In the world of fitness and weight loss, carbs are made out to be public enemy number one. But restricting or eliminating carbs can actually have negative effects on our fitness efforts. Let’s get to know carbs a little better to learn how to best serve our bodies.
Carb Facts
- Carbs are one of the big three macronutrients (macros) found in all foods and drinks. They are essential to body function and health. The job of carbs is to break down into glucose in order to provide the body with energy.
- There are three types of carbs: starches, fiber, and sugar.
- Starches & fiber are considered complex carbs and provide a steady stream of energy with fewer blood sugar spikes. They keep you fuller longer and also have nutritional value. They provide vitamins, minerals, and fiber that your body needs. Complex carbs include: beans, legumes, fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.
- Sugars are considered simple carbs and break down quickly and can spike energy and blood sugar levels without sustaining them. Those fluctuations can cause irritability, headaches, and false hunger sensations that can cause you to overeat. Simple carbs include: candy, regular sodas, syrups, pastries, desserts, and sugar.
Cons of a Low Carb Diet
- Strict dietary restrictions can be hard to follow long term and can lead to feelings of failure, causing you to throw in the towel and give up on your nutrition efforts.
- Low carb diets can be high in fat and can increase your risk for heart disease.
- Over time, a low carb diet can actually decrease the amount of energy within your muscles, making it difficult to maintain or grow your existing muscle mass. This can cause a loss of the muscle mass and strength that you’ve worked so hard to gain.
A Better Alternative
Keep your diet plan simple to follow, and don’t eliminate any one macronutrient. Just make smart healthy decisions! Limit simple sugary carbs or those that turn to sugar quickly. Choose nutrient dense carbs that have fiber, vitamins, and minerals. I recommend choosing no more than one starchy carb per meal (rice, potato, corn, beans, whole grains, bread, etc) and pair it with unlimited fibrous carbs (non starchy veggies & salads) and a serving of lean protein. Prepare your meat or dress your veggies with a small serving of healthy fat and you’ll have a well macro-balanced meal.
Basically, don’t feel guilty about eating carbs. Aim for more complex carbs into your diet with whole grains, fruits, and veggies! Just remember, with proper portion sizes we should be able to enjoy the foods we love!
Boot Camps:
Live @ FLC Gym – $60
- Starts Mon, Aug 1st
- Choose 5:30am or 7:30am for Fit Camp, or 8:30am for BASIC30
- Dates: 1 · 3 · 8 · 10 · 15 · 17 · 22 · 24 ·
29 · 31(8 sessions) - No camp on Mon-29th or Wed-31st
On-Demand – $30/month
- Workout anytime the mood strikes by video
- Most workouts only need a medium set of dumbbells. See FAQs for more info
- YouTube Playlist Link is available by the 1st of the month
- Playlist includes 16 videos with at least 4 being brand new with specialized content for On-Demand subscribers
- I take request to help meet your specific goals – let me know if you have any needs that we can address in next month’s workouts or if you’d like to keep your favorite video/s in the current playlist.
- New Videos dropping this month:
- Wide, Medium, & Narrow Squat (B30)
- Curtsy Rotation (B30)
- Lower Body!! (FC45) – includes a foam rolling bonus
- Kick Boxing (FC45)
- Other videos include some favorites from both B30 & FC45 selections and include… Mixed Intervals, Lift Steps, Low Reps, Ladder, Springing Lunges, The Number 10, AMRAPS, Pulses, Catfish Push Ups, Bicep Press Twisties, and others.
- Even if you only see me on YouTube, I am still your trainer and I am here for you and only an email or text away. My goal is to make training even more accessible and to leave you with no excuses for not exercising.
Full Access – $75
- Why settle for just Live or @Home when you can have both!! You can workout with me and our FLC crew Live on Mondays and Wednesdays (as many classes as you want) and have access to videos to do On-Demand on any other day of the month. What better way to get in shape and stay in shape!!
A La Carte: $10/per class or 5 classes for $45, 6 for $50, 7 for $55
Package payments must be made in advance, they are non transferable, and are only good for the month of the Boot Camp for which they were purchased. Payment options include: Cash, Check, Card, Cash App, paypal.me/followmefit, Venmo, Google Pay, & Zelle.
Links:
More Camp Info | Camp Registration | Pay Online | followmefit.net
