CLEAN EATING (Tosca Reno)

SirenSongWoman

SirenSongWoman

Cathlete
First, I want to thank all of you who turned me on to Tosca Reno. Got her book, read it, and am now attempting to make some changes.

My fitness habits have been torpedoed by a shoulder injury (can do cardio, weights are out for now) so I thought tweeking my diet now might help. I had already pretty much eliminated fast food before I started this (a VERY big deal for The Fast Food Queen) and was also attempting to eat healthier and drink lots more water. Since reading Tosca's book I've become aware that the healthy food I thought I'd been eating is no such thing and that I have a serious sweets addiction, especially the artificial variety. It's been very hard eliminating diet soda and all the pink packets of stuff I've been using to sweeten... everything, for twenty years(!). Plain oatmeal (with cinnamon) I'm getting used to but plain yogurt with JUST fruit added is entirely different than those little aspartame-sweetened tubs I always downed so easily. I'm doing it but I'm only getting started and have such a long way to go. Has anyone else had issues making the nutritional switch? The foods that are obviously healthy vs. the foods that obviously are not aren't the problem. It's that HUGE gray area in between where you really have to be knowledgeable enough to make the right choices. And I'm really missing those giant Symphony bars on sale 10 for $10 at Kroger. The only sweets I have in the house now are prunes! Whoopee.
 
Good for you!! I think that clean eating takes some getting used to (and I know I still can't get rid of my Skinny Cows a few nights a week for dessert), but it does get a lot easier! I also like to pull out Reno's book for motivation when I'm in a slump.

Leanne
 
I ordered this book from Amazon three weeks ago and still have not received it!!! I am so anxious to read it!
 
I feel your pain! You could try mixing some fruit, plain low fat yogurt, and agave nectar to get that nice sweetness that is chemical free. Try a dab of honey, pure maple syrup, or brown sugar in your oatmeal along with the cinnamon. Buy the 100 calorie packs of cookies for your evening dessert. As someone with a sweet tooth (I always hear that if you cut sweets cold turkey you eventually won't miss them but for me this was not true--I went almost 40 days without sweets and life was crappy) I can tell you that you'll probably end up giving up on Tosca if you don't cut yourself a little slack. Tosca is a little militant and I think unnecessarily so. Don't give up. Eventually it will get easier. ;)
 
Hi there :)

I've never been a fan of natural yoghurt either - one thing I find that helps is to mix a bit of vanilla flavoured protein powder into the yogurt (and then add some fruit). The protein powder is obviously not natural but I figure it's better than aspartame! (plus it helps boost your protein intake and also helps lower the glaecemic index of the meal!)

I also have a wicked sweet tooth - I read TR's book about 8 months ago and am still struggling to eat super-clean but I must say, my sweet cravings have diminished somewhat, and making healthier choices is getting easier and easier!

Sally x
 
I can't eat sweatened yogurts (with the exception of Coffee flavor) because it all takes like pie filling to me. I only eat the plain, tossed with homemade granola and fresh fruit. Alternatively, you can blend the yogurt in the food processor with some fresh or frozen fruit and the sugars from the fruit will sweeten it. I almost never use any sweetener for anything. A little raw sugar or honey on my grapefruit or oatmeal and that's about it. Nothing in coffee or tea - yuck. You'll be surprised - once you get it out of your diet, you'll totally notice the difference. And tasting it will gross you out (we'll it does me anyway - I have virtually no sweet tooth).
 
I too loved Tosca's book and I love her column in Oxygen. Did you know that a new magazine called "Clean Eating" is on the shelves also? It's complete with recipes, shopping lists, a month's worth of meal ideas complete with nutritional breakdowns, etc. It's really worth picking up.
As for sweetner, I like Stevia. It takes a little getting used to as it is very sweet and only takes a little. Some brands are less cloying than others.
Here's to clean eating!
Amy
 
<You'll be surprised - once you get it out of your diet, you'll totally notice the difference.>

Like I said, for me this was all bunk. I like sweets and I'll never stop liking them and I don't think one has to give them up entirely, particularly if one makes wise choices most of the time. I think that is what discourages people about "clean" eating---this so called need to strive for complete perfection in one's diet.
And btw, cream and a bit of sugar are required in a proper cup of tea ;-)
 
I agree with Beavs! There's no way I could give up sweets completely - I've tried and it just makes me miserable because I feel so deprived! Instead I try to have 3-5 sugar-free days a week and when I do allow myself a sinful treat I try not to go overboard by having a super-large portion (although somethimes I can't help it). The way I see it, if every week you manage to eat a little less than you used to you're on the right track...and who knows, maybe one day you'll wake up and be repulsed by the sight of chocolate, ice-cream and cookies (although I very much doubt it :D )

Sally x
 
"and who knows, maybe one day you'll wake up and be repulsed by the sight of chocolate, ice-cream and cookies (although I very much doubt it :D )"

