Cuttings Carbs
brittlb07
Posts: 313 Member
I am addicted to carbs. It’s a really bad problem. As a vegetarian I feel I justify the carbs since I am not eating meat. This has lead to some gradual weight gain. Any go to filling foods that seem to fill this void? Is some carbs occasionally okay? I am not interested in the Keto Diet as I have studied it and as a vegetarian would be difficult.
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Replies
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There’s nothing inherently bad or fattening about carbs, and I say that as someone who IS doing keto. Carbs aren’t making you gain weight; eating too much is. Are you accurately measuring and logging your food intake?10
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xtreme fitness high fiber tortilla wraps are yummy and low in sugar, high in fiber...great to wrap up instead of using higher calorie bread.6
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Since you're a vegetarian you have to eat carbs, and there's nothing wrong with carbs anyway. It's the calories that determine your weight gain or loss. Track everything accurately (use a food scale, weigh in grams, find an accurate database entry), stay in your calorie goal, and enjoy your carbs!8
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There's nothing wrong with carbs. I ate 200+g daily while losing weight, and continue to do so in maintenance.
If you are gradually gaining weight it means you are eating a few too many calories. Start logging accurately and consistently, use a food scale as often as possible, double check that the entries you are using have accurate calories, and hit your calorie deficit. Make an effort to eat enough protein, fat, and fibet, for health and satiety.4 -
I think it depends on which kind of carbs you eat. Good sources of carbs are oats, brown rice, sweet potato, quinoa and legumes, to say a few.
Maybe you should try not eating carbs after a certain time of the day? Why do you say you're addicted, you can't stop eating? You should try to see what triggers you.
Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar. It's not the same to eat a banana than to eat brown rice.
By the way I'm not a professional but I do research as much as I can and I'm also replying based on my experience.21 -
You’re gradually gaining weight because of too many calories. Are you logging your foods on MFP? See if you can make small changes your intake.3
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Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar.
By the way I'm not a professional but I do research as much as I can and I'm also replying based on my experience.
You might want to do a little more research. Sugar is a subset of carbs, as is fiber.
OP, do you have any issues that are made worse by eating carbs like diabetes, or pre-diabetes? If not, then you might want to log all of your food and see how many total calories you are taking in. If you are gaining weight, it is because you are eating more than you burn. If you decide to reduce calories, play around with the macro mix to find what you enjoy and what is satisfying.
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On my diet I push most of my complex carbohydrates to the morning at breakfast. A little at lunch and none at dinner. It prevents hunger.7
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DistortedVisionUK wrote: »On my diet I push most of my complex carbohydrates to the morning at breakfast. A little at lunch and none at dinner. It prevents hunger.
For you. But everyone is different. What do you have for dinner that you have literally no carbs? Meat with oil?7 -
DistortedVisionUK wrote: »On my diet I push most of my complex carbohydrates to the morning at breakfast. A little at lunch and none at dinner. It prevents hunger.
That's the opposite of what I do, people vary in what they like.
Right now I like my only carbs at breakfast to come from vegetables, and have the majority of my carbs at dinner most often, although what I do at lunch varies.
OP, are you using carbs to mean something other than "foods that are primarily carbohydrates," which would include vegetables, fruit, and beans and lentils, as well as tubers (like potatoes and sweet potatoes), and whole grains? I think sometimes people use the term wrongly to mean just breads and pasta and potatoes or even foods that often have as many calories from fat as carbs (potatoes with butter and cream, pasta with a high fat sauce, most dessert foods). In addition to the foods I listed that are mostly carbohydrate, many other foods have a lot of carbs with their protein and/or fat, like most dairy, tofu and tempeh, and even nuts and seeds.
So there is no need to worry about carbs as a vegetarian.
What I personally would do is log your food, make sure you are ALSO including enough protein and that your carbs are contributing enough fiber to meet your goal (shouldn't be too hard as a vegetarian) and also make sure you aren't super low on fat and that the foods you are eating are mostly nutrient dense (some lower nutrient foods are fine, but you'd want them to be a smaller part of your diet).
For some reason "carbs" get demonized today, and I think that's a poor way to think about nutrition.
