SuperLowCarb.com - Counting Carbs

Counting Carbs

Is counting carbs your game? Is it the way you plan to beat your weight gain? If you're counting carbs, don't do it by going on a low carb diet.

Counting Carbs for Good Nutrition

We've said it until we're blue in the face on this site--our bodies need carbs to be healthy. However, we only need 130 grams of carbs a day. If you're not on a low carb diet yet, but considering it, first try this:

For one week, count the number of carbs in your current diet. Try to be as accurate as possible, but don't adjust what you eat to make the number seem lower. Not yet anyway.
At the end of the week, subtract 130 from the number of carbs you ate each day on average. Then, cut that many carbs from your diet.

Cutting carbs at this point can be done by decreasing your portion sizes, which means you aren't giving up any of the foods you currently eat, you're just eating smaller amounts. Or, you might find there are certain foods you can live without. Giving those up might be easier for you than portion control. Or, you might combine these two methods. One thing is certain though, cutting your carb intake down to 20 grams a day for two weeks, then 60 grams a day after that isn't smart. Your brain will tell you so--carbs are one of the only nutrients that reach the brain.

One other thing to consider when counting carbs is the kind of carbs you eat. If you're eating a lot of fruits, vegetables and whole grains (these are complex carbohydrates, a.k.a. good carbs) chances are you don't need to lose weight. If you're eating a lot of sugary foods, white bread, regular pasta and/or white rice, you're probably eating more. Why? These foods are simple carbohydrates. These are foods that are easy for your body to break down, so you're hungry again shortly after you eat them. Complex carbs take longer for your body to break down, so you feel full longer and don't want or need to eat more later. So by eating complex carbs instead of simple carbs, you will automatically eat less. Make sense? And it's easier than you may think to make the switch from simple to complex carbs. Start with the easy stuff--instead of white bread, eat whole wheat or whole grain. Give whole grain cereals a try. Also, try whole wheat pasta instead of regular pasta and brown or long grain rice instead of white rice. There's not a noticeable difference in taste, as many people think there might be. Also, instead of eating sugary snacks and desserts, eat fruits. Instead of chips, eat fresh cut veggies.

When counting carbs while you switch to complex carbs from simple carbs, you probably won't notice much of a difference in the carb counts. But again, if you're eating healthier carbs, you'll be healthier, and eventually you won't be counting carbs anymore!