10 Healthy Carbohydrate Foods You Must Include

Healthy carbohydrate foods are very essential to know if you are very conscious about your health or you are doing any transformation of your body, like losing weight or gaining weight.

If you want to gain your weight, then I highly recommend you to know the list of healthy carbohydrate foods for weight gain. Because without carbs you hardly gain some weight.

On the other hand, if you are following a weight loss program then you should pick the source of healthy carbohydrate foods very precisely. Because carb is the primary source of fuel in our body.

Although many trainers may suggest you to cutting off your carbohydrate intake. But I personally recommend my clients to cut down carbs and gradually decrease the amount. At that time when you are decreasing your carb intake, you need to know the food list which has healthy carbs for weight loss.

And the reason you need to be precise about the list of good carbs during fat loss is when you are in a cutting phase you are already in a caloric deficit. So, you need to choose any food which is high in vitamins, minerals, fibers, anti-oxidations, etc. Along with that, it should be low in fat.

So, keeping all these things in mind I am going to share a list of healthy carbohydrate foods.

Healthy Carbohydrate Foods In Grains

Grains are the primary source of carbohydrates. There are a lot of grains available which provides carbohydrate. But you need to choose the food sources of carbohydrates which also contains a sufficient amount of other nutrients like protein, fiber, vitamins, minerals and low in fat.

Let’s see those foods what those foods are:

Oats

If you see the diet plan of any bodybuilder you must see that there are oats present in their diet. Most of the cases they consume oatmeal for breakfast.

Because oatmeal is a great source of good carbs for bodybuilding. There are lots of other benefits of oats. It contains a high-quality fiber called beta-glucan and high in antioxidants.

I also consume oats in my breakfast. It makes me full and helps me to reduce hunger.

Nutrition:

1 cup of dry oats brain almost which is almost 81g of oats contains 60g of carbohydrate, of which 8.2g fiber, 10.6g protein, and total 307 cal.

Oat is also high in vitamins and minerals. For example, in 1 cup dry oats contain

thiamin- 0.4mg (25% of DV),

manganese- 2.9mg (147% of DV),

iron- 3.4mg (19% of DV),

phosphorus- 332mg (33% of DV),

magnesium- 112mg (28% of DV), etc. [Source]

Brown Rice

Brown rice is a great lunch meal option for bodybuilding. Even most of the bodybuilders prefer brown rice in their lunch as a good source of carbohydrates.

Brown rice is basically the unpolished version of rice which is the raw rice bran. And the reason it is the unpolished version, it contains lots of fiber, vitamins, and minerals as well.

So, brown rice is also a great source of healthy carbs for weight loss. And I also prefer brown rice to have during your cutting phase. Because of its nutritional value.

Nutrition:

1 cup of cooked brown rice provides almost 216 calories. There are 44.8g of carbohydrates of which 3.5g dietary fiber, 5g of protein, and almost 1.8g fat.

Manganese- 1.8mg (88% of DV)

Selenium- 19.1mg (27% of DV)

Niacin (Vitamin B3)- 3mg (15% of DV)

[Source]

Quinoa

The quinoa is not only one of the healthy high carb foods, but it is also a great source of complete protein. Quinoa is a nice post-workout option to have. It is very easy to cook.

Quinoa is very easy to cook and it will fit in your diet easily. For a diabetic patient, quinoa is a good option to have because it has a low glycemic index.

Nutrition:

1 cup cooked quinoa contains 39.4g of carbohydrate, 5.2g dietary fiber, 8g of protein, and 3.6g fat. There are almost 222cal in 1 cup of cooked quinoa.

Some vitamins and minerals that are high in quinoa:

Manganese- 1.2mg (58% of DV)

Magnesium- 118mg (30% of DV)

Phosphorus- 281mg (28% DV)

Folate (vitamin B9)- 77.7mg (19% of DV)

[Source]

Whole Wheat

Whole wheat is a very cheap source of healthy carbohydrates. It is one of the primary sources of carbohydrate food among the Indians.

Whole wheat is a great source of fiber and complex carbs. It also contains protein but that is an incomplete protein.

Nutrition:

1 cup or 120g of whole wheat flour contains 408 cal. In 120g there is 86g carbohydrate, 13g of fiber, 16g protein, and 3g fat.

Vitamins and minerals that are highly present in whole wheat:

manganese-4.6mg (228% of DV), selenium-84.8mcg (121% of DV), phosphorus-415mg (42% of DV), magnesium-166mg (41% of DV).

[Source]

Corn

Corn is a great source of healthy carbohydrates and fiber. I generally prefer to have it raw, although I am not a corn lover. In the lunch or in the afternoon snack corn can be a good option.

It is a yellow color cereal, though there are several colors available in the market. Whole grain corn is always preferred. I recommend having corn in moderation because of its high amount of carbs and calories.

Nutrition:

In 100 grams of yellow corn provides 365 cal. Almost 74.3g on carbohydrate, 7.3g of fiber, 9.4g of protein, and 4.7g of fat.

