Fats and fast carbohydrates. Balanced diet for weight loss: how much and when to eat proteins, fats and carbohydrates

  • Date: 30.03.2019

Saccharides are divided into slow and fast. The names are directly related to the breakdown and conversion to glucose. The most harmful nutritionists consider easily splittable - fast carbohydrates. They have the most calories, which lead to fullness. Nevertheless, the lack of these substances leads to poor health and loss of strength.

Short saccharides allow us to quickly restore energy. They also improve mental activity. Yes, they are necessary for the active work of the brain. Without these substances, the body cannot fully process proteins and fats. Not to mention the fact that they are necessary for the normal functioning of the liver.

They are called simple / fast because of their structure, as well as their ability to quickly saturate the body. Simply put, they are absorbed very quickly.

Of course, you've heard about glucose, fructose, galactose, mannose, etc. These are monosaccharides. They are so called because of their structure. They consist of one molecule of structural monomers. Sucrose, lactose, raffinose, maltose are two-molecular carbohydrates. Hence the name “short”, i.e. they have a short formula.

These substances are simply necessary for everyone involved in sports. Since, by increasing insulin levels, they prevent the destruction of muscle tissue. With fast carbohydrates, weight gainers are prepared to increase muscle mass. They are taken after training. They will also be appropriate in a diet for weight gain.

An insulin surge enhances blood circulation, and also leads to muscle tone. This allows you to eliminate dizziness, nausea. A bar, a cookie, a piece of dark chocolate - it's like an ambulance. It is rarely used, only to quickly restore strength.

But, not only those involved in sports need simple carbohydrates. Read more about the benefits of simple carbohydrates for our body. You can pamper yourself with a bar, honey, cookies. You just don’t have to eat them in kilos 🙂

How is the glycemic index (GI) associated with carbohydrates

The glycemic index is an indicator of how quickly carbohydrates break down. Therefore, it is connected with them directly. The faster the saccharide breaks down and is absorbed as glucose, the higher the GI. Accordingly, foods with a high glycemic index are short / fast carbohydrates. Products can be divided into three groups of GIs:

  • GI less than 40 - polypeptides are absorbed into the blood slowly. They can be consumed often. These are whole wheat, rye, legumes, soy, etc. Fruits such as apples, lemons, pears, cherries, oranges and peaches. From vegetables - zucchini, peppers, spinach, lettuce, onions, all kinds of cabbage. Milk, cheeses, natural sugar-free yogurts.
  • GI from 40 to 55 - the average rate of absorption and cleavage. Every day they should not be consumed. If you are on a diet, you need to temporarily exclude them from food. Then use in moderation. These are pasta made from white flour, basmati rice, oatmeal and rye bread. Buckwheat, corn, green peas, as well as beets, grapes, kiwi.
  • GI above 55 - this is our fast carbohydrates. They should not be completely abandoned, but rarely need to be consumed. Combine well with low GI foods. And what kind of products are we will consider in more detail.

This parameter is very important to consider in diabetes. The doctor calculates the saccharide rate for each diabetic individually.

Simple carbohydrates are what foods.

What are these products? First of all, these are white bread and flour products. Naturally sweets: halva, sweets, chocolate. And also sweet fruits: watermelon, pumpkin, dried fruits, dates, etc. Potatoes, parsnips, polished rice, as well as corn grits, millet. Preference should be given to the most useful simple saccharides. These are fruits, cereals, vegetables. Any alcohol refers to quick saccharides. Now let's go through some categories.

Fruits

Sweet berries and citrus fruits, as well as bananas and dried fruits, can quickly restore energy. They are useful in that, in addition to fructose, they contain vitamins and minerals. The only thing you should not eat dried fruits in sugar syrup. The caloric content of such products increases significantly. Compared to regular dried fruits. There will be more harm than good.

Purchased fruit and vegetable juices

Of course they are less useful than freshly squeezed. But since they contain sugar syrup, they quickly restore strength. And also better satisfy hunger.

Products from cereals

You can quickly restore energy by using porridge. It is much more useful than chocolate candy or cookies. If you need to gain weight, give preference to steamed rice, as well as corn grits or oatmeal (although you can lose weight on it too). Muesli is a wonderful and healthy product. They are often found in cooked breakfasts.

Vegetables

Most fast saccharides are found in yellow, orange and red vegetables. Therefore, do not be surprised if you sat on a carrot, beetroot, pumpkin and got better. Eat green vegetables daily. And the above should not be abused.

Milk and Yogurt

The amount of saccharides in these products depends on the lactose content. This is milk sugar. If sugar or sweet fruits are added to these products, these are already fast carbohydrates. The most saturated with them are yogurts with sugar and fruits. Now I completely stopped buying sweet yoghurts in the store, because there is so much sugar that I even feel unpleasant. It is better to cook yourself from natural yogurt, adding a portion of berries or dried fruits to it.

