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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think tha more than one carb for dinner is unnecessary (and will probably make you fat if done regularly)

260 replies

HackerFucker22 · 20/09/2015 19:12

Just back from a friends and had a very interesting debate over dinner.

We all had homemade pizza and garlic bread which was bloody lovely but I made a comment about having a "carb on carb" meal to be met with blank stares... I explained further and not one person seemed to think there was anything odd about eating so many carbs at once.

There were 6 of us and I am the only fat one.

Half of the group said they have more than one carb with dinner "quite often" examples were jacket spuds served with Lasagne, some type of bread with pasta dishes and curry with rice and Naan - one friend has very posh bread on the table with every evening meal

We're all in our 30's, mostly have kids and jobs so no time for excessive gym attendance.

AIBU to think they are all talking utter shite?

OP posts:
MrsTedCrilly · 21/09/2015 10:19

Who pissed in your tea Jawanna..

Of course people are different, have you never met those people who eat crap all day long, never exercise and never put on weight? And the people who overeat for a week and put on 7lbs..

WorraLiberty · 21/09/2015 10:23

Rafa "No, really it isn't. Eating too much and moving too little is"

Sazzas "Eating too much of what?" Hmm

Eating too much of anything and not taking enough exercise to burn it off.

You can double carb to the moon and back but it won't make you fat, unless you eat too much and move too little.

As others have said, instead of 4 slices of pizza, have 2 slices with 2 slices of garlic bread.

JawannaDrink · 21/09/2015 10:24

Nope. Because that's not actually how it works. The ones who eat crap but stay slim either eat actually very little or exercise a lot, and the ones who put on 7lbs in a week are massively overeating.
No mystery involved, they don't have unique bodies that work differently.

tootsietoo · 21/09/2015 10:28

I'm sorry, but really - everyone has different mental and physiological states/issues. Some people get depression, some don't. Some can function at altitude and some can't. Some have fast twitch muscles and can run fast, some don't. Some have big lung capacity, some don't. I don't think it's beyond the realms of possibility that some people have more or less of hormones which regulate appetite, making it harder for them to regulate their appetites. And obviously now we live in a place and time where there is as much cheap food as we want, those people don't have their intakes regulated by scarcity. I also don't think metabolism has anything to do with it, it is a simple equation, food in must = calories out. But controlling the food in is harder for some than for others. I would never have though this before living with my DH and DC but I have observed it on a daily basis for 9 years!

BertrandRussell · 21/09/2015 10:31

"Of course people are different, have you never met those people who eat crap all day long, never exercise and never put on weight? And the people who overeat for a week and put on 7lbs.."

Nope. I've met lots of people who say that's what they do!

Lurkedforever1 · 21/09/2015 10:33

mrsted the difference is that people who eat crap all day and don't exercise, and never gain weight, are only eating as much as they need. The person who gains 7lbs from one lot of junk is eating more than they need. It's a mental difference, not different organs.
Also there's also been quite a few studies that demonstrate skinny people that say they don't exercise, actually are doing in an informal, always on the move manner, lots of fidgeting and low level movement. And don't forget, what someone like me describes as no exercise, is often someone else idea of serious training.

Frequency · 21/09/2015 10:33

Not all calories are equal Jawanna, so while in theory, eat less, move more works, it's a very simplified way to look at it.

Simple carbs such as white bread, white pasta, white rice, sugar etc are more likely to be stored as fat, they also burn less calories to digest than other foods and have a lower satiety value.

Protein, complex carbs and even some fats are less likely to be stored as fat than simple carbs and sugar and also use more energy to digest.

So, if you overate simple carbs, regularly you are more likely to end up overweight, they also trigger a hormone which makes you eat more.

If you over eat complex carbs and protein (which is harder to do anyway) you are less likely to end up overweight.

In the end the key is balance, carbs are not evil, they're not ideal, but a few white carbs a week isn't really going to cause a lot of damage.

rookiemere · 21/09/2015 10:34

You should move to Scotland where triple carbing is common Shock.

The zoo offers as a lunch macaroni cheese, garlic bread and chips or for a little bit more nutrition the same but with lasagne instead. One of the many reasons we bring a pack lunch when we go.

Sadly as many others have said, the reason some people are thin and some - like myself - are not so much, is more to do with the number of slices of pizza and garlic bread consumed, rather than any magical food type combination.

BertrandRussell · 21/09/2015 10:36

"Simple carbs such as white bread, white pasta, white rice, sugar etc are more likely to be stored as fat, they also burn less calories to digest than other foods and have a lower satiety value."

Have you got proof of that?

Mrsjayy · 21/09/2015 10:40

Im scottish i dont triple carb well maybe sometimesGrin im sure the zoo has a sandwich or something

2rebecca · 21/09/2015 10:40

We often have more than 1 type of carb eg rice and chapati or naan, pasta and garlic bread. It's the total calorie content that's important. If you have several different carbs you just have a smaller amount of each.
If I'm doing pizza I usually make a salad to go with it so it's not all carb and fat.
We're not overweight but do a lot of exercise. I reduce my portions and alcohol to lose weight not the number of carbs. variety is good.

specialsubject · 21/09/2015 10:43

science is true whether you believe it or not. The superfoods, metabolism boosting, food combining nonsense is all unproven - a few studies have shown a possibility of a very tiny difference, nothing that would actually be noticeable.

look at the other 'studies' and you'll see those that lost weight actually ate fewer calories. Wow. Surprise.

less in the gob and move the arse more. Sorry, but that's how it is unless you actually have an illness which affects weight.

