Combining Carbs and Protein

I recently discovered something interesting about my body.

 

When I eat a meal that's mostly protein, my energy level skyrockets! I look better too, eyes wider, skin brighter.

 

When I eat a meal that's mostly all carbs (not too much) same thing.

 

But, when a eat a meal mixed with carbs "and" protein, I feel sluggish, low energy, skin looks dull.

 

Has anyone else experienced this, and do you know why this happens?

 

All week, I've been eating mostly protein and felt sort of on a high! One day I had a small bowl of pasta (no protein) and felt pretty good too! Lost a bit of weight this week too (not that I need to, but my clothes feel looser).

 

Now today, I mixed them (I had a tuna salad sandwich on polish rye) and feel like utter crap.

 

Promise this isn't a troll post lol, I am truly baffled by this.

 

If anyone knows anything about, please chime in!

 

Thx!

How consistent is your diet? Why do you eat all-carb, all-protein, and then a mixture of the two? Truth be told, protein isn't meant to serve as an energy source, at least not as most people conventionally understand it. If your body isn't in the process of metabolizing fats or carbs to use as fuel, it can put the amino acids from the protein you consume through glucogenesis, but you ideally want that protein committing itself to the bodily functions it's best for, assisting with your skin, muscles, enzymes, hormones, among a plethora of other things. Every body is different, and while variety can help in keeping your metabolism on its feet, so to speak, you don't really want to keep changing up where your body's getting its energy from. If you're keto, make sure you're getting your fats in during your meals. If you're higher carb or on a more conventional diet, get your carbs in (though do make sure you're still getting your healthy dose of fats as well). Proteins should be laced in either way.

I don't have lots of knowlegde about food in general, but my fiancé has recently been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Basically, what I learned is that carbs are something to avoid because it brings your blood sugar up very fast. So carbs are basically sugar. Who says sugar also says energy. I would avoid eating just carbs. It is not good for your health in general..

I think it's the simple carbs as opposed to whole grain carbs that makes the difference as far as energy level.

I don't have lots of knowlegde about food in general, but my fiancé has recently been diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. Basically, what I learned is that carbs are something to avoid because it brings your blood sugar up very fast. So carbs are basically sugar. Who says sugar also says energy. I would avoid eating just carbs. It is not good for your health in general..

 

I have type 2 diabetes. Sugar is a carb. Too many carbs makes me feel comatose so I keep my carb intake as low as I can.

I recently discovered something interesting about my body.

 

When I eat a meal that's mostly protein, my energy level skyrockets! I look better too, eyes wider, skin brighter.

 

When I eat a meal that's mostly all carbs (not too much) same thing.

 

But, when a eat a meal mixed with carbs "and" protein, I feel sluggish, low energy, skin looks dull.

 

Has anyone else experienced this, and do you know why this happens?

 

All week, I've been eating mostly protein and felt sort of on a high! One day I had a small bowl of pasta (no protein) and felt pretty good too! Lost a bit of weight this week too (not that I need to, but my clothes feel looser).

 

Now today, I mixed them (I had a tuna salad sandwich on polish rye) and feel like utter crap.

 

Promise this isn't a troll post lol, I am truly baffled by this.

 

If anyone knows anything about, please chime in!

 

Thx!

 

There might be a number of factors that contribute to sleepiness after a meal.... not knowing anything else about your nutritional history it's hard to say, but based on what I am reading it's possibly because when you are combining starchy carbs and protein together, you are eating more in one sitting than you would be if you just ate one or the other. If you were to track your calories, you would find that when you ate the sandwich the total calorie count was higher than if you just ate the tuna or the bread on it's own and nothing else.

 

As popular as keto and paleo diets are, the main reasons they work so well are because eating mostly protein and fat with complex non-starchy carbs will fill you up more quickly, take more time and energy to digest, and generally have a lower overall calorie intake than a conventional diet with higher portions of carbs.

 

Many people complain of sleepiness after a meal higher in carbs (me included) but it's usually a result of overeating vs. the carbs themselves.