Some find lowering carbs some (or focusing on lower cal carbs like vegetables, which add a lot of volume) to be more filling if they are struggling with hunger, but I don't think you've figured out if that's an issue you have yet. However, I do think focusing on veg is always good (barring some rare health issues, of course, or a diet that's unbalanced and has lots of veg no fat or protein).7 -
As you have read, the subject is complex. For me, I have to LIMIT carbs due to Type 2 diabetes concerns. So any carb I take in needs to bring more than just sugar. So fruits and veggies are fine (within reasonable limits) and some are "better" for me than others.
I have to go more slowly with juices, sauces, candies, pasta, bread, and hopefully you get the idea.
My diabetes coach/dietitian gave me a starting goal of 225g carbs/day, no more than 60g/meal and another 45g/day in snacks.
After losing about 20% of my initial weight, I've dropped my targets by 10% and have a 203g/day goal (and 2025 calories/day)
I am able to keep my fasting BG in the range of 80-105 mg/dL and my A1C dropped from 7.3% to 5.1% in 6 months. I was at 180mg/dL on Valentines Day 2018.
But I am by no means ketogenic at 150-200g carbs/day.
I try to maintain a 40% carbs and 30% each fat and protein allocation in my eating. That works for me, YMMV.
FWIW, I've gone from 265-270# down to 215-220#
After the holidays, I'm at the 220ish level.
The ultimate goal is to get down to below 200# as I was back in 1992 when I left the Army.
Carbs in an of themselves are not bad. What is bad for some of us is what I'd call EMPTY carbs. Carbs that bring nothing but themselves to the party.
And really, they are not bad. If I were to "bonk" on a metric century bike ride, having depleted my glycogen stores, 30g of honey might be just the thing I need to start functioning correctly again.
Like most anything else, carbs have a purpose. When used rationally for that purpose, they serve we humans well.
On the other hand, it's easy to go overboard. I work a job where I take a week of on-call each month. My old habit was to stop at a C-store after a 3am call an get a pint of "low fat" chocolate milk and 6 mini chocolate donuts.
Almost all carbs. Some fat and a modest amount of protein. But the big killer was I was eating 800 calories while driving my car.
Today, that would be 40% of my daily allowance of calories, and over 100g of carbs, so 1/2 of my current allotment, consumed in 5-10 minutes.
FWIW, it would take an hour of vigorous exercise for a 220# man to burn off those calories.
Today, I carry almonds and Atkins snack bars and have coffee, flavored water, or diet soda instead.
So a 200 calorie snack instead of approximately 800 calories.7 -
When you say "carbs" what do you mean?
Do you mean vegetables, fruit, beans, tubers, whole grains? Or do you mean things like pasta and pizza?
In your other thread, you mention that you're taking second helping of the "carbs" since you're not eating meat and that you don't like salads. It doesn't sound like your diet is very well-rounded.
Vegetarians (I am one) still need protein, especially if we're trying to lose weight and we're active. There are other ways of having vegetables besides having salad. I have to be in the mood to have salad because it bores me since I'm sort of limited in the amount of raw veggies I can eat (IBS issue). But roasted vegetables? I love them and can't get enough.
I'm saying this to ask if you've tried other methods of preparing veggies? Have you explored vegetarian sources of protein like beans, tofu, tempeh, plain Greek yogurt, eggs, seitan, and some of the meat substitutes on the market?
As a vegetarian, you can't escape having carbs, but you should maximize the amount of nutrition they pack. Top your potato with a can of chili beans and have a side of roasted broccoli. Toss a serving or two of bean pasta with roasted tomatoes and mushrooms. Have oatmeal and berries with some Greek yogurt.
Eat these sorts of things in proper portions to meet your calorie goals, and you'll lose weight.5 -
Vegetarianism is going to be really challenging if you feel that you shouldn't eat carbohydrates.
You don't need to "justify" eating carbohydrates and your weight gain is due to the amount of calories you're consuming, not due to eating carbohydrates (although some of those calories may come from carbohydrates). The only real problem with eating carbohydrates is if they're keeping you from meeting your needs for protein and fat.
So the things to look at: Are you getting enough protein and fat? Are there good ways to reduce your portion sizes so you can be eating the right amount of calories for your body weight? Can you swap out some of the carbohydrates that are less filling for you for some that are more filling?4 -
What about... green VEGETABLES? Your list is arbitrary. And your distinction between bananas and brown rice doesn't work. Sorry.I think it depends on which kind of carbs you eat. Good sources of carbs are oats, brown rice, sweet potato, quinoa and legumes, to say a few.
Maybe you should try not eating carbs after a certain time of the day? Why do you say you're addicted, you can't stop eating? You should try to see what triggers you.
Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar. It's not the same to eat a banana than to eat brown rice.
By the way I'm not a professional but I do research as much as I can and I'm also replying based on my experience.6 -
I am addicted to carbs. It’s a really bad problem. As a vegetarian I feel I justify the carbs since I am not eating meat. This has lead to some gradual weight gain. Any go to filling foods that seem to fill this void? Is some carbs occasionally okay? I am not interested in the Keto Diet as I have studied it and as a vegetarian would be difficult.
Doesn't look like you answered any of the responses on your similar thread: https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10715582/vegetarians-losing-weight/p14 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »What about... green VEGETABLES? Your list is arbitrary. And your distinction between bananas and brown rice doesn't work. Sorry.
huh? I never said the list was exhaustive. I literally said "to say a few". So, yeah... of course vegetables are amazing. That goes without saying.
Also, what's the problem with the distinction? You can criticize my comment but at least explain why. Otherwise it's useless criticism.2 -
I am addicted to carbs. It’s a really bad problem. As a vegetarian I feel I justify the carbs since I am not eating meat. This has lead to some gradual weight gain. Any go to filling foods that seem to fill this void? Is some carbs occasionally okay? I am not interested in the Keto Diet as I have studied it and as a vegetarian would be difficult.
There's nothing wrong with carbs...I eat all kinds of carbs...fruit, veg, legumes, lentils, oats, root vegetables, pasta, rice, etc...there's nothing wrong with any of that.
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You can't distinguish between carbohydrates and sugar (as you suggested initially). Sugar literally is a carbohydrate. How you can distinguish something from what it is?6 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »What about... green VEGETABLES? Your list is arbitrary. And your distinction between bananas and brown rice doesn't work. Sorry.
huh? I never said the list was exhaustive. I literally said "to say a few". So, yeah... of course vegetables are amazing. That goes without saying.
Also, what's the problem with the distinction? You can criticize my comment but at least explain why. Otherwise it's useless criticism.
There's nothing wrong with foods containing simple carbs like fruit. Many are very nutritious, and many of us find them filling.
There's nothing inherently better about foods containing starches. I like plenty of foods containing starches and eat them (of course), but I'd personally consider a banana more nutrient dense than rice (brown or white), so not sure why you would suggest it was better to eat rice than a banana, and you certainly seemed to be saying that fruit should be treated with suspicion and brown rice (and other starches) was always better.
To elaborate further, this is what you said: "I think it depends on which kind of carbs you eat. Good sources of carbs are oats, brown rice, sweet potato, quinoa and legumes, to say a few.... Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar. It's not the same to eat a banana than to eat brown rice."
So you seemed to be not realizing that sugar was a carb, but also to be saying that brown rice was among the good carbs, and a banana was not.
There's really no important difference between sugars and starches, your body breaks both down easily. More important differences between higher carb foods tends to be fiber content and nutrient content.8 -
Sabine_Stroehm wrote: »What about... green VEGETABLES? Your list is arbitrary. And your distinction between bananas and brown rice doesn't work. Sorry.
huh? I never said the list was exhaustive. I literally said "to say a few". So, yeah... of course vegetables are amazing. That goes without saying.
Also, what's the problem with the distinction? You can criticize my comment but at least explain why. Otherwise it's useless criticism.
There's nothing wrong with foods containing simple carbs like fruit. Many are very nutritious, and many of us find them filling.
There's nothing inherently better about foods containing starches. I like plenty of foods containing starches and eat them (of course), but I'd personally consider a banana more nutrient dense than rice (brown or white), so not sure why you would suggest it was better to eat rice than a banana, and you certainly seemed to be saying that fruit should be treated with suspicion and brown rice (and other starches) was always better.
To elaborate further, this is what you said: "I think it depends on which kind of carbs you eat. Good sources of carbs are oats, brown rice, sweet potato, quinoa and legumes, to say a few.... Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar. It's not the same to eat a banana than to eat brown rice."
So you seemed to be not realizing that sugar was a carb, but also to be saying that brown rice was among the good carbs, and a banana was not.
There's really no important difference between sugars and starches, your body breaks both down easily. More important differences between higher carb foods tends to be fiber content and nutrient content.
To piggyback on what you're saying, I would also consider an important difference to be how palatable an individual finds them. I find it relatively easy to eat just one banana, but I can eat a lot of rice if I don't limit myself. Someone else might be in the opposite situation. It's a good thing to keep in mind when it comes to weight management.4 -
I think it depends on which kind of carbs you eat. Good sources of carbs are oats, brown rice, sweet potato, quinoa and legumes, to say a few.
