Yes and No. Carbohydrate is one of the main macro nutrients so it is necessary that we include it within our eating habits. We just have to be careful of which ones we’re eating, how much and what time of the day. You will find carbs in almost all foods, so it’s important to choose your carbs wisely to keep your levels low. I believe if you are physically active, it is important to have more, especially if you’re maintaining regular weight lifting. If they’re is not much strenuous exercise, I would keep carbs at 15-20% of your food intake. This can be scaled by weekly or daily. If you have a big workout one day, you might be able to get away with having more. If you take off from working out, keep them low.
3 types of carbohydrate
Fibrous (slowest digesting) – vegetables
Complex (slower digesting) – rice, sweet potato, quinoa
Simple (fastest digesting) – fruits and processed carbs (bread, cereal)
I would say your intake should be mostly from fibrous, then moderate intake for complex and simple on the low end.
Carbs and body fat production
In the digestive system, carbohydrates are converted to blood glucose(sugar). The more readily available carbohydrate are in the system, the more of a chance there will be body fat production via high blood sugar. When the blood glucose is increased in the blood, your pancreas will release insulin in order to decrease that high glucose level. When insulin is combined with blood glucose, it stores it as fat reserve. The quicker digesting carbs will make this process occur much faster, and we don’t want that because that means more body fat. If carbs are generally low, this process will happen less often and you will remain leaner. If it happens more often, you may become insulin resistant and the body will a hard to letting the system know you’re having too much. **This is why I follow high fat eating habits, because fat does not affect insulin release**
Carbs to avoid that may be lurking around the house – bread, cereal, breakfast bars, energy bars, granola, fruit juice drinks, soda. I call these foods empty calories or dead foods as they were never once alive. They are just fillers of the stomach and the body doesn’t really know what to do with them. Little to no nutritional value.
**oatmeal is ok from time to time if it’s an organic brand. The flavored brands are no good. I don’t really think it provides much nutrients, so I don’t bother with it.
