Hey, hey, STRONG friend. I’m sure you’ve heard me say it 11 billion times - not to cut your carbs out if you want to thrive, be able to adhere to your diet, and feel your best.  

This applies whether you're in fat loss or just improving your nutrition. Eating no carbs and lowering your carbs are two entirely different things.

There is a better way!

Here’s why you shouldn't ban carbs:

Carbs are friends.
Carbs are bae, lol!
Carbs aren’t the enemy.
Carbs support optimal thyroid function!
Carbs fuel your training sessions!

Carbs are protein sparing!
Carbs help with sleeping well.
Carbs help with recovery.
Carbs fuel our think tank. 🧠

Just to name a few.

I could probably fill a page or two with the benefits of carbohydrates!

Anywhoodle…

There is a direct correlation between your energy, mood, etc., in your daily life, your training sessions, adherence to the diet, and your carb intake.

Carbs even affect how we look. Do you want your muscles to be poppin’, or do you want them to look flat? Visible muscle requires muscle and carbs to look toned, aka to have the appearance of muscle at rest.

If you’re eating well and eating balanced meals, including carbs, you’ll feel better and have better energy, with no dips in blood sugar.

You’ll likely have difficulty committing to the diet when restricting food groups or foods you love.

Sure, for a time, you can white-knuckle your way through for a bit. Eventually, hunger gets too high, and you’ll go H.A.M into whatever you have restricted. Or, as I like to say, you’ll be mowing down the pantry.

If you eat a lot of processed carbs, they do make you want to eat more, because they are not very filling.

They pack a lot of calories without making you feel full. Whereas, if you eat complex carbs, fruits, and veggies, you’ll get pretty full from those foods.

So, the smarter way to approach improving your nutrition, without cutting carbs, would be to choose more nutritionally dense carbs most of the time.

You can still have some of the processed carbs because moderation. I like to apply the 80/20 guideline.

Eighty percent of the time, I am sure to get my nutritionally dense carbs, and 20 percent of the time, Ima have my chips because #allFoodsFit!

The fear of carbs is so unwarranted. It’s not the carbs. It’s your overall diet and lifestyle. One thing or one food is not to be blamed.  There is no magic pill that will solve your nutrition!

Carbs don’t just magically make you gain weight. An energy surplus is the reason why we gain weight. It’s not the carbs. Said another way - you’re eating more than your body needs, which makes you gain weight.

Don’t blame the carbs, and don’t be extreme, because it’s not sustainable.

Look at your nutrition + lifestyle as a detective. What can you add more of, or what improvements can you make? Start there and start with 1 or 2 changes.

Last but not least, this is something I hear often….

But Candace, I cut carbs and lost weight. Yes, by removing carbs - you removed calories, aka calorie deficit. You can create a calorie deficit/negative energy balance without removing whole food groups.

The big swoosh in loss at first was due to the loss of water weight. Carbs hold water, so when you remove them, you’ll see a dip in the scale then it levels out. But did you lose body fat - body composition change?

Losing weight and fat are two different things. Remember that!

Unless you really thrive on no carbs, you don’t have to or need to cut them out!

That’s that, STRONG friend!

Have a wonderful, wonderful week!

In Strength & to Your Success!
Xo 
Candace