When Do You Need Carbohydrates?

Crazy fad diets based on restriction and deprivation have left us not only with the critical issue of national obesity but also a state of utter confusion about what we should be eating.

Rather than insult your intelligence by going on about not eating sweets, white bakery products like bread and cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks etc, I want to look at the more confusing stuff.

Here are 5 key things you might not know about carbohydrates which can have a massive and fast impact on your health and body fat.

1) Those times when you 'really need carbs', you actually don't...

If you kept a close record, you would see that those times when you crave carbs are inextricably linked with times of stress. This can either be physical or psychological stress.

See, the human body hasn't yet evolved to know the difference between the two main categories of stress. In years gone by, stress usually involved either running away from a wild animal or fighting to save your family.

Now, stress more commonly presents itself in the form of mental distress related to marital or family problems, an irritating manager or co-worker, traffic jams and any number of other factors which don't involve any physical activity whatsoever.

The trouble is that you know this, but your body's natural response mechanisms don't! The hormones which activate as part of the 'fight or flight' stress response, are activated regardless of where the stress comes from.

Related to this, is the 'need' for refuelling. Your body senses stress and assumes it is due to some form of intense activity - either fighting or taking flight from a source of danger.

In a nutshell it tells you to refuel - "Give me carbs!!!"

What happens?

You go to the nearest source of sugar which tends to be a sandwich, chocolate bar or a bowl of cereal.

You will find that these cravings can be dealt with by using some form of relaxation before diving for the cupboards! It's what I call mental hunger rather than physical hunger!

2) When you ARE physically hungry, it's not actually YOU!

Inside every human are billions of what we call microzyma.

If we lived and ate as we were designed to, our bodies would remain in an 'alkaline' state and these little creatures would happily go about their business waiting for when we die and they are brought in to decompose our body.

However, unfortunately we have been 'corrupted' by pollution, false food, and chemicals from any number of sources in our environment creating very acidic conditions inside us which, making a huge subject very simple, cause many illnesses from basic lethargy to caner, diabetes and heart disease.

Add to this other acid-forming elements like mental stress, constant noise and exposure to electromagnetic waves from technology and we are making ourselves into walking acid bombs!

These little microzymas are capable of developing into more sinister nasties such as bacteria and yeast which thrive in acidic conditions.

These more powerful forms need fuel to live like any living being.

So what do they call out for? CARBOHYDRATES!

Enter your carb cravings!

By taking steps to alkalize your body, the sources of these carb cravings can be killed off. Feeding them carbs to satisfy your cravings only serves to intensify the problem sending you into a vicious spiral of sickness, tiredness and FATNESS!

3) When do you REALLY need carbs?

Carbohydrates are the form of food which the body can most easily digest for energy.

Bearing in mind most of us spend most of each day sat on our backsides, it should be immediately obvious that eating carbohydrate breakfasts (including Special K, cornflakes, porridge, toast etc) is unnecessary.

The same applies at lunch time. Why do you need 100-150g of carbohydrates just to go and sit at your desk again?

As for dinner time...you're about to lie down for 8 hours!!!

"But I go to the gym / swim / run" I hear the minority cry.

Excellent - good for you!

After intense exercise, our insulin sensitivity goes up - this is the process that controls blood sugar.

This is the time to eat some carbohydrates in order to refuel the muscles you just used as opposed to going into your fat stores at other times.

Not fair, I know. But as we said earlier your body is a survival machine so it is clever enough to store energy for times of crisis when you can't grab a Lucozade before sprinting from a wooly mammoth!

However, if you exercise late into the evening, eating a big plate of pasta will do one thing and that is keep you awake half the night whilst you digest it!

Instead, time your meals a little better. Eat some easily digested vegetables (preferably as a juice) or better, eat some fruit immediately after exercise with a rice and pea protein shake (not the sugary rubbish you get from the sweet factories posing as muscle building companies). This will get digested quickly and prevent muscle breakdown which can occur after exercise.

