TAGS
b) Refined Simple Carbs Refined simple carbs are foods which have been machine-processed to extend shelf life and improve texture/appearance. They are broken down VERY fast and cause sudden peaks in your sugar level. Your body will get used to these high sugar levels. As a result, when the sugar level drops, your body will crave for sugar again, causing you to feel hungry. This is why people tend to have a constant craving for refined simple carbs.
Eating too much refined simple carbs will cause you to become fat. This is because your body will convert excess sugar into fat! Examples include soft drinks, pastries, white sugar, candies.
I have compiled the lists below to help you watch your carb intake:
Eat These Natural Complex Carbs: - Brown Rice - Bananas - Legumes (beans, lentils, and dried peas) - Wholemeal Pasta - Potatoes - Whole Grain Breads - Whole Grain Cereals - Oats and oatmeal - Yams - Sweet Corn
Eat These Natural Simple Carbs: - Fruits - Bananas - Vegetables - Honey
Limit these Refined Complex Carbs: - Processed Breakfast Cereals - Pizzas - White Pasta - White Rice - White Flour - White Bread - Instant Oatmeal
AVOID Refined Simple Carbs: - Syrup - Biscuits, pastries and cakes - Sweets and Candies - White Sugar - Jams - Chocolate - Jellies - Snack Bars - Soft Drinks
Protein Protein is the “building block” of muscle. It is required to build and repair muscles.
When you work out, your body requires quality high-protein foods to build muscles efficiently. However, there are many protein junk foods that are high-carb, high-fat and low-protein, and you should definitely avoid them.
Eat these Good Protein Foods: - Eggs - Turkey and Chicken - Fish - Nuts - Cottage Cheese - Whey Protein - Low Fat and Chocolate Milk
Avoid or Limit these Bad Protein Foods - Bacon - Breaded Foods (e.g. Shrimp) - Chicken Nuggets - Beef Jerky - Processed Meat (hot dog, meat patties) - Red Meat - Whole-Fat Diary
Fat There are four main types of Fat: Saturated Fat, Mono-unsaturated Fat, Poly-unsaturated Fat and Trans Fat. The information below is going to be a little dry, so please bear with me and try not to fall asleep!
Saturated Fat Contain carbon atoms that are “saturated” with hydrogen atoms (holding as many hydrogen atoms as possible). As you can see from the picture above, the carbon atoms are surrounded by hydrogen atoms.
Saturated fat increase both LDL (bad) cholesterol and HDL (good) cholesterol. They are solid at room temperature. Saturated fat were once considered to be “Bad Fat” and linked to cardiovascular disease. However, recent research has shown that saturated fat may not be so bad after all, and they are also an important source of vitamins and minerals.
Sources include beef, lamb, pork, whole-fat diary and tropical oils (coconut, palm, rice bran).
Monounsaturated Fat Contain a double bond between two carbon atoms (Refer to the arrow in the picture above). It is termed unsaturated because the two carbon atoms could each hold one more hydrogen atom if the double-bond were broken. Because it is only unsaturated at a single point, it is mono-unsaturated.
Monounsaturated fat are “good fat” that help lower LDL (bad) cholesterol while also boosting HDL (good) cholesterol. They are liquid at room temperature.
Sources include olive oil, peanut oil, canola oil, avocados and nuts (almonds, peanuts, cashews, hazelnuts, macadamia nuts, pistachios).
Polyunsaturated Fat Contain two or more pairs of double bonds (Refer to the arrows in the picture above). Because it is unsaturated at multiple points, it is poly-saturated.
Polyunsaturated fat are thought to lower both good and bad cholesterol. They are liquid at room temperature. Polyunsaturated fat are good sources of omega-3 and omega-6 “essential” fatty acids. “Essential” in this context means that our bodies cannot manufacture these fat and they must be obtained through external food sources or supplements. Omega-3/6 fatty acids reduce blood pressure, lower bad cholesterol, fight inflammation, promote brain function and strengthen the nervous system.
Sources include fatty fish (salmon, mackerel, herring, trout, tuna and sardines), vegetable oils (corn, cottonseed, soybean, sunflower, sesame), nuts (walnuts, butternuts, pine nuts, pecans) and seeds (flaxseed, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, watermelon seeds, chia seeds).
Trans Fat Trans fat are created by adding hydrogen to liquid vegetable oils at an extremely high temperature to convert them into solid trans fat.
Trans fat are true-blue “bad fats” because they not only raise LDL (bad) cholesterol but also lower HDL (good) cholesterol. Examples of food with trans fat: Shortening, stick margarines, fried foods, some commercial baked goods (pastries, pie crusts, biscuits, pizza crusts), fast food, breaded food, instant noodles, cake mixes. Best to avoid or limit to great extent.
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