Carb Week!

No, I don't get to eat lot of them, though that would be fun.

Last night, I read the next week's chapter out of The Great American Detox Diet and found that this week is about carbs. I was actually excited about this, as I don't know much about carbs, besides hearing that they're bad for you and then that they're good for you and then bad for you again.

Basically, carbs aren't the enemy as long as you're eating the right ones. Same with fat, actually. It comes down to refined and unrefined carbs. Unrefined carbs are those that have not been processed down, so it's your whole wheat pastas and flours and brown rice. Your body takes longer to process these, giving you a steady stream of energy throughout the day. This is the opposite from refined carbs, like white flour, pasta and rice. Those go into your system and process much more quickly, giving you a quicker high of energy but then also a faster dip. Unrefined carbs also help you feel fuller longer, so you don't feel tempted to snack.

So what did I go out and eat today? Sushi with white rice. You can't win them all.

I will, however, be working to include more complex carbohydrates in my diet. The tally so far: more water, less sugar, less caffeine, more healthy fats and fewer bad ones, and more unrefined carbs. Check, check, check. I think I can handle this.

Observations from the guinea pig: Three of the six pounds I had gained were already gone this morning. I knew it was mostly water but was still disturbed. I'll be interested to see how long it takes the other to go away.

Tonight's dinner was a Chicken Not-Pie from Food Matters. It was decent. I think I'd need to tweak it a bit. I served it over some whole-wheat pasta, so the whole thing was a little bland. It also had a little too much chicken and I had cut my veggies too big. Live and learn. I definitely will try making it again.