Monday, August 12

Eat Skittles to Build Muscles and Lose Fat


We live in an age where consumption of sugar and sweets has climbed to an all-time high and it's been associated with obesity and countless diseases such as diabetes and heart failure. But, what if we can actually consume sugar as part of a healthy diet and not store fat in the process?


Read on for the answer.


First, let me say that whole grains are a staple in any healthy and balanced diet. Foods such as brown rice, whole wheat pasta, whole wheat bread and sweet potatoes should be consumed on daily basis. These carb sources are low-glycemic, which means slow-digesting. They will supply the
body with a steady dose of blood sugar, while providing a sustained energy and satiation for a longer period of time. Not only that, but they contain fibers and they're rich in vitamins and minerals.






But there's a time of the day where simple sugars are a king. I'll let you in on the science:


Your body stores carbohydrates inside your muscles. After an intense workout session, the glycogen stored in those muscles is burned for energy and gets depleted. The body then starts to get into a catabolic state, which means it will start looking for source of energy inside of the body it can use. To prevent it from tapping into your muscle reserves and prevent muscle breakdown, we need to provide it, within 30 minutes after training, a supply of glucose to restore glycogen reserves and start the recovery process.
Intense training depletes muscle glycogen



This is the time we need simple sugars, such as glucose, to have along our protein shake.
Simple sugars such as Skittles and Gummy Bears are a great option because they're mostly made of dextrose (another name for glucose).


smart post-workout nutrition: a small bag of skittles along with a protein shake



 Be careful not to choose candies that contain fat, as these will certainly slow down absorption.


Why not having some fruits instead?

Sugar in fruits is called fructose and this form of sugar is mostly low-glycemic, which means slow-digesting. What happens is that after consumption, it has to get into the liver and be processed before getting into the bloodstream, which takes time and makes it less than ideal to have after training (Only a small number of fruits is high-glycemic and suitable post-workout such as watermelon and dates).

While glucose on the other hand is like injecting sugar right into the bloodstream. it's not really processed by the liver so they're in there quick.


consuming glucose is like injecting sugar right into your bloodstream















When the body detects that glucose, it secretes insulin which will cause an insulin spike, and that's exactly what we need after workout.


What is an insulin spike?

Insulin is a hormone secreted by the pancreas. What happens is that it drives glucose into our cells quickly.


so, that insulin spike is beneficial to let the glucose into the muscles quick while pushing essential nutritions like the amino acids consumed from a protein shake.


How much of a dose?


After a real vigorous training session, reward yourself with about one small bag of Skittles or 20-30 gummy bears. Enjoy it guilt-free, as it will help push nutrients to your muscles which is necessary for recovery and lean muscle development.

Skittles can be found at major supermarkets across Lebanon




If you enjoyed reading and want me to keep writing useful articles like this one, please click on like and share it among your friends. 

Should you also have any questions, post them in the comments section below and I would be pleased to answer you.






9 comments:

  1. I would doubt that the carbs in skittles would be different than in any other candy, which is sucrose.

    Sucrose is metabolized into both fructose and glucose (60% / 40%).

    This makes starches (metabolized into 100% glucose) a better tool for refeeds since fructose can't be stored by the muscles but only by the liver.

    But this seems to be an ad for skittles or a supermarket :) so whatever :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Mike, I did not invent this information. I am simply providing my readers with facts.
    There are many people who enjoy eating candies, and to succumb to those temptations after workout is possible and scientifically proven to be beneficial. Knowing how our bodies work allows us to trigger insulin spikes to our advantage.
    Now regarding Skittles, you can choose any other candy of your liking given it contains no fat which will slow absorption, I reiterate. Choose gummy bears if you enjoy them more. They're mostly glucose syrup.
    Having lived and trained in Germany, I had access to dextrose tablets, wonka sticks and other candies that are 100% dextrose.
    By the way, if you know other supermarkets that sell candies made primarily with glucose, please share. Cheers. Djoe mitri.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Again, in order to sound more credible, I suggest you check the label of candies to gain insight before discussing it. Skittles contains glucose from the sucrose as well as corn syrup which is two glucose molecules attached together. Again, I choose skittles because I like them... It's a matter of choice really.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Skittles is unfortunately corn syrup (60% fructose) and not glucose syrup (98% glucose).

    Basically skittles is equivalent to eating lollipops or simply white table sugar (sucrose).

