Hello all...
I have a few simple questions that may be simple for you, but for me, I am still learning what's best for by body:
I do drink more water than I used to, but I am wondering WHY exactly is it so important to drink more water? Is it more than just to keep a "fuller feeling"? I know the body is a high percentage of water, but I'm wondering if there's more to it.
Also, why is it better (well, why do some people) feel that it is better to cut down on carbohydrates? I have increased my protein (because I know that helps with muscle building and I do weights), but I am just wanting a little more basic knowledge of why it is best to limit the amount of carbs in my diet.
Well...as far as water goes - I think there are just so many good things from drinking water...not just a feeling of fullness but I really feel that it helps wash out the fat - in a matter of speaking. Also IMO drinking a lot of water (I shoot for a gallon a day minimum of pure H20) helps flush out all the bad stuff and aids in digestion as well.
About carbs - well there are good carbs and there are bad carbs. Unfortunately in America (and increasingly, much of the world these days) we eat WAY too many of the bad carbs. Here's an interesting article from Krista Scott Dixon's website regarding carbs:
Quote:
Carb Myth Part I: Why Fat Free Likely Isn't
Ah, the 1980s and early 1990s, the era of ultra-low-fat diets. We were told that we could eat anything we want, as long as it didn't have fat in it. Calories were irrelevant! Just purge the fat and you can eat everything with impunity! I don't know about you folks, but I chowed down a whole lot of plain rice and brownies made with applesauce. My boyfriend, now my husband and the son of a gourmet chef, suffered (mostly) in silence through flavourless steamed veggies, leaden baked goods, and my fat fascism, though he did try to sneak bacon and butter into things occasionally.
Well, at the end of it all in early 1997, I was still overweight. Desperately, I tried to purge every last living fat molecule from my life. I sautéed veggies in water. I ate pasta with plain tomato sauce.
I hovered over my husband when he cooked, making sure he didn't try to infringe on my fat-free life with an extra blop of cooking oil. I even tried going vegetarian, but had to quit that after a couple of weeks when my tummy growled constantly with hunger. And through it all, I happily scarfed "fat-free" treats: Snackwells, hard candies, Jello, gelatos and sorbets, fat-free salad dressings with a weird chemical aftertaste... Are you doing the math by now, dear reader? It wasn't the fat in my diet that was the problem, it was the carbohydrate intake. In other words, I had replaced some negligible fat calories with tons of sugar and starch calories.
When I discovered weight training, I discovered that bodybuilders ate strangely. They ate lots of lean protein, avoided simple sugar and starch carbs like white bread, pasta, and white rice, and (gasp!) deliberately ate fat! I thought they were all insane. I began training, but kept eating my fat-free, high-carb diet. I was doing OK in the gym thanks to beginner gains, but I sure wasn't losing any fat. I started to think I was destined to be heavy. Most of the women in my family are "pleasingly plump". I figured it was genetics. I figured I was a lost cause. I got pretty depressed about the prospect. Then my training guru told me I wasn't eating enough protein, and suggested supplementing with flax seed oil. I thought it was the craziest thing I'd ever heard. Eat fat on purpose?! But, after a few weeks of him nagging me to do it, I gave in and bought my first bottle of flax seed oil. (by the way, you can read more about why you shouldn't drop your fat intake when dieting, and about flax seed oil here). And I started cutting back on plain pasta in favour of lean protein. With almost no other effort on my part besides regular visits to the gym, the fat began dropping off.
So, what was the reason for this transformation? Why is a diet low in carbs conducive to losing fat? Let's start with an explanation of why simple carbs (sugars and starches) have more of a role to play in fat deposition than dietary fat.
Carbohydrates are one of the three main groups of macronutrients in the diet (the other two are fat and protein). In the carb group are various kinds of sugars such as sucrose (table sugar), fructose (fruit sugar), lactose (in milk), and so forth, as well as various kinds of starches, which are composed of sugar molecules bonded together. Our bodies use glucose, one of the very simplest sugar molecules, as a main source of fuel. The closer something is to glucose, the more quickly it is digested and used as fuel. Simple sugars are very easily digested and converted to glucose. Starches are somewhat harder for the body to convert to glucose, so it has to expend a bit more effort doing so. Refined starches such as white flour, white rice, cornstarch, and products such as breakfast cereals, white bread, and pasta made with these refined starches, are easier for the body to convert to glucose than starches from whole grains (barley, oatmeal) and vegetables (except for potatoes and yams). Because more complex carbs such as whole grains and vegetables contain more fibre, they are not as readily broken down by the body, and so do not as quickly become glucose. In addition, complex carbs contain other things like vitamins and minerals which are often missing in refined carbs because of their extensive processing. Have you ever noticed that white breads trumpet how vitamin- and mineral-enriched they are? Did you ever wonder why breadmakers had to put those things back into the product? It's because they took them out in the first place!
