Is "clean eating" expensive?

[Clarissa]

Hey! I got the clean eat book for Christmas...but it seems like the groceries would cost a lot. I don't eat terrible now, but I certainly do not eat anything that Tosca mentions. Let me know because I have recently resigned from my job to become a personal trainer, and while I am in the development stages, I don't have a huge income to help out my husband with the bills! (this is okay, because at least I am finished with the stressful HR job and can do what I love to do...)

This clean-eating way of life is really the way to go I think.

Thanks so much!

 

[rnyogamom]

RE: Is

It can be done..bananas and whole,slow cooking oats are cheap...walnut pieces from Costco are cheap (you only need 3 tiny pieces remember ), you can buy yams, potatoes, cabbage and carrots cheap, eggs, tuna, chicken....you really CAN do it....its just a pain sometimes!!

 

[Clarissa]

RE: Is

The biggest pain is that I have to give up the instant vanilla cinnamon quaker oatmeal I eat every morning. I guess it is filled w/ sugars and stuff. Maybe I can have it on a cheat day?

 

[LeanneM]

RE: Is

Hi Clarissa,

I used to love the sugary oatmeal, but you can get the same sort of taste by mixing in some flavored protein powder. I usually add a scoop of Lean Dessert Cinnamon Roll to my plain oatmeal, and it tastes delicious, without all the added sugar!

You look fantastic, by the way! Keep us all posted on how the personal training business goes!

 

[Jess_jugs]

RE: Is

I was just going to say the same thing!!! Old fashioned oatmeal or steel cut oats with cinnamon roll protein powder is the way to go!!! Yummy!

BTW, congrats on becoming a PT & you look fabulous in your avatar!!! ;-)

I don't think it's terribly expensive to eat cleaner, but does take more planning ahead!!

 

[SirenSongWoman]

RE: Is

Yea, I'm with everyone else here: A) You LOOK awesome, B) It doesn't have to be expensive (especially compared to eating out) and C) It IS a pain. I'm only just getting started, but as a junk-foodie who ate out all the time and drank massive amounts of Diet Pepsi, nearly any improvement had to make a positive difference for me. I plan to be completely cold-turkey with this starting Jan 1, but have been easing into it for nearly a month. In my case, that meant :

-No eating out (fast food was all the eating out I did)
-Tank up on complex carbs early in the day (always with protein) and mostly veggies later, stopping eating altogether 3 hours before bedtime (still not quite there on the last one).
-Break away from sweets. No added artificial sweeteners or sugar, read labels and try hard to avoid high fructose corn syrup (it's in nearly EVERYTHING). I've dealt with my chocolate desire by occasionally eating a small amount of 85% cacao chocolate (a taste I have acquired but which isn't binge-inducing, trust me).
-Water, water, and MORE water in place of all that other stuff you drink.

Those are MY finer points, for now. I live alone so I don't have the hassle of cooking for anyone else. And I can often get by without cooking at all - a real plus on my crazy schedule but not great long term. The BIGGEST hassle for me is the constant grocery store trips for fresh produce. When you're used to living on crap loaded with preservatives having to hit the grocery store every 3 or 4 days for the freshest produce is a pain (and learning to NOT buy so much in each trip is... different). Especially when the best produce is at a store out of your way... More than anything, clean eating is behavior modification in every possible respect. No, you can't hit that bakery for a chocolate croissant like you always have just because you happen to be near it. No, you cannot sweeten your oatmeal with Sweet-n-Low and you can't add 2 fist fulls of raisons... It's constant vigilance just to keep from cheating (you're cheating yourself) or doing what's become habit.

 

[Clarissa]

RE: Is

Thanks everyone! (blushing)

I can't wait to order this Lean dessert stuff. Right now I just use Syntha-6 protein powder but I can see it is by the same company. Thanks for the advice!

Take care,

Clarissa

 

[NY25]

RE: Is

I also like just a few drops of real vanilla extract in my oatmeal - maybe sweetened a bit with turbinado sugar or honey, if I feel I really need to sweeten it. Slice in some fresh berries or banana and you're good to go.

 

[KissedbySunshine]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

Just happened to look @ everyones post. What are people considering eating clean to be? There seems to be some misunderstanding. If eating clean includes eating all natural, then protein powders would be excluded from the diet as well beucase its man made. Otherwise, things like sugar substitutes could be included since most like Sucralose/Splenda and Aspartame (which is kinda controversial) could in included but in moderation with everthing else.

Also on that note to answer the question, eating clean is expensive especially when you have a limited income. Even to do things at Costco or Sams Club or BJs is an annual membership in addition to whatever you buy. Plus Fruits and Veggies are seasonal so its depends on the weather and if the produce was good for the season. $3.99 /lbs for grapes is killing me right now. and $3 a pomegranate is crazy, but I sacrafice for what I love :9

 

[tneah]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

I agree with the last post. Clean eating IS expensive on a limited budget. I buy my veggies and fruits frozen alot of times so they do not go bad-they still have the nutrients and fiber as fresh.

And "eating clean" means different things to everyone, some are fanatics about it, others "eat clean-mostly" which is where I usually am.

I do not feel using Splenda or Sweetnlow or Equal is bad, nor do I feel like a handful of raisins are "bad". Those protein shakes are sweetened with god knows what, so are they really "clean?" Who cares, they taste good, low in calories, high in protein, a fine addition to an active persons diet plan.

I think you have to stick with what works for you. I admire those that actually enjoy being vegan or whatever, but it does not work for me...anyway, you look fab darling, so whatever you are doing, keep it up, obviously its working, vanilla oatmeal and all!

