High Fiber / Low Carb Foods

[paelthom]

I'm trying to find a list or even better a book that gives me information on which foods are High Fiber but are also Low Carb. Does anyone have any favorite links or book recommendations to suggest? I'm not so much looking for a diet as I'm just looking for food suggestions. I really need high fiber foods but I also need to cut back on the carbs.

[Nath.]

All vegetables, esp. green leafy are high in fiber and very low in carbs.

Green bean, salad, aspargus, brocoli, cabbage, cauliflower, celery etc...

Why do you want to cut on carbs. Carbs are good for you. Your body needs carbs for energy. Instead of cutting your carbs, choose thems better. Reduce your intake of simple carbs (anything processed is simple carbs) bread, pastas, rice cake, white rice, candy, cookies, cake etc....

and subtitute thems with rich fibers complex carbs. Oat, brown rice, cream of wheat are all goods choices. Not only are they rich in various nutrients, but since they are slow digestible, they will also help your regulate (sp?) your blood sugar level, avoiding insulin spike, which is not the case with simple carbs.

Nath

[canadian gardener]

veggies, esp salad greens. I ditto Nath above.

I've been getting those clear tubs of Earthbound Farms organic salad greens (spring mix or baby greens mix) from Costco the cheapest.

Ready to eat. Good price. As for fiber, it's all fiber pretty much, zippo for the carbs.

Toss with a little HM salad drsng and you've died (or dieted, same diff) and gone to low carb heaven.

I like the following drsgs:

Sour Cream, mix with a little lemon juice and splenda and a crushed clove of garlic. Play with it till it's as sweet or runny as you like.

Balsamic vinegar, Olive oil, crushed garlic.

Red Wine Vinegar, olive oil and mixed Italian herbs and crushed garlic. Italian herbs are usually basil, oregano and sometimes a little red pepper flakes for kick but you can used mixed Italian or Herbs de Provence. Sprinke salad with Parmesan.

For a more oriental bite, use rice wine vinegar, dark sesame oil for flavour, a little ordinary plain veg oil, and sprinkle the salad with sesame seeds.

For a few carbs use orange juice squeezed from an orange, a few drops of dark sesame oil, a few drops of soy sauce and sprinklewith sesame seeds.

For crunch and more fiber still low carb sprinkle with almonds, slivered, or chopped walnuts.

[paelthom]

Thank you both.

Nath - I should have been more clear. I don't want to cut out my carbs but I've realized that I primarily eat only carbs - simple carbs - and I want to do a better job of regulating my blood sugar. I spike terrible just an hour after eating lunch for example. I've realized that I need to eat lots more fiber because I'm always hungry so obviously what I'm eating isn't sticking around and the carbs I eat need to be better ones. Donuts for breakfast just isn't working any more

[Nath.]

The best tips I could give you to regulated your blood sugar and avoid insulin spike hour after eating lunch are the following.

Eat small frequent meal. NEVER go more than 2.5-3hrs without eating a little something. This way you will provinde your body constant level of nutrients and will not spike or crash.

Eat proteins and veg's at EACH of your meal. NEVER eat carbs alone. Fiber and protein are slow to digest, and with thems you will avoid the insulin spike you could get if you eat carbs alone.

Switch simple carbs for complex carb....Oat, brown rice, cream of wheat, shreeded wheat are good one.

Your meals needs to be small.

Ex:

An apple, 1/2C of cottage cheese, sprinkle with an hadfull of Vanilla Special K.

3-4oz of cook chicken with 1/2C brown rice, and a huge salad, with dressing mention above by CG is excellent. You need a little sweet....eat ff, sf jello.

You are in a rush for breakfast....a bowl of WW & bran shreedded wheat with 1/2C skim milk and a glass of OJ is perfect.

Don't try to change everything at the same time. Go by baby step.

Good luck

[paelthom]

Thank you. I'm going to make a grocery store run tonight and start by working on what I eat for breakfast. Once I get that in better control, I'll move on to each of the other meals. I really feel that breakfast and what I eat for snacks are my worst areas of poor nutrition. Also portion size is something I need to work on.

[Nath.]

Excellent! Keep me updated

[cheapgeek]

I respectfully disagree on the necessity of carbohydrate foods. The body has no requirement for grains or sugar in any form. I've never been in better health since giving them up almost completely three years ago, and relying on veggies, berries, nuts and seeds as my carb sources.

I know not everyone has a sugar addiction like I did; it's a matter of figuring out what your problem foods are, and dealing with the problem by being honest with yourself.

My personal faves for high fiber are flax seed, avocados, and spinach. Flax seed is a real super-food; great for making pancakes and baked goods, loaded with fiber and omega-3 fatty acids.

Best of luck to you!

[paelthom]

Question on the flax seeds: Do you grind your own or buy them already ground? Are there benefits to eating them without grinding them (I'm thinking like you would eat sunflower seeds)?

[cheapgeek]

I buy them whole and grind them in my coffee grinder as needed. If you don't grind them... they'll pretty much go right through you. You can buy pre-ground, but they spoil very easily.