Hey was wondering o red meat is a good choice for helping gain weight...I noticed on the burgers i got where pretty hi in caliories and fat cal, no carbs, and a deceant amount of proteins...then the buns add alot of carbs...but anyways is red meat considerd something good to eat when trying to game bulk?

so long as its lean


johnd

Why are you worried about carbs if you are trying to bulk? Carbs are essential if you are trying to bulk.

its not the carbs im worried about it is the grams of fat and fat calories that I worry about...

fat from foods is not what causes fat storage in the human body. Fat content in food correlates to cholesterol, not fat tissue in the human body. If you are concerned about cholesterol and thus fat content in red meat simply eat the leaner red meat. Pretty easy to look at meat and see how much fat it has in it.

Originally posted by Evl316:
fat from foods is not what causes fat storage in the human body.

Sorry to disagree, but yes it does. Excess calories = fat storage. If your eating alot of fat, you'll gain more fat than if you're eating lower amounts since your body expends alot of calories in converting carbs and protein into fat to store in adipose tissue. Therefore, if two people are eating the same amount of calories and are exceeding their daily req's by the same amount, the person eating more fat will store more fat since the other person will have burn of a significant portion of that excess in conversion.

Yeah but it's not just fat that makes you put it on. Excess carbs or protein would make you put on fat too. It's just you can only eat half the amount with fat itself before this happens, because it has twice the calories. If you were eating a tonne of fat a day and working off a tonne of fat through exercise, then the fat wouldn't have made you put on weight either...it's your input versus energy output, not which foods.

Originally posted by Endorphin Junky:
Sorry to disagree, but yes it does. Excess calories = fat storage. If your eating alot of fat, you'll gain more fat than if you're eating lower amounts since your body expends alot of calories in converting carbs and protein into fat to store in adipose tissue. Therefore, if two people are eating the same amount of calories and are exceeding their daily req's by the same amount, the person eating more fat will store more fat since the other person will have burn of a significant portion of that excess in conversion.

Sorry, but I have to disagree with most of that, and recent studies tend to disagree as well. Carbohydrates, especially sugars and starches like those hamburger buns previously mentioned are very easily digested and quickly convert to glucose which then must either be burned immediately or stored as glycogen (very limited storage capacity) or coverted to triglycerides in the liver and stored as fat in the adipose tissue. In addition, eating fat has virtually no effect on insulin levels. Carbohydrates on the other hand, especially the sugars and starchy ones, can significantly elevate insulin levels which promotes fat storage and inhibits fat loss. So, given two isocaloric diets that are higher in calories than those expended, one high in carbohydrates and one high in fat, I say that in general, the one higher in carbohydrates will accumulate more fat due to the effect that insulin has on the body. Recent studies at Duke and the University of Cinncinati confirm this (actually, they confirmed that diets higher in protein and fat and lower in carbohydrate promote greater fat loss and less lean muscle loss than a so called "balanced" diet higher in carbohydrates).

Originally posted by Evl316:
..Fat content in food correlates to cholesterol, not fat tissue in the human body. If you are concerned about cholesterol and thus fat content in red meat simply eat the leaner red meat...

Actually, fat from meat has little negative effect on cholesterol levels. Natural forms of saturated fat like that found in red meat can actually improve cholesterol ratios since it tends to raise the beneficial HDL levels. Highly processed forms of fat like partially hydrogenated vegetable oils on the other hand have been shown to have a significant negative effect on cholesterol ratios by raising LDL levels and lowering HDL levels. And carbohydrates can have a negative effect on lipids as well because excessive carbohydrates result in elevated triglyceride levels. And surprisingly, fructose like that found in fruit, can significantly elevate serum triglyceride levels. Unlike high cholesterol levels, elevated triglycerides are an independant risk factor for heart disease.

So, it is much more complicated than just stating that high fat diets = high cholesterol levels.

Isn't it always

Can anyone suggest specific cuts of steak that have less fat or are generally leaner?

Hello, My American Heart Association phamplet says to look for the words "round" and "loin." "Chuck" is your fattiest meat. Beef jerky is also very lean. Duck is very fat. White chicken meat and white turkey meat is considered lean too, while the dark meat and the skin isn't lean. Then there's venison, which is lean too. All luncheon meat is fatty and full of salt unless noted on the label, so for processed meats you really have to read the label. Don't forget that fish is also an alternative, unless you don't like fish.

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Magpie

Thanx Magpie.

For anyone interested, I did a little extra research and came across this link listing more or less all beef cuts along with caloric and fat content.
http://www.diet-i.com/calorie_chart/beef.htm

If you want to be sure how much (fat) your meat has in it DONT buy it from supermarkets or stores. I only eat the meat that i kill so I know whats in it and how its been handeld. 2 or 3 deer dering the season should last some one a while, then buy and kill your own chickens and you have chicken breast for half the price that you can get it at the store. And when thanks giveing comes around.... well you get the picture.

[This message has been edited by tommyboy1984 (edited 05-06-2003).]