Carbohydrate
WHAT is Carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are a food source used for energy by the body. They are eaten and turned into Glucose during the digestion process and are then stored in the muscles. Then they are used by the body for energy as and when needed.
There are two types of Carbohydrate, Simple and Complex. The difference is all about how quickly they get absorbed by your body.
Simple Carbohydrates (High Glycemic) are often referred to as simple sugars, such as the sugar you put into your tea. It is quickly absorbed into your body which it why it is referred to as a simple, non complex carb.
Examples of simple carbohydrates are –
Sugar
Sweets
Fizzy Drinks
Syrups
Chocolate
Also –
Honey
Fruit
Milk
The latter are a better form of sugar as they also contain other needed nutrients such as fibre and calcium.
Complex Carbohydrates (Low Glycemic) are often referred to as starchy carbs. They are made up of multiple sugars and therefore take longer to digest, hence giving them the name ‘complex’. But remember, by being named complex, this doesn’t mean they are worse for you, they are better.
Examples of Complex Carbohydrates are –
Bread
Pasta
Oatmeal
Rice
Nuts
Also –
Chick Peas
Kidney Beans
Some vegetables such as Broccoli
Bananas
WHY do we need Carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are one of the three main sources of nutrients, along side Proteins and Fats that provide our body with essential energy and calories that our body needs to function.
WHEN should we be eating Carbohydrates?
Everyone needs to eat Carbohydrates as part of a healthy diet. And the best time when to eat them depends on you and your training regime. A good carbohydrate breakfast is always the best way to start the day. While you sleep your body is resting, repairing and renewing which is essential, but it also goes into a fasting period. Most people don’t eat much after 7pm, and then get up in the morning about 7am, which means that is 12 hours without fuel. Breakfast is called so, because it breaks the night fasting period and is therefore the most important meal of the day to wake you up, give you energy and give your body the fuel it needs.
Every meal should consist of a carbohydrate of some sort to keep up your energy supplies. Although this does depend on your chosen sport, or current training regime.
A lot of people will say not to eat after a certain time in the evening to prevent it being stored as fat in your idol period; however athletes and sports people may need small regular amounts of food even right up to bedtime. It’s all about how much you eat and what you are eating for.
Someone doing an endurance sport such as running a marathon, may want to eat right up to bedtime to keep carb reserves topped up, whereas a body builder may avoid carbs on a run up to competition, often known as de-carbing to deplete the muscles of all carb reserves, only to ‘carb up’ by eating carbs every 4 hours, even throughout the night to bulk up their depleted starving muscles.
HOW much carbohydrate do we need to eat?
This is the burning question that everyone wants to know the answer to. This is a very individual thing. But the recommended amount to the average woman who is eating the recommended 2000 calories a day should be aiming for around 230 grams of that being Carbohydrates, and of a mans recommended 2500 per day, just under 300 grams would be the suggested amount.
And of these, how much should be simple and complex? Complex carbohydrates should always account for a majority of your carb intake. They are more filling because they take longer to digest. They are higher in fibre and other vitamins and minerals which keep our bodies energised and healthy.
Simple carbohydrates absorb quickly, making you hungrier quicker, and also the faster sugars absorb, the more it spikes your blood insulin levels. This gives your body peaks then troughs of energy, whereas our bodies work much more efficiently on an even steady keel, evenly fuelled and consistency.
However, an athlete percentage could well be very different to the needs of an average person. And that is where we would like our website to help, with those who need more than what the average person may need to know about the food they eat.
Carbohydrates are a food source used for energy by the body. They are eaten and turned into Glucose during the digestion process and are then stored in the muscles. Then they are used by the body for energy as and when needed.
There are two types of Carbohydrate, Simple and Complex. The difference is all about how quickly they get absorbed by your body.
Simple Carbohydrates (High Glycemic) are often referred to as simple sugars, such as the sugar you put into your tea. It is quickly absorbed into your body which it why it is referred to as a simple, non complex carb.
Examples of simple carbohydrates are –
Sugar
Sweets
Fizzy Drinks
Syrups
Chocolate
Also –
Honey
Fruit
Milk
The latter are a better form of sugar as they also contain other needed nutrients such as fibre and calcium.
Complex Carbohydrates (Low Glycemic) are often referred to as starchy carbs. They are made up of multiple sugars and therefore take longer to digest, hence giving them the name ‘complex’. But remember, by being named complex, this doesn’t mean they are worse for you, they are better.
Examples of Complex Carbohydrates are –
Bread
Pasta
Oatmeal
Rice
Nuts
Also –
Chick Peas
Kidney Beans
Some vegetables such as Broccoli
Bananas
WHY do we need Carbohydrates?
