For the last two decades or so carbs have been getting a bad rap. There is now so much conflicting information, it's difficult to make heads or tails about what is really true. So I'm here to answer the question once and for all: Should you be eating carbs?
And the answer is....
Depends.
I know! I'm the worst and I wish it was more cut and dry but the fact is, that whether or not you should have carbs in your diet greatly depends on your genetics, your goals, your activity levels, and your lifestyle.
First, let's start by identifying what a carbohydrate even is. There are three macronutrients: fat, protein, and carbohydrates. Our bodies use these nutrients for recovery, growth and energy. Carbohydrates are converted into glucose which is most readily used for energy. If there is excess glucose (which is just a fancy word for sugar), meaning that your intake of carbs/glucose was more than you needed for energy that day, then the glucose is converted and stored as fat (contrary to what many think, fat does NOT get stored as fat).
So let's get one FACT straight... Ok, maybe it's not a fact to everyone, but it IS a fact to me. America consumes WAY too many carbohydrates. Don't believe me? A 2018 study by WorldAtlas, determined that 36.2% of the American population is obese (obesity being defined as a body mass index of over 30).
Per the Food Pyramid (updated in 2005), the USDA recommends that we eat six servings of whole grains a day. Six servings of carbs per day doesn't sound that bad, but what you don't realize is that then they are also recommending about four servings of fruit per day, and that you also eat beans (in the "Meat and Beans" category, recommended 5-6 servings). They also recommend starchy vegetables like potatoes to be eaten when you reference the vegetable portion of the pyramid. And let's not forget this is also not counting any sugary sweets and desserts that you are eating, which, in case you didn't know, sugar is a CARB. All in all, you are looking at getting somewhere between 12 and 16 servings (OR MORE!) of carbohydrates a day.
Ummmm wow... that seems a little like overkill, right? I mean, I will admit that this Food Pyramid is definitely swinging in a better direction now (the 1992 version recommended 6-11 servings of whole grains ALONE!) but this is still pretty lopsided when you think about all the other food that you could be eating.
I want to take a moment and say for the most part, there is nothing wrong with the foods listed above and all of them can have a part in a well balanced diet, it is simply that we are consuming TOO MUCH of them. Along this vein, we are also choosing highly processed carbohydrate foods which are void of nutrients (despite their fortified claims) and leave you only wanting to eat more rather than feeling satiated after you eat them. So when you are choosing carbohydrates to eat, they should be whole foods, not wrapped in plastic and have a shelf life of 20 years. The problem is that Americans choose these processed foods and it ends up being 75% or more of their diet. When the correct carbohydrates are consumed in moderation, they can be (and are) greatly effective in generating energy, promoting recovery, and providing micronutrients. Do we need to eat 6 slices of bread a day to be healthy and balanced? No. But is there anything wrong with having some berries on your greek yogurt? Nope- in fact- I recommend it! (SO DELISH!)
So I guess the first two rules of carbohydrate consumption would be:
Moderation - for most people, keeping carbohydrate intake around 25-30% of their diet is effective in maintaining or losing weight (there are some caveats to this, read below!).
Eating good carbohydrates - processed food is just junk, so stop putting it in your face. When choosing carbohydrates stick to whole, real foods, and generally speaking, you are making a good choice.
As I said earlier there are other factors to consider when choosing how many carbohydrates should be in your diet; Genetics being the first one on the list. Your genetic background plays a role in how well your body will accept and digest carbohydrates. Evolutionarily speaking, your ancestry, meaning what part of the world your family line came from, can contribute to this (if you want to geek out royally on this stuff, I suggest that you look up Robb Wolf. He has so much great information on this and I highly recommend his book, Wired to Eat). For instance, say that for many generations, your family did not have access to grains and just minimal fruit. Their diets comprised namely on meat and vegetables. It's highly possible that you do not require as many carbs as the next person whose family did have access to grain and fruit. It might even mean that you have a poor insulin response, or a gluten-intolerance (not guaranteed! These are just examples of how genetics can play a role). The best way to determine your specific response to these foods, would be to do an elimination diet and perhaps some glucose testing (if you have further questions about this, send me a message or leave a comment!). Doing some self-experimentation is great way to determine which carbs and in what quantities are appropriate for yourself.
The second factor you should consider when choosing carbohydrate intake is your goals. What are they? Performance? Aesthetics? Health? Eliminating disease? Fat loss? Muscle gain? All of these individual goals play a huge factor in what you should or should not be consuming. Trying to reverse diabetes? Yeah, there's a specific protocol for that. You want washboard abs year round? There's gonna be different rules for that as well. Running a marathon in under 3 and a half hours? You guessed it; there's also an optimum diet for that. Not sure how your goals translate into carb consumption? Shoot me a message and I can help you dial that in.
The third and fourth factors are activity levels and lifestyle. I'm lumping them together because they overlap a lot, and can be construed as almost the same thing. Normally someone's lifestyle will reflect their activity levels, but not always so it's important to distinguish them separately, but also recognize that they interplay a lot. Because carbohydrates are used for energy it is important to recognize how much energy you are expending. If you have a sedentary job and do not work out, your level of intake should be lower than someone who has an active job and does workout (generally speaking). There's no sure-fire way to pinpoint the amount of carbs you should be eating, but some simple experimentation and keeping a food journal can help you dial it in very quickly. Think of it as an energy spectrum, like a scale of 1-10, one being inactive, and ten being SUPER active. This is where you need to be honest with yourself. If your goal (going back to factor two) is weight loss, and you rate yourself at about a 4 out of 10, then you probably need to cut out a lot of the carbs you are eating. On the other hand, if you are a professional athlete, training intensely for up to 3+ hours a day, then your carb consumption could be (and probably should be) pretty high.
Where I distinguish lifestyle a little bit from activity level is merely in the kind of lifestyle you want to live. Maybe you want to be a professional athlete, or maybe you just want to feel better in your clothes (#lookbetternaked). These are factors that have to play into your diet. For example, lots of my clients say, "I want a six-pack," but then are definitely not down to eat the way that's required to maintain that aesthetic.
Whether or not you choose to eat carbs, or how many you choose to eat, should come from a place of sustainability. The fact of the matter is that a successful diet always revolves around two key players: consistency and compliance. Choosing to not eat more than 20 grams of carbs a day is a great choice, if that's a sustainable choice. It is way better to find a diet that works for you, that can become part of your lifestyle, rather than constantly see-sawing back and forth between different styles of eating. Making a change in your nutrition is a big deal, and can be really challenging, but also very rewarding. Have you felt stuck? Do you feel like you aren't making progress in your goals? The lifestyle shift could be right in front of you on the center of your plate.
So, should you be eating carbs? I don't know...yet. Message me if you are ready to make a change and let's find out together.