Fast carbohydrate foods in the table.

Now I want to give you a detailed table of products that contain simple saccharides. It can be downloaded. Please note that the table data is rather conditional. It has been proven that different people react differently to certain products. An apple, from gi to 55, can cause a significant increase in glucose in one person. And the other, on the contrary, practically does not increase blood sugar. That is why now they began to develop personalized diets. So the table:

GI Product
146 Dates
136 Long loaf and white bread
115 Alcoholic drinks
103 Watermelon
103 Cakes, pies, etc.
100 Sugar
90 Polished rice
90 Honey
89 Boiled swede
88 Premium wheat flour
85 Boiled carrots
85 Cornflakes
85 Boiled celery
84 Boiled turnip
80 Condensed milk
80 Beans
75 Zucchini (fried or caviar)
75 Boiled pumpkin
75 Manka
71 Millet and millet groats
70 Milk chocolate
70 Ice cream
65 Fresh pineapple
65 Black bread
65 Melon
65 Raisins
65 Figs
64 Unpolished rice
65 Dried apricots
64 Grape
64 Boiled beets
63 Boiled potatoes
61 Pork tenderloin
60 Bananas
60 Mayonnaise
56 Sour cream, 20%
55 Persimmon

How much can you eat simple saccharides per day

The daily norm of both simple and complex carbohydrates is 2 g per kilogram of weight. At the same time, short ones should be 1/3 of this norm

If you play sports and want to gain muscle mass, then you need 3-4g / 1kg. If, on the contrary, you are losing weight - 0.5-1g / 1 kg of weight. Accordingly, if your weight is 60 kg in total, you need to consume 120 g of saccharides. Of these, 40 g should be short carbohydrates.

Excessive consumption of foods with a GI above 55 leads to atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, increased cholesterol, obesity and caries. That's where overweight comes from.

If you completely remove them from the diet there will be an indigestion. A person can become apathetic, get tired quickly, etc.

I could not get past the advice of "knowledgeable" nutritionists. After all, someone can take them seriously. I will try to give arguments that refute the most common allegations on the Internet.

Exclude short carbohydrates from the diet altogether

On the Internet there is advice from those who know that you need to eat only slow carbohydrates. There is only one argument - they break down slowly, which means they maintain a stable sugar level. This is important, as a sharp jump in glucose leads to a drop in testosterone by 25%.

But what then do those who build muscle mass? After all, muscle growth is possible only with high blood sugar. And if after training you do not restore glucose stores, muscle destruction will generally begin.

The answer is simple - no need to give up short carbohydrates. Slow saccharides can be added in small portions of short carbohydrates.

It can be a muesli bar or a small piece of white bread. Testosterone can only decrease if there has been a long break in nutrition. And after it you took short carbohydrates.

Do not eat potatoes

Now everyone around says that they are getting fatter from potatoes. Yes, it is, especially if you abuse fried potatoes. It is believed that starch is to blame. For you to know, the starch content in potatoes is no more than pasta. Nevertheless, it should not be excluded from a fitness diet. It will even be useful during meals after a workout.

After training, there is practically no blood sugar. And this product contains short saccharides. It will very quickly lead to the production of insulin. Which will prevent the destruction of muscle tissue.

So this vegetable can be included in the first snack after a workout. If you do not like boiled potatoes, you can cook it on the grill.

Eat right and be healthy. The key to success in losing weight is the balance of a well-composed diet and sports. Do not forget to subscribe to updates. Bye everyone.

All people want to be healthy and beautiful. But not everyone knows how to achieve this. Our first action is to analyze our diet. It is not in vain that they say: "We are what we eat." The direct fuel for the human body are carbohydrates. But how to choose the right and useful? What are they like? What products are contained in?

The biological role of carbohydrates

The human body is a kind of perpetual motion machine that requires a constant supply of fuel. The last one is the food, or rather, the carbohydrates (sugars or saccharides) contained in it. As a result of the oxidation of one gram of it, a little more than 4 kcal of energy and water of 0.4 g are released. This is enough for 1 second of running at maximum speed. In general, it is believed that the vital activity of an average person requires from 1,500 to 1,700 kcal per day. But the energy function of carbohydrates, although the most important, is not the only one.

Saccharides provide regulation of osmotic blood pressure. This is manifested in the fact that its composition includes more than 100 mg /% glucose (the simplest form of carbohydrates).

These organic substances are part of the complex molecules involved in the construction of DNA. And perform a plastic function.

Cell receptors are formed from carbohydrates, which are responsible for the perception of external stimuli.

As for the supporting function, in the human body their share ranges from 2-3% of body weight. For comparison: the dry weight of plants is 80% carbohydrate. That is why plant foods are the main source of these organic substances for humans.

