works for me and I can only speak towards that.
    http://foxborofitclub.com/nutrition/primal-carb-curve/
  • AdAstra47
    AdAstra47 Posts: 823 Member
    Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but if you have PCOS you should really be avoiding carbs as much as humanly possible. I have hyperinsulinemia, which is very similar, and my doctor told me no more than 30g carbs per day. I get most of those from veggies.

    Nutritionally speaking, there's really not much difference between white & wheat or white & whole-grain breads. It's just the texture & fiber. But ALL breads & pastas have too many carbs for your body to handle if it's insulin-sensitive.

    The key for me has been finding bread & sugar substitutes, so I can have what I want without violating my rules. For example, when I make meatloaf, I shred a medium zucchini into the mix instead of using breadcrumbs. Instead of mashed potatoes, I steam & mash cauliflower with a little butter & garlic. If I'm craving chocolate, I mix up a shake with chocolate-flavored protein powder. If I just *have* to have pancakes, I'll mix vanilla protein powder with an egg, some cream and some baking powder and fry that up, instead of using a traditional flour-based batter.

    It's just a learning process, you have to figure out what will work for you. You don't want to feel deprived, but you also don't want to keep doing things that are harmful to your health.
    Good luck!
  • Timdog57
    Timdog57 Posts: 102 Member
    The suggestion from Primal is 50-100g a day of carbs for "effortless" fatloss, and 100-150g a day of carbs for maintenance. Here's an article that discusses Mark's thinking about carbs:
    http://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-primal-carbohydrate-continuum/
  • linsben
    linsben Posts: 108 Member
    I also eat along the Primal Blueprint. If you have PCOS i think that adapting a new low carb lifestyle is whats best for your health. There is a whole well of information for you to absorb on this site. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/
    This is a community of people who will help you and answer any questions you might have. I would suggest doing a PCOS search in the forums for women who are handling it this way.
    All the best!
  • rml_16
    rml_16 Posts: 16,414 Member


    Nutritionally speaking, there's really not much difference between white & wheat or white & whole-grain breads. It's just the texture & fiber. But ALL breads & pastas have too many carbs for your body to handle if it's insulin-sensitive.

    There's a HUGE difference between them! Especially considering that any nutrients in white flour were first stripped out and then added back in, while in whole wheat, they're naturally-occurring in their original form.

    There have been many, many studies in recent years showing that the difference for your body between whole grains and refined flours (read: complex vs. simple carbs) is major.
  • dnsrmr
    dnsrmr Posts: 99 Member
    You may benefit from an eating plan (diet) that's been around for quite some time. It's called the Scarsdale diet. It's geared around low fat/low carbohydrate and high protein. Some say it's even better than Atkins low carb eating plan, and you get to eat fruit. It's one of the easiest eating plans to follow even on a strict budget & keeps you feeling full & is safe with the PCOS you suffer from (my niece suffers from PCOS as well). I hope this helps. Good luck and God bless you with good health. The link is: http://www.scarsdalediet.com/
  • dosesr4winners20
    dosesr4winners20 Posts: 362
    Fellow PCOS'er here. AVOID those carbs/sugars!! If you eat bread only eat the whole grain kind. i don't eat bagels, crackers, pasta, or rice at all. Try having things like white kidney beans for protien and some carbs to keep full.

    Not only have i lost weight easily, but my signs of pcos have improved greatly! I don't worry about fruit carbs/sugar because they're way better anything man made.

    Hope this helps, feel free to add me. <3 Christina
  • dnsrmr
    dnsrmr Posts: 99 Member
    Oh, and you can get the book at your local library. FYI
  • fbmandy55
    fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member
    Fellow PCOS'er here. AVOID those carbs/sugars!! If you eat bread only eat the whole grain kind. i don't eat bagels, crackers, pasta, or rice at all.

    Not only have i lost weight easily, but my signs of pcos have improved greatly! I don't worry about fruit carbs/sugar because they're way better anything man made.