When you wake up, insulin sensitivity rises again. Having exercised the night before, go to bed on an almost empty stomach then have a small portion of carbs for breakfast from fruit (preferably berries or grapefruit).

Think carefully about carbohydrate timing and you will see a huge difference in your energy levels and body fat!

You're best bet is to take a carb-protein drink of roughly 4 parts carbs to 1 part protein (e.g. 25g of rice and pea protein to 100g of carbs. This can be achieved with a protein powder and fruit smoothie!)

4) Where do you get carbs from?

Most people with a base level of nutrition will answer this question with some combination of these foods:

Pasta, bread, rice, noodles, cereal, porridge oats.

This is true but we tend to forget that vegetables and fruits are also excellent sources of carbohydrates.

Fruit should only really be consumed straight after exercise or with breakfast when insulin sensitivity rises. Fruit provides numerous health benefits so should not be omitted from your diet - it's just a question of when!

Vegetables however, are much less calorie-dense than all of the above, meaning that often you can derive enough for your daily activities. The energy they do provide is also very 'live' which transfers over to you!

Cutting out pasta and bread can be hard at first because of the cravings we mentioned above, but once you have killed off the yeast and fungi which are causing you to be sick and tired, you will amazed how your energy levels pick up and last all day!

If you have performed a heavy weights session, eating a portion of rice can help the recover process because the amino acids in protein are better absorbed in the presence of carbs but you probably don't need as big a portion as you think!

5) Why not go 'no carb' then?

No carb diets such as the Atkins Diet are simply dangerous. This diet involved high fat, high protein, no/low carb approach.

Not only have studies shown that beyond the first 6-10 weeks, people rarely lose any more weight and generally start putting it back on, but there is also concrete evidence that following the Atkins Diet serious health issues arise.

In a 24 week study actually funded by the Atkins Group, the following happened in the 28 subjects at various times...

- 68% reported constipation - 63% reported bad breath - 51% reported headaches - 53% reported increases in calcium in their urine - a key precursor to loss of bone density and osteoporosis.

Other studies have found that permanently low levels of carbs can lead to many factors including heart complications, increased cancer risk and kidney damage.

Also, as mentioned above, digestion of carbohydrates leads to a rise in insulin which not only regulates blood sugar but also improves absorption of amino acids for rebuilding of lean muscle.

This means if you want to increase your metabolism to burn fat and/or build lean muscle for a better physique, you NEED carbs from somewhere so long as it's at the right times as discussed above.

What if I'm an endurance athlete?

If you take part in sport or training which lasts longer than 45-60 minutes, your carbohydrate needs are somewhat more complex.

You should invest in a good quality carb drink to be drunk during and after training and competition. Beyond that, your needs are exactly the same as above.

Eating carbs all day like many endurance athletes is a recipe for becoming 'skinny fat' , wondering why you can't improve your physique despite all your hard work and dramatically increasing your risk of diabetic conditions.

Even if you train twice each day, you should still restrict carbohydrate rich foods to your post-workout meal and during long-exercise sessions.

Follow these 5 guidelines and you will see impressive improvements in your energy levels, body fat and overall health.

