How Many carbohydrates should we take to lose weight

 

What Is carbohydrate

How Many carbohydrates should we take?

The main function of carbohydrates is to supply energy. Though carbohydrates provide an approximately equal amount of energy as proteins (4Kcalories/gm), they are far more efficient fuel than proteins.

Dietary carbohydrates are of two types – 

simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are made up of one or two sugar molecules (e.g., honey, jelly, soft drinks, etc.). Complex carbohydrates contain many sugar molecules linked together. (e.g., whole grains, potatoes, vegetables, and fruits, etc.).

How Many carbohydrates should we take?

(i) As per the RDA, (Recommended Dietary Allowance) our daily carbohydrates intake should be within the range of 6-11 gm/kg of body weight. If a person weighs 70 kg, he should take 420-770gms of carbohydrates depending upon his daily caloric requirement. A 70-kg marathoner will require more caloric intake (and, thereby, proportionately more carbohydrates) than a 70-kg sedentary clerk.

(ii) 55-60% of our total dietary calories should come from carbohydrates. If a person’s daily caloric intake is 3000 calories, 1650-1800 calories should come from carbohydrates.

(iii) Carbohydrates are preferred metabolic fuel. They spare proteins for muscle building and maintenance of the body. If our intake of Carbohydrates is less than the RDA, our body may tend to utilize proteins for energy and consequently, muscle building may suffer.

(iv) A low carbohydrate diet will build up low glycogen stores in the muscles. Thus, chronically deplete muscle glycogen stores may lead a person to reduced performance. Those on the ‘crash diet’ should note this.

How carbohydrates digest in our body

Digestion of carbohydrates starts in the mouth. While chewing of food (mastication) we produce saliva. Salivary enzyme amylase breaks down the starch(which is tasteless) of carbohydrate to maltose which is sweet. This is why food tastes sweet if properly chewed.

During digestion carbohydrates are broken down into glucose and circulated in the blood to be used for energy. If our body does not use glucose immediately for energy, surplus glucose is converted into glycogen and stored in muscles and liver for future use. Approximately, 2/3 glycogen is stored in muscles and 1/3 in the liver. Since the total glucose storage capacity of muscles and liver is limited, the surplus amount of glycogen is converted and stored as fat. This is why overeating causes more fat deposits in the body.

Chewing our food well helps better digestion and optimal utilization of food intake. Yoga teachers recommend to ‘drink the food’ (chew the food so long that it becomes liquid in your mouth, then swallow it) for its best utilization. Chewing well also discourages overeating. (The task itself is so boring that naturally, you will not have much patience to take a huge dose of food !)

Complex vs simple carbohydrates

Complex carbohydrates are preferable to simple carbohydrates for these reasons –

(i) Complex carbohydrates contain fiber, water, vitamins, and other nutrients. Simple carbohydrates, on the other hand, have hardly any other nutrients.

(ii) The presence of fibers in whole-grain food makes them more satisfying. Foods rich in fiber prevents constipation.

(iii) High-fiber foods, also take more calories for their digestion. This has an important implication for weight control. One can eat high-fiber foods to his satisfaction and still may not gain much weight!

(iv) Complex carbohydrates encourage better glycogen storage than simple sugars.

Carbohydrates loading (carbo-loading)

Carbo-loading is a practice prevalent among endurance athletes?

This technique is used to enhance the muscle glycogen store of the athlete prior to the race. Firstly, the athlete eats a low-carbohydrate diet for 3 days and simultaneously has prolonged exercise sessions of high-intensity to deplete his body of the carbohydrates to a great extent. This is followed by 3 days of rest or very low-intensity exercise and simultaneously a high carbohydrates diet. 

During these 3 days, a ‘carbo-starved’ body tends to store more muscle glycogen than its normal level (super-compensation effect). This increased level of glycogen store helps the athlete to perform for a longer time. ‘Hitting the wall’ is an experience that occurs to runners during long-distance runs (e.g., during a marathon) when the marathoner’s body is so depleted of carbohydrates that he seems to ‘hit the wall’ and has hardly any energy left in him to carry forward. Carbo-loading pushes the ‘wall’ further towards the finishing line. (If earlier you hit the wall at 30th you may experience it, maybe, at 40thkm.) However, this technique does not suit everyone. 

Sometimes carbo-loading in its carbo-depletion stage causes undesirable side effects, e.g., physical and mental fatigue, depression, and irritability. Never try this at the time of race unless you have done so during your training.

Tips to make the most out of carbohydrates:

(i) Carbohydrates are best absorbed if taken immediately after the exercise. Why? A prolonged, intense exercise causes carbohydrate depletion in our body. The muscle glycogen level requires to be restored soon after the exercise. If carbohydrates are not ingested within half an hour or so, our body turns to utilize its proteins for energy requirement. As mentioned earlier, proteins are primarily meant for bodybuilding and not for supplying energy. If they are diverted to be used as fuel, muscle building will take a back seat.

(ii) What’s the best type of carbohydrates for instant refueling after exercise? A the natural choice will be those carbohydrates that figure high on the glycemic index. (Glycemic index is a scale that describes how fast a food is converted to glucose in the blood). However, in some cases, taking too much of high glycemic carbohydrates may elevate the blood-sugar level. This may stimulate the sudden spurt of insulin which may cause abnormal falls in the blood sugar level (hypoglycemia). Due to temporary hypoglycemia, one may feel weak or dizzy. Therefore, it is advised to have a wise combination of both high and low glycemic foods.

Most fruits and vegetables, whole-grain breads, milk, dals are low glycemic index foods. Cornflakes, potatoes, watermelon, white bread, sugar, honey are high foods.

Major sources of carbohydrates are rice, wheat, jowar, ragi, potato, tapioca, banana, honey, fruits.

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