Corn is loaded with many vitamins and minerals:

Vitamin B6- 0.6mg (31% of DV)

Thiamin (vitamin B1)- 0.4mg (26% of DV)

Iron- 2.7mg (15% of DV)

Magnesium- 127mg (32% of DV)

Manganese- 0.5mg (24% of DV)

Selenium- 15.5mg (22% of DV)

[Source]

Healthy Carbohydrate Foods In Fruits

Fruits are a great source of natural carbohydrates. There are many types of carbohydrate and sugar is one of them. If fruits there are three types of sugar found in fruits glucose, fructose, and sucrose.

Glucose is the simplest form of all carbohydrates. Brain cells and neurons need glucose to function properly. In our stomach any form of carbohydrate first breaks down into glucose then it goes into the bloodstream.

All these sugars are very good for our health if we eat them in an appropriate amount.

Banana

The banana is my favorite food and I think most you also love to eat the banana. Banana is full of important micronutrients. Ripen banana contains a lot of sugar.

That is why if you want to gain weight, I highly recommend you to add banana in your diet. I personally suggest adding 2-3 banana a day for weight gain, depends on individuals.

But if you want to lose weight then I recommend adding ½ or one banana in pre or post-workout. During weight lose it will provide your body with a lot of vitamins and minerals as well.

Nutrition:

1 medium-size banana which is approximately 118g provides almost 105 calories. You will get almost 27g of carbohydrates, 3.1g of dietary fiber, 1.3g of protein, and 0.4g fat.

Banana is a rich source of vitamins and minerals. In 1 medium-size banana contains:

Vitamin C- 10.3mg (17% of DV)

Vitamin B6- 0.4mg (22% of DV)

Potassium- 422mg (12% of DV)

Manganese- 0.3mg (16% of DV)

[Source]

Apple

Apple is a very tasty food to have. As a pre-workout meal or sometime in the morning snack meal I prefer apple. During weight loss, it helps to reduce the sugar cravings, but you should not eat it over the board.

I personally suggest having the only ½ to one small to medium apple a day considering that you are having other fruits as well.

Nutrition:

1 cup of chopped apple provides 17.3g of healthy carbohydrates, 3g of dietary fiber, almost no protein (0.3g), and no fat (0.2g). From 1 cup of apple, you will get almost 65 cal.

In that amount of apple contains vitamin C- 5.7mg (10% of DV), Vitamin K- 2.8mcg (3% of DV). [Source]

Mango

Although mango is a seasonal fruit it tastes awesome. Mango is high in natural sugar, anti-oxidants, and fiber as well. It is loaded with vitamins and minerals, which helps to boost the immunity power.

If you one of them who wants to gain weight, then you can definitely add mango in your diet. You can have it raw as a snack or make a smoothie.

Nutrition:

1 cup sliced mango provides almost 107cal. In one cup you will have 28g of carbohydrate, 3g of fiber, o.8g of protein, and 0.4g of fat.

Vitamins and minerals in 1 cup mango:

Vitamin A- 1262IU (25% of DV)

Potassium- 257mg (7% of DV)

Copper- 0.2mg (9% of DV)

Vitamin C- 45.7mg (76% of DV)

Vitamin B6- 0.2mg (11% of DV)

[Source]

List Of Good Carbs In Vegetables

Although vegetables are not the primary source of carbohydrate some of them provide a decent amount of healthy carbs. Vegetables are a great source of vitamins and minerals.

Most of the vegetables are also high in dietary fiber and loaded with anti-oxidants. So, for any type of body transformation, I highly recommend including a lot of vegetables in your diet.

Sweet Potato

In the post-workout meal, sweet potato is many bodybuilders’ choice. Sweet potato is very tasty and convenient as well. I really like the taste of sweet potato. And as a post-workout baked potato is just amazing.

Nutrition:

1 cup baked sweet potato which is almost 200g contains 180 calories. In 200g sweet potato, there are 41.4g carbs, 4g protein, and 0.3g fat.

Vitamins and minerals in 1 cup sweet potato:

Vitamin A- 38433 IU (769% of DV)

Vitamin C- 29.2 mg (65% of DV)

Manganese- 1 mg (50% of DV)

Potassium- 950 mg (27% of DV)

[Source]

Beetroot

You can eat beetroots or beet raw or baked. I prefer the baked one but sometimes I add beetroot in my salad. It tastes a little sweet, that is because of the presence of natural sugar.

Beetroot is highly inflammatory and anti-oxidant. Some studies show that beetroot controls blood pressure in check.

Nutrition:

1 cup of raw beetroot which is almost 136g of beetroot provides 58.5 cal. In this amount, you will get 13g of carbohydrate, 3.8g of fiber, 2.2g protein, and almost zero fat.

Vitamins and minerals in 1 cup of beetroot:

Vitamin C- 6.7mg (11% of DV)

Folate (Vitamin B9)- 148mcg (37% of DV)

Potassium- 442mg (13% of DV)

[Source]

Conclusion

Carbohydrate is the primary source of fuel in our body. But there is also many foods that are not a good source of carbohydrate at all. Like all the fast foods, fried foods, junk foods, etc. you must keep in mind that you need to consume quality food with the proper quantity.

Bad carbohydrates can gain your fat, as well as overeating of healthy carbohydrates, also do the same thing.

These healthy carbohydrate foods are great for building muscle and in moderation, it is good for weight loss. From this healthy carbs list choose the food according to your taste and adjust it in your diet.

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Cheers!

Anirban