Carbohydrate classification

The indivisible structural units of each carbohydrate are saccharides. Depending on their number, they distinguish:

  • monosaccharides, or monomers (contain one structural unit);
  • disaccharides (contain two monosaccharides);
  • oligosaccharides (contain from two to ten structural units - monosaccharides);
  • polysaccharides (contain more than ten monosaccharides).

In addition, according to the ability to split into the smallest constituents, all types of saccharides are divided into carbohydrates, slow and fast, or simple and complex. Oligo- and polysaccharides are classified as slow, and mono- and disaccharides are fast.

The most famous monosaccharides are glucose and fructose, disaccharides are sucrose (ordinary sugar), polysaccharides are starch and cellulose (a component of the cell walls of higher plants).

Glycemic index: rate of conversion of carbohydrate food to glucose

Chemical processes in the body convert any type of carbohydrate into the final product of absorption - glucose. In order to characterize the rate of its production from foods containing sugar, the concept of glycemic index (GI) was introduced.

For glucose, it is equal to the maximum, that is 100. As for the other products, the higher the GI, the faster the blood sugar level rises after their use. And vice versa. It is customary to separate three gradations of the glycemic index:

  • low (10-40);
  • medium (40-60);
  • high (60-100).

For people, it is preferable to eat foods with slow carbohydrates, that is, with low GI. Unfortunately, domestic producers do not care about what kind of GI their products have, but on the packaging of European food products this index can be found quite often.

Slow carbohydrates - the basis of the food pyramid

The food pyramid (or food pyramid) developed by nutritionists suggests that the food that forms its base should make up most (about 65%) of a person’s daily diet.

At the very bottom of this pyramid are three groups of products, namely fruits, vegetables and cereals. As we already know, the mentioned plant sources of nutrition give a person such desired slow carbohydrates that smoothly saturate the blood with glucose. This provides a measured supply of energy between regular meals. In this case, the processing of proteins and fats occurs without failures, and the pancreas does not overdo it, since there is no need to produce excessive insulin for the “processing” of glucose.

Carbohydrate food is best absorbed by the body in the morning - for breakfast and lunch. Recommended to eat protein food.

To facilitate the formation of a rational menu, you can make a list of food products containing slow carbohydrates. The list of such products is a kind of cheat sheet, having it in front of your eyes every day to prepare a varied and nutritious menu will not be difficult at all. Over time, choosing the right food will become a habit.

Slow Carbohydrates: Product List

The source of complex sugars are vegetables, fruits, legumes and cereals.

For the smooth operation of the body, the products of each of the above groups are recommended for breakfast and lunch. The ratio of fruits and vegetables is taken equal to 3: 2. One serving is 150 g, so you need to eat about 450 g of vegetables and 300 g of fruit per day.

Consider in more detail the list of foods containing slow carbohydrates. The list of products is a table that includes not only the corresponding food sources, but also their glycemic index. The right foods are those foods whose GI is low and medium, because they do not lead to sharp spikes in blood sugar.

Healthy fruits and vegetables

Having a low level of GI, vegetables and fruits supply the body with vitamins, minerals, trace elements and fiber, which contributes to the effective functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. Such foods suppress appetite, give little energy and thereby stimulate the body's resources to break down existing fats. Thanks to the joint use of vegetables and fruits, you can lower the calorie content of dishes with a high glycemic index.

Slow carbohydrates: table of vegetables (legumes) and fruits

Product

Glycemic index

Parsley, basil

Mushrooms, garlic, lettuce, lettuce, tomatoes, green peppers, raw onions, fresh cabbage, broccoli, greens

Brussels sprouts, stewed zucchini, sauerkraut stewed and sauerkraut, boiled cauliflower, green onions, leeks, red pepper, radishes, turnips, black currants, soybeans, asparagus, stewed cauliflower, spinach

Fresh apricots, cherry plum, lingonberries, cherries, sweet cherries, yellow split peas, grapefruit, blackberries, seaweed, fresh cucumbers, plums, soybeans, blueberries, prunes, lentils

Dried apricots, oranges, green bananas, black beans, white currants, dry green peas, pomegranate, pear, rye seeds, figs, cauliflower, strawberries, red currants, raspberries, young peas, raw carrots, nectarine, sea buckthorn, green beans apples

Grapes, blueberries, canned green peas, green beans, green peas, strawberries, strawberries, coconut, gooseberries, tangerines, white beans,

Bananas, sweet potatoes, canned sweet corn, mango, papaya, persimmon

Healthy cereals

Cereal products can be called the "golden mean" among food products, since they give a lot of energy, but at the same time saturate the body with it quite slowly.

