What is Eating Clean?

What is clean eating? Well I get asked this question often, especially from my new clients or potential clients interested in nutrition coaching. Clean eating is eating whole foods in their natural or near natural state. This means eating fresh fruits and vegetables, complex carbs, lean cuts of meat and fish and healthy fats, while cutting out trans fats and unhealthy saturated fats, canned, boxed, pre-packaged and processed foods, fast food and all added sugars.
Clean eating is a lifestyle and is not a diet. When you eat clean you often eat more food and in turn you keep your blood sugar levels stabilized and feel better, healthier and often have more energy throughout the day.
Here are a few things to keep in mind when trying to switch to or continue the clean eating lifestyle.
1. Eat fresh fruits and vegetables, organic is not a must for eating clean but for some foods it is much better. Cook them by steaming, roasting or grilling or eat them raw in their natural state.
2. Eat lean cuts of meat or fish including chicken, turkey, grass fed beef like sirloin or buffalo, fishes including tilapia, salmon, shrimp, cod, mahi mahi, halibut, etc and eggs. Cook and eat your meats and chicken by steaming, baking, roasting, broiling or grilling them and removing the skin. Incorporate lean protein in every one of your meals and pair it with complex carbs and/or healthy fats and/or your favorite vegetables or fruit.
3. Choose complex carbs like sweet potatoes, oatmeal, yams, brown or wild rice, lentils and whole grain or sprouted breads. Cook these by baking, boiling grilling or broiling them and try and eat them in your earlier meals to fuel your energy for the day and limit them later as you wind down for the day.
4. Cut out all the sugary drinks and added sugar and stick with water, black coffee, teas and juice your own fruits and vegetables for juices.
5. Eat healthy fats in moderation like raw nuts, raw nut butters, avocados, and healthy oils like olive, coconut, avocado, and sesame oils.
6. Make sure that you are eating throughout the day and spacing your meals out 2-3 hours apart to keep up your blood sugar levels and this will keep the hunger down. Also avoid overrating by dividing your meals equally and allowing your body to digest each meal before the next.

Last, when you eat clean you can cheat every once and a while but there are so many clean healthy desserts and foods out there that you can cook that you may never eat anything again but good clean food.
If you choose to eat clean as a lifestyle you choose to live a lifetime of health, and your body, mind and wallet will thank you.