Maybe you should try not eating carbs after a certain time of the day? Why do you say you're addicted, you can't stop eating? You should try to see what triggers you.
Also, you should distinguish between carbs and sugar. It's not the same to eat a banana than to eat brown rice.
By the way I'm not a professional but I do research as much as I can and I'm also replying based on my experience.
Interesting that you choose to contrast bananas and brown rice... for a 100g serving, the banana has a better micro-nutrient profile and more protein than the brown rice does. Yes, the banana has more sugar than the rice, but as has been mentioned earlier, so what?
And yes, starches are carbs... do you know what starches break down into in the digestive tract??? Hint - it's sugar!7 -
janejellyroll wrote: »You can't distinguish between carbohydrates and sugar (as you suggested initially). Sugar literally is a carbohydrate. How you can distinguish something from what it is?
I get what you mean now. Although from the context it’s obvious I mean distinguishing between sugar and carbs that are not sugar. I correct my previous sentence to “Also, you should distinguish between carbs that are not sugar and sugar”. Is that clearer?
I mean if you wanna nitpick instead of helping the op go ahead4 -
But why the distinction? Fruit contains sugar. That doesn't make it unhealthy. Butternut squash is higher in sugar than it is fiber, but it's a fantastic way to get my potassium and vitamin A. Added sugar is one thing, but barring a medical issue, there's no reason to worry about the naturally-occurring sugars in food.4
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janejellyroll wrote: »You can't distinguish between carbohydrates and sugar (as you suggested initially). Sugar literally is a carbohydrate. How you can distinguish something from what it is?
I get what you mean now. Although from the context it’s obvious I mean distinguishing between sugar and carbs that are not sugar. I correct my previous sentence to “Also, you should distinguish between carbs that are not sugar and sugar”. Is that clearer?
I mean if you wanna nitpick instead of helping the op go ahead
Your context wasn't obvious. It wasn't clear that you knew sugar is just a type of carbohydrate, that's why people brought it up. It's not nitpicking, it's people trying to be genuinely helpful to the OP and make sure *she* understands that you don't need to -- and cannot -- make a meaningful distinction between carbohydrates and sugar.
I don't know that the advice to distinguish between sugar and non-sugar carbohydrates is particularly sound either. I mean, bananas are nutrient-rich. If someone enjoys them, why not have one?7 -
GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »When you say "carbs" what do you mean?
Do you mean vegetables, fruit, beans, tubers, whole grains? Or do you mean things like pasta and pizza?
In your other thread, you mention that you're taking second helping of the "carbs" since you're not eating meat and that you don't like salads. It doesn't sound like your diet is very well-rounded.
Vegetarians (I am one) still need protein, especially if we're trying to lose weight and we're active. There are other ways of having vegetables besides having salad. I have to be in the mood to have salad because it bores me since I'm sort of limited in the amount of raw veggies I can eat (IBS issue). But roasted vegetables? I love them and can't get enough.
I'm saying this to ask if you've tried other methods of preparing veggies? Have you explored vegetarian sources of protein like beans, tofu, tempeh, plain Greek yogurt, eggs, seitan, and some of the meat substitutes on the market?
As a vegetarian, you can't escape having carbs, but you should maximize the amount of nutrition they pack. Top your potato with a can of chili beans and have a side of roasted broccoli. Toss a serving or two of bean pasta with roasted tomatoes and mushrooms. Have oatmeal and berries with some Greek yogurt.
Eat these sorts of things in proper portions to meet your calorie goals, and you'll lose weight.
When I say carbs, sadly I am referring to pizza, bread, potatoes, all the BAD carbs. You are right, I do need a more well rounded diet. I am not vegan, so I do eat eggs regularly as well as tofu etc.
A healthy weight for me is 118-120 and somehow since stopping nursing after doing it for six year (two kids at years each- try not to judge), I've gained about 20 pounds over the last two years. I am only 5'4. Sadly I think I am eating like I am still nursing (two years later!) so slowly those extra 200-400 calories are turning into pounds. Hoping using this app helps! I haven't logged in until recently.
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*runs in* No foods are bad unless they make you sick or you're allergic to them or someone has put actual poison in them instead of words that a person can't pronounce. *runs out*GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »When you say "carbs" what do you mean?
