eating clean--your experiences

[jgoycoolea]

I have been trying to follow the often recommended approach of eating smaller more frequent meals that contain protein and complex carbohydrates. And I have been trying to keep the food clean. It has been a bit tricky.

I find it a bit difficult to have a variety of foods ready to go. I find that to cook in bulk I eat the same things for several days and then move on to a new set of prepared food.

Also it takes discipline to keep the portion sizes small. One week I ate super clean and lost no weight at all. I think I went a bit too large with too many meals only 2 hours apart.

Also when I need to be away from the house for a while the strategy gets off track. I haven't (yet?) embraced the idea of carrying a cooler around with me. I tend to grab a half of whole wheat pita with some natural peanut butter to go.

I am very tired of cottage cheese. I am tired of washing egg off of my skillet. And am I the only one who thinks that cooked aggs tend to stink??

Love tofu smoothies and quinoa with steel cut oats and cranberries. The latter is so yummy I hardly even miss my Special K.

I haven't noticed any changes in my skin or hair. But I do have more consistent energy.

I would like to hear about your experiences with eating clean.

--Jeanne

[exercise-lover]

I would love to read your recipe for the quinoa, steel cut oats, and cranberries (what measurements, how long and how do you cook it, etc.). Sounds really good. Thanks.

[AYLE09]

I really only started eating super clean a couple of months ago, but I will say that I would have a really hard time sticking with it if it wasn't for my cooler. It's a hassle at first having to carry it with me to work, but I like my diet to include fruits, veggies, greek yogurt, plenty of water, etc. I think if you try it out you will realize that your variety of small, healthy snacks (while away from home) will be much greater

If you don't want to embrace the cooler (yet!) then hit a natural food store or the natural/organic isle of your grocery store. Try some of the all natural dried fruits, nuts, and crackers. They're pretty great!

Good Luck

Jenn

[chikaygo]

Just a comment on carrying around a cooler. Go to ebags.com and do a search for KOKO. They create cooler lunch bags that look like regular purses! I loooove mine because i can walk around campus and still feel stylish. Plus with one of those little ice packs, my stuff stays cold easily. They come in all different sizes too depending on how much you pack. It's really helped me eat cleaner now that i can bring cold stuff like yogurts and cheeses. Sorry if that sounded like an ad, lol, i just love mine.

Kay

[jgoycoolea]

Originally Posted by exercise-lover

I would love to read your recipe for the quinoa, steel cut oats, and cranberries (what measurements, how long and how do you cook it, etc.). Sounds really good. Thanks.

The original recipe came from the Eat Clean Diet cook book by Tosca Reno:

1 cup quinoa, soaked for 2 hours--I ALWAYS RINSE MY SOAKED QUINOA TOO
1 cup steel cut oats
1/4 tsp of sea salt
3 cups water ---BUT I USE 1% MILK, NOT WATER (I refuse to be afraid of milk calories!)
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 organic raisins---AGAIN, I USED CRANBERRIES INSTEAD OF RAISINS

Place the soaked quinoa, the oats, the sea salt, and the water (or milk) in a medium sauce pan with a lid. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and let simmer, covered, for 30 minutes. Remove from heat, stir in the cinnamon, vanilla, and raisins (or cranberries)

ALSO I JUST ADD THE CINNAMON, VANILLA, AND CRANBERRIES DURING THE SIMMERING PROCESS.

This makes a pretty big batch which lasts me an entire week. When I dish it out, I consider it to be my protein and my carb and so have a decent size portion. Oh and then on top of my hot oats/quinoa I add even more milk so it is sort-of like eating a regular breakfast cereal that has milk on top. I really do like it and I was never, ever a fan of oatmeal. I guess the steel cut oats and quinoa just have a crunchy texture which is satisfying and all the milk chases away the need for any extra sugar.

[kariev]

well i go against the grain of everything. first i tried eating 5-6 mini meals throughout the day. this led me to frequent binges as i was never satisfied after eating my mini meal and was ALWAYS starving. It caused me to obsess over food (bring it everywhere i went watch the clock to eat at certain times etc) so i gave it up and went to 3 square meals a day which makes me a much happier person. I also tried being strict with clean eating and again it drove me crazy. I didn't notice a difference in my body composition or energy at this time. Being so strict with food is just not worth it for me. I eat pretty healthy most of the time (lots of whole grains, fruits, veggies lean proteins and healthy fats) however, once or twice a day i have a diet soda (gasp), i'll eat low fat processed salad dressings, and put splenda in my coffee. I understand the concept of both topics you mentioned and they do work for a lot of people but its not the end all be all and bottom line you have to do what works for you. Good luck!

[cendrine]

Agreeing with Kariev

I tried to eat super clean for about five months and then I snapped... too much extreme, I guess. I got nice results but I think it was more so because of the calorie reduction than the super clean. Not that clean isn't good, I believe it is, but it was not as dramatic as I thought.
Also, I think for people like me who go all or nothing, eating clean can become too legalistic if done according to the 'rules' The funny thing is, I read the rules, then I look at the recipes in clean eating magazine and they don't always stick to the rules completely. For instance I see sugar in there even though it should be avoided on a clean diet. So for me eating clean is a nice idea and something to aim for but it is not a law. I have stopped forcing myself to eat protein at every meal, if i get some protein at the three main meals then I am happy, but if I have to fit protein into my snacks too, then I find myself feeling like I miss out on some other foods I would like more of. Right now I just snack on fruit and I love to be able to have more of it because i don't have to calculate in the calories from the protein.
My aim is still to eat as clean as possible but I am not going by the letter of the law and allowing some wiggle room like those people who are more balanced do. I do often not want to make eggs because I hate to clean the pan.... And yes, eggs smell. I like them but not every day...

[jgoycoolea]

Thank you everyone for replying to my initial post. It is nice to hear how people are handling the dilemmas of eating clean and how people are allowing flexibility. I appreciate the time you took to answer! -- Jeanne

[Cosmo Mom]

The $10 million dollar question! I have come to realize that what works for one, doesn't work for another.

I've been beating myself up for gaining weight this month because...of living! My family and friends aren't going to EAT CLEAN. We get together and snack and drink, etc. Plus, after having a crappy cold, I indulged a little in comfort food. Hard to eat clean when you are sick, IMO. Then, add in the fact that I couldn't work out for a week from being sick. You get my drift...all these factors add in to my quick weight gain, resulting in slow weight loss!

Just in the last few days, I quit beating myself up so badly by getting back to Cathe's dvds (beat myself up with those instead!) and started to go more South Beach Diet again by cutting the starchy carbs and bread for a while. For some reason, this diet helps me get back on track although I don't follow it forever and to the letter. It does remind me though of how many vegetables I should substitute for my over-sized meat portions, etc.

So, back to my point of what works for each of us, I know that eating right is definitely essential, but I see that without the exercise, my weight goes right back on.

Some day maybe I will lose the last 5 lbs. I want to. And, if not, at least I won't gain 5 lbs!