This post is so wrong I don't know where to begin. Pasta is a complex carbohydrate as is flour. Simple carbs have an important benefit: energy. You can get energy from other sources such as complex carbs and fat, but it's ignorant to say simple carbs have no benefit. There are only 4 simple carbs: glucose, sucrose, lactose and fructose. Every other carb is complex. Most carbs in Americans diets are complex carbs not simple. And in the end, every carb eventually is metabolized into glucose, the most simple carb of all. It's the only one that the body can use as fuel directly. So don't say simple carbs are insignificant, if not for glucose we'd all be dead.
Sugar, refined white flour and other starches such as potatoes have a high glycemic index and break down quickly during digestion. However, foods with a lower glycemic index equate to a lower insulin demand, better long-term blood glucose control and a reduction in blood lipids. http://www.answers.com/glycemic index True, simple carbs provide food energy, but most overweight, sedentary people are not in dire need of quick sources of food energy. In fact, they are carrying their energy stores with them wherever they go in the form of excess body fat. More superfluous "energy" will only add to that. Unfortunately, those accumulating stores are no longer a source of quick energy. Another problem with carbs that come without fiber is that they do not really diminish hunger in a meaningful way, and so an overweight person with poor dietary habits will just keep packing on the "energy." And don't forget that the four "whites" (sugar, white flour, white rice, white potatoes) are believed to accelerate caramelization of the body at the cellular leve, thereby prematurely aging the body from the inside out. I think that the typical American diet is fairly high on the glycemic index and lacks adequate fiber. Lose-lose.
I have a plethora of questions to ask. I have about 8 years experience with training clients and engineering diet plans. Please feel free to PM me if you would like to talk via some instant messaging service. While I have extensive knowledge in the fitness world (I am the most knowledgable person in my area), Atticus is just out of this world. I'll notify him of this thread and we'll get a constructive discussion going.
This is solid information. High fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated soybean oil are both very calorie dense with little to no nutritional value. While your stomach is growling and you've already consumed 2500 calories in corn syrup and soybean oil, you're really starving for vitamins and minerals.
Matt, thanks. I'm in my 60's, I hit up purityproducts.com to the tune of about $200/month and I find it very, very worth it regarding abilities and how I feel, very worth it. I'm hearing about supplementation of hydrochloric acid with meals and how that should make a huge difference for somebody in my age range. Do you have any thoughts on that? Max
The best advice I can give is introduce fish into your diet (eat 3 times a week), eat 2 apples a day, take a quality multi-vitamin, drink at least 1- 1 1/2 gallons of water a day (the more you're overweight the more water you should drink), and what EVER you do avoid all soda (reg and diet as the artificial sweetners are very acidic and it's hard to catabolize tissue drowning in acid), and eat spinach and broccoli until you puke everyday. You follow that and I guarantee you that you will lose weight. Exercise is really the key. HIIT is the most effective at keeping muscle catabolism to a minimum. Interval cardio, and speed walking uphill are the best types of cardio for fat loss. If you are over 35 I would STRONGLY suggest that you get your blood work done. Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) can be a blessing from the heavens for men over 35 with low testosterone levels and high aromatase (enzyme responsible for conversion of testosterone into estrogen--typically higher in those with higher bodyfat). I recommend Exemstane (Aromasin) for any male of 35 anyways.
WE had an extensive discussion about this in the other workout thread and I have to stand behind my argument that we, as a nation, are overacidic. We are suffering from acidosis. What happens when you don't put chlorine in your pool? It gets nasty right? Think about how nasty your inside is by eating all those acid forming foods. I suggested PH drops to alkalize drinking water. See, the only way your body can eliminate acid is by excreting it. Your body produces a lot of acid, hell you can even fill it (lactic acid) after a grueling workout. If you are hydrated well enough your body will rid itself of these acids within 36-48 hours. I know people who are sore for a week after a grueling workout, that's a sign that something is wrong!!!! Alkalizing drops will only speed up the process of waste elimination. See, when your stomach senses a raise in PH (higher PH more alkaline, lower PH more acidic) it excretes acids to return the PH down to acidic levels. Well, if you never comsume any alkalizing foods and the water you drink is acidic (most tapwater is) that acid is just going to build up in your body. THat build up triggers chronic disease, fatigue, and stiffness.
This is absolutely correct and basically what the "South Beach Diet" is all about. The summer I went on that...AND hiked and played tennis I lost 10 lbs easy. Cache also has a good point on Leptin (sp) did you see the PBS special on the research that actually demonstrated a certain percent of obese people have a defective gene where the production of leptin is non-existent (he is also the researcher that coined "set point"). These poor people are constantly craving and never full so over eating is a way of life.
There is little association between a carb's GI value and whether it's complex or simple. The other person stated that flour is a simple carb, which it is not, probably assuming that high GI foods are simple carbs. Potatoes and white bread for instance have high GI but are considered complex carbs. Fructose is a simple carb that happens to have one of the lowest GI of all. Simple carbs are not bad. Fruits are largely comprised of simple carbs. Yes you're right, Americans eat way too little fiber. That's a big part of the obesity problem.