Carbohydrates are one of the three main sources of nutrients, along side Proteins and Fats that provide our body with essential energy and calories that our body needs to function.
WHEN should we be eating Carbohydrates?
Everyone needs to eat Carbohydrates as part of a healthy diet. And the best time when to eat them depends on you and your training regime. A good carbohydrate breakfast is always the best way to start the day. While you sleep your body is resting, repairing and renewing which is essential, but it also goes into a fasting period. Most people don’t eat much after 7pm, and then get up in the morning about 7am, which means that is 12 hours without fuel. Breakfast is called so, because it breaks the night fasting period and is therefore the most important meal of the day to wake you up, give you energy and give your body the fuel it needs.
Every meal should consist of a carbohydrate of some sort to keep up your energy supplies. Although this does depend on your chosen sport, or current training regime.
A lot of people will say not to eat after a certain time in the evening to prevent it being stored as fat in your idol period; however athletes and sports people may need small regular amounts of food even right up to bedtime. It’s all about how much you eat and what you are eating for.
Someone doing an endurance sport such as running a marathon, may want to eat right up to bedtime to keep carb reserves topped up, whereas a body builder may avoid carbs on a run up to competition, often known as de-carbing to deplete the muscles of all carb reserves, only to ‘carb up’ by eating carbs every 4 hours, even throughout the night to bulk up their depleted starving muscles.
HOW much carbohydrate do we need to eat?
This is the burning question that everyone wants to know the answer to. This is a very individual thing. But the recommended amount to the average woman who is eating the recommended 2000 calories a day should be aiming for around 230 grams of that being Carbohydrates, and of a mans recommended 2500 per day, just under 300 grams would be the suggested amount.
And of these, how much should be simple and complex? Complex carbohydrates should always account for a majority of your carb intake. They are more filling because they take longer to digest. They are higher in fibre and other vitamins and minerals which keep our bodies energised and healthy.
Simple carbohydrates absorb quickly, making you hungrier quicker, and also the faster sugars absorb, the more it spikes your blood insulin levels. This gives your body peaks then troughs of energy, whereas our bodies work much more efficiently on an even steady keel, evenly fuelled and consistency.
However, an athlete percentage could well be very different to the needs of an average person. And that is where we would like our website to help, with those who need more than what the average person may need to know about the food they eat.
Protein
WHAT is Protein?
Protein is a nutrient or food source needed by the body and used for energy, tissue repair or re-generation. When you eat Proteins, they are turned into Amino Acids during the digestion process, which are then sent to fix and repair what it needs to.
There are two types of Protein. These are known as Complete or Incomplete Proteins. Complete proteins are also known as essential amino acids, which are made up of everything your body needs out of protein. Whereas Incomplete Proteins would be missing one or some of the essential amino acids we need in our diet.
Examples of Complete Proteins are –
Eggs
Fish
Meat
Milk
Cheese
Yoghurt
Note they are all found in animal products
Examples of Incomplete Proteins are –
Grains
Legumes
Nuts
Vegetables
Seeds
Both Complete and incomplete proteins are good sources of nutrition. There are around 20 known different forms of Amino acids, some foods are high in certain amino acids and low in others, so by mixing all the above into your daily food intake ensures you have a balance in the protein in your diet.
WHY do we need Protein?
Unlike Carbohydrates and fats which are essentially for energy, protein as well as being needed for energy is the repair kit for the body. It helps to fix and repair damaged tissues. When you exercise or do any rigorous activity you can create small tears in muscles. Protein and the amino acids it produces works to repair and make stronger that damage, so therefore will eventually fix it.
Hair nails and muscles are all made up of different proteins. And as hair, nails and muscles are constantly re-generation and/or growing, you body needs a regular intake of protein in your diet to keep all these healthy.
WHEN should we be eating Protein?
Everyone needs to eat Protein as part of a healthy diet. You should eat an amount of protein every meal you eat, always incorporate egg or fish or legumes or meat and any of the aforementioned proteins in every meal.
Protein also can be quite slow to digest. This is why when you eat a meal which includes protein; you will find you feel fuller for longer, as it hangs around in your stomach longer than Carbohydrates.
The BEST time to eat protein is straight after a workout, because of course you will need those amino acids to start repairing any damage you may have done during the exercise. The prime time is within an hour of your workout. This is because your metabolism will be at its fastest at this point and would be craving nutrients, so eating protein at that point means it digest quicker, which means turns to amino acids faster and therefore starts to get to work on repairing the damage straight away, resulting in quicker recovery.
HOW much protein do we need to eat?
