Clean Eating Club ~ Dec. 3-7

cherapple

Cheryl, it is hard to watch the people you care about not making healthier choices. Diabetes runs in my family as well, along with heart disease, etc. But they still eat all kinds of processed foods! Fortunately my dad is doing a *little* better, because he has to take insulin shots now - which means he has to count his carbs (dosage is based on carb intake). Still eating processed crap sometimes, but occasionally also making heathier choices (nuts or fruits or cheeses rather than potato chips). It's a step in the right direction, at least.

The health advice when our parents were younger, and still today all too often, is to eat less fat and more carbs, no matter what kind. All the lowfat "diet" foods that our parents (mine and my husband's) eat are simple-carb junk (and they've done nothing but gain weight over the years!) but the way I look at it now is that they're doing the best that they know how. It's what they were taught to do. I think our society is learning that such advice is backfiring. But "diet" foods are the foods that make the most profits, so it's going to be a long time before advertising comes around.

cherapple

I just dropped in to see what y'all eat. I am proud to say I eat much the same, so I will come by to pick up new ideas.

like Aunt millies ww hamburger buns! will look for them tomorrow!

night:flowerforyou:

Hi, arewethereyet. Just curious where you learned to eat "clean." It's still pretty new to me! I had to come at it from a fitness angle, rather than a "diet" angle, or it just never caught on with me before.

I need to find a healthy bread.... The one I eat is whole wheat (but not whole grain) and is made with HFCS. :grumble: Bread has been one of my biggest healthy food frustrations.

jessmomof3

I need to find a healthy bread.... The one I eat is whole wheat (but not whole grain) and is made with HFCS. :grumble: Bread has been one of my biggest healthy food frustrations.

I like the Arnold/ Brownberry breads, no HFCS and higher fiber. Also, Meijer brand (don't know if you have a Meijer nearby) has really good breads. I like the high fiber and the flaxseed bread. I also love the Joseph's whole wheat and flax pitas (I get them at Super Wal*mart in the deli section) for sandwiches, pita pizzas, etc. HTH!

jessmomof3

I'm here again! I swear, this week has just been non-stop!!

Breakfast:
1/2 c. multi grain hot cereal & 1/2 c. whole cranberries
1/4 c. Fiber one cereal
1/2 scoop choc. protein powder
1 T. NM PB, 1 T. flax, 1 T. wheat germ
1/2 c. cottage cheese

Snack:
Clif Kids organic Z-bar chocolate brownie (had one in my purse and was starving!)

Lunch:
Bowl of leftover spicy chicken chili

jessmomof3

I guess all we can do is be a living example of health :flowerforyou: and learn to let go of other people's choices.... Even our children and our spouses have to learn to make their own choices, but it's not easy to watch. :ohwell:

That is my motto. I do my best to make healthy choices for me and my family. I can't change my extended family, but I can try!!! :laugh: My family is pretty healthy, but my Inlaws are NOT. I have to pack all of my foods when I go visit there. At first I felt like I was being rude, but then I realized that they were being rude by trying to pressure me into eating cinnamon rolls, donuts, chips, etc. I just know going there that I'll have to pack extra. My FIL is way overweight and it scares me to think that he could have a heart attack at any time. I'm so glad that my dh has jumped on board w/ the healthy eating. He's not as *clean* of an eater as I am, but he's done a LOT better. Anyway...

shar140

I thought of some tips for people wanting/trying to eat clean. I try to eat clean as much as possible, but sometimes it comes down to convenience, unfortunately.

-if you don't think you'll like WW pasta or brown rice, try mixing half and half of the white kind and the WW pasta/brown rice. Then gradually mix more of the WW/brown rice in! Take small steps!
-yes, WW pasta can sometimes taste like cardboard. But I found that when I switched from the thicker noodle to thin spaghetti or angel hair, it was SO different! Then I could hardly tell the difference! I don't know why - but it works for me!
-I found that when cooking brown rice (the long cooking kind, not quick-cooking), sometimes it would get mushy. I added some olive oil or Smart Balance (butter/margarine substitute), and it seems to help. It was a texture thing for me!
-If I am cooking say, chicken breasts, I cook extra to have on salads, sandwiches, etc. Then I already have it ready and don't have to use the pre-cooked stuff from the store that has all those additives. I haven't tried it, but I bet I could try re-freezing the cooked chicken to have on hand later...
-If I know I am going to want brown rice for the next night's meal, I'll cook it the night before - since it takes about 50 minutes to cook, all I have to do is re-heat it the next night!
-always read food labels!! You never know what has HFCS, partially hydrogenated oils, or even artificial sweeteners in them! Once I bought a canister of chipotle peanuts, not thinking much about it - it wasn't until I had eaten them, that I read the label - it had Splenda in it!! :noway: Splenda (or sucralose, it's generic name) gives me headaches, so I steer away from it. Anything that totes that it is "less/lower sugar" is suspect to have Splenda.

That's all I can think of for now...I'll post more if I think of them!

cherapple

That is my motto. I do my best to make healthy choices for me and my family. I can't change my extended family, but I can try!!! :laugh: My family is pretty healthy, but my Inlaws are NOT. I have to pack all of my foods when I go visit there. At first I felt like I was being rude, but then I realized that they were being rude by trying to pressure me into eating cinnamon rolls, donuts, chips, etc. I just know going there that I'll have to pack extra. My FIL is way overweight and it scares me to think that he could have a heart attack at any time. I'm so glad that my dh has jumped on board w/ the healthy eating. He's not as *clean* of an eater as I am, but he's done a LOT better. Anyway...

