Clean Eating

Remember the days when your dinners and snacks consisted of Ramen, Skittles, and mocha frappuccinos.   Still living those days?  Convenience may prevail in these instances, but your energy and health fall short.  So short, it makes me scared for you. 

Now I know how hard it is for you to read this.  You’re thinking to yourself, “Oh great.  Yet another article telling me that my health is in jeopardy because of what I eat.  This new food that I thought was healthy for me is now killing me slowly during my sleep, according to ANOTHER random ‘study’”.   I know, because I’ve thought the same thing. 

I gave up following all of those articles and studies about “super foods”.  Because honestly, the list is about 400 foods long.  The “Top 7 Super Foods” are different in every single article you read! 

I did take something from those articles, however.  They all have one thing in common.  The lists contain what I, and the famous Oxygen magazine, like to call “clean foods”.  Clean eating consists of taking in natural foods and abstaining from added sugars and processed foods as much as possible.  Chicken, lean meats, low-fat dairy, fruits and vegetables, and healthy fats (avocados, olive oil, nuts) are what you’d be eating if you adopted this eating lifestyle.  I say lifestyle because this is not a diet.  Diets don’t work.  Choosing to eat this way should be considered a lifestyle change.  Not necessarily to lose weight, but to attain better health.

I don’t want to scare you away by saying that you can’t have ice cream or Buffalo Wild Wings ever again.  Because you can.  Eating clean is a way of life that can be implemented 80% of the time, and I can guarantee that you will notice a difference in your physical and mental stamina.

I have recently adopted this way of eating, as the figure competition has me on a strict eating schedule.  But I have to say, I am glad that I took on the competition challenge because it has given me new insight into the “clean eating” lifestyle.  I like it a lot, and I don’t crave sweets as much as I used to. 

Ridding your diet of processed foods and excess sugar may sound like a daunting and unpleasant task, but believe me, your mind and body will thank you.   And if I, the previous ice cream/ Sunchips craver, can do it, I know anyone can.