MY (RP Strenght) Favorite Carbs

Before I started on the RP Strength diet I was a bit scared of carbs. But now I know better and I’ve learned to enjoy eating it and also understand how they make me perform better. So, here are my (RP Strength) favorite carbs! This can easily be applied to any diet!!

At the beginning of my RP strength journey, I was a bit confused about what carbs were good for when (at which stage in the diet and at what time of the day). So, here is an overview of carbs and when they could fit into your diet. 

When I decide what carbs to eat there’s a couple of things I think about: 

1. How carb-dense is the food source? 
2. Can I food prep this? 
3. Does cooking this food require a lot of attention? 
4. How is the experience combining it with other foods?

Let’s kick it off with number 1! 

How carb-dense is the food source? 

This is the first thing I think about. It means how much can you eat from this food source. For example, green vegetables are way less carb-dense than a wrap. This means that you can eat way more of the greens than the wrap, which means you’ll get way fuller! 

I found that this is especially important to think about the stricter your diet gets, because the stricter it is the less food you get, and then you really want to max out those carbs.

Also, if you’ve worked out you want to perhaps add some quicker carbs. But in the morning you’d perhaps want your carbs to be slower.

Can I food prep this? 

To me, food I can food prep is of great value! Greens can often get a bit soggy. When you’re already on a deficit eating fresh food which tastes good is important to me. 

This can translate to: greens are difficult to food prep, but sweet potato can be put in the oven and easily eaten cold the next day, making them easy to food prep. 

Does cooking this food require a lot of attention? 

This is sort of a follow-up from the previous point. How active do I have to be in the prepping?

I would like the food to almost cook itself while I do other things.
For example, sweet potato in the oven needs almost no attention while slicing vegetables is much more active cooking.

How is the experience combining it with other foods?

How does the carb source match with the other foods I’ve chosen? This is important to me since I like eating to be a good experience and not just something I have to get through.

I believe this is especially important when dieting. This way you eat slower and enjoy the food better. To me, this takes the edge of dieting, at least the little food I get tastes good! 

I also think about how the carb source is combined with fat sources. 

For example Warm rice with some butter on top will change your life! Baked sweet potato with herb salt and butter, or creme fraiche is delicious!! 

Some examples here are: 

• Rice is excellent with salmon and chicken
• Sweet potato is fantastic with chicken and meat
• Wraps is great if you have minced meat or salmon (and is short on time)
• Salad fitts great with almost all protein sources

My categorization

Below are my personal thoughts on the typical carbs I eat, how I think when I plan, and of course they are also my (RP Strength) favorite carbs. 

1 is the lowest grade (e.g. it require a lot of work or doesn’t taste good to food prep, and 5 is the highest/ best grade)

Carbohydrate source	Carb-dense (how much food for the gram)	Taste (after cooking)	Food prep – taste?	Food prep – time-consuming?	Easy to combine with other foods?	When would I eat this?
Baked sweet potato	4	5	5	5	5	Lunch and dinner. Early in diet.
Sweet potato mash	4	5	4	3	5	Lunch and dinner. Early in diet.
Hasselback sweet potato	4	5	2	3	4	Lunch and dinner. Early in diet.
Sweet potato fries	4	5	1	4	5	Lunch and dinner. Early in diet.
Barbeque potato salad	3	5	5	2	4	Lunch and dinner. Early in diet.
Boiled rice	4	5	3	5	4	Dinner and if I make lunch at home. All phases of diet.
Tabbouleh	4	5	5	3	3	Lunch and dinner. Early diet (can be hard to calculate exact grams).
Pasta	4	4	1	4	3	Dinner and if I make lunch at home. Early and middle of diet.
Bread	1	5	4	1 (buying), 4 (making)	5	Breakfast and lunch. Early diet.
Wrap	1	3	4	5	5	Lunch and dinner. Early diet.
Green vegetables	5	5	3	1	5	All meals. Add some in all phases, but particularly valuable in late phase (strict dieting)
Vegetables (all)	4	5	3	1	5	All meals. Add some in all phases, but particularly valuable in late phase (strict dieting)
Fruit	3	5	4	1	5	Breakfast, in-between (smaller meals), or as additions to casein mouses or smoothie bowls)