How to choose your carbs

Carbohydrates. Healthy or unhealthy? There are a lot of diets that tell you carbohydrates are your enemy. Can you live without them? They give you great energy and can be found in almost every product. #FITGIRLCODE fan Ffion asked us which carbs to avoid.

What are Carbohydrates? Carbs (Carbohydrates) are an important source of energy and fibers. Like fuel for your body because your body turns them into glucose also known as sugar. You mostly can find them in bread, pasta, vegetables peas, beans, fruits and rice but they are also to be found in cookies, sodas and other sugary foods. Carbs are everywhere, even in cucumber! But which ones should you avoid?

How to choose your Carbs

Avoid the fake. There are natural sugars and there are sugars that are processed. Processed sugars are the bad carbs. They give you a higher blood sugar level in a short time. This is because they are low in fiber and your body processes them too fast. They cause high spikes in your blood sugar levels (in high amount also known as sugar rush) and are high in calorie but not very nutritious. These are to be found in soda’s, candy bars, cookies but also that little teaspoon of sugar in your coffee. Also considered as bad carbs are pasta and bread.

Say yes to “naturelle”. Natural carbs are to be found in peas, beans, quinoa, bulgur oats, rice, nuts, vegetables, fruits and more. They are high in fiber and your body processes them slowly which avoid spikes in blood sugar levels. Before training, to get a natural energy boost it is recommended to have a banana, dates or grapes because they are high of sugars. But don’t overdo it! Even though they are super nutritious, you can never eat unlimited sugars just because they are natural.

Listen to your body and try to figure out what’s best for you. What is your goal? Do you want to gain muscles? Do you want to prevent your body having sugar peaks and lows? One thing is sure: be careful with added sugars. Those are the ones you really should avoid. It is not true that you are not allowed to eat bread of pasta every once in a while. Just choose the ones with the whole grains because the more of fibers they contain. Modify your intake. The balance of how to manage your carb intake is very diverse and personal. I mean, look at the French,together with some other countries, they have been named the healthiest people in the world and  they don’t hesitate to eat croissants or baguettes with Nutella. It's all about portions. Experiment, and figure out what’s best for you.