Guess what you should actually do to lose weight – straighten out the diet rather than splurging your hard-earned money on gimmicky appetite suppressants that hardly work. Do turn your attention towards eating real, natural, and whole foods that would help boost the whole weight loss process. A good diet coupled with the right workout routine can accelerate the rate of fat burning, and you can find all of them on the Rati Beauty Diet. As we have mentioned earlier, you should consume the right amount of nutrients, including protein, vitamins, minerals, complex carbs, fiber, and of course healthy fat when trying to lose weight. And when we talk about carbs, there’s a lot of misconception around “carbs” because certain diets have demonized them, holding them responsible for weight gain. There are two categories of carbs – refined and complex, and we need to segregate refined and complex carbs, and pick the latter. While whole grains, vegetables, etc., are good sources of complex carbs, oats and quinoa are often considered indispensable options. Most of us are confused about which one scores over the other, especially when trying to shed extra weight. So, in this post, we would boil each of these down and tell you, which one is better? Read on:
Why Complex Carbs Are Totally Okay When Trying To Lose Weight?
Carbohydrates are considered an essential part of a balanced diet since they are the primary source of fuel for the body. However, complex carbs are alarmingly getting replaced with refined carbs, which are extremely unhealthy because they lack nutrients, fiber, and have empty calories, all of them leading to weight gain. Here’s what happens – carbs get broken down into simple sugars during the digestion process and get absorbed into the blood from the small intestine. Complex carbs are digested slowly and do not raise blood sugar level or spike insulin rapidly. On the other hand, refined carbs can also be called “diet saboteurs” because they have high amount of empty calories without any significant nutrient value that get digested fast, raise blood sugar level, and trigger a sharp insulin response. As we all know, insulin is also a hormone that commands your body to store fat, and more the insulin spikes, more are the chances of all those extra empty calories getting stored as fat, especially around the belly region. Dieticians and health experts always underline the importance of cutting out refined carbs from the diet and switching to complex carbs, not only to lose weight but to improve overall health as well. Also, a daily diet rich in refined carbs makes it difficult to access stored body fat even with intense exercise routine because the body torches up carbs made readily available through food instead of stored fat. While it has become a fad to eliminate all forms of carbs to drop weight, for most of us, it’s not a sustainable way of dieting. Instead of totally cutting out carbs, make that important switch from refined carbs to complex carbs. And oats and quinoa are considered as good sources of complex carbs by experts.
How Oats Benefits Weight Loss?
Oatmeal, with the scientific name Avena sativa, comes in rolled, steel cut, whole, steamed, flour, and instant varieties and considered one of the healthiest breakfast options out there since it is low in calories, rich in beta-glucan (a type of soluble fiber), protein, and a host of other essential trace minerals like copper, iron, manganese, zinc, magnesium, folate, etc. Oatmeal has the ability to absorb liquid and with its high fiber content (beta glucan) keeps your tummy full for a longer period of time; without the need to snack often, keep you from packing on unwanted calories through the day. Studies have revealed that people who eat oatmeal for breakfast feel fuller for longer and do not crave for food during the course of the day. Though oatmeal has carb content, those are complex carbs that do not spike insulin and raise blood sugar levels. It’s also gluten free and rich in antioxidants. That’s a whole lot of nutrients packed in a simple bowl of oatmeal, which may look boring, but a great meal option if you are trying to lose weight. There are so many health benefits attached to oatmeal that it should be a part of everyone’s diet, irrespective of whether one wants to lose weight or not.
Nutrient Information of Oatmeal:
In terms of nutritional value, one cup of oatmeal has just 300 calories and 10 grams of protein, 5 grams of fat, and 8 grams of fiber and 0.8 gram of natural sugar. Oatmeal is rich in fiber which helps you feel fuller for a long period of time which will in turn help you control over snacking and binging. Now, regarding the fat percentage in oats, it mainly differs on the type of oats you consume. Whole oats contain more fat than most other grains, ranging from 5-9%. It consists mostly of unsaturated fatty acids. Pure oats are gluten free. You can make overnight rolled oats, smoothies, even rotis with oats.
How Quinoa Benefits Weight Loss?
It’s considered one of the healthiest grains on the planet (12 Healthiest Foods to Begin Eating for Weight Loss) and indispensable in any weight loss plan due to its high fiber and protein content, and also complex carbs. Quinoa is packed with protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals, fiber, protein, and healthy fats. It’s one of the best “plant-based” protein source with one cup of quinoa providing up to 8 gm of protein. This grain has a metabolism-boosting enzyme called betaine and also lysine which is an amino acid which aids in fat burning. It also has antioxidants and other essential minerals, and helps regulate blood sugar. Quinoa has also a good dose of antioxidants such as quercetin, kaempferol that fight free radicals. What’s amazing is that, it’s absolutely gluten free and keeps you full for long hours. Since quinoa has anti-inflammatory properties, it’s great for for healthy bacteria in the gut. You can add quinoa to salads to soups, and even use it for baking cakes.
Nutrient Information of Quinoa:
It’s rich in complex carbs, protein, fiber, healthy fats. One cup of quinoa (approximately 200 gm) contains up to 200 calories. In 100 gm of quinoa – 120 calories, 4.4 gm of protein, 21.3 carbs, fiber 2.8 gm, fat 1.9 gm. Quinoa also contains antioxidants, iron, zinc, manganese, copper, phosphorous, folate, iron, magnesium, and zinc.
Quinoa vs Oats – Which One is Better?
Answering the question – which one is better for weight loss – here are some facts:
Both quinoa and oats are considered as weight-loss friendly foods with their good complex, protein, fiber, calcium, and healthy fat content. Though oats is slightly higher in calories, you cannot ignore the fact that it does tally well on the nutrient score. Both of them have low glycemic indexes as well. For those with gluten intolerance, both oats and quinoa tick the boxes. Quinoa has a slightly higher carb content and oats has just a tab bit higher fat content, protein value remains the same and so does calorie count. Summing up, both quinoa and oats are nutrient dense and boost weight loss process. And that’s why weight loss diets on Rati Beauty app gives you the option to eat both these grains, and teach you how to maintain calorie deficit in order to lose weight successfully.
12 Healthiest Foods to Begin Eating for Weight Loss
10 Best Type of Rotis to Boost Weight Loss
