Which are the best carbs to eat?

[Sarah2412]

Hi there,

This is probably a dumb question but we're trying to lose weight at the moment and want to know which are the best carbs to eat (in small portions) with dinner. The ones we eat the most are potatoes, rice and pasta. Which is the healthiest and most likely to help us lose weight?

Thanks.

[Gef]

AS you suggest the key to losing weight is eating smaller portions. Carbs should make up the majority of your diet so just choose what goes best with your meal.

As for nutrients, potatoes (with skin on) and brown rice tend to be better than pasta.

[pastafreak]

Even better than white potatoes are sweet potatoes...bake them like white pots,or cut them into wedges,par-boil for 5 min then roast in a TINY bit of olive oil. They are also great as a curry. they have a lower GI than white potatoes so keep you satisfied longer. You can also try Basmati rice,couscous or bulgur wheat for the same reason...allow 60gm per person. also try pulses like chick peas,butter beans&kidney beans. Eat LOTS of veggies-they are complex carbs.Good luck!!

[Bigeye74]

Every couple of months we buy a variety of dried beans, cook em up and freeze them. They make a good alternative to spuds or even mix them up in mash. Not so poignant for the ladies but I get nods of admiration from my work mates for the noises i produce

[abranei]

When you say weight loss I assume you mean Fat loss because you dont really want to lose muscle.

Fat loss can be achieved via diet changes (Note I didnt say diet as a diet is a temp change and leads to gaining more weight than you started with) or a combination of diet changes and excerise.

I advocate the latter as working out has many benefits than just diet changes alone. doing weight training increases lean muscle mass meaning you burn more calories and aids in fat loss

Drink water.

To lose weight be careful of potatoes. Although they are carbs they are different to carbs like pasta or rice they are processed by the body very quickly (and can lead to insulin spikes meaning fat storage. Insulin is the gateway to fat. So stay away from cakes sweets and sugars.

REMEMBER: You can get fat from eating healthy foods. Its really comes down to the following rule

Your body must use more energy than its get from the foods you consume. Even the healthy ones

Eat smaller meals ideally 6 small meals a day to keep you metabolism high. Drink lots of water and excercise at 70% of your aerobic capacity for 30-60mins 3 times a week.

Losing fat is a long term process. Fat increases over weeks and months and likewise when losing it it comes of slowly. Forget all the magazines that say quick easy weight loss because even if the diets do work they reduce muscle mass and not just fat and often are not healthy.

www.burnthefatblog.com
www.burnthefat.com