What counts as clean eating?
Replies
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livingleanlivingclean wrote: »you are old enough to know what that means Im sure, you don't need "rules". If you want to eat something else you love, that may not be so nutritious, don't demonise it - enjoy the experience, and savour the taste!
I don't think age means understanding nutrition. I know plenty of senior citizens and people closing in on senior citizen status that honestly do not understand how to eat. Some of them, shockingly, even have diabetes and somehow they still haven't learned how to change their lifestyle. I am not talking about the people who know better but still cheat and shoot up with insulin. I am talking about people who were shocked to find out they could reduce medication if they ate more appropriately. Many others never fought weight gain until way late in life and they were never forced to learn.
To the OP: I think you can learn from studying other diets but try not to make it an all or nothing situation. Use common sense and take the parts you think will work for you and ignore the rest. I do caution you that quite often diets fail when you don't enjoy yourself and what you are eating at least part of the time. Food boredom has wrecked me enough times to know so please don't let it wreck you too and delay a healthier you.
It is better to decide to lose weight first by counting calories and then add in healthier options as you feel you need it. The thing they don't tell you is that many of us can only deal with things in moderation and that includes uber-nutritious lifestyles.
My point is that most people know that eating nutritious food is good for them, and what they should be doing most of the time. Actually doing it is not the same thing, and many people struggle with that.
Weight issues are a lot to blame for health concerns. Losing weight by any means (even doing the Twinkie diet) helps a lot of people.5 -
@livingleanlivingclean
I have never been smart enough to know what "most" people know and don't know. I do know they put labels on hair dryers to keep people from using them in the bath for a reason and a burger with lettuce, tomato, and pickles with a side of fries does not count as 4 servings of vegetables (yes I know a tomato is a fruit). I have heard the latter.
Is it okay if we tell the OP not to investigate the twinkie diet?
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@livingleanlivingclean
I have never been smart enough to know what "most" people know and don't know. I do know they put labels on hair dryers to keep people from using them in the bath for a reason and a burger with lettuce, tomato, and pickles with a side of fries does not count as 4 servings of vegetables (yes I know a tomato is a fruit). I have heard the latter.
Is it okay if we tell the OP not to investigate the twinkie diet?
I'm shattered. Shattered, I tell you!8 -
I'd like to take a moment and apologize to everyone on this thread. I know you all were just trying to help and I misread your reactions.17
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Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.18 -
Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
10 -
Showering before lunch?4
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janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.10 -
janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?5 -
janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
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janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
I don't personally have a concept of "clean eating" (because I think it is so vague as to be useless), but I appreciate you taking the time to answer my questions about how you see it.
Actually, I think your concept is more useful than many of the others than I've encountered because in my weight loss/fitness, I've found that accurate logging is much more important to my success to making sure to eat or avoid specific foods.5 -
janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
So, do you not eat any foods that haven't been prepared in your own home? Like, in your cheeseburger example, do you make your own bread/buns? (Not trying to be difficult... genuinely curious.)4 -
janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
I certainly agree that the term "clean eating" is subjective, vague and arbitrary and as such, is not very helpful as a guiding principle for diet. Your definition is one that I've not seen before, even with @diannethegeek's catalog of definitions, that had not come up before as it seems more focused on being able to log the calories accurately than any sort of moral assignment of good/bad that usually accompanies these threads.
I too am curious if you only eat food that you've prepared yourself and how sustainable you feel that is from a societal perspective.5 -
LifeWithPie wrote: »I don't know....washing your food before eating it?
Not if you're in Flint4 -
janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
So, do you not eat any foods that haven't been prepared in your own home? Like, in your cheeseburger example, do you make your own bread/buns? (Not trying to be difficult... genuinely curious.)
I really try not to eat food that I haven't prepared for myself. However, I do what is feasible. For instance, no, i do not make my own bread/buns, for this I have to rely on the nutrition labels and logging the servings by weight. Occasionally, we will have a pizza night at home with the kids, and in this case I am not 100% sure of the nutrition value of the pizza I am eating, or if I am cutting it close on my calories I will prepare a salad myself. I just have to do my best by the weight and the research on the nutrition facts of the pizza (or other food) in question.7 -
janejellyroll wrote: »janejellyroll wrote: »Personally, I consider clean eating as eating food you know the nutritional value of and can account for it in your diet. Example:
Clean:
Cheeseburger, home-made with everything weighed and measured with an accurate macro count.
Greek Yogurt parfait, home-made with accurately measured fruit or granola additions.
Non-Clean:
Cheeseburger, Fast-food. Sure you can get nutrition information from the restaurant, but you have no idea how much extra fat your burger cooked in, or how many grams of mayo the cook put on it, the weight of the cheese topping your patty. It's a crap shoot.
Yogurt Parfait, Fast-food. 20g of granola? 15? 50? You just don't know. Added sugar in the fruit? Weight of the fruit? 300 calories or 600 calories? Sure the nutrition facts say one thing, but we all know how that works.
TLDR: If you know what's in it and how it's made and exactly what nutrients you are putting in your body, I would consider that clean.
So same ingredients for a sandwich -- one is made by me with a scale and the other is made by my mom and I'm not sure exactly how much tomato she put on it, mine is clean and hers isn't?
Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
So for you "eating clean" and "logging accurately" are the same thing? There is no distinction?
For me, that is absolutely correct. At the end of the day, I am 100% sure of what I am putting in my body. Clean eating has been a trendy diet term to mean many different things, and a term that is open to interpretation by nearly everyone. What is clean eating to me, clearly, isn't the same thing as clean eating to you. Am I right? Are you right? It's difficult to say, as there really is no standard to compare to. There is a very similar argument in the body building world between who is "natural" and who isn't. It's all buzzwords and crazes that need to end.
So, do you not eat any foods that haven't been prepared in your own home? Like, in your cheeseburger example, do you make your own bread/buns? (Not trying to be difficult... genuinely curious.)
I really try not to eat food that I haven't prepared for myself. However, I do what is feasible. For instance, no, i do not make my own bread/buns, for this I have to rely on the nutrition labels and logging the servings by weight. Occasionally, we will have a pizza night at home with the kids, and in this case I am not 100% sure of the nutrition value of the pizza I am eating, or if I am cutting it close on my calories I will prepare a salad myself. I just have to do my best by the weight and the research on the nutrition facts of the pizza (or other food) in question.
So, you really are talking about more of a calorie perspective, not that you are fundamentally opposed to food additives or things like that? I agree with @WinoGelato - I think that's a pretty unusual application of "clean eating".
Edited to add: I think this sounds more like a "clean logging" movement
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Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
Couldn't "too many people" take the burger apart and use a little common sense and why are they so obsessed with the tomato? Or better yet, couldn't they learn that when faced with a situation where they don't know for sure maybe it is better to pad the numbers by 100 calories or so? It is true that you can't completely trust restaurant food but life happens and I know of people who lose weight that eat out on a regular basis. It is also possible, but hardly tragic, if a person is travelling for business and has little control over meals for a few days to a week to simply escape with 0 net gain. Again life happens.
3 -
the pod challenge6
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Well, my statement wasn't intended to be a one size fits all. My point was in knowing what is in the food you are eating. Unsure of the quantity of tomato? You could find out much easier from your mother than you could the line cook putting mayo and cheese on a burger. Too many people find themselves in situations where an extra 200 calories in a day would put them out of a deficit, so eating clean (in my personal opinion) would mean having control of these variables.
Couldn't "too many people" take the burger apart and use a little common sense and why are they so obsessed with the tomato? Or better yet, couldn't they learn that when faced with a situation where they don't know for sure maybe it is better to pad the numbers by 100 calories or so? It is true that you can't completely trust restaurant food but life happens and I know of people who lose weight that eat out on a regular basis. It is also possible, but hardly tragic, if a person is travelling for business and has little control over meals for a few days to a week to simply escape with 0 net gain. Again life happens.
Note: I was the one who brought up tomato, not @adarbyem
The tomato obsession is all mine.2 -
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