Top Clean Eating Tips
I
thought I would share some tips here that really helped me get on track
and make this whole clean eating thing easier for me. My challenge
groups always do great with the workouts but in the first few weeks the
most common questions are "What should I eat?" "How much should I eat?"
"What is clean and what isn't clean?" "How can I switch my family over".
All of these concerns come up and I really thought it would be useful
to share my tips that have worked for me. I want
to equip my challengers with the tools needed for SUCCESS so they can
get the results that I got and so many other challengers before them
have gotten just by following these principals.
The first thing I suggest is getting a copy of "
Eat Clean Recharged"
by Tosca Reno ASAP! It gives you a break down of what clean eating is,
the foods that are okay, and the history behind this method. Really
everything you ever wanted to know about clean eating is explained here
along with some meal plans and grocery lists. I truly loved this book
and it changed my whole life!! So many things just clicked and made
sense for me while reading this book.
So first things first ....
Portion Sizes: You don't have to count calories or points. Instead you will
portion out foods and focus on pairing the right food groups together.
It's really easy to stay on this type of plan because you don't need
anything fancy or have to play the guessing game. You simply use your
hands as your guide
Protein= The palm of your hand
Complex Carbs= (apples, berries, oranges, grapes, veggies) 2 cupped handfuls
Starchy Carbs= 1 cupped handful
If you follow this guide and the correct portion controls you will be
less likely to indulge!
Warm Lemon Water: Drink a large glass of lemon water when you
first wake up and before you eat breakfast for a natural detox. This
will also jump start your metabolism!!
Get a Lunch Tote:
Totes are perfect for packing a healthy lunch and snacks.
Sunday is my day to sit down and plan out all of my meals. I make my grocery list after shopping, I then sit down and cup up all of my fruits and veggies and portion out so they are ready to grab for the week. I also measure anything like
PB, Hummus, and Nuts as my protein to pair with my veggies. If i'm out
and about I always pack my snacks and an extra one so I'm never left
starving and left to resort to fast food. I always have a shaker cup and
single packet of shakeology. It's easy to grab water while out and about to just shake it up and go
Always Carry a Refillable Water Bottle with you: You can add lime, lemon, cucumber and strawberries to your water to give it flavor. NO SODA OR JUICE! I'm telling you that it's full of empty calories and you are not going to lose weight you drink soda or juice! Just WATER!
Drink Green Tea: This helps with hunger pains and cravings in the late afternoon and evenings when the munchies hit you.
SWEET TOOTH: If
you are someone who has a sweet tooth after dinner or needs dessert try
some greek yogurt, cinnamon, honey, and chopped up fruit. It's
amazing!!! One of my favorites.
Buy in Bulk: Sams Club/Cosco are GREAT! Buy in bulk, cut up and freeze for later use.
Meal Prep: I love to meal prep. Every Sunday I cook 7 lunches and 7 dinners and portion it out into 14 meals for the week. This is what keeps me on track all week. I have "FAST" food there when I get hungry.
Another thing that you can do is cook
extra chicken for your lunches on prep day. That way you can slice it up and put it in a
tupper-ware and pull out for salads or wraps for the rest of the week.
Also, cook extra for dinner and place in containers for lunches throughout the week.
You
can replace any foods so long as you replace a complex carb with
another complex carb ect. So if you don't like banana's replace them
with an apple. If you don't like almonds replace with all natural pb!
BODY BEAUTIFUL/BODY HEALTH FORMULA
80% nutrition + 10% exercise + 10% genetics = body beautiful/body health
EAT CLEAN PRINCIPLES
1. Eat six small meals a day. Eat
every two-and-a-half to three hours. I literally set the timer on my
watch to remind me when to eat! Now that I have been doing it for so
long my body just tells me that its time to eat!
2. Eat breakfast everyday, within an hour of rising. I always have a
warm glass of lemon water each morning as my wake up and detox! I
squeeze 1/2 or a whole lemon into a glass of warm water. I make it a
rule that I cannot eat my breakfast until I drink the entire glass of
water.
3. Eat a combination of lean protein and complex carbohydrates at each meal.
A lean protein would be your plain unsalted nuts, almond butter, all
natural peanut butter, white meat such as chicken and fish. A complex
carb is your fruits and veggies such as bananas, apples, oranges,
cucumbers, carrots, tomoatoes just to name a few.
4. Eat sufficient of healthy fats every day (evoo, avocado)
5. Drink two to three liters of water each day.
I make this a MUST! If you want to lose weight then you must drink a
lot of water each and everyday. If you do not drink enough water you
body actually holds onto water weight. Drinking water speeds up your
metabolism and helps lose weight.