OK, so why is it important to think about how quickly foods get converted to glucose? For one thing, the human body is a very thrifty machine. It constantly worries that we may encounter a time when we do not have enough to eat, so it socks fuel away for a rainy (or hungry) day. This was a great idea when we were running around trying not to get et by sabre-toothed tigers while scavenging for edible roots, but not as brilliant for our modern industrialized lifestyles where food is as close as a quick stumble to the fridge. It's the reason why starvation is a really long, drawn-out death: the body has quite extensive resources to deal with food shortages. When we have an excess of glucose gushing into our bloodstream, as happens with the consumption of simple and refined carbs, our body handles it in two ways. One way is to excrete glucose through the urine, though this is only used if the body cannot deal with the excess glucose, as in the case of diabetics. In most people, the body's main technique is to store excess glucose as fat. Let me repeat that in case you didn't catch it. It stores excess sugar as fat. Are you making the connection now? It's probably not the fat in your diet that's making you fat, it's more likely the sugar.
When metabolizing glucose, the body releases insulin from the pancreas. Insulin causes the glucose to move into the cells so that it may be processed. If the cells don't need all that glucose for their various functions, then they convert the glucose to triglycerides (fats), and store the fat within the cells, organs, or in adipose (fat) tissue. In the process of sending the fat molecules to their destination (mostly adipose tissue), the fat molecules are moved through the bloodstream. So, what you wind up with is fat roaming around in your blood, which eventually spells cardiovascular problems, such as heart disease and stroke, as well as an eventual increase in bodyfat. "Bad" fats made from sugars can also interfere with "good" fats such as those from flax seed oils, which prevents the "good" fats from doing their job.
But the diabolical work of simple and refined sugars doesn't end there. These kinds of carbs, as I said, are digested very quickly. There is a rush of glucose into the body's systems. The body responds by releasing insulin, which because it shoves the glucose into the cells, results in a blood sugar drop. Many refer to this quick blood sugar rush and resulting drop as an "insulin spike" (a friend of mine refers to a particular kind of sugar-saturated donut as "The Insulin Whiplash"). It's like a sugar rollercoaster. People who are sensitive to this may feel shaky, fatigued, dizzy, faint, and/or sleepy after consuming these kinds of carbs in significant amounts. More extreme symptoms of hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) include depression, mood swings, and even unconsciousness. A chocolate bar may give you quick energy with the flood of glucose into your system, but your energy levels will drop through the floor 30 minutes or so later. And here is where the vicious cycle completes itself: you're left craving more simple and refined carbs. It's like a nutritional perpetual motion machine. Eat more simple carbs, desire more simple carbs. Which, of course, spells F-A-T.
It's ironic that our problems with sugar are largely a result of industrialization and class snobbishness. It used to be that the refinement of foods was something that only the middle and upper classes could afford. Only peasants ate dark whole grain breads and picked their food from the fields. Milady and milud did not soil their digestive systems with such low-class things! Maybe a better diet was the working-class revenge which Marx envisioned! Now many kinds of good-for-you foods are classified as "health foods" and only the privileged can afford to buy them at specialty shops, while refined foods like white bread and Twinkies are some of the cheapest foods one can buy.
Does all of this mean that sugar is the enemy? Well, yes and no. Yes, we should be very conscious of our simple and refined carb intake when trying to lose fat. But if we make informed food choices, then carbs are relegated to their proper place of reliable energy source. One thing we can do is choose fibrous, complex carbs over simple, refined carbs. So, eat brown rice instead of white, and whole wheat pasta instead of regular pasta. And if you can, cut back on the sugar you put into your coffee. Two spoonfuls of sugar, twice a day, add up to a lot of extra carbs over a long time. Combined with caffeine's tendency to drop your blood sugar, and you have hypoglycemia city.
