Bananas

Iate a banana today, which I know is not low carb. I went to boot camp today and the banana was soooo good after my work out. I logged it to keep track of it, but geez, 20 carbs in fruit??

All fruit has carbs.

It's a bit like complaining about protein in beef!

Bananas are especially high in natural sugars. Nothing sets my cravings off, raises my actual blood sugar levels to extremes, and throws a wrench into my low carb way of eating and weight loss worse than fruit...bananas especially. To be successful, I avoid them like the plague!

But yeah...they taste good...

At least it had fewer grams of carbs than a serving of flavored yogurt.

Fruits are carbs. Bananas are very high in sugar which is probably why people eat them in buck loads.
so if you are on the Atkins diet they are going to get your bloodugar going and take you out of ketosis very quickly.

A banana is actually a great post-workout snack. Starchy fruits are ok to eat after an intense workout. You just depleted your glycogen storage levels in your muscles and eating the banana will retore those levels without spilling over to your fat stores.

I think a ripe banana would have very little starch

Regarding starch, it probably depends on what you are comparing it to--I'm sure there are some fruits that are more starchy. Your body doesn't digest most of the fiber that you eat, only sugars and starches contribute to the caloric value of a food and its effect on your blood sugar. Starchy fruits and vegetables have a different distribution of carbohydrates than the non-starchy ones. A medium banana (which is starchy) has about 105 calories, 14 g of sugar, 6 g of starch and 3 g of fiber. A medium apple (not starchy), has 118 calories, 18 g of sugar, 0.09 g of starch and 4 g of fiber.

Your body breaks down some forms of starch into glucose rapidly so this is why it's ideal to eat after an intense workout (to refill glycogen stores). Probably not other times (eating it by itself). But yes, there are other foods that have a higher impact on blood suger but a banana is considered a "starchy fruit".

Don't forget vitamins and minerals such as potassium in bananas and other fruit that are vital to health.

Like any food you can abuse it by eating too much but in moderation it's what your body needs and is designed to eat

I am not sure about your source but a ripe banana has vitrually no starch

But you are right it does contain glucose

Which is one reason it is very bad to to eat if you are on teh Atkins diet. Because the last thing you want to do is to rush up your blood sugar levels. The point with a low carb diet is to avoid all that.
So if that is your aim bananas is not really a good idea

In other contexts - it may be fine

I do the Atkins diet and I think the poster is on the Atkins diet so I am just trying to give advice that is relevant tothat particular person.

For us an egg - would be a good post exercise snack.

Yep, on fatsecret.com the thread is tagged as "Atkins".

Shame the UK mirror (and presumably the other mirrors) don't show those tags. :/

My bad for not checking the thread, I know nothing about Atkins, only thought she was asking about bananas. I'll be more careful in the future.

i just havent bought any more bananas. low carb means low carb regardless of how good banana is for you.

That's so funny...my first week on Atkins I was craving bananas like crazy. Once I finally figured out it was the potassium I needed, I now get that from other low carb food that are high in it. Now I realize it was just the sweet banana taste and sugar rush that made me want one after that--that it had nothing more to do with how "good" it was for me... It's no longer worth it for me to even think about buying them!