Editors Note: Hagertys Gym, the column, complements the YouTube comedy series of the same name, in which Jim Hagerty charts his progress to get into bodybuilding shape by training in public places instead of a fitness center.
By Jim HagertyRockford Advocate
If you are confused about carbohydrates, youre not alone. Its a commonquandary. But, there is good news. Once you understand that all complex carbohydrates are not the same, its easy to use them to lose extra weight and enjoy overall health.
All carbohydrates are composed of oxygen, hydrogen and carbon. The way their atoms join one another differs. Each carbohydrate contains repeating sequences of simple sugars. The most common is starch.
Starch is a mixture of amylose and amylopectin. These two polymers begin breaking down when they come in contact withyour saliva, which contains an enzyme called amylase. Amylase begins the digestion process before you start swallowing. Have you ever taken a few extra seconds to swallow a spoonful of oatmeal? Take even longer and it will eventually dissolve in your mouth.
Afterstarch is digested, it isstored as glycogen in three major sites: the liver, brain and muscles. It is then converted to glucose, your bodys fuel source. Excess glucose is sent to the fat cells. Herein lies the reason why sugar consumption plays a significant role in body weight fluctuations. It also explains why too much starch can cause blood sugar levels to spike, resulting in serious health problems.
Sugar or fat?
Lets be honest. Cardiovascular exercises can be boring. Even the most conditioned athletes have days when they dread just 30 minutes on a treadmill or stationary bike. Thats not the worst of it. Some exercises can result in undue wear on the body. And its even more frustrating when our scales dont budge despite hours and hours of aerobics. If yourre caught on that hamster wheel, jump off now. Youre not burning excess fat.
Heres an illustration. When a cars fuel tank is full, its engine will run. When the gas gauge reaches E, the vehicle will sputter, chug along on fumes for a few moments and stop. The human body is relatively the same. Theres only one major difference. When we run out of sugar, we turn to natural, alternative fuel sources: fat reserves and muscle tissue. So, if you are only burning sugar from the glycogen in your muscles, liver and brain, your fat stores will remain right where they are.
Maintenance levels
Every person has what is commonly known as a Caloric Maintenance Level. This is the level of calories, including those from carbohydrates, one can safely consume in a day. The easiest way to calculate this level is to record everything you eat for a week until you reach a constant body weight. After a week, you should know how many calories it takes to maintain your current weight.
Now, this is often where people get confused and opt to simply cut their overall calories, expecting to safely drop weight. While this method is often an immediate medical requirement, especially for those who are dangerously overweight, its not always a way to enjoy long-term health. This method is often used by Sumo wrestlers and other large, well-insulated athletes when they retire. They often lose40, 50, 60 or even 100 pounds or more in a few months just by cutting their calories in half. The initial excess comes off very quickly. But, they often still have the same body style. They become a smaller version of their bigger self. True transformation doesnt begin until later.
As you reach a maintenance level that allows you to approach a safer body weight, you must create a cleaner, more structured eating plan, one with an amount of carbohydrates your body can safely process in relation to other foods in your diet.
So, you guessed it. This is going to take some level of commitment. Just because you have the ability to wolf down an entire pizza by yourself, doesnt mean its the healthy thing to do. Believe me, weve all been theresome of us for a few years at a time.
Simply stated, the secret to losing body fat is to burn more calories than you consume. Sound impossible? Its not. Once you figure out your caloric maintenance level, it will be time to identify foods that are high in starch. Oatmeal, yams, potatoes, rice and kidney beans are prime examples.Processed foods like pizza crust, bagels, flour, bread and pasta contain even more starch. And of course, the amount of sugar (fructose) in candy, pastries, and soft drinks can be off the charts.When we eat more of these foods than our bodies are capable of safely processing,ourblood sugar levels increaseand we produce more and more insulin.
Fibrous carbohydrates
Fibrous carbohydrates are different from their starchy counterparts. Ever chew on a toothpick or matchstick for a long period of time? You will notice your saliva simply gets the wood wet and splinters it, but its makeup does not change. This is because wood is a fibrous carbohydrate, made of cellulose, common in carrots, broccoli, spinach, and asparagus.They are notdigested the way your body digests starch. In fact, fibrous carbs are not really digested at all. They are moved foods through the digestive tract, taking waste from other foods with them.
Fruit
Fruitcontains a high amount of a sugar called fructose (40-65 percent) which the body can absorb very quickly. Unlike glucose, which starts to process in the stomach and requires insulin to be metabolized, fructose is processed in the liver and doesnt require the use of insulin.
Because fruits contain water, vitamins and antioxidants, they the better alternative to candy and junk food, which also contain fructose butreally have no nutritional value. Most fruit is high in fiber, which helps your body utilize glucose more efficiently, keeping it out of the fat cells. Fruit also prevents insulin spikes. This is what makes it a perfect pre- or post-workout source of energy. It also doesnt come with the sugar crashes youll get from candy.
Note: Never eliminate fruit from your diet in an attempt to cut your simple sugars. Cut out the candy, cookies and pastries.
Balance
It is important to eat a proper amount of starchy and fibrous carbohydrates. Eating too much of either can have undesired effects on your metabolism.
Again, too much starch will cause your body to store excess sugar in your fat cells, raising your blood sugar and eventually slowing your metabolism. It can also cause serious health issues.
Too many fibrous carbs will cause foods to pass through the digestive tract too rapidly. Your wont have the time necessary to utilize the nutritional values of your food.
Weight loss and control
A typical balanced dietconsists of 50 percent complex carbohydrates, 30 percent protein and 20 percent fat. A more aggressive plan aimed at weight loss will consist of 70 percent protein, 30 percent carbs and 10 percent fat. A plan like this will draw protein from lean beef, fish, poultry and eggs. Each has minimal carbohydrate calories and little fat. Youll want to draw your starch from foods like oatmeal, rice, and shreaded wheat if weight loss is your goal. An occasional bagel is OK, however, youll want to cut way back on the refined carbs or eliminate them altogether.
Fibrous carbs should come from the likes of asparagus, broccoli, green beans and Brussels sprouts. Good sources of fat are cheese, olive oil, almonds and MCT oil.
Note:Eliminating fat to lose weight will often have the reverse effect. Low fat levels will force your body into survival mode. When this happens, nearlyeverything you eat will be stored in your fat cells, forcing your bodyto burnmuscle.When this occurs, weight gain and health problems can occur.
Losing weight involves making safe adjustments to a standard balanced diet. If you reduce calories in any category, you must replace them. For example, if you cut starch youll want to replace some of those calories with protein, fat and fibrous carbohydrates.
Hagertys Gym on YouTube
Read more from the original source:
Hagerty's Gym: Solving the carb quandary - Record Advocate (press release) (registration)