But it should be remembered that instant cereals and cereals with flavors lose their “useful” properties due to the presence of simple sugars and excessive grinding of grain.

Slow Carbohydrates: List of Grain Products

Product

Glycemic index

Barley porridge on the water, rice bran

Quinoa, maize

Loose buckwheat porridge, oatmeal viscous on the water, raw oatmeal, wheat cereal, barley groats

Buckwheat porridge on water, brown rice, oatmeal cookies, bran, pearl barley porridge friable, millet viscous and friable porridge on water, wild rice, barley porridge

Fast Carbohydrates - Potential Fat

The tip of the iceberg called the "food pyramid" consists of food ingredients that should be consumed extremely rarely, as they say, on holidays. And these foods are rich in fast carbohydrates, which contribute to weight gain. Yes, it turns out that 90% of body fat is formed by saccharides, not fats from food, as we are all used to counting.

The harm of fast carbohydrates is that they increase blood sugar very sharply, causing the release of excessive amounts of insulin, the main task of which is to reduce the concentration of glucose in the blood. In this case, the pancreas begins to suffer, since excessive production of insulin exhausts it.

Insulin is also called "weight hormone." And not in vain. Starting work with glucose, he catalyzes its conversion to glycogen - a storage carbohydrate that settles in the liver and muscles. If for some time a new portion of fuel does not enter the body, glycogen will again break down into glucose and provide the person with the necessary energy. But constant overeating over time will provoke its conversion into fat, and weight gain is guaranteed.

To control the use of “bad” carbohydrates, keep a list of fast and slow carbohydrates within easy reach.

Foods That Contain Fast Carbs

Foods with a high (above 60) GI include mainly white flour products (bakery and pasta), refined rice, confectionery, carbonated drinks, alcohol and ... potatoes, due to the high concentration of starch.

Fast carbohydrate foods list

Product

Glycemic index

Couscous, instant oatmeal, croissants, instant noodles, pasta, wheat flour, dried fruit compote, boiled potatoes

Semolina porridge, millet, millet, steamed white rice, pancakes, wheat bagel, biscuit cake, custard, shortbread, donuts, carbonated drinks, zucchini fried, beets

Popcorn, loaf, rolls, granola, tapioca, rice bread, corn flakes, boiled carrots

Instant rice porridge, white bread, hot dog roll, fried white croutons, rice flour, beer, fried potatoes, baked potatoes

Benefits of Fast Carbs

Despite its high GI, simple sugars still have some positive qualities. The most important thing is their ability to quickly fill the body with energy and provide a surge of strength. Often athletes use this property.

After exhausting workouts, muscle glycogen stores are depleted, which can lead to trembling hands and feet, a general loss of strength and the appearance of cold sweat. Quickly replenish glycogen supply will help insulin release. As mentioned earlier, a sharp increase in the concentration of sugar in the blood can provoke this. Together with insulin, amino acids and other beneficial substances enter the muscles, which contribute to the formation of protein, a building material. It is these features of carbohydrate metabolism that bodybuilders use to build muscle.

Carbohydrate Slimming Diet

The principle of a carbohydrate diet is quite simple: it is necessary to control the amount of sugars consumed with food so as not to cause an excess of unspent energy, which subsequently settles in the form of fat deposits.

In no case should you skip the main meals, as a prolonged lack of fuel will give the body a signal to store it for the future. And this, again, is overweight.

More often choose foods with low and medium GI, limit the use of ordinary sugar and other sweets, increase physical activity.

At first, a special table of fast and slow carbohydrates will help, and over time, taking care of your health will become an invariable part of a new life.

20.03.2018

For snacks between heavy meals, you should not leave buns and sweets, but nuts and dried fruits.
  People who are predisposed to developing diabetes should use foods with high GI with extreme caution.

Carbohydrates are substances made up of molecules of oxygen, hydrogen and carbon. In the process of metabolism in the body, they turn into a source of energy - glucose.

In the body, glucose is used to produce energy, but if it is not consumed in a sedentary lifestyle, unused glucose is deposited in the form of glycogen, a polysaccharide formed by glucose residues. This substance is a reserve carbohydrate for the body and accumulates in the liver and muscle tissue in reserve or in the form of subcutaneous and intra-abdominal fat.

What are fast carbohydrates

Fast or simple carbohydrates include all sugar, starch consumed in food. They are easily split and absorbed by the body thanks to a special chemical formula, dissolve in water and have a pronounced sweet taste. These carbohydrates include monosaccharides, disaccharides.

Monosaccharides include substances:

  1. Glucose. Glucose-containing foods - carrots, grapes, corn, berries. It is stored in the liver and muscles as an energy reserve in the form of glycogen.
  2. Fructose. Natural sources of fructose are honey, ripe fruits and vegetables. It is absorbed a little worse, since the body must convert it to glucose.
  3. Galactose will hold back in dairy products.

