Carb Roundtable?

I LOVED the articles “fat roundtable” and the “protein roundtable”… I looked for awhile of an article that has todo with carbs… But i couldn’t find it… I am hoping to find an article on what the dif between simple carbs, and complex carbs… When to eat certain carbs, How much carbs to eat a day… Different GI levels of carbs. Etc… I would be REALLY happy if someone could point this out to me… thanks

i agree. a carb roundtable would be cool as hell. roundtables are cool regardless of the topic though just because you get to hear so many different opinions from some of the most knowledgeable guys in the field. more importantly though, you get to see why they have the opinion they do. i think there should be more roundtables, period. i actually emailed TC about a Mag10 roundtable because there have been some contradicting views on the forum, especially about dieting with Mag10. he said that it was in the works and should be out by next issue. but yeah, to answer your original question i would definately like to see one on carbs. if you look around through previous issues i’m sure you could find most of the basic info you were looking for. i don’t recall any specific articles that go into detail on some of the stuff you mentioned though.

Difference between simple and complex is the speed in which they are digested. In other words complex keep you fuller for longer.
Eat carbs that have a low glycemic index all throughout the day except after workout. You should consume carbs that have a high glycemic index in the hour after training.
How many carbs per day depends on things such as, training, metabolism, job etc. Generally 300-400 grams per day is plenty. Unless you do a considerable amount of cardio and train with high reps.
Generally speaking, processed foods have a higher Glycemic index, so stick with vegetables, grains, fruits etc.
Hope that helped a little.

It’s a misnomer to state the difference between simple and complex carbs is the speed in which they are digested. Maltodextrin is a complex carb and it has a very high GI - even higher than dextrose. Maltodextrin is one of the ingrediantants of Surge. Other complex carbs can have varing GI’s. Baked potatoes are a complex carb and have a very high GI. White rice is a complex carb and has a very high GI. White bread is a complex carb and has a very high GI. etc,etc,etc. It’s not as simple as complex vs simple carbs - that comparison is old thought from the 70’s. The Glycemic index is a lot more complex than just simple vs complex carbs. An opposite example would be the simple carb fructose which has a very low GI.

Heb, i said that generally, complex carbs have a lower glycemic index. Maltodextrin has a very high Glycemic index, but i doubt anyone will go and eat spoonfools of maltodextrin. I just tried to keep it simple. White bread is highly processed, so White rice, Potatoes and very few other unprocessed foods are the only ones that have a higher glycemic index.

WTF, i was looking at a list of glycemic indexes and saw that whole wheat bread is higher than white. that sort of sucks. i thought that white was a lot higher since it is more processed. is this right, or is it a misprint?

Personally, I don’t eat bread period. Haven’t had a slice of bread in at least 2 or 3 years. IMO, there’s much, much better sources of carbs than bread. Actually, I don’t eat anything made of refined flour, as all carb sources made with processed, refined, flours have no real nutrition and are just high glycemic, empty calories that screw with your insulin control. You can get your carb calories from lots better foods that are low glycemic and jam packed with nutrition. I don’t even miss bread in the least. And for the people that think that approach is to extreme - it’s been said many times that your diet is just as important as your training - so why take your diet lightly if you take training seriously? BTW, my body composition has drastically improved in the last 3 years or so since I really started to pay attention to diet and being consistent about it. Plan your diet stratgey and do it.

milk too has a kinda low gi, but real high insulin index.

i try not to eat bread that often, but always being on the go with school and all, making a tuna sandwhich or turkey sandwhich that i can just stick in a ziplock bag without having to bring a fork or anything sure is convienient. sanwhcihes can also be made in only a couple of minutes. i guess i will try to eat less of it though. any recommendations for some good convienient carbs, besides fruit?

For quick, convience meals on the go, I eat a lot of fat free cottage cheese or tuna as the base of the meal. Sometimes I mix the cottage cheese and tuna together for extra protein. I use the cottage cheese container as much as possible instead of tupperware and then just throw it away later - saves dishes. For P+C meals I add to the cottage cheese and/or tuna: black or red beans, canned tomatoes (I get the ones already seasoned in the can with Italian or Mexican flavor), mushrooms, green beans, peas, tomato sauce and/or salsa/hot sauce, onions, cucumbers, brocolli sprouts, chopped brocolli or cauliflower, brussel sprouts, chopped red/green peppers, sugar free yogurt, dry oatmeal, rye flakes (rye is real low GI and nutritious like oatmeal - I buy it rolled just like oatmeal at health food store - looks almost like oatmeal), and any seasonings, flavorings, sweetners depending on what you’re mixing up. If mixing the cottage cheese with dry oatmeal or rye, I add the yogurt and artificial sweetner, and any fruit of choice - and you can beef it up with additional protein powder (prefer casein) if needed and thin with egg beater style egg white if needed. Realize I don’t use all the ingrediants but mix various ones at different times and this is just general guide line. For P+F meals, I add to the cottage cheese and/or tuna: ground flax seed, flax and/or olive oil, olives, almonds, walnuts, natural peanut butter, real cheese, and any of the following low carb salad type veggies can be added in moderation to the P+F meal also: onions, brocolli sprouts, chopped brocolli and/or cauliflower, mushrooms, chopped red/green peppers, and cucumbers. Just go a little easier on those veggies in the P+F meal but all those choices are fairly low carb as compared to say the beans or tomatoes or peas or oatmeal or rye etc. The P+F can be seasoned with seasonings of choice and can include also hot sauce and moderate amounts of salsa (2 TBS of salsa give a lot of flavor with less than 20 calories). I also cook up batches of chicken breasts by putting them in a covered glass baking dish in microwave with a little water, wine or tarragon vinegar, and seasonings of choice - nuke im up and keep in the fridge and add to the above if wanting a larger, higher protein meal. These are just some general ideas of how I eat - use your imagination.

cool, thanks for all the ideas. i will definately give some of those a try.