Clean Eating (Experience?)

NeahF

Hey, so with clean eating, which is mostly natural, earth stuff, right? So veggies, fruits, and meats and things you don't have to add to, they just are? Well, how strict is clean eating? If you've tried it or currently eat clean, why do you like it? How did your body or mental health change? Big emphasis on mental health... Do you feel "better"? Thanks in advance!!

KrissFlavored

Clean eating is just a fancy term used by people who wanna make themselves sound better then someone else.

NeahF

KrissFlavored wrote: »

Clean eating is just a fancy term used by people who wanna make themselves sound better then someone else.

Woah, was not expecting this! But thanks for that input 😂 Seems like you have some dirt on clean eaters.

chris89topher

KrissFlavored wrote: »

Clean eating is just a fancy term used by people who wanna make themselves sound better then someone else.

Some people like to focus on eating more whole foods and less processed stuff. I am vegetarian and although you can be a veggie and eat junk, I try my best to eat a mostly plant based (non-junk) diet. That's sort of what I think "clean eating" is. For example, I usually don't eat potato chips, fried foods, oils during cooking, etc., but I'm nowhere near perfect with it. One of my weaknesses is Walden Farms syrup which is, shall we say, quite UNclean based on the long list of ingredients. Lol. I in no way think I am better than someone who doesn't eat "clean". No offense, but you sort of rubbed a nerve there.

Another reason I attempt to eat "clean" is because I'm a volume eater, and to do that requires lots of low calorie foods. 😁

NeahF

[/quote]

Some people like to focus on eating more whole foods and less processed stuff. I am vegetarian and although you can be a veggie and eat junk, I try my best to eat a mostly plant based (non-junk) diet. That's sort of what I think "clean eating" is.
...
Another reason I attempt to eat "clean" is because I'm a volume eater, and to do that requires lots of low calorie foods. 😁[/quote]

Ooh, I like that you added there being a long list of ingredients on the UNclean item. So clean is more simple. Simple ingredients, too. Makes sense! And yes, that's awesome that you are a volume eater and can focus on clean foods. Thanks for your input!

mmapags

Clean eating is a vague, amorphous term with no universally accepted definition. It is generally used by those virtue signalling what good eaters they are.

sardelsa

When I used to eat clean or natural (whatever that meant for me) it caused me to put food into good and bad categories, I had anxiety around eating, it caused me to give up, cry over my food choices, overeat and not reach my goals. Now that I have a more flexible approach I'm healthier, more fit, I look better and I make progress whether I'm leaning out, maintaining, or bulking.

KrissFlavored

chris89topher wrote: »

KrissFlavored wrote: »

Clean eating is just a fancy term used by people who wanna make themselves sound better then someone else.

Some people like to focus on eating more whole foods and less processed stuff. I am vegetarian and although you can be a veggie and eat junk, I try my best to eat a mostly plant based (non-junk) diet. That's sort of what I think "clean eating" is. For example, I usually don't eat potato chips, fried foods, oils during cooking, etc., but I'm nowhere near perfect with it. One of my weaknesses is Walden Farms syrup which is, shall we say, quite UNclean based on the long list of ingredients. Lol. I in no way think I am better than someone who doesn't eat "clean". No offense, but you sort of rubbed a nerve there.

Another reason I attempt to eat "clean" is because I'm a volume eater, and to do that requires lots of low calorie foods. 😁

No offense taken. Honestly if people dont spend their time rubbing it in someone's face about how clean they eat all the time, then I guess my comment doesnt apply therefore those people shouldnt be bothered by what I said. But, you cant deny there are people out there who use it to stroke their own ego.

harper16

For me clean eating is not eating food with dirt on it.

L1zardQueen

My homegrown radishes and carrots are super dirty. Not clean at all. Hosed off, they aren’t too bad.

AnnPT77

The term is so ill-defined it's meaningless.

Good well-rounded nutrition is important for health, but that goal is better served by getting the right nutrients into our eating, rather than concerning ourselves with some arbitrary definition of foods as "clean" and "unclean", then avoiding "unclean" things and eating only "clean" ones. Health includes some aspects of mental health, of course, because it's all part of one body . . . but of course, there's more to mental health than just how we eat and exercise.

