good carbs /bad carbs

mummytobeslim
mummytobeslim Posts: 367 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was just wondering how much bread do you eat and what type .I was thinking maybe cutting down on carbs but I do love my bread ,so thought well seeded wholemeal would be ideal .How much is too much or do all foods help us loose weigh the same as long as we eat within our cal limits, and have a varied diet ,some plans say bread and carbs are bad others say you can eat as many as you like .what foods would you recommend .I have about 12 to loose but store fat in my middle I am thinking i will try cut out all the white bread pasta and rice and switch to smaller portions off the wholemeal varieties .Just wondered what people thought and what you eat x
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Replies

  • ImNotThatBob
    ImNotThatBob Posts: 371 Member
    When I do eat bread, I try and stick to the old European style hard breads... whole wheat multi-grain seeded. That failing, I prefer rye or pumpernickel.

    I've had success with lowering my carbohydrate consumption. I switched to sugar free / sugar substitute solutions, cut down my intake of processed flours, rice, sugars etc. Initially I even avoided the "good carbs" like fruit and such to "shock" my metabolism and aid switching from burning sugar to burning fat.

    So far, so good!
  • Dave198lbs
    Dave198lbs Posts: 8,810 Member
    if you really want to cut weight as fast as possible...no bread for you

    if you are making a life change and are taking weight off in a sensible fashion, I would limit bread but eat what tastes good to you
  • mummytobeslim
    mummytobeslim Posts: 367 Member
    thank you for the replies .I am not in a rush to loose the weight just making some changes and trying to make better choices .I bought some nice seeded bread for lunch and thats the only bread i will eat today and limit my pasta and rice intake ,smaller portions and more veg x
  • slim104
    slim104 Posts: 160
    I eat about 5 or 6 'food doctor multiseed pitta breads' a week and thats all the bread i have. ( if its classed as bread that is) I dont eat any proper bread. I do yearn for a decent cheese sandwich sometimes though.
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    I don't eat a ton of bread, but when I do it's usually just whole wheat bread.

    I've gotten to the point where most of my carbs come from milk, oats, brown rice, or potatotes.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    if you really want to cut weight as fast as possible...no bread for you

    Why?
  • steve1686
    steve1686 Posts: 346 Member
    you can eat bread and lose weight, no problem.. Just limit your overall calories and be sure to meet your macros on protein and fat as well
  • Faintgreeneyes
    Faintgreeneyes Posts: 729 Member
    My advice- eat a cal deficit, get in exercise, stay hydrated. I personally lost almost 20 lbs with no limits on my carb intake (other then trying to maintain my macro levels, which also includes protein and fat)

    There is no magical curall to lose "belly fat"- you can't spot reduce. The fat will come off where it comes off, adding in a weights routine along with cardio will help tone the muscle and help aid in fat burning.
  • skybird455
    skybird455 Posts: 172 Member
    my nutritionalist told me to never eat bread again that was not sprouted. So I get mine from the health food store, there are several types, but it is very different than regular bread. Sprouted bread is made with the entire seed that has been sprouted in filtered water, so no flour. If your trying to really burn fat especially off your belly, you have to cut out everything that is processed, ie flour and sugar. Those things are the enemy....but its not just bread, its pasta, crackers tortillas etc.....

    That is the advice I got and since cutting out the processed foods and sticking within my calorie goal which I was already doing, and my exercise which I was already doing, ive dropped 15 more lbs pretty quickly and I can see the start of abs for the first time since before I had children.

    Hope that helps
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    you can eat bread and lose weight, no problem.. Just limit your overall calories and be sure to meet your macros on protein and fat as well

    ^ This is what I'd do. I'd only add that the more you limit carbs and calories in general, the more you need to concern yourself with micronutrient sufficiency and at some point, vegetables will win out over bread. But, nobody can accurately make a blanket statement about it without considering the context of the individuals overall diet.

    But the complete elimination of anything (sans artificial trans fats and individual intolerances) isn't going to accelerate fat loss unless that elimination results in a reduction of calories/macros.
  • FoodieGal09
    FoodieGal09 Posts: 198 Member
    I'm a big bread eater, so cutting it down was hard for me. I think you're on the right track by making small changes Vs just cutting it out completely- it's easier to transition and is more likely to stick.
    I started by switching from white to wholegrain, which I only eat occasionally. When I crave a cheese sandwich, I'll put a thin slice of cheese on a wholegrain crackerbread. I don't know whether the crackerbread is better or worse than the bread, but for me it's about stopping myself from reaching for the bread. Eventually I'll be able to cut it down from a few times a week, to once or twice a week to never.
    I cut out white pasta and white potatoes as well. Brown rice and pasta instead and sweet potatoes.
    Again, I don't know how much better those choices are in the long run, but it's about getting rid of the really bad stuff without feeling deprived in the short term for me. When I feel deprived I binge, binge, binge.

