To dial down on carbs. Is it easy or hard? Like every challenge, the better prepared you are the greater your chances of success plus the more enjoyable that journey will be. Everyone likes to succeed and success can breed more success. 6 Easy Ways To Dial Down On Carbs is very straight forward and I’m confident that anyone reading this can easily master the list below.
1. Meal Plan a Week Ahead
Map out your week and plan a few meals in advance before you head to the supermarket. The research shows that planning meals in advance can help people stick to their healthy eating plan much more efficiently. Once you know the plan in advance, it’s a lot less likely that you’ll stop for fast food, order a takeaway or indulge in something just because you’re too hungry and you have nothing planned. If you’re not sure where to start with your shopping list, we’ve done the hard work for you.
2. Meal Prep a Few Days in Advance
Planning is great, but the very best way to avoid making poor decisions is to have you meal and snacks pre-prepared. Meal prep will avoid you making poor choices, saves time during a busy week and also saves you money. Some people like to prep a week’s worth of lunches and dinners ahead of time, storing the meals in containers, so they are convenient and ready to go (you can also batch cook and freeze), but even prepping two days at a time can be very effective. Read more about meal prepping here.
3. Always Carry Healthy Snacks
Never be caught out by always carrying healthy, protein-rich snack with you. Try the following;
- Hard boiled eggs
- A Motivation protein bar, soup or snack
- Greek yogurt with chia seeds
- Baby or regular carrots with hummus
- A handful of nuts (a lot of coffee shops are selling them these days)
- Small packages of cheese, such as Babybel or cheddar cheese
4. Consider Carb Cycling
On your Motivation weight loss plan, you will be eating either very low carb, or you will have one or two servings each day. If you fall into the latter category, you could consider carb cycling in order to satisfy a building urge for plate of pasta or a baked potato. This means you could have two days’ worth of carbs in one day, followed by one or two days with zero carbs. This can help the body avoid fat-burning plateaus that can develop after months of doing the same thing and, for some, it can also break the boredom. Carb cycling is not for everyone, and anyone considering it should always talk to their Weight Loss Advisor first.
5. All Carbs are Not Created Equal
Carbs come in a few different forms. Refined and processed carbs, such as white sugar and white flour, are ‘simple carbs’ (think of scones, pastries and sugary cereals). If you are serious about losing weight, then it’s crucial to reduce your intake of these carbs. Fruit is also a simple carb, in the form of fructose, so it will spike your blood sugar. However, fruit also contains fibre, which slows down the body’s response to the sugar (meaning it doesn’t convert to glucose as quickly). In other words, an apple or handful of raspberries are always preferable to a scone. Do remember, though, that ‘complex’ carbs are the best choice as they will make you feel full faster, meaning you are less likely to overeat. These are found in foods such as pulses, beans and wholegrains.
6. Remember those ‘Carb Cheats’
Don’t forget that you can always trick your body into thinking it’s had a carb, when it actually hasn’t. Try some or all of the following;
- lettuce leaves instead of a wrap
- portobello mushroom caps (with a burger) instead of a bun
- aubergine lasagne (order a melanzane in an Italian restaurant) or a spinach and cottage cheese lasagne
- cauliflower pizza crust
- courgetti instead of pasta (you need to buy a spiraliser)
- cauliflower rice (easy to make and delicious with a chicken curry).
Last, but not least…try to avoid bread altogether (I find brown Krisprolls are a great alternative and I don’t tend to overeat as I would with bread) don’t forget to eat protein in small but regular amounts so that you aren’t hungry which helps diminish carb cravings.To read more about carbs – the good, the bad and the ugly – download our free report.
And don’t miss our great podcast on how reducing the bread will help kill the hunger.
Looking at the 6 Easy Ways To Dial Down On Carbs list above and comparing it to all the other blogs I’ve written offering advice and best practice, I believe this is probably the easiest one to follow. For 1 and 2, you don’t even have to get out of bed :))