This is the burning question that everyone wants to know the answer to. This is again as with Carbohydrates very individual thing depending on your metabolism, your sport or activity. But the recommended amount to the average woman who is eating the recommended 2000 calories a day should be aiming for around 45 grams of that being Protein, and of a mans recommended 2500 per day, 55 grams would be the suggested amount.
However this can dramatically change in athletes due to the level of repair needed by their body. Some body builders believe that you should be eating 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. So an 11 stone female body builder is therefore just under 70 kilograms, and should then be eating 70 grams of protein a day as apposed to the recommended 46 grams. Which in food terms would equate to 12 Egg whites or just under 3 chicken breasts and is achievable. But then when you think a average male body builder could weigh up to double a female, there’s a lot of eating to do. Some body builders may be even double this theory.
On average the best complete forms of food contain roughly the following amounts of protein –
3.5 oz Chicken Breast = 25 grams
1 egg white = 6 grams
Tin of tuna = 25 grams
4 oz lean steak = 28 grams
Protein is a nutrient or food source needed by the body and used for energy, tissue repair or re-generation. When you eat Proteins, they are turned into Amino Acids during the digestion process, which are then sent to fix and repair what it needs to.
There are two types of Protein. These are known as Complete or Incomplete Proteins. Complete proteins are also known as essential amino acids, which are made up of everything your body needs out of protein. Whereas Incomplete Proteins would be missing one or some of the essential amino acids we need in our diet.
Examples of Complete Proteins are –
Eggs
Fish
Meat
Milk
Cheese
Yoghurt
Note they are all found in animal products
Examples of Incomplete Proteins are –
Grains
Legumes
Nuts
Vegetables
Seeds
Both Complete and incomplete proteins are good sources of nutrition. There are around 20 known different forms of Amino acids, some foods are high in certain amino acids and low in others, so by mixing all the above into your daily food intake ensures you have a balance in the protein in your diet.
WHY do we need Protein?
Unlike Carbohydrates and fats which are essentially for energy, protein as well as being needed for energy is the repair kit for the body. It helps to fix and repair damaged tissues. When you exercise or do any rigorous activity you can create small tears in muscles. Protein and the amino acids it produces works to repair and make stronger that damage, so therefore will eventually fix it.
Hair nails and muscles are all made up of different proteins. And as hair, nails and muscles are constantly re-generation and/or growing, you body needs a regular intake of protein in your diet to keep all these healthy.
WHEN should we be eating Protein?
Everyone needs to eat Protein as part of a healthy diet. You should eat an amount of protein every meal you eat, always incorporate egg or fish or legumes or meat and any of the aforementioned proteins in every meal.
Protein also can be quite slow to digest. This is why when you eat a meal which includes protein; you will find you feel fuller for longer, as it hangs around in your stomach longer than Carbohydrates.
The BEST time to eat protein is straight after a workout, because of course you will need those amino acids to start repairing any damage you may have done during the exercise. The prime time is within an hour of your workout. This is because your metabolism will be at its fastest at this point and would be craving nutrients, so eating protein at that point means it digest quicker, which means turns to amino acids faster and therefore starts to get to work on repairing the damage straight away, resulting in quicker recovery.
HOW much protein do we need to eat?
This is the burning question that everyone wants to know the answer to. This is again as with Carbohydrates very individual thing depending on your metabolism, your sport or activity. But the recommended amount to the average woman who is eating the recommended 2000 calories a day should be aiming for around 45 grams of that being Protein, and of a mans recommended 2500 per day, 55 grams would be the suggested amount.
However this can dramatically change in athletes due to the level of repair needed by their body. Some body builders believe that you should be eating 1 gram of protein per kilogram of body weight. So an 11 stone female body builder is therefore just under 70 kilograms, and should then be eating 70 grams of protein a day as apposed to the recommended 46 grams. Which in food terms would equate to 12 Egg whites or just under 3 chicken breasts and is achievable. But then when you think a average male body builder could weigh up to double a female, there’s a lot of eating to do. Some body builders may be even double this theory.
On average the best complete forms of food contain roughly the following amounts of protein –
3.5 oz Chicken Breast = 25 grams
1 egg white = 6 grams
Tin of tuna = 25 grams
4 oz lean steak = 28 grams
Fat
WHAT is Fat?
Fats are a nutrient or food source needed by the body and are used for energy and have many other health benefits including helping you to absorb vitamins and nutrients fed into the body.
There are 4 different types of fat. They are Saturated, Polyunsaturated, Monounsaturated and Trans Fats.