Disaccharides include the following components:

  1. Lactose. It is an animal carbohydrate found in milk.
  2. Maltose is a sugar produced after fermentation of grapes and the formation of malt. Contained in oranges, beer.
  3. Sucrose. Natural sources - cane, beetroot, brown sugar, black molasses; sucrose is present in vegetables and fruits to a lesser extent.

The division of carbohydrates into fast and slow is associated with a glycemic index.

The concept of glycemic index (GI)

The glycemic index shows how quickly the body digests the carbohydrates eaten and gets into the blood. The higher it is, the faster this process is and the more actively a person gains weight. GI also shows how quickly a product can increase blood glucose. GI is taken as the reference standard with an index of 100 units.

It is customary to use the following classification:

- high GI - more than 70;

- average GI - in the range from 50 to 70;

- low GI - less than 50.

The lower the GI, the healthier the product is.

The importance of fast carbohydrates in human nutrition

Having a high glycemic index, fast carbohydrates can adversely affect human health. They do not provide the body with nutrients, and hunger dull only for a short time. If sugar that enters the blood is not converted to glycogen due to physical exertion, it will be deposited in the body as fat.

Therefore, all healthy eating systems recommend limiting the intake of foods containing fast carbohydrates. Particularly wary of fast carbohydrates in the afternoon, it is at this time that they pose the greatest danger to weight and shape.

A low glycemic index, on the contrary, contributes to weight loss. If the task is to reduce weight, you can lose weight with a diet in which products have a GI of not more than 55 units. In this case, a fit figure and excellent mood are guaranteed.

When eating foods containing fast carbohydrates, blood sugar levels jump up sharply. This is a negative factor for health and, according to doctors, can lead to the development of diabetes.

What are fast carbohydrates for?

Studies show that it is thanks to sugars that the absorption of foods rich in proteins and fats is possible. All doctors and nutritionists agree that the diet should for the most part consist of foods with slow carbohydrates.

However, there are situations when it is necessary to restore energy as soon as possible, even for a short time, in which case fast carbohydrates are indispensable. They sharply increase the level of glucose in the blood, which leads to a surge in insulin, intense blood circulation, and high muscle tone. This helps to cope with fainting, dizziness, nausea.

In addition, fast carbohydrates:

  • help to cope with mental tasks by activating the brain;
  • replenish glycogen reserves in the body;
  • neutralize toxins;
  • participate in the construction of the cell framework;
  • help fight stress and get rid of depressive states;
  • control metabolism by activating the synthesis of various hormones and enzymes in the body.

If a person regularly visits the gym and is intensely involved in sports, then fast carbohydrates in small quantities help to reduce excess weight by accelerating the burning of body fat.

In the absence of proper physical activity, jumps in glucose levels only replenish body fat and damage the work of the pancreas, muscles and cardiovascular system. A person needs to consume up to 40 g of fast sugars per day, and only in the morning.

Fast carbohydrates in a healthy diet

According to the principles of proper nutrition, not fast carbohydrates should prevail in the human diet, but products that also contain organic acids, vitamins and minerals. These include vegetables, grains and fruits.

Carbohydrate products are preferably interchangeable. For example, instead of fried potatoes, it is better to cook baked, instead of sugar, add honey to tea.

It is advisable to eat dried fruits and fruits with fast carbohydrates separately from the main lunch. When compiling a healthy diet, nutritionists recommend taking into account the principle of food compatibility:

  • do not mix carbohydrates with fatty foods;
  • if you intend to lose weight, fast carbohydrates should be excluded at least after lunch, and preferably from the diet in general;
  • if you can’t refuse chocolate, it is better to buy black with 70% cocoa;
  • sugary drinks, biscuits, chocolates should be banned - these pure calories can be replenished when quick recovery is required, but more often they contribute to obesity and their benefits are doubtful.

What foods are fast carbohydrates: a list of foods

To reduce the load on the pancreas and to prevent fat deposits, the optimal solution in a healthy diet is considered to be a significant restriction in the diet of foods containing fast carbohydrates. In the general case, without going into the intricacies of the glycemic index values, you can focus on the following example of dangerous products to exclude:

  • white bread and flour products from white flour (cakes, pastries, cookies, rolls);
  • sausages;
  • shop sweets (drinks, soda, sweets);
  • starch;
  • soft pasta from soft wheat varieties;
  • potatoes;
  • vegetables after heat treatment, with the appearance of easily digestible starch;
  • sugar-fortified canned fruits that easily turn into glucose;
  • alcohol, especially spirits and beer;
  • sugar and products with its addition, ice cream, preserves, jams;
  • fried potatoes or fries;
  • fast food and almost all dishes in fast food restaurants that contain a lot of starch and sugar.

