Can I Lose Weight On Carbs

Carbs have it pretty rough. Meal after meal, they do their job, tirelessly working to fuel our bodies with the energy we need to thrive, be active, and, yes, even lose weight. And how do we repay them? By cutting them out of our diets.

“Many fad diets like the Atkins Diet have vilified carbohydrates as a dietary evil and blamed them for weight gain, ” explains Georgie Fear, R.D., C.S.C.S., author of

. These fad diets (and the slew of best-selling books that accompany them) have used cherry-picked shreds of evidence to suggest that obesity is caused solely by carbohydrates—and as convincing as they may be, they’re wrong, she says.

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Carbohydrates are our body’s primary energy source, helping to power everything from brain function to our workouts. The key is making sure that the carbs we eat are from whole, nutritious foods—straight from good ol’ mother nature, says Canada-based nutrition counselor Abby Langer, R.D. These carb sources, like whole grains, legumes, fruits, and vegetables, contain fiber, which increases satiety, regulates digestion, and is consistently linked to weight loss. (Men need 38 grams a day, while women need 25.) Studies have even shown that

To reach your daily fiber (and other nutrient) needs and hit your healthy weight for good, Langer recommends incorporating about half a cup of healthy carbs into each meal. Here are your six most weight loss-friendly options.

Of hate from the low-carb clan, but sweet potatoes, white potatoes—they’re all good. “I cannot say anything bad about potatoes. There’s nothing unhealthy about them, ” says Langer. One particular perk: Potatoes are full of resistant starch, a type of fiber that literally resists digestion, filling you up but never making its way to your bloodstream. (It’s one reason potatoes are often identified as one of the most satiating foods around!)

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Carb up: Try serving up your spuds baked, and play around with healthy toppings like Greek yogurt, black beans, poached eggs, or cheese. Be creative; just don’t fry them or drown them in butter and sour cream.

Potatoes are technically starchy veggies, but the other carb-rich veggies out there—think carrots, squash, corn, and beets—deserve a shout-out too, Langer says. Starchy vegetables sometimes get a bad rap simply because they contain more carbs than non-starchy vegetables (think spinach or asparagus), but that’s not a bad thing! For example, a third of a medium carrot’s six grams of carbs come from fiber, plus a carrot packs a full day’s-worth of vitamin A.

Carb up: Exactly how you integrate starchy veggies into your meals depends on which you prefer. Fear’s personal favorite? Kabocha squash. “I love it cubed, tossed with olive oil and salt, and roasted, ” she says. “It’s a great thing to toss on a salad to make it more filling than it would be with just leaves.” The cube, roast, and toss rule-of-thumb applies to pretty much any starchy veggie out there, whether it’s squash, beets, or parsnips.

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This is a big category, and includes everything from whole-wheat bread and brown rice to ancient grains like spelt, millet, barley, oats, freekeh, bulgur, sorghum, farro, quinoa, and amaranth. Unlike refined grains, these good-for-you grains all have one thing in common: fiber—and lots of it. Replacing any white carbs in your diet with whole grains can both reduce overall calorie intake and boost your metabolism, according to 2017 research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Carb up: If you regularly eat white carbs, swap them out for their whole-grain counterparts. Or, cook up your favorite ancient grain and mix in your favorite veggies and protein for a satisfying, balanced meal, suggests Langer.

Carb- and fiber-rich legumes (think beans, chickpeas, peas, and lentils) are all over your weight-loss goals. After all, a single serving provides about half your daily fiber needs, and according to one 2016 meta-analysis, simply adding about three quarters of a cup of legumes into your daily diet can directly contribute to weight loss. Not to mention, legumes are also a great source of plant-based protein, which makes your meals more satisfying and revs your metabolism. A cup of cooked lentils packs 18 grams!

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Carb up: Stock up on canned legumes, rinse them to remove excess sodium, and then throw them on top of everything from salads to pastas to potatoes to open-faced sandwiches—the options are endless!

