Crisps, doughnuts and chips, we love them and enjoy a tasty treat now and then. Carbs are easy to overeat and that’s both a gift and a curse if you’ll lend an ear. In this post we will look into why you don’t want to go crazy on carbs when your goal is to lose weight.
How’s it going? My name is Hanif and I’m a Fitness Lifestyle Personal Trainer which means I help men with training programming, nutritional coaching and mind setting so they can turn goals into new goals. I’m in London but help men from around the world with online training so feel free to answer the questions on our enquiry form – I’ll be in touch.
In terms of carbs, they are tasty and easy to eat a lot of. They contain 4kcal per gram just like Protein, but they don’t fill you up as fast as Protein does which is why we tend to overeat them. For training purposes, it makes perfect sense to consume Carbs before and/or during your workout. Marathon runners will keep dates or energy gels with them to get the fast-acting glucose into their bodies to keep up the pace and win a race.
For wright-loss focused men however, it may be better to reduce your CHO intake, using a measured approach to nutrition with the help of a dietary guide – nutritionist or dietitian. Carbs can contribute to increased weight gain due to a person’s calorie balance being over and above what the person needs to consume day to day. This can be estimated by way of keeping food diaries and some calculations.
Carbohydrates are the bodies preferred source of energy but if you overindulge in CHO your body will store it as glycogen in your liver and muscle, as adipose tissue i.e. body fat which is what you want to avoid so your next step after reading this post is to get in contact with me and we can design a programme designed around your needs.
You don’t need to give up the foods you love and enjoy to lose weight, it just takes some contemplation, control and desire for change which isn’t easy but worth the struggle. The right exercise and dietary choices will see you running the next London Marathon if you like!