Carbohydrates; the body’s preferred fuel source AND the brain’s preferred energy source. The body breaks down carbohydrates into glucose (a type of sugar) and that glucose is utilized by the body’s cells, tissues, and organs. This energy is measured in calories (kCal) and we generally want to keep that number in check. Most people require approximately 2000 kCal per day.
Carbs are often vilified because when we take in more fuel than we need, our body opts to store is (after it’s converted to glucose) in our fat cells. However, not all carbs are created equal.
Complex carbohydrates – unaltered plant sources / whole foods such as fruits & vegetables, (whole) grains, beans, seeds, nuts – are full of varying vitamins, minerals, and fibre, and thus take time to for the body to digest. They’re not particularly calorie-dense. When you eat a bunch of them, they can fill you up to a point of no longer being hungry, and the nutritive properties of these foods can be well utilized in the body. It’s quite difficult to overeat on these types of fuel sources. Eating lots of these is ideal! For comparison’s sake, 500g of mixed fruit (which is a lot – it fills me up for hours), no matter what it is, will still come in around 325-350 kCal.
Simple carbohydrates – modified confections like candy, pastries, syrups, pasta – are simple because they’ve been stripped of their natural fibre and nutrients (in other words, they’ve been ‘processed’). Typically when you hear the term ’empty calories’ these are what’s being referred to. They often have added sugar, are calorie-dense, and super easy to digest. Since they’re easy to digest, they get utilized fast and your body often doesn’t tell you when it’s suitably full. By Comparison, a single Tim Horton’s Timbit (donut hole) is 70 kCal. That box of 10 Timbits that you got to accompany your coffee and sandwich is 700 kCal (a third of my calorie intake for the day… as a side order), and to further the point, 500g of Timbits is roughly 26 of them, which is 1,820 kCal (my entire day’s worth of food).
Aside from the differences in nutrients and natural fibre, I can tell you with certainty that if I ate 26 Timbits, I’d be hungry in an hour – likely for more sweets – and I am destined to overeat through the course of the day. Even if everything I ate was whole foods, I’d still have eaten twice my daily calories, whereas that bowl of fruit would fit nicely & neatly into my daily total, satiating me for a few hours.
*** Eating food you enjoy is fine. We all enjoy (and occasionally indulge) in simple carbs from time to time. You should enjoy what you eat, but you should also know what you’re doing so you don’t net yourself frustrating and confusing results. ***
Carbohydrates have a real public perception problem because people tend to think they’re all the same, when in fact they’re treat things like fresh cut strawberries the same way as they treat pastries. This is hugely problematic for people who are eating low-carb diets like Keto for extended periods of time because they’re forcing their body to subside on fats, which are a secondary (not primary) fuel source for the body, and not a fuel source at all for the brain. *** People experimenting with diets like this who are experiencing brain fog and low energy should recognize that this isn’t working for them, specifically.***
If you’d like an entry-level explanation of working in a calorie deficit, I talk a bit about that in the post entitled ‘enough protein’ from a few weeks back, and I’m bound to talk about that again before too long – in the meantime, know that complex carbs are your friend.
We’ll dig in on fats soon.
Training this week was a little frustrating. My current running shoes are pretty much cooked, and I ran on them a few times more than I should have – anyway, it all came to a head about mid-run on Monday when I was at the 10km mark on a 20km run and I had to bail. The cowboy in me wanted to push through, but I knew I’d just be causing damage as the entire length of my right leg began to cramp and seize.
It’s a bit of a blow, because I have my first-ever race next week, and as of the day I’m posting this, I have not yet run more than 20km consecutively (though I aim to tomorrow). This past week was supposed to be the heaviest training week yet, and I ultimately sat it out. I still weight-trained and did some cardio at the gym – but not to the capacity I’d planned to.
I ordered a fresh pair of Endorphin Speed 2’s from Saucony, they’ve arrived in time for one last long run before an otherwise VERY light week leading up to the Edmonton Half Marathon next weekend. This week I intend to drive the course in an effort to get pseudo-familiar with it.
In other news, I’ve been seeing a big increase in likes & follows through the WordPress medium, from other health & fitness bloggers, as well as a couple financial advisors – the ‘people who help people’ community, as it were. I appreciate the follows & likes and personal messages I receive from doing this blog. It’s truly encouraging and I’m happy to be reaching people where they are, and I thank all of you for the encouragement.
The Conscious Pilgrim 