Good vs Bad Carbohydrate

Carbohydrates are the main source that the body draws energy from. The body requires carbohydrates each and every day but should only be consumed in moderation to avoid excessive fat gain. People have been terming different carbohydrates simple and complex.

1. Simple/ High Glycemic (The Bad Carbs) :

Being the carbs that hit the system & converted into energy faster & accumulated. This energy if not being use immediately, will convert into fat within 3 hours. Using simple carbs foods only for post workout can benefit you greatly, as we need certain amount of simple carbs to refuel our glycogen level back into the muscle, but please avoid anything deep fried and overly sweet stuff (moderation is important).

After training you want the insulin levels to rise causing the proteins, carbs, and other nutrients to be shuttled into the starving muscles. Higher GI foods are suggested for this recovery purpose. However, nowadays people use post-workout supplement to substitute in order to avoid excessive bad carb into the body. Anything prepared at a restaurant should only be consumed on rare occasions. The bad sources of carbohydrates includes:

§  Sugars (from high to low: Maltose, Glucose, Sucrose)

§  Honey

§  Puffed cereals (white rice, wheat, corn, rice cakes) YES! RICE CAKES

§  Potatoes ( regular russet, instant, mashed, French fries)

§  Candy

§  Breads (especially white bread, doughnuts, pizza)

§  Instant products ( instant: rice, oatmeal, wheat, grits)

§  Carrots, corn, peas

§  Flaked cereals (corn flakes, etc.)

§  Corn chips

§  white pasta

§  Energy Drink ( high sugar content: livita/redbull/ etc)

2. Complex/ Low Glycemic (The Good Carbs): 

Which enters the system & the energy will released slowly or steadier supply of energy. It will less likely being accumulate in our body and being store as fat, but will be used by the body from time to time as we needed. It fuels our body throughout the workout session. These choices of foods should make up the prime area amount of your carbohydrates.  If you are going to eat before training, you should pick low glycemic carbohydrates. The good sources of carbohydrates include: 

§  Nuts

§  Legumes

§  Fructose (Basic sugar found in fruits)

§  Brown Pasta 
§  Dairy ( Ice cream, skim milk, whole milk, yogurt)

§  Fruits (ONLY-plums, peaches, apples, oranges, pears, grapes, grapefruit)

§  Rice (polished), or brown

§  Sweet potato

§  Oats

§  All-bran

§Most Vegetables ( exceptions- carrots, corn, root vegetables)

The introduction of the Glycemic Index has proven to be beneficial in knowing the rates at which certain carbohydrates are released into the blood stream. The Glycemic index is a measure of how quickly a particular carbohydrate is formed into glucose and enters the body.

So inconclution, consume complex carbs throughout the day. And keep simple carbs, only after your work out session. Another tips to make it easier to for you guys, is to consume more brown carbs and stay away of the white carbs.

Thanks, see you guys on another post.

Izwan Yusop,

Advanced Personal Trainer

Fitness First SCM