What Are Carbohydrates?

For decades carbohydrates have been the “enemy”. It’s no secret that many bodybuilding/fitness enthusiasts and dieters avoid excessive carbohydrate intake at all costs. Sure, if you’re trying to drop fat, carbs should be limited, especially sugary simple carbohydrates. The reason is that excess carbohydrates beyond what the body can use for energy needs will be stored as fat. Still, to perform at your peak and look your best, you need a certain amount of carbs daily. This article will answer the question “What Are Carbohydrates” and look at why you need carbohydrates and list the best carbohydrate foods and powders. Let’s get started!

Why You Need Carbohydrates

The primary reason why you need carbohydrates is that they provide cellular energy. In other words, you won’t last through a workout very long without them. Once digested, carbohydrates are converted mostly into glucose for quick energy. In fact, glucose provides much of the energy for the brain. Any excess glucose is converted into glycogen. Approximately half the energy used by your muscles comes from glucose and glycogen. 

What About Your Muscles? 

About 300-400 grams of carbs are stored in the muscles and the liver as glycogen. Any excess carbohydrates are stored as body fat. For that to happen, you would have to consistently ingest far more carbs than your body needs.

Cell Volume

Here’s another function of carbs, and it’s one that I think is huge: carbs pull water into your muscles. Taking in enough carbohydrates daily not only gives you the energy to train, it also keeps your muscles looking full. Finally, carbs are protein sparing. This is because if your carbohydrate intake is low to zero, the body will use protein as energy. Muscle tissue is largely made of protein, and can be attacked by the body to help meet energy needs. It should be made clear that if your fat intake is high, the body will use fat for energy first. (1)

Simple Carbs

Simple carbohydrates are carbs that give you quick energy. This is because the body can break them down easily. But, after the initial energy rush you experience, you may “come down” from the energy rush. That’s because simple carbs are sugars. 

Simple Carb & Insulin

The problem with simple carbs is that ingesting too many will lead to fat gain. This is the reason carbohydrates are viewed as the bad guy. Consuming too much simple, sugary carbohydrates causes insulin spikes. While insulin has powerful anabolic benefits,the reality is it’s a double-edged sword. Why, you might ask? Because insulin causes all excess carbs to be stored as body fat. The answer is to limit your intake of simple carbs. Als0, timing is important, and we will touch on that soon. 

What Is Sugar

Let’s take a quick look at sugar.  It is a simple (or fast digesting) carbohydrate consisting of 50% fructose and 50% glucose. The correct chemical name for sugar is sucrose and it’s what you know as table sugar. 

Fructose

Fructose is the sugar in fruits as well as a few vegetables. It is metabolized by the liver and does not cause insulin spikes. Because of that it  was originally thought to be a good substitute for sugar. However, clinical studies show that eating foods with added fructose leads to fat gain, especially belly fat. In fact, fructose slows down your metabolism and stops your body from burning fat (if fat loss is your goal). The only real value of this or any form of sugar is that it contributes to training energy. It also absorbs quickly post-workout for better glycogen replenishment.

Glucose

This is the sugar that converts into glycogen and is stored in the cells for energy. However,as noted, excess carbs, especially simple, sugary carbs, are stored as fat.  (2, 3)

Complex Carbs

This type of carbohydrate provides energy over a longer period of time. That’s because they take a long time to break down in the body. The reason is most natural forms of complex carbohydrates also include fiber and other ingredients that work to slow the digestive process. Complex carbohydrates are starches and fibers, and are found in such foods as rice, oats, and pasta.

So we see that carbs give you the energy you need for the day. Even so, it is important not to take in more carbs than necessary for energy and storage. As noted, and this can be repeated enough, once all the body’s storage areas are full, any excess carbs are converted and stored as body fat.

Fiber

Fiber is a complex healthy carbohydrate. There are two types of fiber: soluble and insoluble. Your body doesn’t break down fiber very well, but soluble fiber can dissolve in water and insoluble fiber doesn’t. Both types of fiber pass through your intestines, stimulating and aiding digestion. Fiber also regulates blood sugar, lowers cholesterol and keeps you feeling full longer. Generally, the calories from fiber are considered “free” because of the body’s difficulty in absorbing them.

The Glycemic Index

The Glycemic Index (GI) ranks carbohydrates on a scale that is based on their effect on your blood glucose level after consumption. Foods with a GI value between 70-100 are considered high-GI; 55-70 are medium GI, and any carbs below 55 is low-GI. High GI carbs will break down quickly during digestion, causing an immediate insulin spike. Therefore, use the GI Index to help make wise carbohydrate choices.

List Of Simple Carbs With Their GI Rating

  • Apple – 36
  • Banana – 48
  • Blackberry – 25
  • Blueberry – 53
  • Cherry – 25
  • Cranberry – 45
  • Grapefruit – 22
  • Kiwi – 50
  • Melon – 65
  • Orange – 35
  • Pineapple – 66
  • Peach – 35
  • Pear – 30
  • Raisin – 65
  • Raspberry – 25
  • Strawberry – 25
  • Dextrose – 100 – For Reference – This is the substance every other food on the GI list is compared to.

List Of Complex Carbohydrates With Their GI Rating

  • Bagel – 70
  • Beans – 
  • Bran – Wheat, Oat – 15
  • Bread – Rye – 65
  • Bread – White – 75
  • Bread – Whole Grain – 73
  • Bread – Whole Wheat – 70
  • Broccoli – 15
  • Brown Rice – 50
  • Chickpeas – 10
  • Corn – 35
  • Lentils – Green – 25
  • Lentils – Yellow – 30
  • Oat Flour – 25
  • Oatmeal – 60
  • Pasta – 50
  • Pasta – Whole Wheat – 40
  • Peas – Green – 35
  • Peas – Yellow, also known as Split Peas – 32
  • White Rice – 70
  • White Potato – 95
  • Shredded Wheat – 
  • Sweet Potato – 70
  • Yam – 65

This is not an all-inclusive list, but gives you a good idea of the GI rating of various types of carbohydrates.

What About Carbohydrate Powders?

There are several carbohydrate powders available. These powders are typically a form of complex carb that digest as fast or faster than a simple carb. This makes it ideal for use pre-workout and post-workout. One of the best of this type of carb powder is EFX Sports Karbolyn. Another product that works much the same is NutraBio Super Carb. There’s also real food-based carb powders, such as Real Carbs, a powder primarily originated by Rich Piana and 5% Nutrition. Real Carbs is more of a meal replacement powder, especially when combined with protein powder.

Carbohydrate Timing

Earlier I mentioned simple carb timing. As far as timing of carbs in general and simple carbs in particular, I advocate ingesting 50% of your daily carbs, including most of the day’s simple carbs, in the hours around your workout. This approach ensures you will have those carbs working for you for training energy and glycogen replenishment. 

Summary

As you can see, carbohydrates definitely have their place in your nutritional and supplement arsenal. Use this article as a guide to make good carbohydrate food choices, and stop by illpumpyouup.com today to stock on the powders and all your supplements!

 

References:

  1. Carbohydrates in the Diet | Oklahoma State University (okstate.edu)
  2. https://www.bbcgoodfood.com/howto/guide/sugar-explained
  3. Pollock, N. K., Bundy, V., Kanto, W., Davis, C. L., Bernard, P. J., Zhu, H., Gutin, B., & Dong, Y. (2012). Greater fructose consumption is associated with cardiometabolic risk markers and visceral adiposity in adolescents. The Journal of Nutrition, 142(2), 251–257. https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.111.150219

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *