Contrary to what some people would have you believe, carbohydrates are not evil. However, carbohydrate intake does have to be earned.

Some individuals believe that as long as total macronutrient intake is on target, eating pop-tarts with a side of donuts and some left over pizza is the way to fat loss.

Others think that whatever was not available for consumption in the paleolithic era is a no-go.

Here’s my approach on carbohydrates.

 

Earn Your Carbohydrates

Unlike protein and fats, carbohydrates are non-essential nutrients.

Unless you’re a very lean and active individual, you do not need carbohydrates for energy.

In fact, consuming high-glygemic carbs causes an instant insulin spike providing a short burst of energy with a quick sudden drop.

If you have a carby breakfast and feel like taking a nap by noon without drinking two more espressos, it’s a sign from the carbohydrate police signaling you to hold back on them.

The body uses carbohydrates primarily as a fuel source.

Carbs are metabolized and used to fill up the glycogen stores in muscle cells to be used as fuel.

Both muscle and fat cells have the ability to store carbohydrates.

Consuming a high-carb diet without being active will cause muscle glycogen stores to over-spill. This forces the body to then begin storing them into the fat cells causing weight gain.

The more active and more lean muscle tissue you have on your frame, the more carbohydrates you can manage to consume without any fat gain.

 

Body-Composition Rule

As I mentioned earlier, a lean and muscular physique will metabolize carbs much more efficiently than its counterpart. 

Men and women with a 10-12% body-fat or under and 18-20% body-fat or lower respectively, will require and actually benefit from having carbohydrates in their nutrition plan.

If lead an active lifestyle but your body fat is higher than stated, you may incorporate and use some carbohydrates in your diet.

Timing will become an important factor in order to maximize your body’s ability to use carbs for energy instead of fat deposits.

Post-workout is the most optimal time to consume fast-digesting (high GI) carbohydrates.

At this time, the body requires carbohydrates to efficiently begin the recovery process.

An intense training session will induce a need for carbohydrates for muscle recovery, thus minimizing the chances of them being stored as fat.

 

Inflammation

Some people can get away with eating cookies and chocolate ice cream sandwiches daily and still be extremely lean.

However, if you take a look at their blood work things may not be as they seem.

A diet moderate in sugar (sugar is a fast digesting carbohydrate) is linked to increase in body inflammation, weaker insulin response among other negative health effects.

A study of 29 healthy young men found that consuming only 40 grams of added sugar from just one 375-ml can of soda per day led to an increase in inflammatory markers, insulin resistance and LDL cholesterol. These people tended to gain more weight as well. In only 3 weeks. (1)

 

Final Words

In contrast to what some people think, carbohydrates should not be feared.

However, they do play a specific role in the macronutrient equation and that is energy.

An over-consumption coupled with lack of exercise and a sedentary lifestyle is the equation for weight gain and bad health.

Eat them sparingly and as you begin to lose weight and become leaner, your body will become more efficient at using them.

As your body composition improves, your carb intake will increase without any negative adverse effects.

 

This whole fat loss business may sometimes seem overly complicated and overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be.

In this article I break down the role nutrition plays (macronutrients and total calories) in weight loss, with the goal of simplifying the process.

 

Protein

A protein is made out of 20 different amino acids and is the primary building block of muscle tissue in the body.

There are 3 different types of protein:

Complete Protein: Contains all of the essential amino acids in adequate amounts. Complete proteins are mostly found in animal and dairy products as well as soy.

Incomplete Protein: Missing or containing inadequate amounts of the essential amino acids. Majority of plant foods (beans, grains, vegetables, peas, nuts) are a source of incomplete protein.

Complementary Protein: Two or more foods that when combined with one another (eaten together) create a complete protein. E.g. Rice with beans and bread with peanut butter

BCAAs(branched chain amino acids) are the essential amino acids leucine, isoleucine and valine, which comprise a big sum of the body’s muscle protein.

Leucine is the most notable out of the three, being the driving force of muscle protein synthesis.

Protein synthesis is the fancy name for the process in which new muscle protein cells are made. In other words, it’s the process in which you build new muscle tissue.

If the rate of protein synthesis is less than the rate of protein degradation then you lose muscle.

This is especially important to note when in a fat loss phase (calorie deficit), making sure you consume an adequate amount of protein (containing enough leucine) to prevent muscle loss.

 

Timing

Consuming 2.5 to 5g of leucine (the equivalent of a whey protein shake or a serving of lean meat) per meal is an adequate amount to signal protein synthesis into action. Doing so will keep you in an anabolic state preventing muscle loss, while in a fat loss phase.