 

When you combine protein and carbs, try eating less, for example if you are eating a sandwich eat half instead of a whole one, and fill the rest of your tummy with veggies and water instead. T

I found a diet book at a garage sale that was all about food combining. And they said don’t mix carbs with proteins. You do need both but eat them at separate meals. They also said eat nothing but fruit till lunch time and I don’t really like fruit so I didn’t eat much and got a cranking headache and abandoned the book immediately.

 

If you’re noticing things that work for you, excellent :-)

I read a long time ago the problem many people have is they eat until they're full. You're only supposed to eat until you're no longer hungry. And people eat as a social activity instead of eating only when they're hungry.

 

Plus, the amount of garbage food out there is mind blowing! My company had an employee picnic and they ONLY served hot dogs, chips, cotton candy and ice cream. Gross!!! Are they TRYING to kill us???

I found a diet book at a garage sale that was all about food combining. And they said don’t mix carbs with proteins. You do need both but eat them at separate meals. They also said eat nothing but fruit till lunch time and I don’t really like fruit so I didn’t eat much and got a cranking headache and abandoned the book immediately.

 

If you’re noticing things that work for you, excellent :-)

 

Thanks for the responses guys! They're all helpful but this^ one resonates.

 

Interesting! Never knew that 1a and may also explain why I lost a couple of pounds.

 

I think I will continue with one or the other but not combining both together since I felt so good!

 

Re the carbs, will be careful to not eat too much in one sitting, as agree too much can give you energy, then make you sleepy, like chocolate!

They also said eat nothing but fruit till lunch time and I don’t really like fruit so I didn’t eat much and got a cranking headache and abandoned the book immediately.

 

lol unfortunately many books that complicate the s&*t out of how we eat get abandoned... probably the reason you found it at a garage sale in the first place :)

 

There are so many different takes on nutrition out there in the world, it's no wonder people get confused! And it's one of the main reasons I decided to take matters into my own hands and get a nutrition coaching certification.

 

bolt makes a great point.... a lot of people eat until they're "full" but for many people, their hunger signals are broken depending on what, when, and how much they are used to eating... and that people eat for all sorts of reasons besides being hungry.

 

In simple terms, in order to thrive, people should be eating protein and a little bit of fat at each meal along with complex carbs (aka veggies). That all being said... if you are finding a combo at meals that helps you thrive instead of just survive then keep it up! :)

Generally speaking, carbs are used for energy while protein aids in muscle growth. While you should not overeat either of them, you need good carbs and fat for energy. I'm talking about whole grain bread with high fiber (not rye), avocado, olive oil, etc. I would suggest to eat protein, but the amount you should eat depends on your level of exercise, in particular attention towards strength training.

 

If you do not fuel your energy levels with at least good carbs and fat, then your body will not process them correctly to aid in fat loss/maintenance and will instead store the spare calories you do eat in your fat cells or will make more of them because you make your body go into starvation mode (from the deprivation of these types of food, anyway). You need to eat fat and carbs. Enough to stop this process, or the small amounts of these foods you will eventually eat on a restrictive diet will cause weight gain.

 

While I am not a nutritionist, I watch a fair amount of food documentaries (backed by physicians and nutritionists) that strongly discourage diets and fast/junk food. In today's world with bountiful food (if you are not in an impoverished area), it is better to have a well rounded diet. Diet restrictions mess with your metabolism and may work for a short period of time, but is not sustainable long term and your body will go into the reverse (instead of losing/maintaining weight, will gain more after the restrictive diet has ended).

 

This defense mechanism of the starvation mode in your metabolism was passed on from a very long time ago when we had periods of fast and famine. We no longer have periods of famine, so we need to treat our bodies according to a well rounded nutritional diet. All of your food doesn't need to be healthy, but it needs to at least be in moderation.

 

No one knows how much you should eat because we do not know your general profile. I suggest to visit a nutritionalist to create a well balanced nutrition program for you. No fads, no restrictions (barring those who are diebetic or have food related illnesses), just ask for a well balanced plan. Or you could just visit government websites catering to general health plans (FDA, NIH, CDC). Do not go to any other sources. These are credible, reliable, well researched, and peer reviewed documents. The other websites are not legally held accountable for accurate health information.

