What is the deal with Eating Clean? When I talk to people about my meal plan, they always ask if they can add in some fat free or sugar free treats. My meal plan is based on whole foods and doesn’t allow much wiggle room for packaged treats which is often those foods at are ‘fat free’ or ‘sugar free’. I used to be addicted to fat free, sugar free foods. I considered ‘free’ foods. If I ate them, they wouldn’t make me gain any weight, right? So that’s good. However, often times these foods are LOADED with chemicals which can be worse for you than just eating the whole version of the food you are craving. This is where the concept of ‘clean eating’ came from. Eating things with less ingredients that are more whole is definitely the way to go in my opinion so let’s talk about why.
Often people who eat fat free and sugar free think they can eat more because they are eating ‘healthy’ but the reality is they are just eating more chemicals. They have to replace the fat and sugar with something. Often times there are chemicals in there. For fat free foods, they usually add more sugar which will not help you lose weight. And for sugar free foods they will often have artificial sweetener. Neither of these things are going to help you reach your goals and they can make you feel crappy too. I had some serious digestion issues before I started on this healthy lifestyle and when I cut out processed stuff, they went away. I tried EVERYTHING and the reality was I just needed to stick to whole foods. It has been a game changer for me.
Some simple rules to live by:
? Limit processed foods and increase whole unprocessed foods.?If you have to buy processed foods, stick with the fewest amount of ingredients (not the fewest grams of fat)!?
??If it has ingredients you can?t pronounce, don?t buy it!
? If it has more than 5 ingredients, see what they are.
??If there are any chemicals involved, stay way