carbohydrate – Hugging the Cactus

See the title of this blog post? That’s basically my mantra lately.

Working from home (and never leaving the house, in general, except to walk around the neighborhood) has made me crave nothing but carbohydrates. Whether it’s in the form of biscuits, chips, chocolate, or cereal…I’ve been mowing down on many more carbs than I typically do.

I guess it’s the way I deal with stress and anxiety. Don’t get me wrong, I’m still eating plenty of fruits, veggies, and proteins…but I’ve also added an unnecessary amount of carbs into my daily diet. So I’m not totally trashing my body, but I am going through a little more insulin than normal. I’m also probably more apt to moving around whenever I can in order to combat higher-than-I’d-like blood sugars.

glac — Me with all my beloved carbs…and looking like I belong in the 90s with my Lisa Frank sweatshirt.

I can’t help it, I love carbs. They bring me comfort. They’re delicious. They come in so many iterations. But I don’t love how they make me feel (bloated, hyperglycemic, unhealthy, etc.). And I especially don’t love how they cause me to take more insulin than I prefer taking in a single day.

So I’m hoping that by admitting here that I’m overdoing it in the carbohydrate department will encourage me to cut back. Maybe small changes, like chia seed pudding (more to come on that in a future post) instead of cereal in the mornings for breakfast, are what I need to get me back on track. I’m not saying that I’m going to stay away from carbs altogether (oh heavens, no); rather, I’ll just be more mindful of how many I consume in a single day.

Besides making me feel better about myself overall, it’ll help me appreciate yummy low blood sugar treats – hello, Reese’s eggs – during those times that I genuinely need something sweet and carb-o-licious.

Recently, a random person on the Internet criticized my choice to incorporate carbohydrates in my daily diet. Thanks for the unnecessary judgment, stranger!!!

I’m not really upset about the comment, though, because it prompted me to reflect on why I consume carbs.

F57D800E-5EE7-49C7-8D8D-682748908BD4 — I LOVE CARBS. But of course, everything in moderation! So as much as I’d like to eat this mountain of nachos – a serving will do just fine & works better for me.

For me, it’s about more than just enjoying (relishing, adoring) the taste of carb-heavy substances both starchy and sweet. Carbs also help me achieve balance in my blood sugars. For instance, I find that consuming a serving of carbohydrates at dinnertime keeps me steady as I move through the evening hours. Say that I’m eating grilled chicken with a side salad for dinner. That’s a good meal by itself, but I like to complement it with a carb like half a cup of mashed potatoes or brown rice. I’ve noticed that the carbs kick in more slowly when they’re consumed with minimal or zero-carb foods, thanks to the power of the glycemic index.

The glycemic index is, in short, a measure of how quickly the carbohydrate content of foods will affect blood sugar levels. Since learning about it in college and subsequently researching the glycemic indices of various foods I eat, it’s been an immensely useful tool in determining the makeup of my meals throughout the day. Knowing the glycemic index of a wide array of foods also helps me figure out the timing of my insulin doses; in turn, preventing crazy spikes or crashes after eating.

I can’t shortchange carbs for the fact that they literally save my butt sometimes, too. When I’m experiencing a low blood sugar, nothing BUT carbs will bring me back up to a normal level. Whether it’s carbohydrates from healthy fruits or straight-up candy, it’s giving my blood sugar the surge it needs to keep me going. Like many things in life, it’s a matter of moderation – making sure I don’t consume TOO many carbs when I’m experiencing a low.

If you’re someone who thrives on low carb, high fat diets, that’s great! I know that many people find this to be a successful method in achieving target blood sugars. But for me, my tried-and-true technique of balancing carbs, fats, and proteins is always going to be my ideal strategy. Just because that’s what works for me doesn’t give anyone a right to criticize me for it. I’m here to live my best life, as we all should try to do. Shouldn’t we encourage one another to thrive, instead of judging?

The answer, if you didn’t realize, is YES.