I’m sure you are aware of the word “Clean Eating,” as it’s been doing the rounds for quite a while now. You can find everything from clean eating blogs right through to clean eating magazines. A question I get asked a lot is, “what exactly is clean eating?”
Well, to me, to clean eating is not just about eating; it’s more to do with a lifestyle change, not some fad diet or a quick fix.
Many bloggers and authors of eating fresh may have remarks or different perspectives; however, the founding principles of the clean eating way of life will be the same. Below are four tips that you can use to integrate a new diet into your life; read on.
1. Processed Foods
The fresh eating way of life’s basic principle is probably to eliminate pre-packaged and processed food, carbonated drinks, and juices with added sugar. When wanting to eat clean, your reasons should be to increase your health and well-being or weight loss.
Ditching the foods and drinks that are processed with chemicals, additives, and preservatives will be essential.
The reason for this is to have a diet with fresher food items; This means that you will be consuming less artificial colors, flavors, preservatives, emulsifiers, enhancers, and other additives. So, this is a great thing for your health and your weight loss efforts.
2. Local Foods
As previously mentioned, eating clean means to minimize processed foods and eat more fresh foods. What about pesticides? Buying organic is not affordable for everyone, but the non-organic options are usually grown by using chemicals, many of which have been proven to cause havoc with hormones and our body’s immune systems. Below is a list of the most heavily sprayed on fruits and vegetables, so if you can buy these organic at least, you are one step closer to a healthier you:
Apples, Celery, Cherries, Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Grapes, Hot Peppers, Peaches, Potatoes, Spinach, Strawberries, Bell Peppers, and Bananas.
The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to helping people live healthier lives in a healthier environment. The EWG area focuses on the food we eat and the pesticide residues commonly found on traditionally grown produce.
The EWG created The Shopper’s Guide to Pesticides in Produce™, which lists the fruits and vegetables with the most pesticide residues—the Dirty Dozen™, and the Clean Fifteen™, which have little, if any, measurable residue.
For 2020, the Dirty Dozen list includes:
- Strawberries
- Spinach
- Kale
- Nectarines
- Apples
- Grapes
- Peaches
- Cherries
- Pears
- Tomatoes
- Celery
- Potatoes
All these fruits and vegetables tested positive for pesticide residues and had higher concentrations of pesticides than other produce.
On the other end of the spectrum, the Clean Fifteen includes:
- Avocado
- Sweet Corn
- Pineapple
- Onion
- Papaya
- Frozen Sweet Peas
- Eggplant
- Asparagus
- Cauliflower
- Cantaloupe
- Broccoli
- Mushroom
- Cabbage
- Honeydew Melon
- Kiwi
I recommend buying in season, the reason behind this is anything local will be fresher because it does not have to come from the opposite side of the world. Also, we are made to eat in season. For instance, apples do not grow all year round; who knows how long they are stored for before getting to you. I’ve been told that some apples can be up to 12 months old once you buy them.
The result is that the value of these items will be significantly less. So why pay for something when you are not going to reap the full benefits? You may as well do it correctly if you’re going to eat clean. Buying local grown is always your best bet unless you can purchase organic, then that is best.
3. Portion Size
Eating smaller meals more often throughout the day is a healthier option than the standard of three meals a day.
It has also been shown that you should slow down eat your meal to 30 minutes per month if you are trying to drop weight, eating slower helps your body and your brain work together in telling you when you are full, especially if you have a bad metabolism or one that is slow. This can also cause you to overeat and can cause people to snack on fast, processed foods. Additionally, I recommend getting a nutritional DNA test. Crush your health and wellness goals with the IDLife Weight Loss Line. These products were designed to help you manage your weight, control your hunger, and build lean muscle.
Eating 4 – 6 smaller portioned meals more frequently throughout your day is quite easy. A Meal Measure Portion Control Plates | Container for Weight Loss or Diet will help make sure you don’t overeat: https://amzn.to/3eIvoiw.
Plan out what your healthy meals will be and prepare them and take them with you. This way, you won’t be tempted by bad foods or beverages.
4. Simplify
Have you ever noticed how big some ingredients are on packaged foods? Yes, isn’t it ridiculous? Most of the time, you have no idea what these ingredients are anyway, as they are massive words that you can’t pronounce, or it’s only a code like you were just meant to understand what that code intended.
If you can read the ingredients on the back of the package and aren’t difficult to pronounce, it is most likely something added to your clean eating list. Another way to look at it is this; if it grows, it goes…into your basket, that is! So always start your shopping in the produce section and fill up all healthy fruits, veggies, and nuts.
To eat clean does not have to be a chore; it’s very simple. Just stay away from any processed foods and drinks, and it will do great things for your body. If not, good luck with losing weight, and all your effort to lose weight will go up in flames in one meal. Moreover, we recommend you augment your diet by supplementing your diet to lose weight and maintain optimal health. We don’t get all the nutrients we need in our food or veggie, so supplements help keep us healthier.