If you cannot completely eliminate the above products from the diet, it is recommended to include them in the menu as little as possible in order to eliminate such a minus as weight gain. This is the easiest diet option, useful for losing weight.

Of great importance is the method of processing such products. As a general rule, cooking time and high temperature contribute to an increase in sugar in the finished dish. For example, jacket-boiled potatoes will be less harmful than mashed potatoes from boiled peeled potatoes or even fried potatoes.

However, it is best for a healthy diet, choosing products for the diet, pay attention to the glycemic index. In public catering, this will be difficult, but for the home menu it is quite feasible.

List of foods containing fast carbohydrates with an average glycemic index (55-70 units)

These products include:

  • bread and other pastries from rye flour (wholemeal);
  • boiled carrots, peas, beets;
  • kiwi, banana, apricot, pineapple, and melon;
  • pearl barley, oatmeal, buckwheat, rice, semolina and other cereals;
  • corn, including popcorn;
  • jacket potatoes.

These products can be consumed in the morning, without fear of negative consequences, but only if the goal is not to lose weight.

The list of products, which includes fast carbohydrates with a high glycemic index (above 70 units)

The following products, according to doctors, do more harm than good and interfere with the normal functioning of the body:

  • sweet juices and cola (75);
  • any baked goods from wheat flour, puff or yeast dough, for example, morning toast for breakfast, has a GI of 100 units;
  • fried potatoes or fries (95) and mashed potatoes (90);
  • bars (Snickers, Kit-Kat, Mars) and chocolates (70);
  • watermelon (103);
  • dates (146);
  • sugar and milk chocolate (70);
  • granola with sugar and corn flakes (80-90);
  • dried fruits and grapes (75);
  • chips (85);
  • alcohol and beer 3.0% (115);
  • corn syrup (115);
  • pastries, cakes, pastries and fast food (103);
  • coca-Cola and carbonated drinks (102);
  • parsnip (97);
  • rice noodles (95);
  • canned apricots and peaches (91);
  • polished rice (90);
  • honey (90);
  • soft wheat pasta (90);
  • hamburger bun (88);
  • salted crackers (80);
  • granola with nuts and raisins (80);
  • condensed milk (80);
  • polished rice (80);
  • beans (80);
  • candy caramel (80);
  • semolina (75);
  • cream cake (75);
  • squash caviar (75);
  • crackers (74);
  • millet and millet groats (71);
  • compotes (70);
  • brown sugar (cane) (70);
  • corn flour and groats (70);
  • milk chocolate, marmalade, marshmallows (70);
  • ice cream (70);
  • glazed curd cheese (70).

The glycemic index of the product is given in parentheses.

If you ask the question, which nutrient is the main source of energy, then the answer will be carbohydrates. Fats and proteins also act as a "fuel" for the body, but with some features. The energy required to process proteins and fats will have to spend significantly more than for carbohydrates. Let's look at the role carbohydrates  for the human body in more detail.

Types of carbohydrates.

Exist fast and slow carbohydrates, their difference in the rate of assimilation. Slow must be taken before training, so they will give energy for the entire duration of sports. And fast - after the completion of the training (within 30 minutes).

This pattern is due to the need of our body to restore the resources that were spent on training. For example, glycogen is restored only by fast carbohydrates, and slow ones will be absorbed for a long time, and muscles do not get the right component in a timely manner.


After the training process, a small dose of fast carbohydrates (100-150 gr.) Will help you restore your spent energy and arouse “hunger”. This portion is enough so that the process of conversion of sugar into fats is not activated, and if we, after eating, saturate our diet with proteins, then the body will begin to use its own reserves - subcutaneous fat. This is what ideal nutrition looks like during training days.

Fast carbohydrate foods.

There is a list of products with a large number of fast carbohydrates, however, you do not need to completely exclude them from the diet, because even among the components of the protein (in the form of a sports supplement) there is a small amount of carbohydrates. So, here is a list of foods high in carbohydrates:

  • vegetables with a large component of starch;
  • sugar;
  • flour products (brown bread does not apply here);
  • high sugar drinks.

In details:

  1. potato dishes (frying, cooking, fries, stewing);
  2. soups that do not require long cooking;
  3. fruit juices, soda and non-gas drinks with lots of sugar;
  4. fruits with a sweet taste (bananas, watermelons, grapes);
  5. various vegetables (corn grains, turnips, celery (root), carrots);
  6. cookies and other pastries (sweet rolls, bread made from white or gray flour, bagels, rice biscuits, biscuits, donuts);
  7. syrups.

By the way, the glycemic index of these food options is at least 69 units. This is a significant level that affects the amount of sugar in the blood (glucose).


