Clean versus dirty carbs for weight loss

Lately, the “is a carbohydrate to a carbohydrate” debate has come up frequently. In the past, it was the “is a calorie a calorie” debate that people were always fighting over. Personally, I find the carbs vs. The carbohydrate debate is more fascinating. There is something about carbohydrates that makes it really fun to talk about them.

So what is the debate? The debate is whether you can lose the same amount of weight or fat by eating “junk” carbohydrates instead of “healthy” carbohydrates. Junk carbs are loosely defined as simple carbs like sugary cakes and cereals. These are elements that are known to rapidly increase blood sugar, which subsequently causes a large amount of insulin to be released to stabilize blood sugar, which can lead to fat storage.

Healthy carbohydrates are typical oatmeal and brown rice products that may have encouraged you to eat in the past. These carbohydrates have a lower glycemic index and leak into the bloodstream at a slower rate, which keeps the blood sugar level stable and leads to a slower release of insulin, which is less likely to lead to storage. of fat.

In this debate, fat is kept in check when junk carbs are ingested. In other words, you’re not eating total junk food, like donuts and cakes, because these items are often high in fat and carbohydrates. For example, 2 Pop-Tarts® with 400 calories, 76 grams of carbohydrates and 10 grams of fat can be used during the “diet”, but a cherry pie with 480 calories, 68 grams of carbohydrates and 20 grams of fat can be omitted. . Some people like to eat junk carbs with as little fat as possible, while others are more liberal. Some will easily eat a low-fat Pop-Tart® that has 2.5 grams of fat, but will not eat a regular Pop-Tart® that has 5 grams of fat. That is another debate for another day.

So what do I think? First, the results speak for themselves. Some people have been able to become incredibly thin and in good shape by eating junk food while dieting. The reason is that it makes the diet tolerable so it doesn’t feel like a diet. My main criticism is that people promoting junk food diets are exposing themselves, so adherence rates are higher than they would be in an average person. If you are telling the world that you are dieting junk food and trying to prove a point, you are more likely to diet junk food without cheating.

In the real world, people are overweight for a reason and it is usually due to a lack of willpower or motivation. Most people will not be able to stop at a single cake, especially if they know they are not being watched. I know it’s hard for me to eat just one donut, but it’s easy for me to eat a serving of oatmeal. This is why I recommend that people make most of their diet “boring” food and have one day a week where they can skip the pie oatmeal or whatever. In this way they can measure their self-control when eating these foods. Did a pastry shop lead to 3 more on your cheat day? If so, then you can’t diet junk food because you can’t eat just one. If you can eat a cake and walk away, you may be able to diet junk food.

You won’t lose more weight if you eat 800 calories of oatmeal a day versus 800 calories of pastries, but you are more likely to stick to your diet in my opinion. Also, have you ever heard of a binge on oatmeal? Now how about a jelly donut binge?