White Pasta vs Whole Wheat Pasta?

the problem people have with white/enriched flour is that a lot of the nutrients are not in it. if you're a runner - eating something like 3500 calories a day - it's rather unlikely that you're somehow missing the nutrients that would otherwise be in there. use them for quick and cheap carbs while making sure that you're getting the other nutrients you need. there are a heck of lot worse things out there to eat.

and, yes, kenyans who kick your ass eat it regularly. for those interested in the diet of some of the best runners in the world, check out the chasing kimbia posts on it:

http://www.chasingkimbia.com/?cat=12

Eating anything made with white flour is like eating sugar - it is empty carb calories with none of the nutrients. 100% whole wheat is a high quality carb that eats like a protein, and it is filling and provides healthy energy carbs. Same thing applies with white rice vs. brown rice. Your friend wins.

just because you are fast does not mean you are healthy.

Does white pasta affect energy levels? We always have team carbo-loading parties usually two days before our meets and we usually use white pasta because it's cheap. If i cook for myself i eat whole wheat, but when you're serving 40 people it gets to be a bit too expensive!

Health Nut wrote: Eating anything made with white flour is like eating sugar - it is empty carb calories with none of the nutrients.

chuck d gave good info as usual. If you're running enough to call it distance training, you shouldn't be using the phrase "empty carb calories". Leave that term to your 50 pound overweight office coworkers who "do cardio" half an hour twice a week when they're feeling super motivated.

Especially right after your run, your body will be very happy to turn refined carbs into the glycogen your body requires to recover for tomorrow's run(s). It'll also happily do the same with whole wheat pasta or brown rice but it's not like the refined carbs are a deadly poison, and it's not like someone who's running 12, 15, 20 miles a day ought to be thinking of calories or carbs as the enemy.

Health Nut wrote:

Eating anything made with white flour is like eating sugar - it is empty carb calories with none of the nutrients.

this is ridiculous. look up the nutritional information for white flour. then look up the nutritional information for sugar.

yes, wheat is better. but calling white flour "empty carb calories with none of the nutrients" is just plain wrong. and equating it with sugar is inane.

but it's not like the refined carbs are a deadly poison,

True, but whole grains will be kinder to your pancreas, as well as benefit your muscle development with their higher protein content.

I looked at that Kimbia link, but didn't see much about Kenyans eating refined white carbs, other than the fact that they eat white bread while living in the U.S. In fact, it appears that their usual diet consists of whole grains in some form plus proteins and vegetables. Also, keep in mind that even Kenyans could benefit from eliminating refined white bread from their diets. Perhaps their health and performance would improve.

One big reason the kenyans kick our asses is because they don't waste a single second worrying over issues like white flour vs whole wheat. They don't have time. They are too busy actually RUNNING.

Health Nut wrote:

but it's not like the refined carbs are a deadly poison,

True, but whole grains will be kinder to your pancreas, as well as benefit your muscle development with their higher protein content.

The protein difference is small, about a gram per serving (around 7.5 to 8.5).

why run like a mad man, when you can just eat healthy? :) (and what am I doing on this message board...) :)

I think, in the long run, it can't be optimal for your health to eat refined carbs and a lot of calories and run very much.

chuck d wrote:

the problem people have with white/enriched flour is that a lot of the nutrients are not in it.

the problem with foods that cause rapid rises in blood sugar and insulin is that they age people. inflammation in the arteries, wrinkles in the skin, ...

just because the kenyans do something doesn't mean we should always emulate it or else you'll end up looking like Bob Kennedy.

ilkka wrote: the problem with foods that cause rapid rises in blood sugar and insulin is that they age people. inflammation in the arteries, wrinkles in the skin, ...

My doctor says my heart's A-OK and people often can't believe I'm 40. Hell, I'm so damn young for my age my immaturity even comes through on l-run. Somehow the sugar I enjoy in my coffee, ice cream and other deserts, etc. hasn't given me that yoda-kids disease where you age seven times as fast as normal people.

And have you never noticed how much timing matters? Sure, you eat an enormous bowl o' sugared spaghetti with honey on top some random time of day, your blood sugar will go through the roof about fifteen minutes before completely crashing. Eat the same meal five minutes after a long run or interval workout, and your body snarfs it right up and thanks you for it.

That - and a little protein - is exactly what your body *prefers* after a hard workout. Which is why we crave sweets: evolution (or God, intelligent design, or the flying [whole wheat] spaghetti monster, whichever you prefer) didn't just play a cruel joke on us to make us into fat couch potatoes, it made us want to eat exactly what would do us the most good... assuming we were super active, like we were before the industrial revolution.

Good point about the timing of the meal. Two weeks ago I started my run later then planned and had to rush to meet a friend for ice cream (a pre-arranged hang out session). Consequently, I didn't get to eat dinner and ate the ice cream before my meal. Well, after eating a medium sized ice cream cone, I found that I was about 1/10th as hungry as after a typical post run meal of spaghetti or pizza that has way more calories. I'm not planning on switching to ice cream after every training run, but I did learn the importance of quickly restoring your glycogen stores.

phillie phan wrote: after eating a medium sized ice cream cone

"Without ice cream, there would be darkness and chaos." Don Kardong, Olympian (and third place among the clean marathoners that day)

If you're a phillie phan actually in Philthydelphia, I envy your access to Capogiro Gelato. I'll be there marathon weekend to enjoy some, along with a nice DiNic's roast pork sandwich with spicy greens.

Plain white pasta (mac or spaghetti) smothered REAL BUTTER and a pinch of salt.

Mmmmmmmmmmmm

Nothing better in life (except my wife).

40 is not that old. with age EVERYBODY is going to get problems. you can only slow down the developement of these problems and the gradual decline of your health. of course being super active protects from poor diet, but still I dont't think it's the best strategy. I mean being too active must wear you down in the long run. exercise induces free radicals or something. :) evolution did not create these refined carbohydrates. they are not suitable for human consumption. :) the natural sweets are healthy. and evolution doesn't care if people live over 30 years of age. :)

I put a couple of drops of whole wheat flour under my tongue every day and I started feeling stronger and able to recover better.. oh wait, that was something else, never mind.