Saturated Fat – Although we still need some saturated fat in our diet, too much of this is known for increasing cholesterol levels. These fats are solid in room temperature and found in –
Meat
Cream
Cheese
Full fat diary products
Polyunsaturated Fat (An essential fat and a good source of Omega 6) – this actually lowers blood cholesterol levels. These are generally liquid at room temperature and are found in –
Avocados
Some nuts (cashews, pecans and Brazils)
Seeds (like pumpkin and sunflower)
Monounsaturated Fat (An essential fat and good source of Omega 3) – This lowers Bad cholesterol levels. These is found in oily fish such as –
Salmon
Mackerel
Sardines
Trout
Trans Fat – This is an artificial fat and has no nutritional value whatsoever. It is produced to make food last longer.
Found in packaged and processed food.
WHY do we need Fats?
There are many physical needs for us to eat fats such as they manufacture your hormones (including sex hormones!), they can boost your immune system, they can help reduce cholesterol levels, some fats assist in lowering blood pressure and help to thin blood, omega 3 fats have anti-inflammatory properties, and they all help you absorb Vitamins A, D, E and K into your body. So if you have a diet full of healthy fruits, vegetables and vitamins, if it’s a low fat diet, you might find your healthy eating efforts have been in vain.
Also our brains are made up of 70% fat and needs fats to function properly. And our sight and eyes need omega 3 fats to function properly too.
Fat also adds flavour to our food and provides back up energy if our stored energy reserves run out.
HOW much of these Fats do we need to eat?
The reason we need fewer fats per gram in our daily requirement, is because it has more energy (calories) per gram than proteins and carbohydrates. It also takes longer to digest than both of these, which is good as you feel fuller longer, however the body does have to work hard at pulling the goodness out of fatty foods.
So of a Woman’s RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) of 2000 calories a day, fat should be about 70 grams (20 g of saturated), and for men, in there 2500 calories a day, 95 grams ( 30 grams of saturated).
Examples of fat content in foods would be –
A medium Avocado – 22 grams of fat (including 3 grams of saturated)
One egg – 5 grams of fat (including 2 grams of saturated)
10 oz Ribeye Steak – 34 grams of fat (including 13 grams of saturated)
An average size chicken breast – 4 grams of fat (including 2 grams of saturated)
McDonalds Big Mac – 33 grams of fat (including 10 grams of saturated and 1.5 gram of trans fats)
Fats are a nutrient or food source needed by the body and are used for energy and have many other health benefits including helping you to absorb vitamins and nutrients fed into the body.
There are 4 different types of fat. They are Saturated, Polyunsaturated, Monounsaturated and Trans Fats.
Saturated Fat – Although we still need some saturated fat in our diet, too much of this is known for increasing cholesterol levels. These fats are solid in room temperature and found in –
Meat
Cream
Cheese
Full fat diary products
Polyunsaturated Fat (An essential fat and a good source of Omega 6) – this actually lowers blood cholesterol levels. These are generally liquid at room temperature and are found in –
Avocados
Some nuts (cashews, pecans and Brazils)
Seeds (like pumpkin and sunflower)
Monounsaturated Fat (An essential fat and good source of Omega 3) – This lowers Bad cholesterol levels. These is found in oily fish such as –
Salmon
Mackerel
Sardines
Trout
Trans Fat – This is an artificial fat and has no nutritional value whatsoever. It is produced to make food last longer.
Found in packaged and processed food.
WHY do we need Fats?
There are many physical needs for us to eat fats such as they manufacture your hormones (including sex hormones!), they can boost your immune system, they can help reduce cholesterol levels, some fats assist in lowering blood pressure and help to thin blood, omega 3 fats have anti-inflammatory properties, and they all help you absorb Vitamins A, D, E and K into your body. So if you have a diet full of healthy fruits, vegetables and vitamins, if it’s a low fat diet, you might find your healthy eating efforts have been in vain.
Also our brains are made up of 70% fat and needs fats to function properly. And our sight and eyes need omega 3 fats to function properly too.
Fat also adds flavour to our food and provides back up energy if our stored energy reserves run out.
HOW much of these Fats do we need to eat?
The reason we need fewer fats per gram in our daily requirement, is because it has more energy (calories) per gram than proteins and carbohydrates. It also takes longer to digest than both of these, which is good as you feel fuller longer, however the body does have to work hard at pulling the goodness out of fatty foods.
So of a Woman’s RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) of 2000 calories a day, fat should be about 70 grams (20 g of saturated), and for men, in there 2500 calories a day, 95 grams ( 30 grams of saturated).
Examples of fat content in foods would be –
A medium Avocado – 22 grams of fat (including 3 grams of saturated)
One egg – 5 grams of fat (including 2 grams of saturated)
10 oz Ribeye Steak – 34 grams of fat (including 13 grams of saturated)
An average size chicken breast – 4 grams of fat (including 2 grams of saturated)
McDonalds Big Mac – 33 grams of fat (including 10 grams of saturated and 1.5 gram of trans fats)