case of the munchies

L

lesliemarie

Cathlete
I have a bad case of the munchies, I see everyone talk about Carbs, I was just wondering what are they, I have been snacking on Twizzlers and Wheat thins, are there any other great tasting munchies? and what are the foods that have tons of carbs?
 
Foods are made up of a combination of three macro nutrients: carbohydrates (the less processed, the better. Whole wheat is better than white, etc.), fats and protein. When people mention "carbs" as being bad, they're talking about starchy carbs, like from wheat (bread, crackers, baked goods), or sugars. Vegetables also have mostly carbohydrates, but they are better for you, as are the carbohydrates in legumes (beans).

Twizzlers have little if any fat or protein, and, as you say, "tons of carbs" and the bad ones. They are basically sugar with some fake color and fake flavor. hey have absolutely no fiber, so they will not do much to satisfy your hunger. In fact, I find that a lot of these pseudo-foods or "junk foods" actually make me want to eat more and more. I think the body recognizes the lack of nutrition in them and cries out for more nutrients.

Wheat thins are better, as they have more complex carbs (as a general guideline, I avoid high carbohydrate foods..baked goods, etc...that have fewer than 2 grams of naturally=occuring fiber per serving.

For munchies, I like sliced red peppers, a few whole grain crackers with a bit of PB (adds fat and protein), green peas in the pod, a handful of GORP (good old raisins and peanuts, or a mix of different nuts with some raisins---best to buy your own raw nuts and make your own mix than to eat the store mixes that have extra fat and salt).
 
I forgot the ultimate munchie: an apple! They're sweet (or tart, as you prefer, depending on type), crunchy, low glycemic, and have good fiber.
 
Simple carbs, like those in Twizzlers, are so easily broken down, that indeed they do cause you to be more hungry soon after they are eaten. Carbs are broken down into glucose and insulin is released to open the cells for utilization and storage of that gluclose. Once insulin has done it's job, blood sugar drops and you feel hungry again. Eating complex carbs and protein and fat slows the process down, keeping the appetite curbed. As long as you eat a healthy diet most of the time, Twizzlers certainly have a place. Even high quality carbs like whole grains can tweak your appetite if eaten alone so I would recommend eating carbs with protein and a little fat to satisfy hunger pangs and keep your blood sugar level. An example is whole grained bread with peanut butter or an apple with peanut butter. And the above mentiond legumes, like black beans, are a powerhouse since they contain both carbs and protein. It will definitely cut down the "munchies". Eat those Twizzlers as a treat. Kathryn hits the nail on the head when she tells you to eat plenty of veggies and fruit. They not only contain carbs and that lovely, satisfying fiber, they are the best source of vitamins and antioxidents which keep you healthy and your immune system strong. Variety is the spice of life! You have eat for enjoyment and good health!
Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
How about the cereals they sell in the stores like Honey bunches of oats? I ate a bowl of that with an english muffin and a glass of orange Juice, I am still trying to figure this eating properly thing out and I think I am failing miserably. I always look at the fat grams of everything I didn't think of looking at the carbohydrate part of a product.
one day I will get this right. LOL I buy me fruit and things but the kids down it before I can get one bite LOL
 
You ate a very high carb breakfast! Did you find yourself hungry soon after? If you skipped the English muffin and added some yogurt or an egg, you would round the breakfast out and cause it to digest more slowly and hopefully satisfy you until lunchtime or snack time. I rarely eat three squares a day. I snack on nuts or cheese or soy products and eat about 5 or 6 times a day. The meals I eat tend to be small but I am full because I have eaten periodically. I also make sure I feel hunger before tucking into anything. It's so easy to pack on the pounds when you reach for a snack out of boredom or habit!

I think women are trained to be afraid of fat and blame it for all our woes although carbs are getting the same treatment these days! It's all about balance.

I wish my kids would devour our fruit! I end up eating most of it so it won't go bad. I actually prefer vegetables though. Only one of my three kid's is a good veggie eater.

I think the most important thing to look at on a food label is the list of ingredients. The first thing listed is what is most abundant in the food and the further down the list the less an ingredient is present. If the first ingredient is wheat, say in bread, (100% whole wheat hopefully) but the second is sugar, it could be a food that parades as nutritious but is in fact a simple sugar fest! Also sugar is listed as sucrose, fructose, high fructose corn syrup, sugar, brown sugar and all of them can be present in one recipe!

As for fat, look out for partially hydrogenated oil, hydrogenated oil and saturated fat. The sat fat will be listed on the nutrition fact label but you have to read the ingredient list to find the hydrogenated or trans fats. Trans fats are horrible and lowel good cholesterol among other things! Soon they will be listed on the label.

I hope I haven't put you to sleep! If you want to read up on this, I highly recommend a book called Eat, Drink and Be Healthy by Walter C. Willet, M.D.
It's a very clean diet but doesn't go overboard one way or another in regard to fat and carbs. And remember this: there is no forbidden food. It's okay to eat any food you love as long as it is eaten within a healthy diet and in moderation! I am a red vine fan myself!

Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
WOW I guess I over indulged this morning LOL, I didn't feel to hungry after but I think I will stray away from that again LOL

I will check the labels better for that stuff, I didn't know about the sat fats, I was just looking at fat calories. My kids eat tons of fruit and veggies can never stay stocked up on celery or tomatoes or any of the fruit, when I go to eat it, I did get me some fat free low carb ham to eat with some fresh tomaotoes for lunch, I think that is pretty good for me.
 
