Carb Balance!

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Mitchlou84
Mitchlou84 Posts: 135
in Health and Weight Loss
So I guess what I want to know, is whether it is bad to have your balance of carbs too high, as long as you are still within your cal guidelines?

I love carbs, plus my body seems to love carbs too, I get a lot of energy from them. I tend to eat cereal for breakfast, maybe a sandwich or beans on toast for lunch, and dinner will always involve carbs such as pasta, rice or potatoes. Snacks can be cereal bars or bananas. I calorie count everything, really diligently. I think I eat relatively low fat, but I reckon I get enough protein as I will have meat or fish with every dinner and occasionally lunch.

I currently exercise a lot, I do Body Pump 2-3 times a week and a mixture of Cardio including RPM, running, Attack, Combat and Zumba.

My best friend however swears by low carbing, she allowed herself porridge for breakfast, but then the only carbs she’d get would for the rest of the day would be from fruit and veg, veg mainly. She too did a lot of exercise, but all within the fat burn zone. She lost a lot of weight and went from a UK 16 to a UK 8.

It’s too early in my journey to tell if her approach is better than mine, or vice versa but what do you think? I prefer high intensity exercise as I love the classes and like to push myself, I get bored just walking on a treadmill! Plus I’m not sure if my body would have the energy to exercise on a salad instead of beans on toast!

Would love your views!

Replies

  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
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    Eating lots of carbohydrates leads to a spike in blood sugar, and increased insulin levels cause the body to store carbs as fat. "This leads to a loss of energy, because you can't use that stored body fat," said Sangeeta Krishnan, M.D., a registered dietitian practicing in Atherton, Calif. "Excess carbs not only literally make you fat, but they also keep you fat." High levels of insulin in the body can also lead to diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and heart disease. "High levels of insulin sometimes restrict hormones that are crucial in the maintenance of the body and are needed to avoid early aging," she said.
  • Ash_76
    Ash_76 Posts: 186 Member
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    carbs is a funny one,,,, a very important fuel, i try to get my carbs as quick carbs rather than complex carbs, but in saying that you still need a certain amount of complex carbs too, but what ever complex carbs are not used get stored as fat, if you set your food ratio to a 50 protien 30 carbs 20 fat ratio, this will work quite nicely, hope that helps
  • Mitchlou84
    Mitchlou84 Posts: 135
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    Eating lots of carbohydrates leads to a spike in blood sugar, and increased insulin levels cause the body to store carbs as fat. "This leads to a loss of energy, because you can't use that stored body fat," said Sangeeta Krishnan, M.D., a registered dietitian practicing in Atherton, Calif. "Excess carbs not only literally make you fat, but they also keep you fat." High levels of insulin in the body can also lead to diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol and heart disease. "High levels of insulin sometimes restrict hormones that are crucial in the maintenance of the body and are needed to avoid early aging," she said.

    But I have heaps of energy! How do you know if you are eating too much?
  • Mitchlou84
    Mitchlou84 Posts: 135
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    carbs is a funny one,,,, a very important fuel, i try to get my carbs as quick carbs rather than complex carbs, but in saying that you still need a certain amount of complex carbs too, but what ever complex carbs are not used get stored as fat, if you set your food ratio to a 50 protien 30 carbs 20 fat ratio, this will work quite nicely, hope that helps

    Thanks!! I'm def not eating 50% protein or 20% fat! Might have to rethink my diet!!
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
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    right because going from over eating one macro to another will really work.
    ugh.

    you only need about 60 g of protein a day.
    45-65% of carbs is recommended

    i bodybuild..so personally i do 45% carbs, 30% protein and 25% fats

    here is a link that tells it all

    http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/carbs.html
  • ashleymariec89
    ashleymariec89 Posts: 135 Member
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    I do low carb, not super low carb, but low enough. When you exercise your body has to burn your reserved carbohydrates first before it starts burning fat. If you have consumed less carbs, you can burn thru those faster, and start burning fat sooner, making the fat burning time of your exercise increase, in turn burning more fat.

