Complex Carbs – Stick To These Carbs!

You need to know a little bit about complex carbs … if you wanna eat carbs. You might have thought that all carbohydrates were the same.  Unfortunately they’re not.  There are complex and simple carbohydrates.  Your body accepts both but with different results.

Complex carbohydrates are preferred by athletes.  They provide energy, but don’t spike your “insulin” levels as much as simple carbs do.

This is important because insulin is your primary “Fat storing” hormones … so it’s best to keep levels of this hormone low & stable all day long.

My Opinion On Carbs …

I’m not a big fan of carbs myself, I believe training your body to use fat as a fuel source is much healthier and better for you in the long term for many reasons (the least of which is you’ll look a LOT leaner) … but it’s good to know your way around the “carb dinner table”.

Carbohydrates are fuel for the body.  Just like fuel for your car, there are several “grades” of fuel.  Complex carbs are less likely to spike the blood sugar.  We’ve all felt that.  Eat a candy bar and see what happens to you.  You are the Energizer Bunny for about thirty minutes and then the slow tortoise for the rest of the day.  You get a gigantic burst of energy and then plummet into tiredness.

Complex carbohydrate foods let the blood sugar stay at an even level.  This keeps you from being hungry and also stops you craving a lot of sugary foods.  As the day goes on, no matter what activity you are performing, you will have the energy to do it.  You don’t have that draining feeling like you get with foods that spike the blood sugar.

Here are ten examples of foods you can eat or maybe do eat right now that fall into the category of complex carbohydrates …

1.  Leafy greens – eating green vegetables is important.  They provide various vitamins and minerals along with complex carbs.  Examples include turnip greens, collards, kale and mustard greens.

2.  Beans – we are not talking about the refried kind.  Beans are an inexpensive source of protein, fiber and complex carbs.  Eating beans fills you up and slowly releases fuel for the day.  Examples include Navy, Northern, pinto, black, kidney and Garbanzo.

3.  Cruciferous veggies – these vegetables provide a lot of flavor and good carbs.  Foods in this category: cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts.

4.  Fruits – all fruits don’t fall into this category but many of them that you might like to eat are featured: apples, prunes, pears, strawberries, and oranges.

5.  Grains – a whole grain contains all three parts of the grain.  Look for buckwheat, oat bran, oatmeal, multi grain breads.

6.  Some dairy – be aware of hidden sugars that can make the source more simple than complex.  Try full fat milk and other dairy products (fat helps to blunt insulin spikes)

7.  Other vegetables – some of the tried and true favorites include carrots, potatoes (eaten with the skin!), celery, asparagus, zucchini and onions.

8.  Cucumbers and pickles – great for you either way.

9.  Rice – choose brown rice or wild rice.

10.  Tomatoes – both a fruit and a vegetable.

Complex carbs provide a sustained form of energy for your body as well as fiber which helps to clean out the digestive system. Use this list to make better carb choices!