If I ever were to wake up and be repulsed by the above mentioned, it would be sad indeed :eek:
 
Okay, ya'll, here's an update: We had one of many holiday potlucks today, after about 7 days of fairly solid clean eating. Now, I knew picking this time of year meant I would only be "dabbling" with clean eating, since there was no way I wasn't going to nibble on the tasty chow at our December food fests. I figured I'd get very serious starting after Xmas. So, at todays potluck I filled my plate with:
- About four little chicken nuggets (homemade, delicious and clean eating adaptable),
- A (lame, dry) fried chicken back,
- About 4 of those little smokies things in bbq sauce (always tasty, unfortunately)
- A small bowl of (runny but spicy and yummy) chili
- (2) (fairly flavorless) deviled eggs
- A serving of (tasteless) mac-n-cheese and
- A piece of the (awesome delicious) "Tripple Chocolate" cake I bought at the Kroger deli. Really guys, you had to SEE this thing: Super moist chocolate cake with decadent chocolate icing, SMOTHERED(!) in white chocolate shavings... I wasn't going to have a piece of THAT? Yea, right.

You know, it didn't SEEM like a lot at the time.

In the end, I ate everything but the chicken back and the mac-n-cheese, because neither tasted good enough to justify the damage (and I kind of ran out of room). About 20 minutes after eating I felt like a slug and was nearly in a sugar-induced coma, hardly able to function . Just before leaving, of course, I had another piece of the cake while chatting with my buds. At one point I looked down and realized I'd unconsciously picked off and left behind virtually all the icing as I shovelled the cake into my mouth. So I got one thing right - for which I demand credit;), thank you.

Bottom line, I still FEEL like crap - after DAYS of feeling awesome. A different group at work is sponsoring a pot luck tomorrow, which I've paid to be part of. I WILL nibble, but I'm bringing my own carbs/protein to get me through the night because I really do not want to feel this lousy again tomorrow. And my artificial sweetener withdrawal? I'm nearly over it and I don't think today's sugar overdose will cause me any long-term consequences. In fact, in a rather short time I've come to actually enjoy my tea "clean" (I'm drinking mega doses) and I've actually come to appreciate the bitter/sweet flavor of yogurt and berries, sans sweetener. You know, even before I ever heard of Tosca Reno I remember seeing actress Marilu Henner on a talk show talking about ridding one's diet of "fake food." I think I'm getting it. I'll get through December alright and will tackle the new year a whole lot cleaner than I ever have.

Nonetheless, I'm I'm still really angry about the omnipresence of High Fructose Corn Syrup. I noticed today that it's the second ingredient in my bran flakes! I mean, you have to WORK to screw up bran flakes!!! I'd just assumed... This is the thing that's driving me crazy. You can't ASSUME anything - and all those ingredient labels are a pain to sort through. Rest assured I'm paying close attention to everything you all have to say on this topic and I really appreciate your reinforcement while I fight the good fight. Thank you all so much.
 
I have read Tosca's book and enjoyed it enough to purchase her Eating Clean Cookbook, which has so many choices it is hard to fall off the eating clean wagon.

Another book I found worth while was "The Abs Diet for Women" by David Zinczenko with Ted Spiker. D. Zinczenko (if I am not incorrect) also is a writter for Men's Health Magazine. This book was featured on the Today's show a while back, they did a little segminet which made me want to pick up the book.

Unlike Tosca's book (although she now has a cookbook) the Abs Diet for Woman has several choices for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks and on top of that breaks down two weeks worth of choices for each and every one of the 6 meals you need to eat. When I was reading his two week schedule I thought I was reading one of Cathe's monthly workout rotations. This book not only gives you the reasons for eating healthy, but hands you the choices, guides you through the grocery store, and even plans out two weeks for you. The laziest person can but eating right to work with this book.
 
I just finished reading this book (and her cook book). Some good stuff in it, but I was appalled at the sodium content of some of the recipes. Several had more than 1000 (thousand, that's not a typo!) mg of sodium per serving, and at least one had over 2000 (again, thousand, not a typo!) per serving!
 
I also noticed this also which makes me question some of Tosca's wisdom.
Many people are on the anti sugar kick but are complete oblivious to the harmful effects of excess sodium, Tosca included. Still, the book has some really nice recipes.
 
Tosca lost me when she stated a nonfat tall latte was a "cheat" food. Give me a friggin' break. Seriously, I spent many years during my bodybuilding days obsessing over all of this, life is too short. I try to buy organic when I can, eat my veggies and fruits, take the skin off my chicken breasts and drink my water and exercise. I respect others choices, whatever floats your boat.

I feel life is way to short to look at food as the enemy, my role models are Nigella Lawson (this woman is so comfy in her skin, and cooks like a fiend) and Sophia Loren who once said, "All you see, I owe to spaghetti!";) You go, girls.:7
 
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