Find the Good in Grains

This week our Weight Loss goal is to examine our carbohydrate consumption.  The USDA suggests that women's daily allowance of grains is 5-6 oz and men's, 6-7 oz.  This is roughly 1/2 cup of rice or pasta, 1 cup of ready-made cereal or one piece of bread.  A great reference for nutritional information and serving sizes is http://www.myplate.gov/.

Remember to look for higher fiber grains and those that are processed the least.  Check out your labels and measure your servings sizes for a real eye-opener.  Dr. Arthur Agatston founder of the South Beach Diet notes that the quicker the carbohydrates we eat are absorbed into our blood stream, the more likely we are to store it as fat.  These things slow down the absorption of carbs:  fiber, protein, fat and acidity.  He uses the analogy that eating a piece of white bread is like drinking alcohol on an empty stomach - a spike in blood sugar. 

The lesson here is that you will slow down the processing of carbs if for example, you eat some olive oil with your bread (multi-grain of course).  Or have a piece of smoked salmon and a smear of cream cheese with capers on a thin slice of multi-grain baguette (OMG-food nirvana in my book)  Add tuna or chicken and some veggies to your brown rice...you get the picture.  (Let's move on...getting hungry here.)

Beth, made a great point to me this morning.  Remember if you are fulfilling your protein needs, you will not be as enamored with your carbohydrate consumption.  This is not to suggest that you omit carbs.  The cravings will be lessened.   

Here's what you can focus on :

• Fiber - Men should reach for about 35 grams of fiber a day, women need about 25 grams.
• Know what a serving of grains, like rice, barley, pasta looks like on your plate.  If you eat two servings, you may need it, just make sure you are aware you are eating two servings.
• Stay close to the source:  raw fruits and veggies are great source of carbs.  Put some color on your plate!
• If you aren't ready for raw, go ahead and cook them.  Try olive oil and maybe a little salt as an introduction.

Baby steps are a good way to get healthy and stay healthy.  Weight loss is sometimes the icing on the cake.  (Ok...bad pun...just say no to frosting!)