Are All Carbohydrates Bad For You...

With all the fad diets these days, it's a challenge to know which diets are beneficial and effective and which ones are harmful. Many people ask about carbohydrates and whether they should avoid it altogether. What's interesting is that people frequently forget that fruits and vegetables are carbohydrates as well, so even with diets that avoid 'carbs,' you are still getting carbs through your plant-based foods.

What's important to keep in mind is that we shouldn't eliminate entire food groups at a time. Instead, you should learn to eat smartly within each food group so as to maximize nutritional intake and minimize weight gain and sugar issues.

When you focus on eating whole non-processed grains and vegetables, you are naturally going to be eating healthier and the weight will usually drop off because you have a new healthier eating pattern. "Carbs" like cookies, white breads and pastas, and sweets are destructive to your body and to your weight loss efforts.

Our body responds well to a diet that is mostly plant-based with healthy fats and lean protein and low in sugar. The key image is to make sure that at least half of your plate is full of vegetables and another quarter of the plate is from lean proteins and healthy fats like avocados, nuts, or fish, and the last quarter of the plate is filled with whole unprocessed grains like quinoa, barley, oats, and brown rice, just to name a few. 

Until Monday - Keep thinking veggies and protein!