    Carbs also make you crave more carbs, it actually sounds like you are addicted to carbs, as I once was. I found when I cut back and replaced those high carb things with lower carb choices, the weight came off a lot faster.

    My suggestion would be to cut back to 80-100 g of carbs per day.
  • Maxbjd
    Maxbjd Posts: 14
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    Repeat after me....Carbs bad! Protein good! Carbs bad! Protein good! Lol just kidding around but seriously.
    If you are trying to lose weight then cut the carbs down period. Eat fruit and veges like your friend did for carb intake but like another poster indicated by eating a lot of carbs you are not allowing your body to burn its fat stores. When you do have grain then keep it down to a half portion and go for whole grain. Also nuts are good but in moderation. More meals smaller portions try to eat five times a day. Since weight loss is the goal I recommend a Soy based protein the vegetarian type it will have more vitamins and minerals than regular protein powder. Maybe a good protein energy bar before your workout would be good also. Good Luck!
  • Getting_Fit_4_Life
    Getting_Fit_4_Life Posts: 401 Member
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    Bump. I want to know too :)
  • cownancy
    cownancy Posts: 291
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    The reason carbs are confusing is because people who are body building use a high carb diet, but people who are trying to lose a lot of weight and aren't body builders should be on a lower carb diet no more than 100 grams per day. You also need to be sure no serving provides more than 13 grams of sugar. 80-100 grams of protein is the matching number and you need to have fat, as well. This comes straight from the doctor.
  • Ghlt4
    Ghlt4 Posts: 241 Member
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    If you are eating complex carbs you are fine.
    I eat a plant based diet, so it is naturally high
    In carbs. I do not eat any processed food
    ( simple carbs) they are what cause the sugar
    Spike. I have loads of energy and have lost
    16lbs in 7 weeks!
  • Azdak
    Azdak Posts: 8,281 Member
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    carbs is a funny one,,,, a very important fuel, i try to get my carbs as quick carbs rather than complex carbs, but in saying that you still need a certain amount of complex carbs too, but what ever complex carbs are not used get stored as fat, if you set your food ratio to a 50 protien 30 carbs 20 fat ratio, this will work quite nicely, hope that helps

    Thanks!! I'm def not eating 50% protein or 20% fat! Might have to rethink my diet!!

    You definitely do not need to eat 50% protein. Some people do have issues with carbohydrates which is why low-carb plans can be successful--the problem is that the needs of that small subgroup are often extrapolated to the population as a whole.

    1.0 to 1.5 g of protein per kg of body is sufficient to help conserve lean mass and provide a feeling of satiety during a weight-loss program. Usually thats a good place to start. Then add in 20-25% of total calories from fat. The rest is carbohydrates. When choosing carbohydrates, the emphasis should be on complex, unprocessed carbohydrates that are high in fiber and low in sugar. To keep it simple, when I look at my carbohydrate choices I look at protein, fiber, sugar and the list of ingredients. The first 2 I want as high as possible and the last two as low as possible.
  • dls06
    dls06 Posts: 6,774 Member
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    I could never go no carb. I eat whole grain carbs and have lost all the weight I wanted. I think it is more about the portion of carbs through the day. I have my carbs set at 45% but try not to eat more then 30-40 at each meal. I enter everything before I eat it to make sure I stay within my limit per meal.
  • schusty40
    schusty40 Posts: 8
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    I count my carbs too. I try and eat between 30-45 carbs per meal and then have a couple of snacks with about 15 carbs, ie; a serving of fruit. I measure everything and log it before I eat it.
  • VeganGal84
    VeganGal84 Posts: 938 Member
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    There are two popular diet styles- low carb/high fat and high carb/low fat. Both can be healthy and both will get results if you stick with them.

    I'm with you, I love and need lots of carbs every day, so I tend to fall into the second category, though I do eat plenty of healthy fats!

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