This would translate to having at least 30-40g of total protein from animal sources or 45g or more of plant based protein per meal to initiate protein synthesis. Every meal should contain an adequate amount of protein to stimulate protein synthesis to maintain your muscle mass which is vital for overall health.

Note* The older we get, the more our hormone levels decrease requiring more protein per meal to stimulate protein synthesis. A 60 year old will require more protein than a 20 year old to have the same response in the body.

 

Carbohydrates

While all carbs have 4 calories per gram, that’s pretty much where the similarities end, at least in regard to how our body breaks them down and digests them.

There are two categories of carbohydrates.

High-Glycemic

High-glycemic carbs are fast digesting, meaning they get broken down rather quickly by your body.

This creates a rapid surge of glucose into your blood followed by a spike in insulin levels. Fast digesting carbs can often make you feel pretty sluggish soon after eating them.

The most optimal time to consume fast digesting carbs is immediately post-workout when your body needs to be refueled in order to start the repair and recovery process.

Examples of these include all sugary foods (cookies, sweets, pastries, etc.), russet potatoes, banana, white bread, white pasta, white rice and jam to name a few.

 

Low-Glycemic

Low-glycemic carbs are slow digesting, producing a slower, more steady release of glucose into your blood.

This means less of an instant insulin spike translating into a more steady release of energy as opposed to a quick surge and sudden drop you would experience from eating fast-digesting carbs.

Examples of these include brown rice, brown rice pasta, beans, quinoa and sweet potatoes with the skin.

Slow digesting carbs are to be avoided post-workout and can be had at any other time of the day.

 

Timing

Because of the vast difference in the way the body breaks down different types of carbohydrates, carb timing plays an important role in fat loss.

A simple method to follow is to eat the fast digesting carbohydrates for post-workout meals only, while if needed having low-glycemic carbs for other meals throughout the day.

A low-carb breakfast is recommended to maintain an even energy curve throughout the day as well as keeping your insulin sensitive.

Note* Since carbohydrates are primarily utilized for energy, eat them as you use them. The more active you are, the more your body will be using them. If you lead a sedentary lifestyle or have a slow-pace day, limit your carbohydrate intake since you’ll most likely not need them.

Fats

While both protein and carbohydrates contain 4 calories per gram, fat contains 9 calories per gram. Fat is an essential macronutrient for a healthy and optimally functioning body. It plays a key role in:

• Regulating hormone levels
• Is an energy source
• Absorption of certain micronutrients
• Satiety

A moderate amount must be present in every diet to maintain a healthy heart, brain and body.

Some healthy fat sources are avocados, olive oil, coconut oil, grass fed butter, fatty fish and nuts.

 

Timing

A great time to have a large portion of your daily fat intake is as your first meal.

When you wake, your insulin sensitivity is low and the body is in a fat burning state.

Going against the grain and avoiding carbs for breakfast has numerous benefits. Eating a breakfast high in fats (25g-40g) and a moderate amount of protein will

• keep your blood sugar levels stable 
• teach your body to utilize fats for fuel instead of carbohydrates
• provide an even energy curve
• help to promote weight loss 

 

Making sense of it all

In order to start losing body fat, you must be eating in a caloric deficit.

In other words; your total daily calories must be lower than what your body burns in order to facilitate fat loss.

From the knowledge we have acquired above, we can then organize our daily macronutrients (fats,carbs and protein) intake to achieve weight loss in the following way:

• Majority of calorie percentage will come from protein. Protein plays a key role in creating an anabolic environment for our body in order to preserve lean muscle tissue and promote fat loss. Protein will account for 45%-55% of total caloric intake.
• Carbohydrates will be used mainly around the workout time in order to increase performance and intensity in the gym. Having the ability to train hard will burn a ton of calories, stimulate muscle tissue and promote fat loss. Depending on your current body composition (the higher the bodyfat percentage the less carbohydrates you should use), carbs will account for 15-25% of total calories.
• Fats will be used for optimal hormone function, overall health and to teach the body to favor fats for fuel rather than carbohydrates. Fats will account for 20%-35% of your total daily calories.

Pro Tip: Avoid consuming high fat combined with high carb meals. Combining the two in high amounts will take quite long to digest and most probably some of it will be stored as fat. Keep the meals mostly protein with carbs or protein with fats for optimal fat loss.

 

Wrapping it up

In summary, to promote weight loss you must be eating less total daily calories than what your body requires to meet your daily demands.

Organize your nutrition plan so that every meal contains a good amount of protein with either fats or some carbohydrates.

Consume a large portion of your fats as your first meal and the majority of your carbs around workout time, especially post-workout.

 

Still confused?

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Simply fill out the questionnaire and you will receive a custom-designed nutrition & workout program to reach your goals. More info here.

