I'm at a point now where I feel comfortable adding a few more carbs to my daily diet. By no means do I keep a religious track of my carb intake; I just try to keep it within a certain range.

My question is this: Does an addition of carbs in the form of sugar have the same impact as in increase in carbs from starches or other sources? I would rather enjoy a chocolate or two (especially with x-mas coming up), than have a slice of bread or some pasta. Frankly, I could do without those things forever if I have to. What I refuse to say is that I will NEVER eat sugar again; I just want to limit my intake.

Also, if I choose to up my carb count, does it make any difference how I do this? For instance, is it better to consume all the high carb stuff at one time, or spread it out over the day?

Please don't tell me that sugar is evil and that it should never be eaten. If that's your plan, good luck to you. I don't follow the atkins plan, and it still seems to be working for me (my numbers don't lie).


thanks,
shutt22

What about using CALP on the days when you want to have carbs? The premise is controlling insulin spikes while still having carb dense foods by when, how and what you eat.

Have a look through the CAD/CALP forum for what it's like and by all means read the book. It's an interesting read.

Oh yeah, and sugar is evil.

Karen

It's all about insulin control. Some carbs have more impact on insulin spikes--see glycemic index/load for specific foods. There have been many posts on this forum, so you could do a search to see some threads. There are differences of opinion, both professional and amateur, regarding when & how to eat carbs. Obviously, the best way is to limit carbs and spread them out throughout the day to keep insulin levels low & stable. But if you are going to eat a high carb meal, CAD/CALP allows for it. I do think you'd probably be very comfortable with that program from what you wrote. Good luck!

And yes...sugar IS evil, but OCCASIONAL evil adds a bit of spice to life!