6. Carry a cooler packed with clean foods.
I seriously cannot leave the house without my cooler bag. Even if I
am pretty certain that I am going to be home before my next snack or
meal I still throw in an apple and a handful of unsalted almonds and a
bottle of water. It is super easy to throw in a packet of shakeology
and your shaker cup. Then you are never left scrounging for a meal or a
drive through to go to. you always have a healthy snack or meal to
hold you over!
7. Depend on fresh fruits and vegetables for fiber, vitamins, nutrients and enzymes. Limit
your starchy complex carbs to two to four servings each day. I suggest
not relying to heavily on juices. I would aim to get your servings of
fruits and veggies each day from actulaly eating them. This way you get
the added fiber
from the skins of the fruits! Juices more often than not have added sugars and additives that our bodies do not need.
8. Adhere to proper portion sizes.
TOP 10 THINGS TO AVOID
1. Sugar, white flour and over processed foods.
Bread at the bread table when you are out to eat. Especially when I
was trying to lose the weight I would avoid bread at all costs. I even
avoided ezekiel bread or most starchy carbs.
2. Artificial sugars- NO
STEVIA OR EQUAL OR SWEET N LOW ARE NOT GOOD FOR YOU! I reccomend Agave
nectar and honey if you need to sweeten something. Even then I still
think you should use it sparingly. Again, sugar is addictive and the
more you have the more your body will crave it!
3. Sugar-loaded beverages such as soda and juice- NONE, ZILCH ZERO!!
4. Super sizing your meals or portions- If
you are at a restaurant always ask for a box and take half of it home!
Restaurants are known for their oversized portions. Even if it's a
healthy meal that does not give you permission to throw your rules out
the window! You can eat the right kinds of foods and have to much and
still not see results.
5. Alcohol, try your best to limit. My rule of thumb is for every alcoholic drink that you consume you must have 1 full glass of water!
Alcohol
is full of sugar and empty calories so you need to ask yourself, is
this short term sacrifice of drinking worth the long term results of me
feeling amazing in my body and having the confidence to put myself out
there!
6. Chemically charged foods- So this mean smart ones, lean cuisines or any other processed meals. Take a look at the labels on your food.
If there are more than 3 ingredients and you don't understand what they
are then you probally shouldn't buy it!
7. Foods containing preservatives
8. Artificial foods such as processed cheese slices- I
very rarely eat a piece of cheese. I tend to choose feta cheese if I
go that route! Once again your body holds onto bad fats!
9. Saturated and trans fats
10. Anti foods, calorie dense foods with no nutritional value.
TOP 5 WAYS TO MAKE EATING CLEAN EASIER FOR YOU
1. Pack a cooler everyday
2. Carry a water bottle everywhere
3. Make a shopping list and stick to it- I grocery shop for 2 weeks at a time. I sit down with my white board, grocery list and recipes and plan out my meals so that my entire family can follow the same eating schedule. It works and we are all happy!
4. Prepare planned leftovers
5. Keep
your pantry stocked with staples. Staples in my pantry are plain
unsalted rice cakes, all natural peanut butter, almonds, cashews,
raisins, flaxseed, and olive oil! If I run out of fresh fruits and
veggies I turn to rice cakes with peanut butter and raisins!
TOP FIVE EXERCISE TIPS
1. Set realistic goals for yourself-weekly, monthly and yearly.
2. Train all of your major muscle groups, arms shoulders, chest, back, legs and abs.
3. Challenge yourself-vary your routine every few weeks.
4. Keep cardio fun-try new activities
5. Stay focused-put your mind into your muscle.
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Every weekend I sit down with my 21 day Fix Eating Plan book and I plan out my meals. I am all about simple, easy and cheap so I make the same 5-6 meals every day for a week. People always ask if I get stick of eating the same things, honestly I don't. When I cooked before going to the Eat Clean Diet I always cooked the same things and if I ate out I ate at the same places and ordered the same things. I like what I like and when I really like it I'll eat it a lot. But for those that don't like to eat like this, you can still switch it up and make different stuff for each day or make different variations. I typically try to make things I am excited about eating that helps keep me eating my prep and helps not get sick of eating the same meals each day. 
It usually takes me about 3 hours to cook and package all my food for the week. I don't make EVERYTHING but I do make most of my meals. I cut up all my fruits and make my lunches and dinners. Shakeology shake and oats I make the day of but those literally take a few mins to make. I can take my meals on the go when I need to and I hate cooking so when Im not in the mood to cook it doesnt lead to me eating out because I have a healthy meal in the fridge that I can microwave for 2 mins and its ready to be eaten. 
