Carbs are not the enemy! It may not seem like itespecially with the rise of popular low-carb diets, like ketobut eating carbs is an important macronutrient in ones overall diet and can help you lose weight. The key is to focus on complex carbohydrates that will make you feel full, instead of simple, refined carbs that will leave you feeling hungrier and hungrier. Thats why we put together a list of how to eat carbs and still lose weight.
With these eight strategies in mind, youll not only be able to not only maintain those weight loss goals, but youll also put together a few delicious meals along the way. Enjoy pizza? Pasta? A slice of toast in the morning? You can have all of these tasty items on a regular basis. Its all about what you pair those carbs with and the types of grains you choose to consume.
So if youre looking to eat carbs and still lose weight, we have answers for you right here. And for more healthy eating tips, be sure to check out our list of 21 Best Healthy Cooking Hacks of All Time.
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Whats the more diet-friendly pizza: plain cheese or supreme? The answer may surprise you. Turns out adding protein to your pizza can actually support your weight loss goals. Thats because rounding out a starchy meal with protein can reduce its Glycemic Index (GI), a measure of how quickly blood glucose levels rise in response to food with a measure of one to 100. Studies suggest the lower the score, the better for weight loss.
Complex carbohydrates like whole grains tend to score lower on the scale. But you can further lower a high-carb meals glycemic loadand feel fullerby adding protein, which slows down digestion, keeping blood sugar steady. A simple cheese pizza, for example, has a GI of 80, while a fully loaded Supreme pie scores a 36. Adding fat to a meal has the same GI lowering effect, but it also adds far more calories; moreover, a study in The Journal of Nutrition found protein to be 3 times more effective at reducing glucose response than fat. Enjoy your favorite pizza and pasta dishes with lean protein toppingsand stay lean and mean yourself.
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Try it yourself with our 29+ Best Healthy Pizza Recipes for Weight Loss.
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Berry good news: Researchers say berries may slow the digestion and absorption of starch. A study in The Journal of Nutrition found eating 150 grams of strawberries (about a cup) with a 50-gram slice of white bread reduced the insulin response 36 percent more than the berry-less bread eaters. A mixture of strawberries, bilberries, cranberries, and black currants was even more effective, lowering the glycemic profile of the white bread by 38 percent. Study authors attribute the results to polyphenols in the berries, and its good news for you because research suggests a diet containing moderate amounts of low GI carbohydrates is particularly good for weight loss. So, who wants berries?
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Washing down a high-carb meal with a soothing cup of green tea may be a good diet strategy, according to Penn State scientists. Their study, published in the journal Molecular Nutrition&Food Research, found an antioxidant in green tea called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), when combined with carbohydrates, can help regulate hunger hormones and a healthy metabolism by lowering blood glucose. Mice fed EGCG and corn starch had a 50 percent greater reduction in blood sugar spikes compared to mice that were not fed the compound. The researchers say one and a half cups of green tea is enough to see the same benefits.
Heres why tea is The #1 Best Thing to Drink If Youre Trying to Lose Weight.
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Is butter a carb? No, but we think Regina George would like this tip. Researchers say enjoying your carb-fest with a moderate amount of monounsaturated fatlike the kind you find in olive oil and avocadoscan help increase satiety and reduce overall calorie intake. But not just any fat will do.
A study in the journal Nature compared the satiating effects of bread served with olive oil (a monounsaturated fat) and bread served with butter (a saturated fat). Restaurant patrons in the olive oil group ate 23 percent less bread than the butter group.
And another study published in Nutrition Journal found similar satiating effects from the heart-healthy fat; participants who ate half a fresh avocado with lunch reported a 40 percent decreased desire to eat for hours afterward.
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Youll slash carbohydrates from your diet by choosing a fresh apple over an apple muffin, but you wont entirely erase the carb count. Believe it or not, all fruits and vegetables include some carbs. In fact, one apple has 34 grams of carbsmore than youll find in two slices of whole wheat bread! And because juicing removes the satiating fiber from whole fruits, a cup of fresh fruit juice can do more harm than good.
Researchers at the Harvard School of Public Health found that people who consumed one or more servings of fruit juice each day increased their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by as much as 21 percent. And a second study in the journal Nature found liquid carbohydrates to be 17 percent less filling compared with solid carbohydrates. As a general rule: eat, dont drink, your fruits.
Try it yourself with one of our 25 Delicious Apple Recipes.
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The dietary boogeyman, nighttime carbs, has a frightening reputation among people trying to lose weight. But theres actually a growing body of research to suggest breaking your carb curfew can actually help your diet goals.
One study in the journal Obesity put two groups of men on an identical weight loss diet. Half the group ate their carbs throughout the day; the other half ate the majority of the meal plans carbs in the evening. The result? The nighttime carb eaters lost 27 percent more body fatand felt 13.7 percent fullerthan those on the standard diet. Moreover, inflammation markers in the nighttime group level decreased by 27.8 percent compared to only 5.8 percent in the standard dieters.
On the flip side, recent research has increased weight loss with linked low-carb, high-protein breakfasts. Consider swapping your morning bagel for an omelet and add a potato to your evening meal.
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Strange but true: You can gain less weight from a serving of pasta simply by putting it in the fridge. The drop in temperature changes the nature of the noodles into something called resistant starch, meaning your body has to work harder to digest it. Cold pasta is closer in structure to natural resistant starches like lentils, peas, beans, and oatmeal, which pass through the small intestine intact, keeping you fuller, longer.
One study found that including resistant starch (brown beans) with an evening meal increased satiety hormones by 51 percent and suppressed hunger hormones by 15 percent, as compared to a meal that included a simple carbohydrate (white bread). You dont have to resist carbs, just opt for the resistant ones! Especially The #1 Best Carb To Eat If Youre Trying to Lose Weight.
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Breaking a sweat before you break-your-fast could get you into your skinny jeans faster. Why? According to some studies, exercising in a fasted statein other words, before breakfastcan burn almost 20 percent more fat compared to exercising with fuel in the tank.
Why? Once you consume calories, insulin levels rise, which, according to researchers, can suppress fat metabolism by up to 22 percent. Have a bowl of cereal, a Gatorade, or even a small cafe au lait, and your workout goes towards burning off that glycogen. But with nothing in your tank, the burn comes primarily from body fat.
Just make sure to avoid these 15 Exercise Mistakes That Are Ruining Your Workout.
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8 Ways to Eat Carbs and Still Lose Weight - KYR News