We can also change the way we structure our meals. It used to be that a healthy meal had some protein (usually as meat), some starch (potatoes, rice, pasta, etc.), and some veggies on the side. I suggest getting rid of the starch altogether and increasing the portions of lean protein and veggies. For example, one of the things I love to do is make a big salad with all kinds of veggies (and sometimes even fruit and/or nuts and seeds), and toss some chopped cooked chicken or steak into it. Or, I make curries with chopped chicken or beef, some chopped veggies, and maybe some chickpeas. Instead of a tuna sandwich on bread, I throw some tuna in a bowl and mix it with some mayo, chopped tomatoes and green peppers, and maybe some sunflower seeds. You're only limited by your creativity.
The third thing you can do is to eat more regularly. If you eat two or three times a day, it means that your blood sugar undergoes more fluctuations, which can mean less energy and more readily deposited bodyfat. If, on the other hand, you eat five or six small meals a day, and these meals have some protein and fat in them (in other words, I don't mean that a meal is a handful of fig newtons!), then your blood sugar remains more constant, you'll have fewer cravings, more energy, and generally feel better. Plus your metabolism will keep revving because your body has to expend the effort to digest stuff more frequently.
Fourth, learn to read labels to look for hidden sources of sugar. Soft drinks and juices are loaded with sugar. If you must drink pop, at least switch to diet. Other serious sources of sugar are pastries (cookies, pies, Twinkies, etc.), candy, many processed and canned foods such as sauces (ketchup, peanut butter, syrups of all kinds), juices, and fruits, and dairy products such as flavoured yogurts or ice cream. Most breakfast cereals are pure junk from a simple carb standpoint. They might as well call Cheerios "Gluc-Os". You'd be amazed at what contains simple and refined carbs, so read the labels on everything!!
Finally, and this is a corollary of the first thing, learn about the glycemic index. The glycemic index (GI) is a representation of how readily foods are converted to glucose in your body. So, simple and refined sugars have the highest GI, while fibrous, fat- or protein-rich foods have much lower GIs. The body has to work harder to convert more complex carbs, protein, and fat to glucose. Choosing foods that have lower GIs will help prevent the dreaded "insulin whiplash" since their slower conversion means less of a glucose rush.
In conclusion, just because something is "fat-free" may not mean it's good for you. "Fat-free" foods are often very high in simple and refined carbs, which means that in your body, they're as far from "fat-free" as you can get.
In the first part of this series, The Carb Myth Part I: Why Fat Free Likely Isn't, I pointed out that people often replaced the fat in their food with carbs, primarily in the form of refined sugar. I also stressed that controlling carb intake was critical to ensuring successful fat loss and appetite management. I'd like to expand on this a little bit because currently, the low-carb mania is echoing the stupidity of the low-fat mania ten years ago.
1. Refined carbs—processed sugars and simple starches—are still bad for you. No matter how you slice it (no pun intended), refined carbs are bad news. They're essentially nutritional pollutants, and they are found in most processed foods. They wreak havoc with your appetite and satiety, turn your blood sugar into a rollercoaster of highs and lows, and cause a variety of nasty things to happen throughout your body. I'm being a little hyperbolic, of course-one cookie isn't going to make your liver shrivel, but when you start reading labels and realize how much junky crap is in your food, it's a real wake-up call. One particular culprit is high fructose corn syrup. That stuff is everywhere: ketchup, juice, breakfast cereals. Read your labels! If there are more than, say, three ingredients and at least one of them ends in "ose", don't eat it, or restrict yourself to a small portion. White flour is also included as a refined carb, so limit your intake of this stuff too. Potatoes are often put into the refined carb group, although they are technically a vegetable. This is because they tend to stimulate a similar kind of response as other refined carbohydrates. But it's a matter of degree: eating a baked potato is still much better than eating a pop tart.
refined carbs include:
Baked goods: muffins, donuts, pastries, white bread, cookies, cakes, many breakfast cereals
Snack foods: candies, chips, pretzels
Sweetened dairy products: ice cream, chocolate milk
Drinks: pop/soda, juice
Pasta made from white flour, white rice, rice cakes
2. Substitute whole grains and/or fruit and veggies for refined carbs. Whole grains and fruit/veg are higher in beneficial fibre, vitamins, and in the case of fruit/veg, other useful phytonutrients. This means that not only are they more nutritious in general, but they help control energy levels and appetite more effectively. Plus, they taste better! Below I give some ideas about how to cook whole grains, useful if you have never incorporated them into your own cooking. The more you reduce your refined carb intake, the less you will probably crave the stuff. You'll likely find that your appetite diminishes, and you have fewer blood sugar swings, but more consistent energy.
