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The Truth About Whole Grains

Listen to the post, The Truth About Whole Grains, on our Live Lean TV Podcast. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast!

4 Reasons Why You Should Limit Grains

On today’s episode of Live Lean TV, I’m sharing the truth about whole grains, including 4 reasons why you should limit grains.

That’s right.

So you want the truth about whole grains?

You can’t handle the truth!

Or maybe you can.

Trust me, you’re either going to love this topic or hate it.

Let’s find out.

2020 Update:

I filmed this back in 2013, and looking back at it now, I kind of cringe.

I say this because back then, I was very absolute in my statement that you should avoid grains, except during your cheat meals.

Although, I still stand behind the idea of limiting grains, since Living Lean is a lifestyle, I just want you to find balance.

So if I could re-film this, I would simply replace the word “avoid”, with “limit”.

Enjoy 😉.

Here’s The Live Lean Truth About Whole Grains

First, let me state the obvious.

We all know processed grains are not healthy for you.

Take The 21 Day No Wheat Challenge

Processed grains are essentially empty calories, containing little to no fiber, or any other nutritional value.

Although whole grains are better than processed grains, it’s not by very much.

Unfortunately this is what many people don’t get, but it’s not your fault.

It’s the food marketers, and their best friends, the government, who are at fault.

These “trusted” authorities are literally feeding you crap via food and misinformation.

Grains Fortified With Nutrients Are Not Much Better

Even if the label on the package says it’s fortified with vitamins and minerals, here’s a reality check.

Those fortified nutrients are synthetic, meaning very little, if any, are actually being absorbed by your body.

In other words, it could just be a complete waste.

Grains Are High On The Glycemic Index

In addition to adding extra calories with no health benefits, these processed grains are also high on the glycemic index.

Glycemic Index vs. Glycemic Load Food Chart

Foods high on the glycemic index can raise your blood sugar very quickly.

When your blood sugar rises quickly, it begins the fat storing process, as well as a whole bunch of other issues.

Blood sugar spikes can cause:

  • crazy energy fluctuations that make you just want to go to bed 😴
  • even crazier food cravings that will make you eat the crust off a complete stranger’s plate 🍕
  • my favorite, the crazy mood swings that will make you question if your significant other actually loves you 😂

So should you just replace processed grains with whole grains?

Whole Grains Are Not Much Healthier Than Processed Grains

With all of these unhealthy outcomes, of course the solution is to simply swap out processed grains for whole grains, right?

Well according to your always trustworthy government, the answer would be yes.

But according to anyone Living Lean, the answer is a big hell no!

Here Are 4 Reasons Why You Should Limit Whole Grains To Live Lean

It’s time for me to clarify the 4 reasons why you should limit whole grains.

#1. Whole Grains Are Not A Whole Natural Food

Unlike vegetables and fruit, you can’t just go out and pick a stalk of wheat, and eat it.

Whole grains are first processed and grounded into flour before they are eaten. 

So by definition, whole grains are not really “whole” at all.

In fact, whole grain flour is not much better for you than regular flour.

Sprouted Whole Grain Bread vs Regular Whole Wheat Bread

#2. Whole Grains Are Not The Best Source Of Fiber

How many of you think whole grain bread is a good source of fiber?

I’m glad I’m hearing crickets.

The truth is whole grain bread contains very little fiber. 

Some brands of whole grain bread and pasta only contains 1-2 grams of fiber.

This is close to the same amount of fiber as white bread or pasta.

Now let’s compare that to the 8 grams of fiber in a cup of raspberries, or 5 grams of fiber in a cup of broccoli.

Vegetables and fruit are the real high fiber foods.

The 22 Best High Fiber Foods For Weight Loss

#3. Whole Grains Can Have A Crazy Effect On Your Blood Sugar

Whole grains do not help balance your blood sugar.

Most people think whole grains do not negatively effect your blood sugar levels much because they’re high in fiber.

But as I just mentioned, this is not true since whole grains are not that high in fiber.

So based on this, whole grains really can affect your blood sugar.

How To Prevent Blood Sugar Spikes And Improve Insulin Resistance

In fact, wheat can influence your blood sugar the same way as table sugar.

When you look at the glycemic index, whole grain pasta is only a few points lower than white pasta.

So don’t think you are doing your belt size any favors by swapping out processed white grains for whole grains.