We've heard dozens of definitions of "clean eating" here - anything from "no white foods" to "only things that grow in the ground or come from animals" to "shop the perimeter of the grocery store" to "no more than 5 ingredients" to "nothing in a bag, box or can" and more. One could follow most of those rules, and still get poor overall nutrition. It's a complete red herring. It just isn't a helpful term, because it's so poorly defined. Everyone has his/her own definition.

I believe in getting good nutrition. I think everyone would be better off if they tried to do that, and I think there are many paths to that goal that can work, not just one. I would never refer to myself as a "clean eater", because I have no idea what it would mean.

Therefore, I have no idea whether "clean eating" would make me feel better, worse, or about the same. But I feel fine now, my blood tests & blood pressure and all that stuff are good (especially for a li'l ol' lady), so I'm pretty happy eating in the way I eat: Get enough protein (with attention to essential amino acids); get enough fats (especially monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats, with attention to Omega-3/Omega-6 balance); eat a boatload of varied, colorful fruits and veggies for micronutrients and fiber; have a treat now and then for fun. That seems to work fine, for me.

Clean? Don't know, don't care.

janejellyroll

I have had periods of my life when I've kept to some of the dictates of "clean eating" (there are so many dictates and some of them conflict, so I don't think anyone can truly say they're living up to some objective definition of it). I didn't notice any physical differences, just that I was spending more on groceries that I usually do.

Mentally, it's terrible for me, as having food rules is a giant trigger for my disordered eating. It never ends well.

Now I just focus on eating a variety of foods that meet my nutritional needs. I'm much happier, my weight management is easier, and I spend a reasonable amount of groceries.

NeahF

sardelsa wrote: »

When I used to eat clean or natural (whatever that meant for me) it caused me to put food into good and bad categories, I had anxiety around eating, it caused me to give up, cry over my food choices, overeat and not reach my goals. Now that I have a more flexible approach I'm healthier, more fit, I look better and I make progress whether I'm leaning out, maintaining, or bulking.

Wow, thank you for sharing. That makes sense how labeling things as clean and unclean can be a big pitfall for anxiety and not following through with goals when eating.

NeahF

harper16 wrote: »

For me clean eating is not eating food with dirt on it.

😂 Same. But can the unclean get clean if you just dust it off? 🤷

Terytha

I eat clean by thoroughly rinsing my fruits and vegetables prior to eating to get the dirt off, washing my rice, and washing my hands before and sometimes after meals.

Also I don't use the five second rule. Any food that hits the ground for any amount of time is garbage.

To more specifically answer your question, since there is no definition for clean eating, it can be whatever you want it to be. If coming up with a strict plan for only fresh foods with no additives helps you, go for it.

gradchica27

Agree that the definition is vague to the point of nonexistence. I see friends on FB “only eating clean!” but also selling some protein powder and energy “fizzy” drink that doesn’t seem to follow their “unprocessed! Whole Foods!” line.

I commented to one lady IRL that I used to make delicious pumpkin muffins w coconut flour when a gf friend used to frequent my playgroup, but I switched back to my regular recipe bc it’s also tasty, cheaper, and fewer calories. Her comment: well, the coconut flour is more natural. I’m not sure how a coconut dried and ground into a flour is more “natural” than wheat dried and ground into flour 🤷‍♀️

Anyway, eating more fruits/veg/Whole Foods is generally good, but making it such a hard rule that you make yourself crazy rigid is generally not so good. Also, you can overeat on “clean” foods (nuts, anyone?), so it’s not an automatic weight management plan.

I eat plenty of processed foods and in many ways that helps me eat more healthy foods because it cuts my prep time, thereby ensuring I actually eat the food instead of having grand cooking plans that never happen. I eat more fish when I buy the frozen salmon patties at Costco instead of only buying actual fish....though I guess the least processed version would be the whole fish, and I have no desire to deal with that. I eat more veggies when I buy prebagged greens, or the frozen “steamers” veggies I can throw in the microwave for a quick low-cal lunch. Clif Builders Bars or Rx bars help me (pescatarian) satisfy my sweet tooth in a way that helps me hit my protein goal.