 

It seems like common sense that healthy eating would translate to losing weight.

Yet, many of us have tried eating mainly salads, veggies and chicken breast, but for whatever reason it did not produce the physical changes we were hoping for.

What’s going on?

 

What does ‘healthy’ even mean?

The term ‘healthy’ (foods) describes foods that contain one or more nutrients that may positively affect the human body when ingested.

Does that mean it’s automatically suitable for burning body fat? No.

Healthy eating and weight loss are usually thought to be one and the same. Although they can be, they are not necessarily.

Here’s what I mean.

Our bodies use food as fuel for energy. In order for our bodies to tap into fat stores for energy and utilize it (fat loss) it needs to ingest less fuel than it requires to function and meet the demands you place on it.

In other words; your body will lose weight when it burns more calories than it consumes.

Therefore, calories are a major variable in fat loss.

“So, can I eat whatever I want as long as it’s in a caloric deficit and still lose weight?”

Technically yes you could, but it is not so cut and dry.

Unless we possess elite genetics that help us metabolize just about any food we eat without hormonal disruption, insulin insensitivity and other important processes that the body must maintain to function optimally, we need to pay close attention to calories AND the type of foods that we eat.

To alleviate confusion, the large majority of us are not blessed with such godly genetics, therefore the “if it fits your macros”(IIFYM) method of dieting may not be the most sustainable to follow.

 

Calories: Intake vs. Expenditure

Calories are an important factor to pay attention to when fat loss (or muscle building) is the goal. However, the body is significantly more complex than that.

All the incredible systems and processes in our bodies work together as a unit to create one big organism.

That means disrupting any one bodily process will have an overall systemic effect and affect your body as whole.

Eating the foods that are right for you – the ones that your body has an easy time digesting and absorbing – will be your best solution for not only sustainable weight loss but general health as well.

Choosing single ingredient whole foods are at the top of the list since you know exactly what you are eating and are usually nutrient dense. Foods such as rice, sweet potatoes, vegetables, fruits, lean meats and nuts.

Minimize or eliminate any foods that come pre-packaged. Foods that are in boxes, bags as well as processed foods should be avoided.

In addition, avoiding foods that have an ingredient list longer than the line at the Apple store for the new Iphone launch is probably a good idea.

Some examples of foods to avoid: donuts, bags of chips, processed meats, frozen ready-to-go ‘meals’,  fast food, sugary foods, fried foods and pastries. 

Even if you’re in a caloric deficit at the end of the day or week, eating unhealthy foods (processed, high in sugar, high in trans fat, high in gluten, GMO,etc.) will eventually cause bodily system disruption such as:

• Increased total body inflammation
• Acidic environment
• Hormonal disruptions (higher estrogen, lower testosterone)
• Decreased insulin sensitivity
• Weakens immune system and disrupts digestion
• Lower energy level and overall sluggish feeling

These negative consequences from eating unhealthy foods will greatly impact your health and stagnate weight loss.

 

The Rule

A good rule to go by is the 90/10 rule. 85/15 works as well depending on how much body-fat you are currently carrying.

The idea is that you eat healthy, nutrient-dense foods 85% or 90% of the time, allowing yourself to enjoy not so healthy but delicious foods 10% to 15% of the time.

This method will help you stay sane, satisfy your taste buds/cravings and still continue to lose weight.

 

Metabolic Damage

A popular occurrence is when people decide they want to lose weight, they switch from their regular diet to healthy eating.

This alteration, if not monitored, may be too much of a sudden decrease in calories from their regular diet.

For instance, let’s assume that your regular diet consists of breakfast, lunch and dinner. Possibly a daily sugary coffee and the occasional bagel or muffin on the go.

When you switch to healthy eating and instead of a muffin you eat an apple, instead of your regular pizza slice for lunch you have a salad and instead of your regular pasta  for dinner you have chicken breast with vegetables.

These substitutions create too much of a deficit, placing you in a low-calorie diet instantly.

When you decrease calories, metabolic down-regulation is inevitable. 

Decreasing calories too much, too soon will slow down your metabolism. This creates forces you into a sub-optimal position for sustainable fat loss.

Although you may lose a bit of weight initially, you’ll soon plateau with a very slow metabolism. The moment you begin eating normally again you’ll gain it all back and some.

This should be avoided by increasing the amount of healthy foods you consume daily, so that you’re only in enough of a caloric deficit to maintain a healthy metabolism and still achieve fat loss.

Key points

• Healthy eating does not necessarily translate to fat loss.
• Calories play a major factor in losing weight, but it does not end there.
• Body works systemically as a unit, any disruption will affect the whole.
• Unless genetically blessed, healthy eating coupled with calorie restriction is most optimal for fat loss.