#4. Let’s Talk About Food Allergens

Oats, spelt, and wheat, which includes gluten, are the most common food allergens. 

Gluten, in particular, can cause many of problems for a lot of people.

Consuming gluten can cause issues with:

  • digestion
  • autoimmune
  • neurological disorders

Not only this, but if you have allergens to grains, and you’re still eating them, you’re putting unnecessary harmful stress on your body.

This stress can then release the stress hormone cortisol, also known as the belly fat storing hormone.

Bottom Line On The Truth About Whole Grains

Those were just 4 of the reasons why you shouldn’t eat grains to Live Lean.

I didn’t even talk about today’s wheat being genetically modified.

You can learn about the negative effects of genetically modified wheat here.

So let me wrap this up by saying this.

There is no physiological need for grains in the human diet. 

By now I’m sure you’re all asking, “Brad what do I eat, if I can’t eat grains every day?”.

Real food!

Get My Full Eat Clean Live Lean Cookbook:

If you need help, I have over 200 grain free recipes that are quick, healthy, easy, affordable, and delicious that are designed to get you lean.

Check out my Eat Clean Live Lean Cookbook here.

Live Lean Cookbook iPad

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91 responses to “The Truth About Whole Grains

  1. Broccoli is one of the few with some omega 3 still left in it, hasn’t
    completely been bred out of it like the others .

  2. The Roman empire forced a kind of biological imperialism striate jacket on
    its population forcing them to eat wheat . Often known as the wheat empire
    . Grains are commonly called the foundation of sedentary living . They are
    used to forcibly fatten up cattle fast because they contain insulin
    mimickers. Large open roaming animals used to roam 1,000’s of miles and now
    sit in padlock all day every day dumbed out of their skulls and painful
    joints while eating clover , a powerful estrogen. Destroying there brain
    guts eyes and joints . Tearing them selfs apart to death in barbed wire
    trying to escape is not uncommon . Often giant tumours are found in them,
    which used to explode in my face. To keep them alive in this horrid
    unnatural conditions , they have to use drugs such as antibiotics for the
    diseases they get from being drugged . Cows milk produces opioid peptides,
    one of which is 3 times stronger then morphine linked to autism and
    schizophrenia , it can be found in their urine . Morphine is produced by
    human mothers milk, this creates a loving bond and soothes the baby, as the
    baby gets older it looses the ability to digest milk . What happens is you
    give a baby cows milk, it will get a dose of opiod peptides that is 3 times
    more powerful and the risk of sudden infant death syndrome, is a given . So
    what then, the juice from a toxic estrogenic bean . I could go on and on
    how the farmers scams work and exactly doing . Fuck farmers , it all about
    the money and power just like every business. Oh we have to think about the
    poor farmers , NO , they are enslavers , food grows wild and for nothing ,
    out of our arse. They are in a conspiracy to extinct it all, so your
    enslaved to them for ever , eating cabbage, grass seed and horrid shit ,
    they drugs. I wondered why the old medical books said all these foods were
    all hardcore drugs. They did nothing for me , well how could they , i was
    doped up off my head, it felt normal to me because i’d never experienced
    anything else. We are tropical creatures and it never gets out of 24 to 27
    degrees with year round average of 25 and two summers. every building in
    the world is set to this temperature. Humans have not evolved one single
    bit in 4 million years . The word satan comes from the word settan ( cause
    to sit ) . The word house comes from church, which comes from place of
    slavery of animals. The word slave comes from slav.

    https://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=slave

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavs

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Rh1qLw1yy60#t=25

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=S3ubag7dtn4#t=93

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns,_Germs,_and_Steel

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casomorphin
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluten_exorphin

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nerve_agent
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xenoestrogen

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nzP0ausBvQ4

  3. This monkey should go back to sleep. I eat whole grain bread (3g fiber per
    slice) daily together with wholegrain cereal and I have loads of energy.
    I’m lean and muscular and have competed in bodybuilding. Wholegrains are
    100x better than processed foods.