Thanks for the responses guys! They're all helpful but this^ one resonates.

 

Interesting! Never knew that 1a and may also explain why I lost a couple of pounds.

 

I think I will continue with one or the other but not combining both together since I felt so good!

 

Re the carbs, will be careful to not eat too much in one sitting, as agree too much can give you energy, then make you sleepy, like chocolate!

I mean, it resonates because a diet book worthy of a $2 orange sticker at a garage sale confirmed your bias. If I had to guess, the book was piggybacking off the logic that drove Paleo in some way, hearkening back to when humans didn't have the luxury of ready access to multiple food sources to put together a nutritionally balanced meal with and when our life expectancy was a good third of what it is today.

 

I try not to get preachy with how someone should "properly" diet. So long as you're a healthy weight, incorporating daily exercise, fulfilling some pretty basic macro and micronutritional needs, getting checkups, going to a doctor / hospital when your body's telling you to, and not jumping off buildings, it's pretty hard to mess up and you're probably making it to 70 even if you dine on a Big Mac every day. Overcomplicating your diet often means daily brainpower and stress better invested elsewhere. Our bodies are a lot smarter than we'll ever be and it takes something pretty dumbfounding for it to not be able to make what we consume work to our benefit. (Obviously, if you've got a medically confirmed dietary restriction, that's going to be an extra consideration.)

 

But... you've managed to hone in on one of those very few ways to do it wrong. Not saying that to be mean as I wouldn't waste my time if I didn't love ya. You've really got to reconsider this isolating your energy sources, or at least isolating protein. The carbs I'm not so worried about (biggest risk is eating excess and it being converted to body fat... can be burned off wherever and whenever). Proteins, however, are extremely important to allow to be proteins, not just dedicating them to be turned into glucose for energy. There are numerous bodily functions that require the essential amino acids that protein provides, and you forcing your body to instead turn it into glucose is pretty much the equivalent of your friend running out of water on a hike and you pulling out a bottle just to splash your face with it. Talk about disrespek.

 

And even that wouldn't necessarily be a problem on its own if you weren't leaving out protein in your other meals, where it would be allowed it to serve its purpose. Quite simply, by any dietary metric, it's just an unhealthy practice. And if your body's not getting amino acids from the foods you eat, then it will get them from the next best source-- your muscles. I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if that turned out to be a good chunk of the weight you've lost.

 

And the biggest clincher is that eating a healthy portion of protein along with other sources of energy is essentially free calories. Your body can't efficiently store protein, so if you're eating a healthy amount of carbs or fat, there's absolutely no incentive for your body to do so. So, basically, you're eating smaller meals for no other reason than to deny your body some pretty fundamental nutritional needs.

 

I'm also a bit concerned that you're experiencing these food highs. While I couldn't say for sure, it would strongly suggest that you're not eating enough if you're, with any notable regularity, experiencing these highs after your meals. Nothing wrong with noticing it on evenings after you've treated yourself to a third scoop of ice cream, but your should aim to feel steadily sustained throughout the day rather than feeling really good during a meal window.

 

Do your appetite, palate, and body all a favor and eat up.

I eat a mix of carbs, fats, and protein for every meal. I find that is what gives me the best energy.

 

If I don't eat a good amount of fat and protein at breakfast I'm shot for the day.

 

I have a lot of energy, pretty much all the time as long as I get enough sleep.

 

I am of heavily eastern European ancestry. Sometimes metabolic variability is regionally/ancestorially linked.

 

But carbs in general are not responsible for type 2 diabetes, and type 1 is genetic.

 

Carbs that spike your insulin levels then crash them are what causes type 2 predominately.

 

What types of proteins and carbs are you eating that is causing this?

 

Eating a lean steak with a sweet potato is a lot different than eating a fatty steak with a white potato.

 

I have some random issues mixing certain things that I have never understood why, I just avoid them.