I just read an interesting article by a man named Menno Henselmans who’s actually written an article or two for this site (A Bayesian approach to bodybuilding focuses on findings in scientific research and using methods supported by empirical evidence).
The article basically argues that any carb is, well, a carb. He cites research that finds the carb source; type (complex and simple), and GI (and Insulin) does not matter in regards to body composition and overall health for healthy individuals.
I’m having a hard time digesting this as ultimate fact, particularly because I’ve read a little on insulin and the topic of insulin sensitivity. Menno’s conjecture is that the insulin spike from even high GI carbs is minimal because “healthy” individuals (not obese and active) are insulin sensitive. I can’t fathom a hypothetical situation where replacing all my brown rice calories with sugar will have no net effect on body composition, or medium to long-term insulin sensitivity.
To be fair to Menno he does point that not all carbs are created equal. Sugars are empty calories and eating certain types of carbs are better for you because of their micronutrients.
At the very least, this article will make me less guilty about eating the occasional piece of cake and pastry.
It is completely BS. First off, in comparing brown rice to sugar, brown gets broken down into glucose, whereas sugar is half glucose half fructose. Fructose does not cause an insulin response because it is metabolized in the liver, and then either stored as liver glycogen or converted to triglycerides (fat), therefore it cannot be used to replenish muscle glycogen.
[quote]Ecchastang wrote:
It is completely BS. First off, in comparing brown rice to sugar, brown gets broken down into glucose, whereas sugar is half glucose half fructose. Fructose does not cause an insulin response because it is metabolized in the liver, and then either stored as liver glycogen or converted to triglycerides (fat), therefore it cannot be used to replenish muscle glycogen. [/quote]
Fiber plays a role in slowing the absorption rate in brown rice, correct? Thus the low GI rating? Checking to see if my understanding is accurate.
As far as fructose, while I’ve heard that many times, for some reason it just “clicked.” I understand there are many nutrients in fruit that are desirable enough, if we are speaking in terms of strict body composition, fruit seems like a poor choice as a carb source. Following this logic, the recommendation for 1-2 pieces of fruit on the Indigo diet makes perfect sense.
Please correct me if I’m off base here, kind of spit-balling for my own education.
[quote]Petrichor wrote:
Fruits contain various types of carbohydrates, apples about 50% fructose (remaining is mostly glucose & fiber), bananas about 30% fructose
also keep in mind that most fruits are about 10-20% carbohydrate by weight (including fiber), so their impact is rather small anyway
fructose vs glucose does matter if your liver glycogen is topped off most of the time, which shouldn’t be the case if you are exercising regularly
nobody ever got fat by eating too much fruit[/quote]
According to FitDay calculator, an apple contains 96% carbs, 3% fat, and 1% protein.
19 grams of carbs total, with 3.3 grams fiber, or ~17% fiber. That leaves 15.7g, or ~83%, to fructose/glucose.
Now, you stated it was 50% fructose, with the remainder glucose/fiber. So taking the fiber/fructose out, that leaves us with 33% glucose, or ~6g.
I know I’m not going to get fat from apples and bananas. These are small numbers, I get that. I’m currently waiting my first shipment of Indigo 3G, had re-read the diet recommendations, and simply made the connection. Appreciate the info.
I’m personally a big believer in trying certain techniques, even if they seem to have little merit on face value. I have tried this, as it appears similar to the IIFYM approach that is so popular currently, and my experience is that there is certainly a noticeable difference when you are eating ‘clean’ carb sources vs. refined carb sources, with all other variables (total calories, protein & fat intake etc) being equal.
When I was consuming refined carbs such as white bread, pop tarts, waffles etc I was generally softer, more bloated, held more water and was immeasurably more hungry than when eating traditional bodybuilding carb sources; rice, oats, potatoes etc.
Hope that helps in some small way- although I would still encourage you to try it yourself for a period of time. Then you can be the judge!
[quote]Ecchastang wrote:
It is completely BS. First off, in comparing brown rice to sugar, brown gets broken down into glucose, whereas sugar is half glucose half fructose. Fructose does not cause an insulin response because it is metabolized in the liver, and then either stored as liver glycogen or converted to triglycerides (fat), therefore it cannot be used to replenish muscle glycogen. [/quote]
Fiber plays a role in slowing the absorption rate in brown rice, correct? Thus the low GI rating? Checking to see if my understanding is accurate.
As far as fructose, while I’ve heard that many times, for some reason it just “clicked.” I understand there are many nutrients in fruit that are desirable enough, if we are speaking in terms of strict body composition, fruit seems like a poor choice as a carb source. Following this logic, the recommendation for 1-2 pieces of fruit on the Indigo diet makes perfect sense.
Please correct me if I’m off base here, kind of spit-balling for my own education.[/quote]
Brown rice carbs are primarily polysaccharides, which are slower digesting, plus the fiber slows things down a bit as well. I don’t know of anyone overdoing it on fruit, like an above poster commented. Fruit juice is a whole different story, as one can easily down large amounts of carbs from that. But try eating 5 apples or 5 bananas, and you will feel bloated and full, but it won’t make you fat.