  4. This guy is DELUSIONAL. Whole grains are INCREDIBLY good for you, and they
    are 100% a WHOLE NATURAL FOOD, which is COMMON SENSE. I wonder who’s paying
    this guy to lie to everyone. I am/was pre-diabetic, so I started eating
    only raw organic vegetables, which will reverse diabetes, but when I added
    organic whole grains at the beginning of each meal, my diabetic symptoms
    disappeared… I mean, IN ONE DAY. I started eating whole grain bread,
    whole grain crackers, basically anything containing whole grains. Don’t
    forget to eat nuts (walnuts, almonds) and seeds (pumpkin seeds, sunflower
    seeds), don’t eat peanuts though. And obviously NO SUGAR… READ FOOD
    LABELS COMPLETELY before buying.

  5. MEAT AND VEGETABLES BRO. ITS ALL ABOUT KETOSIS MAN. CARBS ARE BAD AND
    CHOLESTEROL BUILDS A SMART BRAIN

  6. hey brad! I was wondering if you could tell me that if eating a bowl of
    oatmeal with some fresh blueberries for breakfast is good for humans.

  7. There are scientific studies that shows the benefits and surprisingly, I
    believe them more than some strangers on the internet. You could be doing
    this for money; studies are done for the wellbeing and education of
    customers.

  8. I love watching your videos but I am very confused now. You’re saying not
    to have them but you have in your food wars segments to keep oats and
    quinoa.. I’m lost.. 🙂

  9. Now I’m confused… so we shouldn’t eat oats?? In one of your food wars you
    had to keep it as long as it was one Ingredient.. I love watching your
    videos but this has really threw me off the chain. 🙂

  10. Damn, i just purchased a so called ‘whole grain’ in a bottle, finely
    ground, and the salesperson was so smooth. was about to begin the diet
    tomorrow, and its quite costly. Luckily I didn’t accept the whole package.

  11. Uhhh… References? I don’t see one reference to scientific research. For
    all I know you could just be marketing things for money :S

  12. I’m not saying I disagree, but the “it’s not natural” theory doesn’t hold
    up. You can’t really go out and dig up a potato or cassava and just eat it
    either. There are natural plant foods that we just have to process before
    we eat them. I’m sure you’re not asking anyone to go out and kill a cow and
    eat the meat raw. That has to be processed too, no matter how grass-fed the
    cow is.

  13. I’m trying to think of a substitute for whole wheat bread but it’s so hard.
    Basically, my mum’s obese and she doesn’t see food the way I do (Last year,
    I lost about 2 stone). I told her about you and what you suggested however,
    she says you’re extreme to totally cut bread out and that everybody has a
    bit of bread etc. I’m so sick of being skinny fat, to be completely honest,
    I hate my body, I really want to feel content within myself, just my mum
    doesn’t such change is necessary. How can I convince her otherwise? Oh, and
    I’m 13 years old and a girl (like that actually helps!)

  14. Hey Brad, great topic… I’m just wondering, you mostly talk about “wheat”.
    “Grain” is a large family.. oats, quinoa, rice, spelts, barley, etc. Are
    you suggesting that none of these are any good for a lean body? Also.. how
    do seeds fit into this topic? Flax, Chia, Sesame, etc.? And then there’s
    “corn meal”…not a grain or a seed…but a vegetable… we could go on
    forever.. lol!! Love to hear your thoughts 🙂

  15. Nice point Brad and thank you for an really interesting channel. But what
    about the problem of eating to much fibre? I mean that becuase the human
    body cant diguest fibre, bacteria in our digestive system breaks down the
    fibre and in this process creates alot of gas which is not so nice for a
    number of reasons

  16. OMG BRAD! LOL no way! When I saw my name i was like O_O and you just made
    my whole day! Couldn’t stop smiling after watching this video, thank you
    very much 😀

  17. Guilty as charged. Eating clean is still new to me, so I’m making gradual
    changes. I have reduced my intake however.

  18. What vegetarian gonna eat then? I’m vegetarian not vegan though I eat wheat and rice sometimes and veggies lentils soup and milk yogurt and stuff

  19. Hi Brad, thanks for the helpful info! For those of us (I.e. Me) who want to include bread in our diets occasionally, what do you think about sprouted grain breads and tortillas (such as the Ezekiel products)? Is this a healthier alternative?

  20. Hi brad, I´m from Guatemala and the elemental nutrition here is black beans and corn tortillas (natural made not processed), so what about that two grains, i need to know your opinion, but in my experience, when i eat those two grains, i feel normal, but with bread and other grains i feel all the cravings, sleepy and slow. so let me know what you think about the elemental nutrition of an entire country. thanks.

