Easy Ways to Count Carbs in Pizza and Other Combination Foods On-The-Go (2024)

FAQs

How do you count carbs for dummies? ›

For foods that have nutrition labels, determining carb counts is easy. Just look on the label for “total carbohydrates.” Also, note the number of grams of fiber. Some people subtract the fiber grams from the carb grams and use “net carbs” as their total.

Calculate Pizza by the Crust

A medium (12-inch) thin-crust pizza without any cheese and toppings has 17 grams of carbs per slice. A regular-crust pizza averages 30 grams of carbs per slice. Tip: Thin-crust pizza has 5-10 fewer grams of carbs per slice than regular-crust or pan pizza.

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Stick with thin crust.

A thin crust will shave down the carbs to the equivalent of a sandwich (two slices of bread).

Here's how the 5:1 rule works. Simply look at the ratio of grams of carbohydrates to grams of dietary fibre. Divide the carbohydrates by the dietary fibre. You want a 5:1 ratio or less.

Carb counting at its most basic level involves counting the number of grams of carbohydrate in a meal and matching that to your dose of insulin. If you take mealtime insulin, that means first accounting for each carbohydrate gram you eat and dosing mealtime insulin based on that count.

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As far as how many carbohydrates to eat, Pratt says 100 to 150 grams of carbohydrates is safe for most people who are trying to lose weight. It may be better for some people to eat carbs consistently throughout the day. “You can also break it up evenly with 40 to 50 grams of carbs per meal,” she says.

Food and drinks allowed on a no-carb diet include meat, fish, eggs, cheese, butter, oils, water, and plain coffee or tea. If you're less stringent, you can also eat nuts, seeds, non-starchy vegetables, and high fat fruits like avocado and coconut since these foods are low in net carbs.

However, some carbs can't be broken down into individual sugars, whereas others are only partially broken down and absorbed. These include fiber and sugar alcohols. Because of this, most fiber and sugar alcohols can be subtracted from total carbs when calculating net carbs.

How to eat pizza without carbs? ›

Pizza crust alternatives like cauliflower offer lower calories, carbs, and sodium. Chicken has zero carbs, low fat, and high protein. No matter which alternative you choose, these options are better than the high fat, excessive carbs, and soaring sodium levels in traditional pizza crusts.

Several major chains provide low-carb options by using alternative crust options—commonly, cauliflower crust. Pizza Hut, Domino's, California Pizza Kitchen, Blaze, and Papa Murphy's are among the popular chains with cauliflower-crust pizzas on their menu.

The term “net carbs” simply refers to carbs that are absorbed by the body. To calculate the net carbs in whole foods, subtract the fiber from the total number of carbs. To calculate the net carbs in processed foods, subtract the fiber and a portion of the sugar alcohols.

Basic Carb Counting

Counting is based on the principle that 15 g of carbohydrate equal one carbohydrate serving (or one carb choice). While the amount of carbohydrate and the timing of intake should remain constant, the type and variety of foods consumed should not.

This quick equation is: (CHO per 100g ÷ 100) x weight of your portion = CHO in your portion.

As far as how many carbohydrates to eat, Pratt says 100 to 150 grams of carbohydrates is safe for most people who are trying to lose weight. It may be better for some people to eat carbs consistently throughout the day. “You can also break it up evenly with 40 to 50 grams of carbs per meal,” she says.