Do you mean vegetables, fruit, beans, tubers, whole grains? Or do you mean things like pasta and pizza?
In your other thread, you mention that you're taking second helping of the "carbs" since you're not eating meat and that you don't like salads. It doesn't sound like your diet is very well-rounded.
Vegetarians (I am one) still need protein, especially if we're trying to lose weight and we're active. There are other ways of having vegetables besides having salad. I have to be in the mood to have salad because it bores me since I'm sort of limited in the amount of raw veggies I can eat (IBS issue). But roasted vegetables? I love them and can't get enough.
I'm saying this to ask if you've tried other methods of preparing veggies? Have you explored vegetarian sources of protein like beans, tofu, tempeh, plain Greek yogurt, eggs, seitan, and some of the meat substitutes on the market?
As a vegetarian, you can't escape having carbs, but you should maximize the amount of nutrition they pack. Top your potato with a can of chili beans and have a side of roasted broccoli. Toss a serving or two of bean pasta with roasted tomatoes and mushrooms. Have oatmeal and berries with some Greek yogurt.
Eat these sorts of things in proper portions to meet your calorie goals, and you'll lose weight.
When I say carbs, sadly I am referring to pizza, bread, potatoes, all the BAD carbs. You are right, I do need a more well rounded diet. I am not vegan, so I do eat eggs regularly as well as tofu etc.
A healthy weight for me is 118-120 and somehow since stopping nursing after doing it for six year (two kids at years each- try not to judge), I've gained about 20 pounds over the last two years. I am only 5'4. Sadly I think I am eating like I am still nursing (two years later!) so slowly those extra 200-400 calories are turning into pounds. Hoping using this app helps! I haven't logged in until recently.11 -
GottaBurnEmAll wrote: »When you say "carbs" what do you mean?
Do you mean vegetables, fruit, beans, tubers, whole grains? Or do you mean things like pasta and pizza?
In your other thread, you mention that you're taking second helping of the "carbs" since you're not eating meat and that you don't like salads. It doesn't sound like your diet is very well-rounded.
Vegetarians (I am one) still need protein, especially if we're trying to lose weight and we're active. There are other ways of having vegetables besides having salad. I have to be in the mood to have salad because it bores me since I'm sort of limited in the amount of raw veggies I can eat (IBS issue). But roasted vegetables? I love them and can't get enough.
I'm saying this to ask if you've tried other methods of preparing veggies? Have you explored vegetarian sources of protein like beans, tofu, tempeh, plain Greek yogurt, eggs, seitan, and some of the meat substitutes on the market?
As a vegetarian, you can't escape having carbs, but you should maximize the amount of nutrition they pack. Top your potato with a can of chili beans and have a side of roasted broccoli. Toss a serving or two of bean pasta with roasted tomatoes and mushrooms. Have oatmeal and berries with some Greek yogurt.
Eat these sorts of things in proper portions to meet your calorie goals, and you'll lose weight.
When I say carbs, sadly I am referring to pizza, bread, potatoes, all the BAD carbs. You are right, I do need a more well rounded diet. I am not vegan, so I do eat eggs regularly as well as tofu etc.
A healthy weight for me is 118-120 and somehow since nursing, I've gained about 20 pounds over the last two years. I am only 5'4. Sadly I think I am eating like I am still nursing (two years later!) so slowly those extra 200-400 calories are turning into pounds. Hoping using this app helps! I haven't logged in until recently.
None of those foods will inhibit weight loss. They are all part of my regular diet and I have had no issues losing or maintaining. As long as they are in portions that fit your calories, then you're fine. Potatoes have nutrients and are relatively lower in calories. Pizza is fantastic as it comprises protein, fat, and carbs all in portions you can control. I use it regularly to meet my dietary needs for my body composition goals. They can all be part of and contribute to a well rounded diet.
ETA: they are also part of the diet of all the long-term maintainers that I know.9 -
Have you... looked at the nutrition in a potato? https://www.potatogoodness.com/nutrition/
They've got more potassium than a banana, 15% of your B-6 RDA and while 2 grams of protein per 100 grams isn't much, it's more than a lot of veg have. All that and filling and versatile, too!
Pizza also contains protein and fat.
Nothing wrong with bread either. Depending on the variety, it can be a decent source of protein, iron, and B-vitamins. Probably others too, but I mainly eat challah and multigrain, so that's what I'm more familiar with.
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