So if “clean” (however you define it) helps you make food choices that align with your goals, go for it.

MidlifeCrisisFitness

You have just gone for a swim in shark infested waters. 😎 Lots of well meaning folk, each with very personal perspectives have shared with you.

You will have to define what you consider "clean" or "eating well" or however you want to consider it, for yourself.

However there are accepted recommendations and avoidances. Some of these have been shared. It is generally acteped that to be healthy you have to eat healthy. But that is really dependant on your starting point.

We would all suggest you start logging everything you eat and drink to learn where you are and what you may be missing or over eating in your daily menu. From there you can adjust bad habits and add good habits.

lemurcat2

mmapags wrote: »

Clean eating is a vague, amorphous term with no universally accepted definition. It is generally used by those virtue signalling what good eaters they are.

This, and also what Ann said and some others.

I mostly cook from whole ingredients and care about nutrition. Keeping clean to me doesn't mean better nutrition, so I don't consider it a valuable thing to do or a helpful term (although those with looser definitions would probably think I was a clean eater). I never used the term, but at one point was on an "all natural" kick that was basically the same thing, and it mostly just involved some kind of rigid and not actually helpful rules (like at one point pasta was okay if I made it from scratch, at other times flour was out, I had to make tomato sauce with whole tomatoes rather than buy canned even out of season, no premade sauces of any type). Those rules made cooking harder and less fun, and didn't actually correlate with weight loss or better nutrition. I eat better nutrition now, and cooking/eating much less stressful.

I think often the "clean" approach can be something those insecure about learning about nutrition -- or overwhelmed with what seems to be conflicting information -- adopt as an alternative, but I think for some of us it can be obsessive and it's also easy to focus on the wrong things. (I've seen people boast about giving up supposedly unclean foods like bread while continuing to eat few vegetables.)

Mostly it's just dieting jargon that isn't helpful or clear IMO.

NovusDies

I personally think there is a place for all kinds of food in my life. I do eat a lot of minimally touched foods. The other day I was working my rear off and while I was off running an errand I grabbed some fast food. I was grateful to have it because what I needed in that moment was calories to keep powering through the day.

I don't think everyone who tries to eat "clean" is virtue signalling. I think it can happen. When it does I like to remind them that it is a privilege to eat whatever they decided "clean" means.

Since I am also privileged I like to set a limit on how much processed food makes up my weekly diet. I want the bulk of my calories to come from food I prepare myself. An odd day will occur like the recent day I had fast food and Subway in the same day. I do not worry about it or the days a meal goes south on me and I pull something from the freezer. Flexibility in food means greater adherence and sustainability which helps me mentally and physically.

ruqayyahsmum

I mainly eat plant based whole foods for health reasons (I don't eat meat, fish, eggs or dairy)

But if I choose to eat a little processed food on occasions its no big deal

amusedmonkey

Clean eating can be as strict or as loose as you want it to be because, really, it doesn't have any one definition. It's basically "in the eye of the beholder". It's vague at best and the best definition is basically "eating in a way that makes me feel good about my food intake for reasons I believe are good". Everyone interprets it the way they "feel" it should be.

Oil is a processed product, but some clean eaters consider it natural because it's just one ingredient. Some people's definition of clean is so loose that McDonald's hamburger is clean by their definition. Some go the opposite way, where even ground grains are considered processed and if it doesn't look the way it did when you grew it, it's not clean.

My personal take on this: giving it a name puts unnecessary restrictions on your diet because if it has a name it must have rules. I'm a big fan of "adding instead of removing". By adding a lot of vegetables and nutritious foods to your diet, you're basically set nutritionally, even if you eat some less nutritious foods. Clean eating, depending on how someone defines it, can actually result in removing nutrients. I track all of my nutrients consistently and my main source of vitamin E is sunflower oil, which is usually considered processed.

Instead of looking for some random set of rules, make your own rules based on your needs and habits, and balance your food intake in a way that fits your life, not someone else's.