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<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC '-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN' 'http://www.w3.org/TR/html4/loose.dtd'><html><head><title>Article-Searchengine | When Do You Need Carbohydrates?</title></head><body><h3>When Do You Need Carbohydrates?</h3><br><br> By: Jon Le Tocq<br><br><p><p>Crazy fad diets based on restriction and deprivation have left us not only with the critical issue of national obesity but also a state of utter confusion about what we should be eating.</P><p>Rather than insult your intelligence by going on about not eating sweets, white bakery products like bread and cakes, biscuits, sugary drinks etc, I want to look at the more confusing stuff.</P><p>Here are 5 key things you might not know about carbohydrates which can have a massive and fast impact on your health and body fat.</P><p>1) Those times when you 'really need carbs', you actually don't...</P><p>If you kept a close record, you would see that those times when you crave carbs are inextricably linked with times of stress. This can either be physical or psychological stress.</P><p>See, the human body hasn't yet evolved to know the difference between the two main categories of stress. In years gone by, stress usually involved either running away from a wild animal or fighting to save your family.</P><p>Now, stress more commonly presents itself in the form of mental distress related to marital or family problems, an irritating manager or co-worker, traffic jams and any number of other factors which don't involve any physical activity whatsoever.</P><p>The trouble is that you know this, but your body's natural response mechanisms don't! The hormones which activate as part of the 'fight or flight' stress response, are activated regardless of where the stress comes from.</P><p>Related to this, is the 'need' for refuelling. Your body senses stress and assumes it is due to some form of intense activity - either fighting or taking flight from a source of danger.</P><p>In a nutshell it tells you to refuel - "Give me carbs!!!"</P><p>What happens?</P><p>You go to the nearest source of sugar which tends to be a sandwich, chocolate bar or a bowl of cereal.</P><p>You will find that these cravings can be dealt with by using some form of relaxation before diving for the cupboards! It's what I call mental hunger rather than physical hunger!</P><p>2) When you ARE physically hungry, it's not actually YOU!</P><p>Inside every human are billions of what we call microzyma.</P><p>If we lived and ate as we were designed to, our bodies would remain in an 'alkaline' state and these little creatures would happily go about their business waiting for when we die and they are brought in to decompose our body.</P><p>However, unfortunately we have been 'corrupted' by pollution, false food, and chemicals from any number of sources in our environment creating very acidic conditions inside us which, making a huge subject very simple, cause many illnesses from basic lethargy to caner, diabetes and heart disease.</P><p>Add to this other acid-forming elements like mental stress, constant noise and exposure to electromagnetic waves from technology and we are making ourselves into walking acid bombs!</P><p>These little microzymas are capable of developing into more sinister nasties such as bacteria and yeast which thrive in acidic conditions.</P><p>These more powerful forms need fuel to live like any living being.</P><p>So what do they call out for? CARBOHYDRATES!</P><p>Enter your carb cravings!</P><p>By taking steps to alkalize your body, the sources of these carb cravings can be killed off. Feeding them carbs to satisfy your cravings only serves to intensify the problem sending you into a vicious spiral of sickness, tiredness and FATNESS!</P><p>3) When do you REALLY need carbs?</P><p>Carbohydrates are the form of food which the body can most easily digest for energy.</P><p>Bearing in mind most of us spend most of each day sat on our backsides, it should be immediately obvious that eating carbohydrate breakfasts (including Special K, cornflakes, porridge, toast etc) is unnecessary.</P><p>The same applies at lunch time. Why do you need 100-150g of carbohydrates just to go and sit at your desk again?</P><p>As for dinner time...you're about to lie down for 8 hours!!!</P><p>"But I go to the gym / swim / run" I hear the minority cry.</P><p>Excellent - good for you!</P><p>After intense exercise, our insulin sensitivity goes up - this is the process that controls blood sugar.</P><p>This is the time to eat some carbohydrates in order to refuel the muscles you just used as opposed to going into your fat stores at other times.</P><p>Not fair, I know. But as we said earlier your body is a survival machine so it is clever enough to store energy for times of crisis when you can't grab a Lucozade before sprinting from a wooly mammoth!</P><p>However, if you exercise late into the evening, eating a big plate of pasta will do one thing and that is keep you awake half the night whilst you digest it!