Lower Your Carbohydrate Intake With These 7 Strategies
The American diet is definitely not deficient in carbohydrates. In fact, the average American eats too many carbohydrates, leading to a caloric surplus and weight gain. In an effort to reduce your carbohydrate intake yet help keep you full and satiated, here are a few clever swaps you can implement into your nutrition plan.
First, let’s discuss a little reasoning behind why you would even want to do this. Cutting back on your carbohydrate intake is an excellent way to lose weight. Being that most people get the bulk of their calories from carbs, it makes sense why we would want to eliminate some, where we can, by making substitutions.
Additionally, when you lower your carbohydrate intake, you may find that you naturally drop some water weight. This, in itself, does not eliminate body fat, but it can help sharpen your look and reduce any smoothness or puffiness that can be hiding your musculature.
Related Article: Carbs 101 — The Many Benefits of Carbohydrates
Now, let’s dive into the meat and potatoes of this article (a little food humor).
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and is not meant to treat or diagnose any condition. It is recommended that you speak with your doctor before starting any exercise program, changing your daily nutrition, or adding any supplements to your regimen.
Table of contents
7 Strategies to Lower Your Carbohydrate Intake
If you’re trying to lower your carbohydrate intake, these strategies below will be incredibly helpful!
1. Swap Lettuce in Place of Bread
When you think of a sandwich or a burger, you generally think of having something between two slices of bread, buns, or rolls. This clever way to lower your carbohydrate intake is going to completely flip the script and swap out an unhealthy carb for a healthy one.
Rather than using white bread or another bun option, opt for lettuce. Take two large leaves of lettuce and put your sandwich or burger contents between them. The lettuce will provide you with next to nothing in terms of calories and carbs while still holding your sandwich together and providing you with a crispness when you bite into it.
Many restaurants are also using this alternative, so when you eat out, ask them if they can put your meal on lettuce instead, and they should be more than happy to oblige if you’re trying to lower your carbohydrate intake.
2. Switch from Cereal to Oatmeal
Skip the highly processed and refined sugary cereals you find on the shelves and, instead, make yourself a bowl of oatmeal to help lower your carbohydrate intake. Yes, these are still carbs, but the overall calories and total grams coming from carbohydrates will be dramatically less.
Related Article: Make These 9 Swaps to Drastically Reduce Your Calories
The key is to make plain oatmeal — not the flavored kind that is loaded with sugar. If you want to spruce up the oatmeal and add a little flavor to it, add some cinnamon, Splenda, fruit, or even protein powder to your oatmeal.
3. Opt for Spaghetti Squash Instead of Pasta
For many, this may sound absolutely disgusting, but hear me out. Spaghetti squash is a fantastic swap when you are trying to lower your carbohydrate intake. Add some protein-packed meatballs and a little sauce, and you won’t even know the dish is sans pasta.
Spaghetti squash isn’t all that flavorful, so you won’t even really feel like you’re eating a vegetable in place of the standard bowl of pasta. You can even make your spaghetti squash with some garlic and extra virgin olive oil to add some flavor to it if you wish.
4. Change from Carb-Filled Snacks to Protein-Filled
You can really fill in the blank here with any snack you enjoy eating — potato chips, pretzels, etc. If you are looking to lower your carbohydrate intake, look for a protein-filled option like nuts. You could even find a bunch of options at the grocery store, like snacks made from chickpeas, beef or turkey jerky, and similar.
Related Article: Should You Eat MORE Resistant Starches in Your Diet?
There are also some low-carb pre-packaged snacks you could grab if you are really craving something. The pre-packaged variety will help keep you honest with your portions instead of opening a bag of something and continually finding your hand reaching in until you hit the bottom, and by then, it’s too late.
Something else to consider would be protein bars and nutrition bars. These have a good amount of protein, and depending on what you choose, they can help lower your carbohydrate intake.
5. Focus on Your Vegetable Choices
Greens will always be your friend — despite the relationship you may have with them. Spinach, kale, broccoli, lettuce, asparagus, and celery are great options. Opt for these options over something like a loaded baked potato to take in some helpful micronutrients as well as fiber to help keep you full and satiated.
You can fill up on greens to add volume to your meals. This can help keep your calories low while still trying to lower your carbohydrate intake.
6. Try an Open-Faced Sandwich
Sometimes you just crave something on a piece of bread or toast. If that’s the case, split the difference by eliminating half of the sandwich. An open-faced sandwich will have the contents sitting on top of a single piece of bread. This can help you lower your carbohydrate intake without truly eliminating something you may enjoy eating.
Avocado toast seemed to set the tone for this swap as many people are taking in some healthy fats while getting a nice crisp piece of toast, providing some crunch. If you’re going this route, try to choose a whole-grain bread and try to stay away from those that are highly refined.
7. Use Cauliflower in Place of Potatoes and Dough
Cauliflower? Yes, cauliflower. I can already sense some of you are turning green.
There is a huge trend these days of items like cauliflower rice, cauliflower pizza crust, and cauliflower mashed potatoes. Making this swap can drastically lower your carbohydrate intake while still providing you the ability to eat something similar to the common foods you are accustomed to eating.
You can either make these items fresh at home, or many grocery stores now sell specific brands that produce cauliflower-based ingredients. Full disclosure, some of these items do not taste like their alternative. However, if you are craving something but still want to follow your nutritional preferences and lower your carbohydrate intake, this can be an invaluable swap.
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