 

[CollinsMom]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

>I agree with the last post. Clean eating IS expensive on a
>limited budget. I buy my veggies and fruits frozen alot of
>times so they do not go bad-they still have the nutrients and
>fiber as fresh.
>
>And "eating clean" means different things to everyone, some
>are fanatics about it, others "eat clean-mostly" which is
>where I usually am.
>
>I do not feel using Splenda or Sweetnlow or Equal is bad, nor
>do I feel like a handful of raisins are "bad". Those protein
>shakes are sweetened with god knows what, so are they really
>"clean?" Who cares, they taste good, low in calories, high in
>protein, a fine addition to an active persons diet plan.
>
>I think you have to stick with what works for you. I admire
>those that actually enjoy being vegan or whatever, but it does
>not work for me...anyway, you look fab darling, so whatever
>you are doing, keep it up, obviously its working, vanilla
>oatmeal and all!

Ditto. I think it's all relative.

I am sure that some would not consider my diet super clean, but I do my best. I love chocolate, especially dark. I will NEVER give up my little pink packet in my coffee every morning, I love my protein power, etc.

For me, it's all about deciding which things I don't want to let go, and which things I could do better about. I have made a huge improvement in adding fresh or frozen fruits and veggies into my diet every day. I agree that frozen is most often cheaper... It can get expensive.

 

[SirenSongWoman]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

I love this discussion. It really makes you think.

I listen an awful lot to Dr. Oz (shows up a lot on Oprah) who gives good, solid, scientific reasons for why people should or shouldn't eat certain things. For instance, he's really down on High Fructose Corn Syrup because it contains a chemical (leptin) which interferes with the brain's ability to signal when one is full. Obvious problems result. Even though Oprah's show often gets on my nerves (celebrity interviews ad nauseam and all her loud carrying on...) Oz makes sense and I rely mostly on him because he can back up everything he says. Also, he's a doctor and this is his area of expertise. I like Tosca's Eat-Clean Diet book but I'm concerned about what others here have said is her negative tone toward the overweight and the way being married to the publisher of Oxygen magazine (which, interestingly, SHE never seems to mention) is really publishing nepotism, giving her an automatic (and unquestioning) audience for her ideas.

As for the raison thing: I've made great strides in changing my body and improving my health but I'm still, technically, clinically obese. Two fist fulls of raisons is easily double what I should be ingesting. The key word in that sentence is "I."

 

[tneah]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

I am so sorry if I sounded "snotty" about raisins! I really do understand that portion control is super important and there are certain foods that make it hard to really watch portion size, for me? Peanut butter!:9 Good grief, I seriously could ingest the whole dang jar if I wanted to, so I keep it around only sometimes!

I have not heard of Dr. Oz (I am not a really big Oprah fan either)but he sounds great. I tend to agree about the sugar (or high fructose corn syrup) thing. Why? Only because in my personal experience, the more sugar I eat, the less I want veggies and "clean" foods. Thankfully, I have gotten the sugar thing almost under control, I allow myself a small treat once a day, it works for me.

 

[SirenSongWoman]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

The book I read is called YOU:ON A DIET - THE OWNER'S MANUAL FOR WAIST MANAGEMENT by Drs. Mehmet C. Oz and Michael F. Roizen. Roizen's a bit more serious than Oz but if you ever get a chance to catch them on Oprah you really should. Every time Oz is on I have my tablet and pen handy to take notes. The books (there's a series) are meant to be humorous but Oz is a cardiologist so there's A Lot of science and there are sections you end up re-reading. He's obsessed with ridding everyone of belly fat "because it will kill you." He once asked the audience if they knew what OMENTUM (sp?) is. Nobody knew. He pulled out what looked like a big net covered with big fat ugly blobs of something. He said "This is an Omentum." Apparently, we all have one and it's a kind of net that weaves between our stomachs and internal organs. The really nasty plaque-covered one he was holding was from the cadaver of an obese person. Then he held up one that didn't have hardly any plaque and said it was from a non-obese person. Then he said "This is killing you." Yikes. He goes into great detail about how in his book.

A lot of diet people seem to be heading toward a more thoughtful approach to what we all eat. I'm reading D. Zinczenko's The Abs Diet for Women right now and he, Oz and Tosca all pretty much recommend the same stuff (i.e., Nuts, Beans, Vegetables in lots of colors, non-fat dairy, oatmeal (and other grains), Turkey & other lean meats, Peanut Butter (yes you can), olive oil, whole grain breads/cereals, berries, whey powder). I kind of figure, if they all agree there has to be something to it.

But peanut butter (in moderation) is cool. I get the all natural kind that only contains peanuts. You have to keep it refrigerated so when I want some I microwave a little for a few seconds and spread it on my Kroger Private Selection Sugar-Free Whole Wheat bread (!!). Ummmm. I look forward to eating a samich every night at work.

 

[tneah]

RE: Is eating clean expensive

Oh I know what that "omentum" is! I went and had an "Accuscan" done of my entire body last year. Its like a CT scan that shows all your organs, bones, nerves, etc...its like health insurance in a way, it shows where they may be any troubles or trouble brewing. But anyway, the doctor that talks to about the results afterwards showed me the scan of my abdminal area and said I had very little internal fat or whatever...pretty cool! Thanks for the info on the good doc.

 

[trunyon]

RE: Is

Hi Clarissa! Personally you don't look like you need to change a thing girl! I love it though when I hear people talking more "health and wellness" as opposed to just looks! All you guys on this forum are awesome.

I read through the discussion so forgive me if I missed something!

One thing you could do with your oatmeal is to use actual vanilla and real cinnamon. Honey would work for a sweetener if you like that. (try the unfiltered honey, it's better for ya):9 Believe me, I was oatmeal and sugar all the way. Especially if it was instant!!!!! I love cooking the steel oats, adding pineapple and walnuts....MMmmmmm! If I use the honey I don't miss sugar, artificial or not.