Carbs. Good or bad. One year Carbs are bad…eliminate or significantly reduce them from your diet. The next year, add them to your diet to balance against the protein. For runners and anyone who exercises heavily this isn’t a casual conversation. Every year at the Reggae Marathon Pasta Party the night where we are ‘carbo loading’ before Race Day, I have some conversation about the good vs the bad of carbs.
The most simple answer to this discussion is to eat a balanced diet of carbos and protein, eat food as clean as possible (without additives), and exercise. Of course when training for a Marathon, Half Marathon or 10K, that goes out the window. At least it does in my household where when I’m in hard training, I refer to all food as Fuel and am very interested in what and how I eat.
At the end of the day it comes down to this: Eat Complex Carbs. These are found in foods such as whole grain breads, bran cereals, green vegetables and fresh fruits. Growing up in Jamaica, we were heavy on rice, vegetables and fresh fruits…oh, the fresh mangos right from the tree in our yard! And one yummy dish, Rice and Peas! Lots of good, complex carbs.
For more specific information on why carbs matter, this infographic explains the differences between good vs bad carbs.
Just remember to stay away from the bad carbs: Sugar sodas, candy and desserts. Sometimes sacrifices have to be made 🙂
Until next time…
Reggae Marathon RunninGuy
