A trainer coached alpine skiing in New Zealand, and he worked with a
Scottish guy. He was really funny, and a bit insane.

Instead of starting his fires with a bit of newspaper and some
kindling. He’d throw a bunch of wood into the stove, light one
piece of paper, and then toss a can of diesel into the mix.

The whoosh it made was pretty impressive. And you could see flames
coming out the top of the chimney like an after-burn on a jet
engine.

That’s the story that always comes to mind when someone asks me to
explain the concept of “good carbs” and “bad carbs.”

Bad carbs explode into your system–like the diesel stunt–and
cause all sorts of nasty things to happen. Great examples are white
bread, refined sugar, white pasta and even white rice or potatoes.

Good Carbs are more like newspaper and a handful of kindling. They
gradually catch fire and the flames spread slowly throughout the
stove. My favourites are sweet potatoes, oats, butternut squash and
quinoa.

The measure that’s often used to determine good carbs from bad is
the glycemic index. But basically, anything that’s been highly
processed is a bad carb. That means anything that’s bright white is
probably bad.

Here are a few reasons you want to avoid “bad carbs”…

** They spike insulin and make you store more fat

** They cause inflammation–associated with chronic disease

** Inflammation also disrupts fat cell metabolism (and makes you fatter)
** Gluten and other lectins in many “bad carbs” damage the gut

** A damaged gut weakens your immune system, raises cortisol &
makes you store fat

OK, so bad carbs are… well… bad.

So let’s get back to the Good Carbs! One Good Carb that we don’t
talk about much–and that I’ve been playing around with lately–is
buckwheat.

Did you know it’s not a grain at all? It’s actually related to
rhubarb!

So if you are sensitive to gluten, it’s a great choice.

So think twice when making those carb choices.