Carbohydrates come in many forms like..
Table sugar
Fruit
Dairy
Fermentation bi-product
Plant fiber/ starch
And many more..
When we eat carbs, our body turns that sugar into glycogen which is usable energy for our body.
Energy used to lift weights, build muscle, go for a run, use our brain, stand in the kitchen and cook dinner, etc. Once our body turns sugar into glycogen, a healthy body will store them in muscle cells, fat cells or liver.
People think carbs are bad because they’ll make you fat / be stored as fat, but if you are active the body will use them properly (and if you lift, the body will use them to build muscle!) So if you’re active and healthy and eat them in a balanced way, carbs are absolutely a part of a healthy diet!
Now let’s discuss what happens when we eat carbs.. Our bodies break the sugars we eat down into a very simple sugar we know as glucose.
This glucose is stored in the liver, in our muscle cells and fat cells. This gives us the energy we use throughout our day to be alive, brain function, getting dressed, walking around, lifting weights, etc. The storage form of sugar is called glycogen.
As we eat carbohydrates (and protein too) the pancreas secretes insulin to help lower blood glucose and chouffer the sugar where it needs to go.
However some forms of sugar digest faster than others, creating *different* glycemic responses. Simple sugars such as fructose, (fruit, honey, etc,) lactose, sucrose (table sugar) digest quickly where as complex carbs (starch from plants like grains, potatoes) digest slower.
Then there’s also fiber which is found in whole fruit and vegetables, which our body can’t actually digest, but this slows down the digestion process, and this glycemic/ insulin response, in turn.
Now let’s talk about the glycemic index and glycemic load..
Every food has a different number or “score” on the glycemic index. This is assigned based on how quickly the body digests the food and absorbs the sugars.
Simple sugars digest quicker so their number is higher on the glycemic index, whereas starchy, complex carbs take longer so they’re lower on the GI. Examples include bell peppers at 15, berries at 40 and a candy bar at 55.
But the amount you consume makes the biggest difference as this will truly gauge your glycemic response. That is where glycemic load comes in.
So if you eat just a little of something with a high GI your glycemic response may not be too dramatic, but if you eat a lot of something with a moderate or high GI, your glycemic response (and thereby your insulin response) will be very high.
You take the GI number and multiply it by the amount of carbs in the serving you are consuming, then divide that by 100 to get the glycemic load.
So if you’re eating berries with a GI of 40, and you get 3g of carbs in that serving, that’s 120, divided by 100 is 1.2 so the glycemic load is 1.2 which is super low.
Or for a candy bar the GI is 55, times the 53g of carbs is 2915, divided by 100 gives you a glycemic load of 29.
So the higher the glycemic load, the higher or more dramatic your blood sugar levels will rise and the more insulin your pancreas will have to secrete to lower it.
So what does this have to do with fat loss? If you want to lose fat, we want to minimize our inulin response to foods, as insulin is known as a “storage hormone,” as it helps push those nutrients into our cells. If you are looking to LOSE FAT, we want to minimize this so you would eat foods with a lower glycemic load. Not all the time, but a good amount of the time. We can manipulate this number in many ways.. sometimes by staying low carb.. sometimes by adding protein.. but that’s for me to understand to be able to help you!
I also know I never included what the right amount of carbs for you are and that’s because it’s bio-individual to every human. We all tolerate certain kinds and amount of carbs differently, we have different energetic needs, preferences, etc. There’s no one size fits all answer!
I know this may sound complicated, but I got you!
If you need help making this not only make sense but work for you to help you lose fat, let’s work together.
Sign up for online training at kyrawilliamsfitness.com/signup and email me to get started on your custom clean eating meal plan!