    Hope this helps, feel free to add me. <3 Christina

    Silly, we are friends!
  • fbmandy55
    fbmandy55 Posts: 5,263 Member
    I also eat along the Primal Blueprint. If you have PCOS i think that adapting a new low carb lifestyle is whats best for your health. There is a whole well of information for you to absorb on this site. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/
    This is a community of people who will help you and answer any questions you might have. I would suggest doing a PCOS search in the forums for women who are handling it this way.
    All the best!

    I've been around and around the PCOS forums for quite awhile, just couldn't quite find an answer to this specific problem :(

    I will check out the site though, thanks!
  • dosesr4winners20
    dosesr4winners20 Posts: 362
    Fellow PCOS'er here. AVOID those carbs/sugars!! If you eat bread only eat the whole grain kind. i don't eat bagels, crackers, pasta, or rice at all.

    Not only have i lost weight easily, but my signs of pcos have improved greatly! I don't worry about fruit carbs/sugar because they're way better anything man made.

    Hope this helps, feel free to add me. <3 Christina

    Silly, we are friends!

    Yeah LOL You new pic threw me a curve LOL!!
  • Riebop
    Riebop Posts: 275
    There is a thread on here where the person listed the advice from a nutritionist about what to eat if you have PCOS. Well worth reading. Check it out here http://tinyurl.com/3crrk9b.
  • Zeromilediet
    Zeromilediet Posts: 787 Member
    If you want to reduce carbs, you can cut grains out altogether and get them from vegetables (mostly) and fruit instead. Try it for a few weeks and see if this makes a difference--nothing to lose: you'll still be getting lots of nutrients and the carbs.
  • jamk1446
    jamk1446 Posts: 5,577 Member
    I also eat along the Primal Blueprint. If you have PCOS i think that adapting a new low carb lifestyle is whats best for your health. There is a whole well of information for you to absorb on this site. http://www.marksdailyapple.com/
    This is a community of people who will help you and answer any questions you might have. I would suggest doing a PCOS search in the forums for women who are handling it this way.
    All the best!

    I've been around and around the PCOS forums for quite awhile, just couldn't quite find an answer to this specific problem :(

    I will check out the site though, thanks!

    I think they meant check out the forums on Mark's Daily Apple for PCOS. I've seen some threads there. And if you search "paleo" or "primal" here in the MFP forums you will find some PCOS'ers who are eating this way.
  • tigersword
    tigersword Posts: 8,059 Member


    Nutritionally speaking, there's really not much difference between white & wheat or white & whole-grain breads. It's just the texture & fiber. But ALL breads & pastas have too many carbs for your body to handle if it's insulin-sensitive.

    There's a HUGE difference between them! Especially considering that any nutrients in white flour were first stripped out and then added back in, while in whole wheat, they're naturally-occurring in their original form.

    There have been many, many studies in recent years showing that the difference for your body between whole grains and refined flours (read: complex vs. simple carbs) is major.
    The only difference is the fact that whole grains have more fiber, which slows glucose absorption. Eat vegetables, or protein with refined carbs and nutritionally they are the same. Carbs are carbs, and their exact form doesn't particularly matter to the body. Most people don't eat "refined" carbs by themselves, so in the real world the differences between them are negligible.
  • anelahm
    anelahm Posts: 237 Member
    bump
  • hbmcracer
    hbmcracer Posts: 105 Member
    You have PCOS and I can't speak on that, but generally speaking, no. Whole grains (complex carbs) actually promote weight loss and you need carbs to fuel your brain and for energy for a workout!

    Please don't tell people that have insulin issues that they need carbs. And no, whole grains do not promote weight loss at all. I've subscribed to that way of thinking for too long (thanks to the uninformed VA doctors). Now I don't eat carbs except from veggies and I feel healthier, not bloated or gassy, my blood glucose is under control and in the normal range, and the weight that I've gained from whole wheat whole grain bread over the years is finally falling off.
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