Do I need any carbs?

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CoolHands

Original Poster:

18,496 posts

194 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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Chap at work lost a load of weight and has become a bit of a zealot after reading all sorts of stuff about how our bodies break down energy sources. He’s very interesting to talk to. I forget most of what he says but mostly it revolves around how the foods we’ve been told are healthy is mostly due to the governments of the world needing to feed people.

So grains, rice, carb type foods etc and less meat as it’s expensive and intensive to farm. He thinks our bodies don’t deal with it well and it turns to sugar which your bodies use, and hence underlying fat etc doesn’t get used and I think gets deposited. So eating loads of meat and fats cheese etc is good and then your body starts dealing with everything differently and the energy they provide is not a short high, but a longer period. Also you don’t get hungry etc.

I can’t remember all the stuff but that’s the gist. Similar to the keto diet I think.

So, do I need carbs? I was thinking about carnivores like lions etc and they pretty much eat no carbs I suppose so I do sort of see that we could have been fed a load of hogwash over the years. I now recognise that govts have fed up so much bullst over the years about all sorts so I’ve no doubt food is one of them. So I am inclination to believe him and volte-face

Sheets Tabuer

18,895 posts

214 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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You need a balanced healthy diet, you only have to look at our teeth to observe what we should be eating.

Carbs are of course a kind of sugar, forgive me but it has been many years since I was at uni but they are disaccharides which is probably where your friend has his info from. Of course you need glycogen for your muscle to function properly and ther best source for you body would be whole grains and fruits.

Of course you can eat a protein rich diet but that puts quite a bit of strain on your kidneys which may be fine if you have no underlying health conditions.

So I would argue that yes, you need carbs.

grumbledoak

31,499 posts

232 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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You do not need carbs.

Nothing will happen if you never eat another gram of carbs, except you will have to eat more protein and fat instead.

king arthur

6,538 posts

260 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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Sheets Tabuer said:
Of course you can eat a protein rich diet but that puts quite a bit of strain on your kidneys.
.
It doesn't, this has been debunked. It's only kidneys that are already damaged that are affected by too much protein.

Sheets Tabuer

18,895 posts

214 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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Which is why I said if you have no underlying health conditions, I've been on a high protein diet for years as a gym rat and never had a problem.

king arthur

6,538 posts

260 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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CoolHands said:
Chap at work lost a load of weight and has become a bit of a zealot after reading all sorts of stuff about how our bodies break down energy sources. He’s very interesting to talk to. I forget most of what he says but mostly it revolves around how the foods we’ve been told are healthy is mostly due to the governments of the world needing to feed people.

So grains, rice, carb type foods etc and less meat as it’s expensive and intensive to farm. He thinks our bodies don’t deal with it well and it turns to sugar which your bodies use, and hence underlying fat etc doesn’t get used and I think gets deposited. So eating loads of meat and fats cheese etc is good and then your body starts dealing with everything differently and the energy they provide is not a short high, but a longer period. Also you don’t get hungry etc.

I can’t remember all the stuff but that’s the gist. Similar to the keto diet I think.

So, do I need carbs? I was thinking about carnivores like lions etc and they pretty much eat no carbs I suppose so I do sort of see that we could have been fed a load of hogwash over the years. I now recognise that govts have fed up so much bullst over the years about all sorts so I’ve no doubt food is one of them. So I am inclination to believe him and volte-face
I think there is something in what your friend says. This might be worth a watch -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHaCKudtVi0

Bacon Is Proof

5,740 posts

230 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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What are you going to spread your butter on, cardboard?
Of course you need carbs.

Smurfsarepeopletoo

863 posts

56 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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It depends what you mean by do you need carbs, they are a fuel source, like proteins and fats, technically you dont need them, but as the majority of food contains carbs (Fruit, Veg, Alcohol) it would be a pretty miserable existence if you decided not to eat them again.

The reason people lose weight quickly when they stop eating carbs, is because 1g of carbs also retain around 4g of water, so when you stop eating carbs, you lose alot of water weight, secondly, food with lots of carbs i.e. bread, pasta, tend to be quite calorific, so when you stop eating them, it is unlikely that the food you replace them with contains as many calories, so your just putting yourself in a calorie deficit, and thats all you need to lose weight.