instead of:
White bread
Regular Pasta
Ramen noodles
White rice
Fruit juice
Sugary breakfast cereals
try:
Whole grain bread, rye bread, pumpernickel bread
Whole wheat pasta
Buckwheat noodles (soba)
Brown rice or wild rice
Barley
Buckwheat
Fruit
Oatmeal
Some people will say that fruit should not be eaten while dieting, because fructose is easily converted to fat. This is a misconception. First, fruit is relatively low in fructose compared to things like high fructose corn syrups. Fruit sugars are a mix of fructose and other sugars like glucose. Second, the amount of total sugar in fruit is very low. While the body lacks the ability to convert large quantities of fructose to muscle glycogen effectively, it would be very difficult to consume enough fructose in the form of fruit to make this happen. Fruit has an important place in a well balanced diet, no matter what your goals are. It's loaded with vitamins and fibre, and it tastes great!
3. Lowcarb diets are not magical. They work by inhibiting appetite and lowering calories. Total caloric intake is the prime determinant of weight loss. It's just that many folks find that lowering carb intake also reduces their appetite, so they eat less. Or, because they're told they should restrict a food group, they eat less. In any case, they're eating fewer calories.
It's the calories, stupid. This bears repeating. Any diet which involves you eating fewer calories than you burn will result in weight loss. Now, the quality of that weight loss, and how you feel while doing it, depends on your macronutrient intake. A diet which has adequate lean protein, good fats, whole grains, and lots of fruit and veggies is the best choice for general health for the average person. The actual percentages will vary from person to person, depending on individual needs, but this plan is a good basic overview.
4. Cutting carbs drastically is not appropriate for everyone. No diet, no matter how great it is, is a one-size-fits-all prescription. People doing lots of endurance activity will likely find their performance decreases when carbs dip too low, as will people trying to gain muscle. Carbs, especially good carbs, have a role to play in a balanced diet which is sustainable for the long term. Most folks can benefit from reducing the amount of refined sugars and starches they eat, but cutting down on good quality carbs is not necessarily always the best thing for everyone. Remember…
MrsJim is right...not all carbs are equal. Carbohydrates in your diet should come from whole grain breads and cereals, fruits and veggies...not from fat free brownies, white dinner rolls, and Cap'n Crunch...
I kindof have a little guideline when I choose foods...I watch my calories, but I try to make sure that most of the calories I eat are healthy less processed foods, as close to nature made as possible...a full baked potato with skin rather than instant Potato Buds or Ore Ida tater tots...oatmeal instead of Frosted Flakes and Pop-Tarts...all of the heavy processing these types of foods have, basically has taken a lot of the nutrients that the food originally had and destroyed them, and then you have all of the added chemicals and corn syrups and everything that is listed on the side of the box.
I am by no means an Atkin's low carb diet follower-but in his book he did have one good point-that the majority of carbs that people today eat, are extremely refined and processed...the cake mixes, the brownies, kiddie cereals, Pop-Tarts-everything loaded with bleached all purpose flour and sugar. It is a shame that I have to search through the bread aisle in the store to find the one or two loaves of actual "Whole wheat" bread...the rest consists of what I call "pseudo wheat bread." ("Sure, it is brown-everyone will think that it is whole wheat bread" says the manufacturers. I am still trying to convince my mother in law that her Aunt Millies wheat bread is not whole wheat...heck, I am still trying to convince her that there is a difference between the two.)
Aphil
WOW-what a lot of information and it's exactly what I needed! I have heard people addressing the "fructose turning into fat from fruits" and have always wondered about that...this makes it more clear as to why it's GOOD to continue with vegetables and fruit.
I never realized that ketchup was a "bad carb" I am addicted to the red stuff! oops!
anyway-thank you very much for your responses! I appreciate being able to learn SO much on this site! Thanks!
H20 & carbs questions
("Sure, it is brown-everyone will think that it is whole wheat bread" says the manufacturers. I am still trying to convince my mother in law that her Aunt Millies wheat bread is not whole wheat...heck, I am still trying to convince her that there is a difference between the two.)
