Carb Basics

What is carbohydrate?

Carbohydrates are broken down by the body into glucose, which is a useable molecule of energy. Glucose can be stored within the muscles and liver as glycogen, any glycogen over the amount that the muscles and liver can hold is stored as fat. Both fat and carbohydrates are the bodies main sources of energy.

At any one time the body uses a mix of fuels to provide itself with energy. In the most cases these are blends of fat and carbohydrate, and if necessary protein. At rest we burn predominantly fat, but as our activity levels increase we start to burn a larger amount of fat. However as the intensity of the activities we are taking part in increase, we start to burn more and more carbohydrate. So at extreme intensities the majority of our bodies fuel comes from carbohydrate. If the bodies carbohydrate stores run out then fatigue will be experienced and the high levels of workload will not be able to be maintained.

Are there different types of carbohydrate?

There are two types of carbohydrate simple and complex. Simple carbohydrates are sugars, these can give a fast boost of energy to the body. Due to their chemical structure they provide a source of energy that can be absorbed into the body at a very fast rate. Sources of simple carbohydrate include fruit, energy sweets, and honey. Complex carbohydrates take a longer time to be absorbed into the body, due to the chemical make up of these molecules. So this gives a slower sustained release of energy. Sources include breads, pasta, cereals, potatoes, etc...

How much carbohydrate do I need?

Activity Level (amount of exercise)	g of carbs. per kg of body weight
Light (less than 1 hour per day)	4 – 5
Light/Moderate (1 hour per day)	5 – 6
Moderate (1-2 hours per day)	6 – 7
Moderate/Heavy (2-4 hours per day)	7 – 8
Heavy (more than 4 hour per day)	8 – 10

The above chart is a very rough guide of how much carbohydrate that different lifestyle groups should take in on a daily basis. It is important that this chart is only used in conjunction with a full nutritional assessment from a trained nutritional therapist.

How do I know if I am not getting enough carbohydrate?

If you experience any of the following symptoms you may not be getting enough carbohydrate in your diet:-

• early fatigue
• reduced training intensity
• reduced training gains
• poor performance
• slow recovery

TOM

Tom Godwin – Personal Trainer – Foresight Fitness Services (Personal Training + Corporate Wellbeing) - Manchester and Cheshire, UK

trainer@foresight-fitness.co.uk

www.foresight-fitness.co.uk