Loving or Hating Carbs

Although is forum does promote the very scientific calories burned - calories eaten = weight loss does anyone have any opinions on the basis of "fad diets" such as South Beach? 

Obviously th GI index is a good thing to follow, but does anyone believe that regardless of calories they may be "carb sensitive" and is there any proof that this is a real condition?

After a year of looking at this site and not really doing much I have realised that my motivation is not to lose that much weight, I don't focus too much on it and can't get motivated enough because I'm not "fat" or have a desperate need to lose it. 

What I'd like to do is get healthier, eat proper foods, release myself from this carb / sugar addiction that I have and any weight loss in the process would be a bonus.  I get bloated quite a lot and have been at my current weight and dress size for 12 months.

I'm getting married in August and really want to look and feel my best.

p.s - no danger of not being sensible, self confessed food-a-holic, F/26/5'6/151lbs.

I don't think that people are 'carb sensitive' as a rule.  Carbohydrates covers such a wide range of foods that you may be horribly allergic to wheat, for example, but you're unlikely to also be sensitive to bananas or carrots or any of the other hundreds of foods in the same category.  There are some who suffer from acute medical conditions that can't tolerate entire food categories... I'm thinking Crohn's Disease, that kind of thing.  But the rest of us can't use 'carb sensitive' as an excuse.   No-one's ever 'chocolate intolerant' are they?

I do think, however, that nutritionally poor carbohydrates around which a lot of Western Diets are based are a problem.  All the extruded/processed/engineered to death starches and sugary foods lead to a lot of digestive problems and overeating if eaten in volume.  If you follow something like South Beach or a Low GI diet and simply swap the empty sugars and starches for more natural and less processed foods I do think you can see a difference.

I think that I agree with you, I guess it's a big portion of simple carb sensitivity in most people, me included.

I'm going to try to decrease my portion sizes of startches and add in more vegetables and proteins etc.

I think if you just start cutting out white processed foods, and begin to eat only foods that remeber where they came from, you'll be fine.

If you swap white bread/pasta for wholemeal, white rice for brown.... trim the portions to a reasonable size and make up any lost bulk in a meal with more vegetables it does make a difference.

I used to make pasta dishes, for example, with about 4oz dry white pasta per serving.... sauce on top, maybe a side salad, a little cheese.   I now make pasta dishes with 2oz dry wholemeal pasta.... a lot more sauce padded out with more vegetables, a side salad, a little cheese.   The whole meal is just as tasty, a little more filling but about 200 cals less than before.  That's what'll help you lose weight.

If you tend to go overboard on sugary foods, try limiting them to one small item a day... or even once a week.  If you lose most of the simple starches and sugars and replace them with other choices it's 100 x easier to be happy with less food.  

Another example... I switched to a Low GI diet about 4 years ago.  3 months into the exercise I went to a meeting where white bread roll sandwiches were provided for lunch.  The first white bread I'd had for weeks and very nice they were too.   Until about an hour and a half later when I was suddenly hit by the most crashing hunger pangs!   That experience showed me that the type of food is as important as the quantity.

Good luck

I personally dont worry about the good & bad carbs or the amount...I figure if I concentrate on eating healthier foods then I am good to go...plus it helps fuel the body...I consume 330-350 carbs a day...here is some info from an outside source:

Carbohydrates are the major source of energy for the body. They are composed mostly of the elements carbon (C), hydrogen (H), and oxygen (O). Through the bonding of these elements, carbohydrates provide energy for the body in the form of kilocalories (kcal), with an average of 4 kcal per gram (kcal/g) of carbohydrates (a kcal is equivalent to a calorie on a nutritional label of a packaged food).

Carbohydrates come in a variety of sizes. The smallest carbohydrates are the simple sugars, also known as monosaccharides and disaccharides, meaning that they are made up of one or two sugar molecules. The best known simple sugar is table sugar, which is also known as sucrose, a disaccharide. Other simple sugars include the monosaccharides glucose and fructose, which are found in fruits, and the disaccharides, which include sucrose, lactose (found in milk), and maltose (in beer and malt liquors). The larger carbohydrates are made up of these smaller simple sugars and are known as polysaccharides (many sugar molecules) or complex carbohydrates. These are usually made up of many linked glucose molecules, though, unlike simple sugars, they do not have a sweet taste. Examples of foods high in complex carbohydrates include potatoes, beans, and vegetables. Another type of complex carbohydrate is dietary fiber. However, although fiber is a complex carbohydrate made up of linked sugar molecules, the body cannot break apart the sugar linkages and, unlike other complex carbohydrates, it passes through the body with minimal changes.

Although carbohydrates are not considered to be an essential nutrient, the body depends on them as its primary energy source. The body utilizes most carbohydrates to generate glucose, which serves as the basic functional molecule of energy within the cells of the human body (glucose is broken down to ultimately produce adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, the fundamental unit of energy). When the supply of carbohydrates is too low to adequately supply all the energy needs of the body, amino acids from proteins are converted to glucose. However, the typical American individual consumes more than adequate amounts of carbohydrates to prevent this utilization of protein.

^^  I agree.

I try and eat good complex carbs.  I find I end up eating more calories because refined sugars and simple carbs just don't keep me feeling full for very long.  I think that this is the big problem with high carb diets, that people eat simple carbs and aren't full, so they eat more than they would if they were eating something more nutritionall sound.  I feel this way about most of the lesser healthy foods, though.

Calories in are calories in, but designing a healthy balanced diet with lots of vitamins and fibre and good fats and complex carbs and protein will definitely help you feel great, less bloated and more energetic.

Good luck!

I personally have to "low carb" it tt lose weight. I can eat the same amount of calories on 2 different weeks and not lose anything on a higher carb week, and lose on a lower carb higher protein week. It's just they way my body is and I've accepted it lol.

Do an experiment and see how your body responds to certain carb/fat/protein ratios. And of course don't forget your water and fiber. Hav a succeful journey toward a healthier you.