</P><p>Instead, time your meals a little better. Eat some easily digested vegetables (preferably as a juice) or better, eat some fruit immediately after exercise with a rice and pea protein shake (not the sugary rubbish you get from the sweet factories posing as muscle building companies). This will get digested quickly and prevent muscle breakdown which can occur after exercise.</P><p>When you wake up, insulin sensitivity rises again. Having exercised the night before, go to bed on an almost empty stomach then have a small portion of carbs for breakfast from fruit (preferably berries or grapefruit).</P><p>Think carefully about carbohydrate timing and you will see a huge difference in your energy levels and body fat!</P><p>You're best bet is to take a carb-protein drink of roughly 4 parts carbs to 1 part protein (e.g. 25g of rice and pea protein to 100g of carbs. This can be achieved with a protein powder and fruit smoothie!)</P><p>4) Where do you get carbs from?</P><p>Most people with a base level of nutrition will answer this question with some combination of these foods:</P><p>Pasta, bread, rice, noodles, cereal, porridge oats.</P><p>This is true but we tend to forget that vegetables and fruits are also excellent sources of carbohydrates.</P><p>Fruit should only really be consumed straight after exercise or with breakfast when insulin sensitivity rises. Fruit provides numerous health benefits so should not be omitted from your diet - it's just a question of when!</P><p>Vegetables however, are much less calorie-dense than all of the above, meaning that often you can derive enough for your daily activities. The energy they do provide is also very 'live' which transfers over to you!</P><p>Cutting out pasta and bread can be hard at first because of the cravings we mentioned above, but once you have killed off the yeast and fungi which are causing you to be sick and tired, you will amazed how your energy levels pick up and last all day!</P><p>If you have performed a heavy weights session, eating a portion of rice can help the recover process because the amino acids in protein are better absorbed in the presence of carbs but you probably don't need as big a portion as you think!</P><p>5) Why not go 'no carb' then?</P><p>No carb diets such as the Atkins Diet are simply dangerous. This diet involved high fat, high protein, no/low carb approach.</P><p>Not only have studies shown that beyond the first 6-10 weeks, people rarely lose any more weight and generally start putting it back on, but there is also concrete evidence that following the Atkins Diet serious health issues arise.</P><p>In a 24 week study actually funded by the Atkins Group, the following happened in the 28 subjects at various times...</P><p>- 68% reported constipation - 63% reported bad breath - 51% reported headaches - 53% reported increases in calcium in their urine - a key precursor to loss of bone density and osteoporosis.</P><p>Other studies have found that permanently low levels of carbs can lead to many factors including heart complications, increased cancer risk and kidney damage.</P><p>Also, as mentioned above, digestion of carbohydrates leads to a rise in insulin which not only regulates blood sugar but also improves absorption of amino acids for rebuilding of lean muscle.</P><p>This means if you want to increase your metabolism to burn fat and/or build lean muscle for a better physique, you NEED carbs from somewhere so long as it's at the right times as discussed above.</P><p>What if I'm an endurance athlete?</P><p>If you take part in sport or training which lasts longer than 45-60 minutes, your carbohydrate needs are somewhat more complex.</P><p>You should invest in a good quality carb drink to be drunk during and after training and competition. Beyond that, your needs are exactly the same as above.</P><p>Eating carbs all day like many endurance athletes is a recipe for becoming 'skinny fat' , wondering why you can't improve your physique despite all your hard work and dramatically increasing your risk of diabetic conditions.</P><p>Even if you train twice each day, you should still restrict carbohydrate rich foods to your post-workout meal and during long-exercise sessions.</P><p>Follow these 5 guidelines and you will see impressive improvements in your energy levels, body fat and overall health.<br></P></p> <br><br> <b>Author Resource:-></b>  Jon Le Tocq is the leading personal trainer in Guernsey who specializes in rapid fat loss, kettlebell training and strength and conditioning for performance.<br><br>Find out more at <A href="http://www.stormforcefitness.com/">http://www.stormforcefitness.com</A> or <A href="http://www.guernseypersonaltrainer.com/">http://www.guernseypersonaltrainer.com</A><br><br>Article Source: <a href='http://www.article-searchengine.com/Art/68508/73/When-Do-You-Need-Carbohydrates.html'>http://www.article-searchengine.com/Art/68508/73/When-Do-You-Need-Carbohydrates.html</a><br></body></html>