Good Carbs, Bad Carbs

By IsaBody Challenge Winner Jill Birth.

So why do carbs have such a bad rap in our culture? Are carbs bad for you, to be avoided at all costs, simply the cause of obesity in America and nothing else? Hmmmm . . . lets talk about carbs for a second.

Sugars are simple carbohydrates. When we typically think of sugar we think of such things as granulated, brown, powdered, raw, or cane. However, things like honey, syrup and molasses are also sugars. You’ll also find it used in things like jam, jelly, soda, pies, cakes, cookies and candy bars. And white flours, white rice, white potatoes, etc. are often received by our bodies the same way that “sugars” are – in other words, once in the body, they are more likely to be converted to and stored as fat.

Your body needs carbohydrates to supply the energy that is necessary to function and perform. That is why removing carbs from your diet in order to lose weight really just depletes your body of the positive and amazing nutrients that it needs, nutrients that come from carbohydrates. Complex carbohydrates — such as fruits, vegetables, whole grain products and dried peas and legumes — provide the same energy to your body as simple carbohydrates but are less likely to be converted and stored as fat.

A good rule of thumb when you’re hungry/preparing your meals is to have 1/2 your plate filled with vegetables and fruits (2/3 more veggies than fruit), 1/4 of your plate with a serving of a lean protein, and 1/4 of your plate with a small serving of another complex carbohydrate.