Week 1: Clean Eating 2013

As part of my nutrition resolution for 2013, I wanted to share my clean eating lifestyle with others.  I was first introduced to clean eating in September of 2012 by my friend, Priscilla Bake.  You can follow her blog at http://amarathonmom2b.blogspot.com/  She introduced me to Tosca Reno and lent me her book Just the Rules.  I highly recommend it as a starting place.  I actually have purchased several of her other books, but if you want to learn more than just the basics, The Eat-Clean Diet Recharged! is the next book I would recommend.  Unlike a lot of books that I have read on this subject, her books are very comprehensive and written in a way that is easy to understand.  The third book that I would recommend is Your Best Body Now.  This book is just inspiring.  Included in it are pictures of women, at all ages, that went from overweight to totally ripped.  As you will find though, these are not quick 12 week programs.  Yes, you can lose a ton of weight and body fat in 12 weeks, but the women in these books took years to transform their bodies.

My personal clean eating tips:
1.  I don't skip breakfast. I start my day off with a bowl of oatmeal or teff and a banana everyday, sometimes I add blueberries too.  This is my one high carb meal of the day.  Of course, I also add protein to every meal, so I will have walnuts with my cereal or some type of eggs.  I usually don't eat any other grains during the day.  I flavor my cereal with Stevia and cinnamon and add almond milk to the desired consistency.  I also drink a cup of hot water and lemon.  I love breakfast and I honestly look forward to it.

2.  I add flaxseed oil to my mid-morning smoothie and I drink green tea.   These two items are what keeps my system functioning properly, if you know what I mean.  Seriously, if I skip either one of them, I am miserable!!!

3.  I eat 6 meals a day.  I have always been a grazer.  I start grazing around 4 pm, so I make sure that I always have almonds, almond butter, or string cheese and an apple or celery sticks at hand.  It also helps to have herbal tea available, my new love is Peppermint tea.  It really helps to eliminate any cravings I always have for sweets.  I also will eat 85% dark chocolate if I am really needing something sweet.  I eat a carbohydrate and a protein with every meal.  After breakfast, the only carbs I eat are fruits, vegetables, and maybe quinoa (it's not my favorite thing to eat).  I really focus on getting as many veggies as possible.  I love fruits the most, so including veggies is sometimes a struggle.  I limit my fruit to one banana, 1/2 cup of berries, and an apple a day.

4.  I have "liked" lots of inspirational women, magazines, and groups on facebook that keep me on track.  My favorites are ones that show what delicious and clean foods they are eating.  It reminds me of what I CAN have, so I won't focus on what I CANNOT have.

5.  I have to admit that I struggle not to have too many splurges.  I would eat dessert and popcorn every night if I didn't cause me to have additional belly fat.  I guess that's how we all feel, right.  Well, maybe not my husband who can eat just about anything he wants.

6.  I avoid processed foods as much as possible.  I don't eat white sugar or flour, unless I am splurging.  I also eat the foods that I prepare as often as I can.  I do have a large extended family that I spend a lot of time traveling to visit, which makes it difficult to only eat my own food.  When I eat out, I order what I think would be the closest thing to what I would make for myself at home and I take as much clean food with me as possible.  I have cut out diet soda from my diet.  I do drink it still occasionally with my cheat meal, but I try not to make a habit of it.  I hate to admit it, but I miss Diet Coke and sugar immensely.

This list is not all inclusive, but they are the things that I have found to be the most helpful in this journey.