Depending on the type of carbs you eat, fast or slow acting carbs, depend on how your body processes them, (look at the GI rating of food, the lower the rating, the better your body processes them), but fast acting carbs are good post workout, as your body will utilise them to replenish glycogen, slow acting carbs like oats, can help keep you fuller for longer, and give you a constant energy source that doesnt give you energy spikes and crashes, and can help people with diabetes, as it can help regulate insulin productivity.

Edited by Smurfsarepeopletoo on Monday 21st June 21:09

CoolHands

Original Poster:

18,496 posts

194 months

Monday 21st June 2021
quotequote all
For the last month I’ve sort of done what he advocates and it does make you realise the amount of crappy carbs you eat eg pizzas, French bread, crisps, loads of breakfast cereals etc etc. So now I feel like yeah I can see breads is mostly stodgy rubbish that just fills you up if you see what I mean? I’m not saying never eat another wrap again or anything. I had prawns with guacamole in a wrap at the weekend. But it is making me think / see something.

Ps I don’t work out I just sit at a computer all day!

Pps I bought a decent sized steak and it was ridiculous it only had something like 300-odd calories in it?!

Pit Pony

8,265 posts

120 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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CoolHands said:
For the last month I’ve sort of done what he advocates and it does make you realise the amount of crappy carbs you eat eg pizzas, French bread, crisps, loads of breakfast cereals etc etc. So now I feel like yeah I can see breads is mostly stodgy rubbish that just fills you up if you see what I mean? I’m not saying never eat another wrap again or anything. I had prawns with guacamole in a wrap at the weekend. But it is making me think / see something.

Ps I don’t work out I just sit at a computer all day!
Aĺl things in moderation. All different foods, but less of them, moderate exercise, but not too much.
I uses to be 17 and a half stone. 15 years ago. Gradually have taken back some control and my weight fluctuates between 13 and 12

At 13 I feel fat, and at 12 I feel skinny.

Work at a desk, but cycle or walk for an hour every other day.
Might do couch to 5K because I did do a half marathon in 2016, but haven't done much since.

Evoluzione

10,345 posts

242 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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Sounds like Keto to me, go read the Keto thread.
I'm T2D so have been forced into it. It's utterly dull, but I have no option.
There is a massive T2D problem though, it's because we're all on the wrong diet.

grumbledoak

31,499 posts

232 months

Monday 21st June 2021
quotequote all
CoolHands said:
For the last month I’ve sort of done what he advocates and it does make you realise the amount of crappy carbs you eat eg pizzas, French bread, crisps, loads of breakfast cereals etc etc. So now I feel like yeah I can see breads is mostly stodgy rubbish that just fills you up if you see what I mean? I’m not saying never eat another wrap again or anything. I had prawns with guacamole in a wrap at the weekend. But it is making me think / see something.

Ps I don’t work out I just sit at a computer all day!

Pps I bought a decent sized steak and it was ridiculous it only had something like 300-odd calories in it?!
There is a thread on "keto" here -
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Keto is typically under 20g carbs per day. Most lose weight on it, and it is quite easy to maintain. Some prefer it as a permanent way of eating.

You can also just eat meat - strict carnivore. That's very restrictive, and gets quite expensive. You eat a lot of steak, when that is all you eat.



gregs656

10,816 posts

180 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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CoolHands said:
Chap at work lost a load of weight and has become a bit of a zealot
Colour me surprised, a keto zealot.


halo34

2,428 posts

198 months

Monday 21st June 2021
quotequote all
grumbledoak said:
There is a thread on "keto" here -
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Keto is typically under 20g carbs per day. Most lose weight on it, and it is quite easy to maintain. Some prefer it as a permanent way of eating.

You can also just eat meat - strict carnivore. That's very restrictive, and gets quite expensive. You eat a lot of steak, when that is all you eat.
Went carnivore (or a degree of it 6 weeks ago) - have to say its the best I have felt in a long time. Will introduce some elements back in, but one slip back to a pizza and I was in carb sleepy land.

