Carbohydrates are one of the three main macronutrients that make up a large part of our diet. In the last few years, carbs have gotten a bad rap thanks to social media, celebrities, friends, and the infamous “keto diet”. I have worked with a lot of people who are convinced that if they cut out carbohydrates, they will magically lose a ton of weight/body fat. So, let’s talk carbs, are they bad like those influencers make them out to be, will cutting them out be the key to losing body fat quickly?
The Science:
We need glucose (sugar) to function and live. Bodily processes, cells, and organs rely on it to get through the day. Where do we get glucose from? Carbohydrates. If we are not regularly consuming carbohydrates (following the keto diet for example), our body can regularly convert other energy sources such as protein, into glucose for use.
Are Carbs bad?
Spoiler alert: you can regularly consume carbohydrates and lose weight/body fat. Carbohydrates are not bad; no food is inherently bad. Food is food, and we tend to overcomplicate things by labeling food as good or bad. Carbohydrates can be regularly included in our overall diet, and the best part is that no guilt is required for eating them.
The Keto Hype
The ketogenic diet has become pretty mainstream, and we have a lot of people tell us that they want to do keto because they saw a celebrity lose X amount of weight, an influencer claimed carbs are the devil, or because it seems like you’ll lose a lot of weight overnight. If Keto is something you want to do, and you can picture never again eating a carbohydrate again in your life, then go for it. However, if fat loss/weight loss is truly your goal just be aware that you do not need to cut out an entire food group to make that possible.
Cutting out carbs for quicker weight loss?
When we eat and consume carbs, our body will hold onto more water. When we do not eat carbs, our body does not hold onto as much water. Not eating carbs for 1 day can make you weigh less the next day, but you have only lost water weight (not actual body fat). Cutting out carbs can really make it seem like weight loss is happening rapidly and quickly, but that’s just because your body is dropping water weight.
The moral of the story.
Eating carbs or not eating carbs will not make or break your fat loss/weight loss goals. Cutting out all carbohydrates will not yield to quicker fat loss results. Carbohydrates are not a “bad food”, we are only led to believe they are bad from others.
