If you are interested in cleaning up your diet, you need to decide what that means to you and take the steps necessary to achieve that goal. Here are some simple steps to get you started.
1. Eat whole foods. This means that it either came from the ground or has a mother (this is a saying of course). ie. eating an apple instead of apple sauce. The food came straight from the farm and has not been processed in any way.
A great way to achieve this step is to go to your local farmers market, shopping the outer circumference of the grocery store, and trying to eat organic when ever possible. I suggest printing off the up to date list of the clean fifteen and dirty dozen to know what items to buy organic and what items are fine that are conventionally grown.
2. Avoid processed foods. If you read the ingredients label and are unsure of what chemical or added ingredient is listed, my advise is to not eat it! Looking for shorter ingredient lists are also key. The less you eat from a package, box, can, or carton, the better. Especially if it has added sugar or hydrogenated oil- pass on that. Look for the words "whole" and avoid enriched, bleached, or refined. Also, shorter shelf life is better for you because it is less processed.
I know this part is difficult because it means you have to cook more.. Which takes more time. Start slow and make it a goal to eat less processed foods. Which leads to my next point..
3. Prepare your own meals. Instead of grilled chicken with sugary marinade from a bottle and cheesy rice from a package, do grilled chicken with salt free seasonings with brown rice and a big helping of vegetables. The first two things came from a package, where the next items were less processed.
It takes time to plan out health meals and prepare them. I practice bulk cooking so that my meals are already prepare when it's time to eat. I make meals from scratch so that I can control everything added to my food. I know exactly what is in it and how it is made. If you eat out, make specific requests. Ask for your food to be made dry without added stuff to it. I never have a problem with requesting certain foods and substituting for healthier options. Hey I would rather have a double helping of raw veggies than eating something that has added sugar, fat, and salt to taste better.
How did I achieve this?
I read a book a while back called The Eat-Clean Diet by Tosca Reno which I highly recommend to everyone. After I read it, I started to make little changes to my diet to achieve "clean eating."
I met her at the Arnold two years ago and she is fabulous.
I also recommend watching Hungry For Change, Folks Over Knifes, and Food Inc.
If you decide to follow this lifestyle (its a lifestyle not a diet), you need to outline what clean eating means to you. It could mean all raw foods, or no artificial ingredients, or everything all natural. What is clean eating to you? Then start to tackle one thing at a time to meet your end goal. Cutting out everything at once is not an easy task, so I don't recommend it.
Take this first step- Google "clean eating recipes." Find one that is appealing to you and make it. If you like what you made, share the recipe in the comments section so that others can try it.
If you have any questions, feel free to message me. I'm here to help.
C
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