What is “Eating Clean” and Why Should You Care?
How do some people maintain their body weight while others seem to gain more and more weight?
Some folks are just lucky and seem to be naturally skinny. For those of us that aren’t ‘lucky, we have eating clean as good solid option for health benefits and a great option instead of the fad diets du jour.
Eating clean is a term we use to describe what and how we eat.
It means we eat foods that are unprocessed or as much of a “whole food” as possible. A processed food usually comes in a box or bag, a to-go container and contains $25 words on the ingredient declaration that most of us can’t pronounce because they are manufactured with lots of chemicals. “Whole foods” are foods that are as close as possible to their original state. Examples include fruits, veggies, unprocessed legumes/beans, raw dairy, free-range meats and wild fish.
“Food” manufacturers are creating chemicals faster than our bodies will ever know what they are or how to digest them.
Have you ever thought about how your body must deal with all the chemicals in the SAD (standard American diet) today? When we eat these chemicals, our bodies process them as much as it can. Some go into our elimination channels and the excess goes into our adipose (fat) tissue. And often times we will hold onto body fat just to have a place to store all these toxins. This results in extra body fat on our tummy’s, thighs, legs and arms.
You could go to the gym and spend hours working this fat off
– and getting physical activity is actually a really good idea. Or you could participate in a reasonable activity program and you could also eat clean. This means that instead of the frozen food TV dinner or that ‘to-go’ extravaganza; opt for a whole grain, some fresh greens or fresh fruits and veggies or legumes and unprocessed lean protein. When you eat foods that your body knows how to digest, you’ll feel more ‘full’ longer, be more nutritionally balanced and actually feel less hungry in general because your body is more nourished. You’ll also feel more rested because your body isn’t spending hours trying to figure out how to digest and store the chemicals.
Whole foods are easy to find in your grocery store.
Visit the produce department and stock up on plenty of fresh fruits and veggies. Next, opt-in for whole grains such as brown rice and quinoa and legumes such as black beans and chick peas (garbanzo beans). Finally, prepare free-range / grass-fed animal proteins and wild-caught fish. Stack your plate full of these along with plenty of fresh, filtered water (not soda, processed drinks and caffeinated beverages) and I guarantee you’ll look and feel better. If you keep at it, you’ll also start to drop some weight. This has been part of my lifestyle for years and I can promise that it works. It will take some effort, especially while you are getting used to the new approach and learning what to eat and how to prepare it. But the results are worth it.
How does clean eating strike you as a way to eat instead of a fad diet?
Find recipes to help you eat clean in my recipe blog along with other techniques to help you be successful.
Lifestyling Wellness ™. Yes, you can. I’ll show you how…
