How to slow your carb roll
Although many people have success with a zero-carb diet, I don’t think that’s for me.
But I am eating fewer carbs using some pretty simple strategies.
Prioritize protein
Eat protein first. Protein satiates us more effectively and with less food by triggering two hormones. One is Ghrelin, which reduces hunger, and the second is peptide YY, which helps us feel full.
Replace “fast carbs” with “slow carbs”
“Fast carbs” digest more quickly and create steeper blood glucose spikes. Most fast carbs contain refined flour and are processed garbage: white bread, cake, cookies, etc.
But natural foods can also be fast carbs, like white rice and potatoes.
“Slow carbs” digest more slowly and create a lesser blood glucose spike. They are more fibrous than their harmful siblings. Steel-cut oats, beans, and nuts are some examples.
Some example of simple and healthier carb swaps:
White rice —> wild rice
White bread —> sourdough
Potatoes—> beans or cauliflower rice
Eat carbs later in the day
In the morning, our bodies contain more cortisol, which helps us burn fat for energy. An insulin release--created when we consume carbs--has the opposite effect. Insulin wants to build fat stores and can offset cortisol’s fat-burning mission.
In the evenings we have two natural advantages:
•Our blood contains less cortisol in the evenings, so carbs don’t trigger as large an insulin response.
•Our muscle and liver glucose stores are more depleted in the evenings. Your body is able to clear sugar from the blood and store it more quickly, so we avoid a steeper blood sugar spike, and consequently release less insulin.
Prioritize protein in your meals. But also in your day.
I’m not in the “carbs are the devil” camp. But they do have some negative effects, which we can reduce with a few simple changes.