Frequency · 21/09/2015 10:52

I read a really good article about it a few days ago, Bert, but I cannot find it now.

Basically white carbs aren't much better than sugar, which is processed by the liver, if the liver becomes overloaded with sugar, the pancreas steps in and turns the excess sugar to fat cells.

Complex carbs have more fibre and bypass the liver and are digested in the bowel.

So if you eat white carbs sparingly the liver can turn them into energy, if you over eat on them, it can't and they are more likely to turn to fat cells.

Taylor22 · 21/09/2015 10:53

This may sound harsh but as you're the one Ochoa overweight and they're not maybe you should look at a non fad diet? ????I love carbs, live off them but do just keep a slight eye on what I eat. Eg leave a biscuit so I don't finish the whole pack in one sitting.

Mrsjayy · 21/09/2015 10:53

I don't understand food obsession eat this dont eat that. imo a little bit of what you fancy does you good food is supposed to be enjoyed a nice dinner atthe op friends house was tainted because of garlic bread sigh

WorraLiberty · 21/09/2015 10:54

When I have curry, rice and naan I have...

1/2 a boil in the bag basmati rice

2 large scoops (ladle size) of curry

1 mini naan bread.

I'll eat that at about 5.30pm and go to bed around 12.30am, having not snacked at all. If I didn't include the mini naan bread, I would probably be peckish at around 10pm - ish.

However, I know quite a few people who would have...

1 whole boil in the bag rice

4 large scoops of curry

1 large naan bread

And probably a snack before bed. They would quite probably blame their weight gain on the double carbs rather than the amount eaten.

StrapOnDodo · 21/09/2015 10:54

If you exercise loads eating plenty of carbs will help your performance, the body needs glycogen for exercise.

I think the mainstay of a healthy eating is plenty of veg. I would say if you ate thick crust pizza and garlic bread, for example you might not have room for a big salad. If you had a few slices of a thin crust pizza you'd probably feel like the salad too. So I suppose I'm saying the extra carbs risk replacing more nutritious food.

tootsietoo · 21/09/2015 11:17

That's it WorraLiberty. I tend to eat like you, and I am size 10. DH tends to eat the second list of food, and he pretty big! But this is purely because if I ate more I would feel ill and I wouldn't eat much the next day. DH on the other hand does not. There is something different about our appetites. I am sure it is something to do with brain chemistry/hormones.

I think too many carbs (especially refined ones) can't be a good thing because there isn't much nutritional value in them. Best to stuff as many nutrients and good things into your 2000 calories a day (or whatever we're supposed to have) than have enough calories and few nutrients.

iamnotaponceyloudperson · 21/09/2015 11:18

portion control folks.

Some find it so much harder that others. I can eat HUGE amounts before I feel full and battle constantly to keep that in check. I know the more I eat the more I want (of anything) and so keep a tight rein and make sure I don't snack so I can have filling, satisfying meals. My sister has none of this battle. She'll eat a slice of cake and genuinely have no desire for more, will often leave half her meal, its a total non issue for her. She would break every conventional 'diet' rule but simply eats only what she needs and enjoys it.

I mostly win my battle but I'd love not to have it.

My DC are the same, two are like my sister, one is more like me.

BitOutOfPractice · 21/09/2015 11:24

I had three last night

BolshierAyraStark · 21/09/2015 11:24

Carb obsession is very boring, I have a friend who is very carb obsessed & goes to the gym almost daily-she isn't fat but she isn't as in shape as she should be based on what she claims to eat...

WorraLiberty · 21/09/2015 11:26

That's the thing about appetites tootsietoo

It seems the more you eat, the more you need to feel full.

Which is why as I said upthread, I know people who have cut down little by little on portion size, and they now can't believe how much they used to eat in one day.

They can now eat what they want - double carbs or not because they eat a lot less of it.

milkmilklemonade12 · 21/09/2015 11:26

I agree with you OP, but I wouldn't have pointed it out when someone else had cooked me dinner Confused

I've done LC before and had a lot of success, but didn't keep it up because it can be quite hard to follow when eating out/grabbing lunch on the run/going to other people's houses. I try to eat lots of natural foods in their natural state, but that's about it!

tootsietoo · 21/09/2015 11:27

iamnotaponceyloudperson - I am glad you've observed the same as me. How do you deal with feeding your children? I find it is a constant battle. DD2 and I are not interested in food that much, with DD1 it's her first thought of the day, then near the top of her mind for the rest of the day!

Maddiemademe · 21/09/2015 11:46

YABU. I haven't read through the thread properly yet but what on earth is with the carbs makes you fat obsession? Too many calories make you fat that is it. I lost 7 stone eating more than one carb per meal for every meal. Some people find they are less hungry on a low carb high fat diet but the reason they lose weight is because they have lowered calories not carbs. You tend to lose more water weight on low carb diets too but that is all it is - water. Calories in vs calories out for fat loss.