Slow carbohydrates have a lower glycemic index, which does not so much affect the amount of glucose in the blood. However, one must not forget that foods that contain fast carbohydrates have different characteristics. For example, fried potatoes have an index of 95 units, and bread made from white flour - only 70 units.

Alcoholic beverages are also a fast carbohydrate. In particular, beer has a glycemic index of 110 units.

For those who want to lose weight, there is a table:

Product Glycemic index
Potatoes 80-95
Fruits 63-100
Honey 89
Drinks, Juices 65-75
Flour products 65-95
Sweets (waffles, cookies) 75-80
Vegetables 65-100
Food that does not require long cooking 66-93

This information allows you to navigate by choosing the right food. You just need to keep in mind that, choosing a product available in this table, you should take into account its glycemic index, it will be in the presented range of numbers.

It is recommended to consume less fast carbohydrates, and use them only if necessary (at the end of the training process). Otherwise, foods with a large number of fast carbohydrates will contribute to the appearance of excess body weight.

List of slow carbohydrate foods.

There are special lists and tables of options for products with slow carbohydrates that contribute to weight loss (have a low glycemic index).

Here is a detailed list:

  1. Dill greens, basil, lettuce.
  2. All legumes, including soy.
  3. Porridge made from cereals. Oatmeal, barley, and millet are preferred. And semolina has a high glycemic index, so it is better not to use it.
  4. Durum wheat pasta.
  5. Bread of low grades.
  6. Fruits containing little fructose (kiwi, apple, cherry, mandarin). You need to know that dried fruits have a higher (usually 10-15 units) glycemic index compared to fresh counterparts. And also this level becomes higher during heat treatment. Therefore, it is better to eat fruits in their usual form. Juices from fruits, and freshly squeezed too (even if sugar is not added), due to the lack of fiber, have an index close to the upper limit.
  7. Berries (plum, cherry, cranberries).
  8. Natural yogurt without fillers.
  9. Mushrooms.
  10. Nuts, chocolate (the amount of cocoa beans in it should exceed 75%), sunflower seeds. These products are considered high-calorie, but the body breaks down rather slowly.
  11. Vegetables (onions, cabbage, leeks, zucchini, tomatoes, spinach, bay leaf, pepper).
  12. Papaya, sweet potato (sweet potato), mango, corn, persimmon. These foods have the highest glycemic indices among all slow carbohydrates. Therefore, they must be used very carefully.

Many people who read the information described above will most likely have a question:

Will there be a significant change in the list of foods purchased in stores?

Here you can answer that everything will depend on the specific case. It is necessary to resort to fast carbohydrates after a lot of physical activity. Otherwise there will be a breakdown. Therefore, in this situation, you should eat foods whose glycemic index is high. They will be assimilated quickly enough, and make up for lost strength. However, people who lead an inactive lifestyle, or people who want to get rid of excess weight, should completely eliminate them, or reduce these products quite strongly and make their own diet based on slow carbohydrates. It should be borne in mind that the final decision should be made by the attending doctor and / or nutritionist. All the best, be healthy!

For losing weight, carbohydrates are associated with a kind of world evil. Not wanting to get bogged down in the analysis of each product, people go on protein diets, sweeping all carbohydrates in a row along with fats. However, this approach does even more harm than the notorious sugars, without which the brain and liver simply refuse to function fully, which reduces working capacity, worsens mood, and the body experiences signs of intoxication.

The thing is that carbohydrates are different for carbohydrates: there are fast and slow carbohydrates. And if the first ones, the list of which I will consider below, really can do a poor job of losing weight, then slow ones are an excellent fuel material for the body. That is the difference.

Today I’ll try to convey this difference to you on the website, so that it’s easier for you to make the right diet menu.

Types and features of use

I once had a friend whom nature awarded with a non-standard figure with wide hips. With diets and all kinds of tortures over herself, she constantly tried to bring the body to the right proportions. I remember how I was always amazed to see her in the morning with something sweet, to which she always answered: "In the morning you can." I did not attach special importance to these words, since the figure completely suited me in those days. Only later did I find out that in the morning, carbohydrates are best absorbed and almost never stored in fat.

But in the second they risk staying in problem areas. That is why an evening beer with chips or pizza, which we used to indulge in with my husband often, was a direct road to fullness.

However, not all carbohydrates should be feared in the evenings. The main danger is presented by those of them that have a simple structure consisting of one or two monosaccharide molecules. They are called so - simple, or fast. They are inherent in the sweet taste.

Fast carbohydrates (BU) break down in the digestive tract with lightning speed, which is why the blood sugar level jumps sharply. To normalize it, the pancreas immediately organizes the release of large amounts of insulin, which “neutralizes” the excess sugars, turning them into fat. But that is not all. A sharp drop in glucose causes a repeated feeling of hunger and a purely physiological decline in mood. That is why nutrition BU leads to overeating and obesity.