I did however go through a period of having interesting times before it settled.

wyson

2,066 posts

103 months

Monday 21st June 2021
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I got a personal trainer at the gym once. He made me eat 5 times day, and severely restricted starches and sugars in my diet so my body would switch to burning fat. Each of the 5 meals were a hand sized portion of lean meat and another hand sized portion of mainly green vegetables. Broccoli, spinach, peas etc. One handful of nuts / seeds and one portion of fruit a day.

I lost 10kg in 6 months.

Felt I was constantly eating, never felt hungry, my energy levels rocketed.

Then I went back to pies, pizza, bacon roll etc. and put it all on again, in around 6 months funnily enough.

The low sugar / starch diet is a proven way to become lean. During my gym days, I read Arnold Schwarzneggers book “Encyclopedia of modern bodybuilding” and he would describe how bodybuilders would severely limit carbs pre competition to drop their body fat percentages. It think that book was written in the 70’s so it has been known about for a very long time.

Edited by wyson on Monday 21st June 23:44

VR99

1,258 posts

62 months

Tuesday 22nd June 2021
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For my body type, reducing starchy carbs such as breads, pasta, rice works very well. I lean out fairly quick though facially end up looking rather 'PoW'. I did this a few years back combined with regular lifting, dropped a fair bit in body fat but may of done too much too quickly.

The challenge I have is sticking to such a diet consistently but I suspect that choice might be taken out of my hands if I end up with T2D (it's quite prevalent in my family and in my ethnic group, both parents etc). I also tend to get a bit sleepy after meals sometimes which I think could be indicating pre-diabetes though I've tested clear on recent checks...it could creep up etc

Terminator X

14,920 posts

203 months

Tuesday 22nd June 2021
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Refined carbs is making the West fat. Cut out all the sugary st and you won't go far wrong. Hard to sustain it though if you are hooked on them!

TX.

Smurfsarepeopletoo

863 posts

56 months

Tuesday 22nd June 2021
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The problem that people have is mostly willpower, to use the Schwarzenegger example, the reason people drop carbs before a competition, is because it reduces water weight, so gives them more definition, its also the reason they dont drink any water for 24 hours before, and drink red wine the night before, it dehydrates you and gives you better definition.

There isnt an issue with eating pizza, the reason it makes people feel bad, is the amount they consume, A Dominos pizza can contain a couple of thousand calories, and very few people can bring themselves to eat just a couple of slices.

Your best bet is to make changes to the types of carbs that your eating, change to whole-wheat pasta and bread, you can even try gluten free if you find you get bloated, again, look at a list of Low GI foods, and start using those.

grumbledoak

31,499 posts

232 months

Tuesday 22nd June 2021
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Smurfsarepeopletoo said:
The problem that people have is mostly willpower, to use the Schwarzenegger example, the reason people drop carbs before a competition, is because it reduces water weight, so gives them more definition, its also the reason they dont drink any water for 24 hours before, and drink red wine the night before, it dehydrates you and gives you better definition.

There isnt an issue with eating pizza, the reason it makes people feel bad, is the amount they consume, A Dominos pizza can contain a couple of thousand calories, and very few people can bring themselves to eat just a couple of slices.

Your best bet is to make changes to the types of carbs that your eating, change to whole-wheat pasta and bread, you can even try gluten free if you find you get bloated, again, look at a list of Low GI foods, and start using those.
Not true at all. There is no real willpower issue, except for philosophers in the "does it exist?" sense.

Your body is a survival machine composed of many feedback loops. One of these is hunger. Hunger is your sign that the body needs nutrients or, less likely, energy. If you eat low nutrient density food you will be made to eat more calories until the body gets enough nutrients. Crap breakfast? Mid morning snack. Both empty calories. Hungry again at lunch time.

Nutrition is hugely important, People should make more effort to learn about it. Most are simultaneously ignorant and miseducated, and the miseducation wasn't accidental - we are pushed toward high profit margin foods.

V8covin

7,212 posts

192 months

Tuesday 22nd June 2021
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Well if you're going carb free you won't be eating many healthy vegetables which is bad obviously.
Refined carbs are bad, wholegrains are not