    I would recommend GLUCOSE syrup for restoring glycogen stores, but NOT corn syrup (just for the same reason you don't recommend fruits which are high in fructose. Corn syrup is high in fructose too)

    Maybe the lebanese skittles are made of glucose syrup, but the ones around me (France) are definitely corn syrup (I just double checked the nutrition label)

    Anyway thanks for constructively sharing the info and best of luck.

    ReplyDelete
  5. You are obviously ignorant of the difference between corn syrup vs high-fructose corn syrup. The more general term glucose is often used synonymously with corn syrup, since glucose syrup in the United States is most commonly made from corn starch.

    Skittles contain corn syrup, which is maltose. In simple terms it's two glucose molecules bound together. In even simpler terms corn syrup = glucose.


    You can also find the following in Wikipedia:
    Corn syrup is distinct from high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), which is created when corn syrup undergoes enzymatic processing, producing a sweeter compound that contains higher levels of fructose.

    I include the references below for you.

    Best of luck for you too.


    References:

    ^ Structure of the world starch market, European Commission - Directorate Agricultural and Rural development, Evaluation of the Community Policy for Starch and Starch Products, Final report 2002, Chapter 1, page 3

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corn_syrup#cite_ref-1

    ReplyDelete
  6. More references:

    http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/place-london/plain/A633089
    http://message.snopes.com/showthread.php?t=39519
    http://www.chacha.com/question/what-are-skittles-made-of

    Let me know Mike if you need even more references for your private collection.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I'll even go to the end with you to show you how corn syrup=glucose syrup.

    In the United States, a bag of Skittles candy contains: sugar, corn syrup, hydrogenated palm kernel oil, apple juice from concentrate, less than 2% - citric acid, dextrin, natural and artificial flavors, gelatin, food starch-modified, coloring (includes Yellow 6 lake, Red 40 lake, Yellow 5 lake, Blue 2 lake, Blue 1 lake, Yellow 5, Red 40, Yellow 6, Blue 1), ascorbic acid (Vitamin C).

    In Europe, a bag of Skittles candies contains: sugar, glucose syrup, fruit juices (5.1%), hydrogenated vegetable fat, citric acid & trisodium citrate, dextrin, maltodextrin, flavourings & colourings (E100, E120, E132, E160e, E171), glazing agents, vegetable oil, ascorbic acid and emulsifier (E475).[3]


    Why do they use corn syrup in the USA? simply because they have a lot of corn. They get their glucose syrup from corn starch.
    Had there been high fructose in corn syrup, they would have been obliged to put HFCS (high fructose corn syrup) on the label.

    ReplyDelete
  8. :)

    You are missing the point of your own article.

    1- In your article you recommend a simple glucose source to fill your muscle stores
    2- You also say that fruits are not appropriate to fill muscle glycogen because they contain fructose
    3- The skittles are NOT mainly glucose as you say, they contain plenty of fructose (you list yourself "sugar" as being an ingredient of skittles). Sugar is 50% fructose at least, usually around 60% fructose.
    4- Corn syrup or glucose syrup itself is not a strong sweetener, it is used mainly for texture. Sugar is what gives skittles their sweet taste, and it is the major ingredient in skittles (and most industrial sweets)

    My point, which I repeat, is since you don't recommend fruits for restoring muscle glycogen, you should not recommend skittles either, for the same reason.

    In my previous reply above I used the term "corn syrup" instead of "sugar" which may have gotten you confused, my mistake.

    Nevertheless my point remains the same: skittles (and other sweets) contain sugar (in high percentage) which contains fructose (in high percentage) in addition to other colourings and chemicals which are out of scope of this discussion.

    So

    Article inconsistency number 1: Recommending skittles and not fruits simply don't make sense. They both contain high fructose which is the reason you say you don't recommend fruits.

    And

    Inconsistency number 2: saying that skittles is made mostly of glucose is inaccurate. It is 50% glucose at best, which is the case of most industrial sweets and candies which contain "sugar" or high fructose corn syrup.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Your whole comment is a funny deductive fallacy. I recommend skittles as well as other high glucose candies such as gummy bears, you said you 'recommend' glucose too, therefore you agree with me and prove me 100% right.

    Moreover, it would have served you to better educate yourself about insulin spikes, and what causes them more, whether fruits or candies, and then come resort to your ad hominem attacks.

    Further attacks from you will not be tolerated and you will be blocked.

    ReplyDelete