Over the breakdown of the slow (they are also complex carbohydrates), the body has to sweat. During a time-consuming process, without sharp hormonal and glucose changes, it still converts polysaccharides to glucose, but you need to know that, unlike fructose, glucose turns to a greater extent into glycogen than into fat.

Carbohydrates before training

Studying the topic of harm to BU, I have repeatedly come across an opinion about their benefits for those who are actively swinging. But they can only benefit if they are consumed immediately after intensive muscle development. Fast carbohydrates after training allow you to use insulin release as an anabolic, which helps to quickly compensate for muscle glycogen tissue and accelerate their recovery.

In support of this theory, biochemists claim that simple carbohydrates after exercise can also burn fat more efficiently. But here we are not talking about strength training, but about intensive multi-repetitive exercises aimed at drying the body. If simple carbohydrates are consumed in small quantities immediately after exercise, they become a kind of catalyst for the most complete oxidation of fats. This fatty furnace was even given the name "carbohydrate fire."

What is the glycemic index

So, we figured out why fast carbohydrate nutrition is unacceptable for those who model a figure not with the help of sports tortures, but with the help of rational nutrition. But as soon as you begin to study the list of products containing them in order to immediately taboo them, you will come across the abbreviation accompanying each product - GI. What is behind it?

GI, a glycemic index, shows the ability of a product to cause a jump in blood sugar, i.e. incite the pancreas to release insulin. It is believed that the most dangerous for the figure (and for the endocrine system) are products with a GI above 69. Glucose is accepted as a "standard of harmfulness", which is assigned a GI of 100. But this does not mean that it has nothing "sugar". Attention, lovers of dates! According to some sources, your favorite delicacy has GI 146! So…

What is fast carbohydrates

And this means that now we will print and hang on the refrigerator door a list of products that ... no, we will not forget until the end of our days. But we will use it only on holidays. And until noon.

There are a lot of tables of similar content on the network, but most of them are copied from some foreign resources, which is why they are replete with delicacies. We will make a domestic list.

So, below is a table in which you can see foods containing fast carbohydrates:

(GI\u003e 69)
Product GI
Watermelon72
Grape75
Pumpkin75
Carrots (after heat treatment)85
Mashed potatoes)80
Fried potato)95
Celery (root)85
Rice90
Millet groats71
Pearl barley70
Semolina70
Honey90
Beer110
Juices, sweet soda75
Wheat bread85
Popcorn (even salty!)85
Wheat flour85
Muesli80
Drying bagels70
Biscuit70
Sweet fried pies, donuts75
Milk chocolate sweets70
Sugar70

As you can see, fast carbohydrate foods are quite popular in most people's diets.

What to eat?

What can you eat, you ask, if even super-useful muesli, “water” watermelon and carrot with pumpkin are prohibited? Do not worry: even if you exclude all these goodies, the list of products for weight loss will be quite extensive. These include:

  • cereals: buckwheat, long-term oatmeal, basmati rice or long-grain;
  • whole grain bread, rye or bran bread;
  • fresh vegetables, jacket boiled potatoes;
  • durum wheat pasta;
  • dried fruits: raisins, dried apricots, prunes and figs (except dates and dried bananas);
  • fruits: apples, oranges, peaches, quinces, plums;
  • berries;
  • legumes;
  • greenery.

And do not forget that no one canceled protein foods!

How to reduce the GI of harmful foods?

The glycemic index can be fooled. It is not constant and can vary significantly depending on the culinary processing of the product. It is worth knowing that:

  • raw fruits and vegetables have a GI of an average of 2-3 times less than after heat treatment;
  • processing processing discord: jacket-boiled potatoes have a GI less than just boiled, due to the greater degree of degradation of polysaccharides during cooking of the product;
  • GI increases with the crushing of the product (example: whole grain and flour, buckwheat and chop)
  • adding protein, fiber, and even a very modest amount of fat to carbohydrate foods can significantly reduce its overall GI.

To all of the above, I’ll add: the longer you chew food, the slower the absorption of sugars occurs, so even a date, savoring for a long time, will bring less harm to the figure than if swallowed on the go.

Now we know what fast carbohydrates are, a list of products containing them, and all that remains for us is to adjust the menu in the direction of lowering the glycemic index. In order for weight loss to be more effective, fast carbohydrate nutrition must forever go beyond our habits. If you analyze all the pieces that you send mechanically to your mouth, it turns out that most of the BU is for snacks.

I already wrote about healthy snacks on the site, therefore, in the fight against addiction to fast carbohydrates, it’s worth taking this information into service. Only by learning to analyze what we eat, making a choice in favor of slow carbohydrates, we can achieve our goal - an ideal figure in combination with a positive mood and excellent health.