Fruit—be it bananas, apples, or blueberries—can absolutely be a part of your weight-loss plan. Despite the fact that they’re rich in simple sugars, fruits are linked to better blood sugar control, which supports healthy weight loss.

Carb up: When you need a healthy snack, pair your favorite fruit with a source of fat and protein, like string cheese or peanut butter, for example. The combo will help slow digestion and keep you feeling fuller, longer, says Fear. Just stick to three or fewer servings of fruit a day and you’ll be golden.

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Aside from being a great source of vitamin D, calcium, and protein, dairy can help your weight-loss efforts. In fact, one Harvard University review found that dieters who ate a serving of yogurt daily lost more weight than those who didn’t.

Carb up: Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, milk, and even regular cheese can all help you hit your goals. And, no, you don’t have to opt for low-fat; new research shows that full-fat diary might be more effective for weight loss, since fat is so satiating. As long as dairy doesn’t bother your stomach, feel free to incorporate up to one serving of full-fat dairy with each meal, Fear says.However, numerous researches in this regard have repeatedly quashed their claims due lack of scientific data. In fact, the very opposite is true. A balanced diet should always include all the three major food groups, i.e., carbohydrates, proteins, and fats. Carbohydrates accounting for over 50% of the total calories consumed per day.

If we compare the diet's of the longest living populations across the world, the people living in the 'blue zones', it would look something like this:

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People in the Blue zones not only live over a 100 years, but are not affected by metabolic diseases such as diabetes, hypertension, arthritis and obesity. Surely, they must be doing something right?

Before we get into the facts of why and how carbohydrates are helpful for our health and weight loss, let's first understand what carbohydrates are.

In nutrition, 'carbs' or carbohydrates are one of three macronutrients along with proteins and fats. Carbs are termed as 'essential nutrients', meaning, the body will not function without them. They are also termed as the 'energy yielding nutrients'.

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There are three major types of carbohydrates, i.e., starches, fiber, and sugars. These are vital food nutrients that your body turns into glucose to give you the energy to function.

Starches are generally referred to as complex carbohydrates. They exist in fruits, whole grains, legumes, and starchy vegetables like potatoes and corn.

Sugars are, on the other hand, referred to as simple carbohydrates. They exist naturally in vegetables, fruits, honey, and milk. Additionally, added sugars exist in processed foods, sweets, sugary drinks, and syrups.

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Fiber is an exception, it does not technically provide much calories, but is vital for your overall health. It doesn't immediately offer energy, but it does feed the friendly bacteria in the digestive system that can use the fiber to produce short chain fatty acids, which some of our cells can use as energy.

The primary function of carbs in our diet is to provide fuel for our bodies. Most of the carbohydrates get broken down or transformed into glucose, which the body uses as energy. If there is excess left, it is then converted into fat, which is stored energy, for later use. Excess proteins and excess fats are also converted and stored as body fat.

The chemical structure of any carb and how quickly the body absorbs it determines whether the food taken is complex or simple carbohydrate.

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The complex carbohydrates will cause fewer fluctuations in blood sugar. Additionally, these carbs include vitamins, minerals, and fiber that the body needs for efficient functioning.

They are sometimes also referred to as 'whole' or 'unrefined' carbs. In contrast, the refined carbs are processed form, and hence the natural fiber is either removed or modified. The below picture might make this clear:

Whole carbs exist in vegetables, quinoa, legumes, whole grains, barley, and potatoes. At the same time, refined carbs exist in white bread, pastries, sugar-sweetened beverages, and other food products made of white flour.

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Refined carbohydrates tend to cause spikes in blood sugar levels, leading to a subsequent crash that can trigger hunger and then lead to food cravings. There are also added sugars, which one should limit as they are associated with chronic diseases.

There is sufficient scientific evidence supporting that consumption of whole grains VS refined grains can reduce the risks of obesity, Type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease.

With the prevalence of obesity reaching epidemic proportions, the World Health Organization states that over 1.9 billion adults globally suffer from excess body weight.

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As we have come across decades of variations in diet types, the low-carb ones have mainly been around for a long time.

Different types of low- carb diet include