  21. Love you Brad …awesome videos. Before, on another video you said we could
    eat old fashioned rolled oats whole grain (the kind that takes 20 minutes
    to cook) am I wrong?

  22. Brad, it seems like your first three points are about whole WHEAT. What about oats, quinoa, brown rice, flax and other grains that aren’t flour or wheat?

    1. You’re correct that when it comes to grains, wheat is enemy #1. Although I don’t personally eat a lot of quinoa or wild rice, these forms would be better for you (and I don’t have any problem with flax as I classify that as a seed). But if you’re looking for ongoing optimal results, I recommend focusing your carbs on mainly fibrous vegetables and some sweet potatoes and fruit. Save the other stuff for your cheat meal.

  23. I’m slowly working grains out of my diet currently, but the only grain I
    currently eat is whatever is in my bran cereal for my fiber intake. I’ve
    been trying to look for something to sub in for it that equals about the
    same caloric total with the same amount of fiber, but I’m just not that
    knowledgeable about vegetables and fruits. :/

  24. Hi Brad,

    I’ve noticed in your Awaken the Abbs Within E-Book that you include a lot of Oats and also brown rice to
    the meal plans, and that is a meal plan to lose weight.

    Know does that meal plans still apply for that E-book according to your whole grain video?

    The other thing is that I used to eat oats and brown rice and sweet potatoes everyday and felt great.
    I got my bf% down to 6% and maintained it for very long. I train very hard.

    About a year ago I started a new job and stopped eating so much oats and rice because I got to busy, so started feeling weaker and gained some bf% and I’m still training my bud off.

    On Saturdays I have a high carb day, I eat a lot of oats, sushi(with the rice post workout), brown rice sweet potatoes, All bran cereals and I feel great and my muscles totally shows, I feel and look much leaner!

    Please comment on this Brad cause I am so confused to what you said in your video!

    Thanks

    Lourens from South Africa.

    1. Hi Lourens,

      Your results speak for themselves my friend. Your body seems to react well to those foods (unlike a large percentage of the population). I wrote Awaken The Abs Within a few years ago and since I’m continuously testing new methods on my own body, I’ve noticed a big change in energy and appetite control since I’ve gone off grains and focused mainly on protein, fat, and veggies (I would have grains on my cheat day though). But everything I talk about are just ideas. It’s up to you to find out what works best for you. Keep up the great work dude.

  25. what about quinoa and buckwheat? (I think they are some sort of a seed) Or
    Wild rice? Are this acceptable after/before workout or I should eliminate
    them as well? Thx alot for this great videos! 🙂

  26. Brad please make a video about the best time to work out and if its good to
    work out on an empty stomach etc. Hugs from Houston, TX!

  27. It’s so hard not to eat bread. Pita bread. Central American tortillas.
    Ahhh. Lol. I think imma try this. Substitute bread for lettuce. Lil by lil
    of course.

  28. Rolled oats, white rice, brown rice, fiber one chocolate cereal, oat bran
    … everything is bad right?

    Winner is sweet potatoes ! Yellow or ReD either is fine.

    And greek yogurt is junk too filled with sugar.

    Yes I am trying to aviod grains.. Crossfit style baby..

    Milk is BAD TOO !

  29. I began my Paleo template July 2011 and feel so much healthier. I enjoy
    grains rarely as a treat, and when I do it’s usually rice. Wheat makes me
    feel awful so I avoid it even in treat meals.

  30. Then what carbs are the best sources of energy then? I play lots of sports
    and eat lots of pasta and rice…

  31. I only eat Quinoa on daily basis. I workout 3 times per week , my overall
    body weight and belly is continuously shrinking at a slow and steady pace.
    Can’t live on meat because my body ends up producing too much of Uric Acid.
    Let me know if you have any suggestions.

  32. I started my fast when you did and so when the fast in over I have a baby
    spinach salad with chicken then far east blend mix veggies and peas and
    carrots with half a cup cottage cheese 2 percent. .then its whole grains
    and beans and almonds and avocado and turkey slices for 1500 calories a day

  33. I started my fast when you did and so when the fast in over I have a baby
    spinach salad with chicken then far east blend mix veggies and peas and
    carrots with half a cup cottage cheese 2 percent. .then its whole grains
    and beans and almonds and avocado and turkey slices for 1500 calories a day

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