Once you get the basics down, it's pretty easy! And make sure to keep your fiber intake at at least 25 grams a day! Fiber is very filling and keeps bingy eating at bay. I don't worry much about total fat and eat quite a bit of olive oil and I love avacados. As long as my overall food intake is 1800 to 2000 calories I am fine and there's a wealth of information out there to help figure it out.

What's you exercise regime, Leslie? Are you trying to lose weight, to maintain or to gain?

Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
>How about the cereals they sell in the stores like Honey
>bunches of oats? I ate a bowl of that with an english muffin
>and a glass of orange Juice, I am still trying to figure this
>eating properly thing out and I think I am failing miserably.
>I always look at the fat grams of everything I didn't think of
>looking at the carbohydrate part of a product.
> one day I will get this right. LOL I buy me fruit and things
>but the kids down it before I can get one bite LOL

Most cereals they sell in stores are made from white flour. Health food stores have some cereals made from healthier ingredients, but watch the fat/carbohydrate/protein and the grams of fiber (which you want).

I'd tweak the above-mentioned breakfast to add protein and some healthy fat. I'd ditch the Honey Bunches of Oat and do oatmeal (or better, oat groats, which are made from cracked oats). You could also add some good fat by sprinking on a little ground flax seed.

Or substitute a whole grain English muffin for the probably white flour one and top it with a couple of Tbsp of peanut butter.

One good thing: If you're going to have a higher carbohydrate meal, it's best to make it early in the day, so your body can use the fuel for daily activity. I usually have more carbs in the a.m. and more protein in the evening.

It's nice to hear that your kids like fruit!
 
I am not trying to loose weight I am trying to mantain my weight. and I exercise everyday, I have been doing step aerobics and just started some ab works with Cathes ab DVD and now I am starting to add some weights to my weekly routine. I have been trying to get healthy for the past three months,
 
I love Old Fashioned Oats, Kathryn! I try to alternate eating oatmeal with eating Omega three enriched eggs and whole grained toast.

When buying any whole grain product, check the ingredients for trans fats because they can derail a healthy meal if the whole grain is prepared with partially hydrogenated oils and they are abundant! I'll opt for white flour before I'll opt for trans fat! Also watch out for high grained cereals that have a lot of sugar. I found a musili I loved. It had 8 grams of fiber per serving but it also had dates and raisins and they are often sugarful. I usually sweeten with honey. It is known to be a great sweetener for endurance exercisers.

Leslie, you sound like you are on the right track and like you have a great sense of humor. Educate yourself and you can enjoy a healthy, clean diet that will enhance your right on exercise program and you'll maintain a healthy weight to boot!

Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
I had a great lunch with ham made sure it was low on the carbs and things and seemed ok, and fresh tomatoes out of the garden, unfortunatly I am not a great gardner so all there is, is a tomatoe jungle LOL. Just have this thing for Chocolate, is there a healthy chocolate? I have been cheating and eating three pieces of hershy kisses a day.
 
Cathe herself told us about Dove dark chocolate. Was it seritonin-like? Who remembers exactly what it was? It's not horrible carb-y, and it does have some benefits. Wish I could remember.
 
You are in luck if you like dark chocolate! It contains antioxidents called polyphenols. It has actually been found to lower bad cholesterol and even helps lower blood pressure inmildly hypertensive people. But it's still high in fat and sugar so it's not quite a health food. Darn it! An ounce or so on a regular basis is definitely ok!

Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
I love Dove Chocolate have to try the dark chocolates. I am beginning to controll my munchies a little better with some fresh veggies and some grapes. and thanks to everyone I am now watching for the Carbs on products. I am looking forward to getting even more healthier then I am.
Thank you all for being so nice and giving me some great advice!!
 
Chocolate is actually high in good antioxidants. It's the added sugars and fats that are bad. www.dixiediner.com makes a soy nugget and chocolate "treat" that has fructose as a sweetener (I believe) which is low glycemic (doesn't make your blood sugar spike). If you get regular chocolate, the darker kinds are better, as they have a higher proportion of cocoa.
 
The glycemic index has received a lot of attention lately and it's great to be aware that some carbs spike blood sugar and others less so. The thing is there are ways to keep high glycemic foods in your diet if you eat them correctly. For instance, I love potatoes and they are a staple in my diet. Potatoes are high on the glycemic index and when they are mashed, they go even higher! But high glycemic foods can be balanced out several ways. Eating acidic foods like vinegar ( and who doesn't love a salad?) or low glycemic foods like beans along with a high glycemic food keeps blood sugar level. Protein and fat also slow absorption and digestion of high carb foods. Overall, I opt for nutrient dense, high fiber carbs but sometimes, I eat potatoes or white pasta because they are so darned yummy. I also forgo most whole wheat tortillas found at the regular grocery store. They are loaded with trans fats and I'd rather eat a white flour tortilla made with plain oil than a trans fatty one. On the other hand, since I live in Tucson, I can get great whole wheat tortillas at Trader Joe's or Wild Oat so eating white ones once a week is fine. I found fresh tortillas you cook yourself at Costco and they are good but I only eat one and only once a week.

For awhile, my diet was obsessively clean and that took all the pleasure out of eating. Life's too short too not enjoy food. And since I eat the healthy stuff first, emphasizing vegetables and fruits, whole grains and lean proteins, I often find that munchies aren't a problem any more. I used to eat a 60-65% carb diet and I was always hungry! Eating more protein has definitely helped with that!

Have fun with your diet, Leslie. There's a book called the Okinawa Program that I loved. Okinawans live to be 100 more than any other people on earth!

Chicks's Rule! http://www.handykult.de/plaudersmilies.de/chicken.gif Bobbi
 
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