Should i cut out carbs?
This is a question i get all the time.
The truth with carbs is when the goal is fat lost carbs are one of the macronutrients we will look to cut back on. But not totally.
Heres a few reasons why we should eat carbs and ill finish with a simple technique to cycle carbs and get the most from them
- Fuel maximal exercise performance. Don’t think not eating carbs, over time, will make you perform optimally in the gym or on the pitch. It wont
- It supports your metabolism by keeping your Thyroid in check. A low carb diet, over a period of time, will down regulate Thyroid function leaving you at risk of lowering your metabolic rate, not good for fat loss.
- Carbs can be highly nutritious, both from fruit and vegetable sources, and starches also. But it comes down to your starch choice, rice and sweet potatoes are elite in comparison to bread and pasta nutritionally.
- Carbs are essential in recovery. Exercise is glycogen depleting, so having carbs after exercise, or in your daily diet is essential to replace what is lost via training, assess what type of training you do and re-fuel appropriately.
- Carb restricting for long periods of time can make you have poor concentration, be lazy, and lethargic. Long term depletion of any macro or micro nutrient will have down regulatory effects on your energy, central nervous system, and overall well-being / physical function.
End point :
With carbs the devil is always in the dose (in relation to starchy carbs like rice, potatoes, oats etc), some function very well on them, so by all means have more in your diet at daily meals, for most who don’t function so well have your carbs when it counts i.e. AFTER EXERCISE
And when this is the case stock up with vegetables and fruit the rest of the day and use your starchy carbs after workouts…. NUTRITION!