    ETA: Insert "wholemeal" for wholegrain. D'oh.
  • cara4art
    cara4art Posts: 48 Member
    If one must have bread, try sprouted grain products like the Food4Life line. Since sprouted grain Ezekiel breads, english muffins, and tortillas are very dense, one has to eat much less of them to be satisfied. Sprouting grains in general increases their protein content and lowers their starch content. I have their sprouted grain 4:9 english muffins and they're great. If I'm going to have one, I have just half, toasted with some natural peanut butter - yummy, filling and has a nice balance of good carb, protein and fat.
    In general, it's wise to spread the carb love around, in ditching(or at the very least definitely limiting) refined carbs like white flour baked goods, white rice, and pasta in favor of unrefined starches like brown rice, steel-cut oats, quinoa(surprisingly filling!). But even better is eating more non-starchy vegetables in proportion to starchy carbs in general, balanced out with some fruit. This way one is getting a variety of carbs and good nutrition besides. People do vary in their responses to food - some people really do better with much fewer starchy carbs in general, while others are fine with them. If one has blood sugar issues, then definitely ditching all refined carbs is a good idea, and increasing protein. We're all trying to find our balance here!
  • nokittyno
    nokittyno Posts: 293 Member
    When I do eat bread, I try and stick to the old European style hard breads... whole wheat multi-grain seeded. That failing, I prefer rye or pumpernickel.

    I've had success with lowering my carbohydrate consumption. I switched to sugar free / sugar substitute solutions, cut down my intake of processed flours, rice, sugars etc. Initially I even avoided the "good carbs" like fruit and such to "shock" my metabolism and aid switching from burning sugar to burning fat.

    So far, so good!

    Holy moses, I;mNot - I LOVE that picture, I had it as my profile pic a while back. LOL. (Turtle)
  • MonicaT1972
    MonicaT1972 Posts: 512
    For me personally after reading "The Weat Belly" I consume absolutely no bread wheather it be multigrain or whatever. I highly recommend this reading.
  • EmRobo
    EmRobo Posts: 146 Member
    I prefer white pasta to wholemeal pasta so I stick with that but just cut down my portion size now to 100g of pasta for a meal, I will up it to approx 120g (dried) if i have a lot of exercise calories to eat back

    Bread wise, I have 1-2 pieces of wholemeal bread a day if that, I love the white bread from the bakers but have to avoid it as I could pick on it all day!!!
  • Helloitsdan
    Helloitsdan Posts: 5,564 Member
    if you really want to cut weight as fast as possible...no bread for you

    if you are making a life change and are taking weight off in a sensible fashion, I would limit bread but eat what tastes good to you

    This is what I do.

    Bread on heavy lifting days only.
  • myfitnessnmhoy
    myfitnessnmhoy Posts: 2,105 Member
    if you really want to cut weight as fast as possible...no bread for you

    if you are making a life change and are taking weight off in a sensible fashion, I would limit bread but eat what tastes good to you

    ^^^^^ This. You can force your body into ketosis (a fat-and-protein-burning) mode by cutting down considerably on carbohydrates, but this diet requires specific nutrition. You'll lose weight fast, but you either have to work hard to transition back when done or keep that diet up for life. Either is fine, and if your goal is fast weight loss it works - just read up on it (Atkins is a good source) and do it properly.

    If you're just looking to refocus away from sugars / white flours / "empty" carbs with no nutrient value, whole wheat breads (check the ingredients - a lot of "wheat" breads use white flour and food coloring!!!) are good calories, unless you buy into "Wheat Belly" (personally, I don't, but I respect those who do and there are other things to make bread out of if you're into bread).
  • narick
    narick Posts: 23
    I eat bread every single day, sandwiches are simple easy foods for work. Why wouldn't you eat bread. If you expend more calories than you take in then you will lose weight. It is simple as that. If you love bread, eat your bread. Hit your macronutrient intake for fats, protein and carbs and you will lose weight if it keeps you under calorie maintenance. EAT WHATEVER YOU LIKE!
  • LiddyBit
    LiddyBit Posts: 447 Member
    I do notice a flatter stomach when I cut or significantly restrict carbs other than fruits/veg. Maybe that's anecdotal but it seems to be true for me. I expect people with really strong abs can afford to eat more bread.
  • reegordon
    reegordon Posts: 97 Member
    For me personally after reading "The Weat Belly" I consume absolutely no bread wheather it be multigrain or whatever. I highly recommend this reading.

    Did you mean "The Wheat Belly"? I'm asking because when I google it, this is what comes up. I've been thinking of cutting bad carbs as well and I think this would be a good read for me. Thanks!
  • skybird455
    skybird455 Posts: 172 Member
    you have to remember that is it not just how many calories, but where you get them, especially as you get older. Its harder to get belly fat off the older i get, my body does not process foods that are processed like it used to be able to. Eating clean and switching to sprouted bread only has really helped me
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    I eat bread every single day, sandwiches are simple easy foods for work. Why wouldn't you eat bread. If you expend more calories than you take in then you will lose weight. It is simple as that. If you love bread, eat your bread. Hit your macronutrient intake for fats, protein and carbs and you will lose weight if it keeps you under calorie maintenance. EAT WHATEVER YOU LIKE!

    Because clearly it is superior to demonize individual food items as the cause for obesity. I have a dart board at home with a photo of a slice of wonder bread with a white potato on top of it and I throw darts at it while sipping BCAAs.
  • LiddyBit
    LiddyBit Posts: 447 Member
    I'm guessing that, as dudes with ripped abs in your pictures, your stomach muscles can hold in your guts pretty right even when there is bread in there. My weak abs? Not so much...hence avoiding foods that cause tummy pooch.
  • ArroganceInStep
    ArroganceInStep Posts: 6,239 Member
    For many people, planning out your calories for weight loss often results in restricting carb intake. This isn't because carbs are bad, but rather because it's important to make sure you get enough protein and fat in your diet. Many modern diets, particularly in the US, are very high calorie wise AND can short protein and fat requirements in favor of carbs.

    To go from an 'unhealthy diet' (one that is too high calorie wise for your needs and is short on protein and/or fat requirements) to a 'healthy diet' (sufficient calories for healthy living but also low enough to meet dietary goals AND adequate protein and fat) may result in the restriction of carbs (in some cases a severe restriction, depending on how bad the initial diet was). This doesn't mean that carbs are bad, just that they were contributing to undesirable outcomes in the quantities originally consumed.

    For the most part, it's possible to work in carbs into your diet as long as you can exhibit self control. Some people have issues with that. For example, I have never in the history of Doritos been able to eat just 10 chips. So even if I could work 10 Doritos into my diet, I wouldn't because it would be too difficult for me to stick within the planned allotment. That’s really the only viable reason NOT to have specific carbs in moderation. And again, that has to do with the food’s psychological impact on you and not anything horrible with the food itself.
  • monty619
    monty619 Posts: 1,308 Member
    all carbs are good... if there is something you cut completely from a diet its alcohol.
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    I'm guessing that, as dudes with ripped abs in your pictures, your stomach muscles can hold in your guts pretty right even when there is bread in there. My weak abs? Not so much...hence avoiding foods that cause tummy pooch.

    If you have an intolerance to a specific food item then this clearly is cause for elimination. Many people do not have an intolerance to bread (of course, some do) and for those people, the elimination of that item is not necessary and will not provide any additional weight loss outside of the calorie reduction that bread elimination causes.

    It has nothing to do with abs, age, or gender.
  • monty619
    monty619 Posts: 1,308 Member
    abdominal strength and visible abs have little correlation if any.
  • mummytobeslim
    mummytobeslim Posts: 367 Member
    Thank you all for the replies .I will definitely take some off the advice on board .I will also havea look for info on "wheat belly "and have a read .
  • Chood5
    Chood5 Posts: 259 Member
    I eat bread every single day, sandwiches are simple easy foods for work. Why wouldn't you eat bread. If you expend more calories than you take in then you will lose weight. It is simple as that. If you love bread, eat your bread. Hit your macronutrient intake for fats, protein and carbs and you will lose weight if it keeps you under calorie maintenance. EAT WHATEVER YOU LIKE!

    Is it really as simple as that?
  • Sidesteal
    Sidesteal Posts: 5,510 Member
    Is it really as simple as that?

    If you don't have a medical condition or intolerance that mandates the elimination or reduction of bread, then yes.

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