Post Punk Kitchen Forum

I get carb cravings like, really badly, constantly. is it because i dont eat enough of them?!

probably! your body knows what's up. you should also make sure you're eating regularly so you don't get such intense cravings.

Also, carbs are not a bad thing. Carbohydrates should comprise at least 50% of your diet.

I do eat three meals a day but I did NOT know its mean to be 50% so maybe thats why! =]

When you say carbs what exactly do you mean? Bread, sweets, pure sugar, fruit, veggies?

bread/pasta/rice. Sweets NEVER help.

i crave pasta and sandwiches a lot and it's usually when i'm in a horrible cycle of eating white pasta, white bread, pizza from work (sometimes it's all i can eat, even though i know refined carbs are no good). whole grains are good though, eat 'em up!

Experts disagree on the amount of carbs you need (if any). There are necessary fats (EFAs) and necessary amino acids from dietary protein (EAAs) but no biologically necessary carbs. That of course doesn't mean that a carb free or even a modestly low carb diet is best however.

I think 50%+ isn't necessary though unless you're an endurance athlete (runner, biker, swimmer etc) or something. If you are a serious endurance athlete though, you'd probably want to eat like 80% carbs, many of them refined.

I find that I don't really crave carbs even when I'm intentionally reducing them. Right now, I think I'm getting about 30% protein, 30% fat, 40% carbs (and relatively few refined carbs) and I feel great and I've eaten lower carb than that in the past with no issues.

I'm with vegimator, more or less. Cutting refined carbs cuts my carb cravings overall. Keeping a fair amount of whole grains and starchy fruit and veg in my life is way more helpful to me than just cutting everything.

Agreed. When I get most of my carbs from veggies, beans, etc. as opposed to refined carbs, I don't crave them at all and am a lot less hungry

And although I hate to bring up the P word, if you are not eating enough protein then you may crave carbs, especially refined carbs. I don't know why this is so but it happens to me and I have heard it from others.

This can go both ways--I think people naturally will have different cravings and if you're satisfying those cravings with mostly nutritious foods, I wouldn't worry about it.

I will add, though, that if I'm craving lots of refined carbs like white bread, pasta, rice, etc., it's usually because I'm not getting enough sleep, I'm not eating enough protein in the morning so my blood sugar is wonky all day and I try to keep it up with quick carbs, or I'm stressed and wanting to eat for emotional reasons. I don't fight any of these, but I do try to pay attention to these cues because I want to be healthy and feel good. Otherwise, though, I just listen to what my body wants.