Same here with the in-laws!!! :noway: I'll be staying with them this weekend to attend a family Christmas party. There is a lot of obesity in the family, and I too am afraid of heart attacks at any moment. I've never taken food with me before and I've always just assumed I'd have a "bad" food weekend, but I don't want to do that this time. That sends the wrong message that eating processed food is OK, or "no big deal," when it's not for me. I'm going to take food with me this time. It's the best way to get the point across that I want to eat healthier, rather than not saying anything and just eating whatever is available! Then it takes me days to recover when I get home. :sick:

I'm not sure what I'm going to do about the party. I don't think I'd feel comfortable taking food, but we're supposed to bring a dish to pass, so I'll have to think of something that I'll eat. I'm kind of dreading it....

What do you do for family parties, or when your family takes you out for dinner someplace that you don't really want to go?

cherapple

Once I bought a canister of chipotle peanuts, not thinking much about it - it wasn't until I had eaten them, that I read the label - it had Splenda in it!! :noway: Splenda (or sucralose, it's generic name) gives me headaches, so I steer away from it. Anything that totes that it is "less/lower sugar" is suspect to have Splenda.

That's all I can think of for now...I'll post more if I think of them!

Those are some great ideas, govalpo. I went Christmas shopping at the mall today and found a sugar-free cookbook at the bookstore. Then I saw that it called for Splenda in the recipes! It kills me that people are passing this stuff off as healthy! You really have to look before you buy *anything* that says "sugar-free" because it almost always has another sweetener added. You have to make sure it says "unsweetened" -- and practically *everything* is sweetened.

I went to the farmer's market a couple of weeks ago and there was a local jam maker there. I thought it would be great to have some homemade jam made without sugar. You would think that a farmer's market would offer healthy options. It turned out that there were only two options: either sugar or Splenda. Grrrrr! If people would just get used to the way unsweetened food tastes, they'd realize how much better it tastes! I don't want to see sugar or Splenda at my local farmer's market. But I CAN get some really good peanut butter there. :happy:

Done ranting. :blushing: :laugh:

cherapple

Exercise: 50 mins. on the ellipticals

Breakfast (the usual :laugh: ):
1/2 c. dry oatmeal, cooked
Sliced apple
1/4 c. skim milk
1/4 c. egg whites
1 Tbs. flax
Stevia

Snack:
Banana
14 almonds
1/8 c. cashews

Snack:
1 piece whole wheat bread
1 Tbs. peanut butter

Lunch:
Whole wheat tortilla
Leftover turkey burger (This was good cold! I am pretty proud of myself. I took a cooler to the mall so I wouldn't end up eating pizza or fries.)

Snack:
1 c. skim milk
1 Tbs. cocoa powder
Stevia

I want to wean myself off of the Stevia eventually. I'm gradually using fewer drops. The Suger Shock books says that it's processed the same way that sugar is. I may try to grow my own Stevia next year and use the dried leaves.

cherapple

Do you shoot for a certain ration of protein, carbs, and fat?

I had mine set at 40/40/20, but I couldn't eat that much protein. I now have it set at 35/45/20, and I'm still struggling to eat that much protein. Carbs and fat are pretty easy. :bigsmile:

arewethereyet

I just dropped in to see what y'all eat. I am proud to say I eat much the same, so I will come by to pick up new ideas.

like Aunt millies ww hamburger buns! will look for them tomorrow!

night:flowerforyou:

I buy Aunt Millie's WW/whole grain english muffins, breads, hot dog buns, hamburger buns....they can be hard to find in some places so I buy a bunch and keep them in my freezer. They have a bakery outlet store in Indianapolis (SUPER CHEAP!), so when I am there I stock up!

My son lives in Indianapoplis! I didnt get a chance to check it out, but we get stuff from all over down here in So Fla. Thanks to all the transients!!

cherapple

Dinner:
1/2 baked sweet potato
1/2 tsp better butter
1 Tbs. grated 50% light cheddar
1/2 cup broccoli
1 piece vegetarian bacon
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1 cup skim milk

I met all my nutrition goals for carbs, fat, and calcium, but I'm still under for protein.
Total daily protein: 149 grams goal, 87 eaten, 62 remaining.

I'm under 200 calories for the day, and I don't plan on eating anything more (but I was over yesterday). Where to get more protein? I used to use a protein powder, but I felt like I was eating a processed food, plus it was expensive, so I stopped. I'm wondering whether I should buy it again. (One thing I could have done was add some egg whites to my hot chocolate snack in the afternoon, but I forgot.) And do I really need more protein? I think I'm doing very well compared to the amount of protein I ate when I was a vegetarian (most of the time I didn't even try to eat protein), and since I started eating clean. I'm really getting used to having a protein source every time I eat!

shar140

Do you shoot for a certain ration of protein, carbs, and fat?

I had mine set at 40/40/20, but I couldn't eat that much protein. I now have it set at 35/45/20, and I'm still struggling to eat that much protein. Carbs and fat are pretty easy. :bigsmile:

I shoot for a 40/30/30 carbs/protein/fat, and it is hard to always get that much protein - but I know my body maintains/loses (not gains!) better when I eat less carbs (esp. processed!) than a typical 55-65% carb diet. I actually got into clean eating because I wanted the carbs that I do eat to be a low GI (glycemic index), which are whole grains.

You could try mixing in a 1/2 c. of cottage cheese in your oatmeal - I've done it and I actually liked it - for one, it helped cool off the hot oatmeal. :laugh: and two, it made it kind of creamy. I sweeten mine with fruit and a small amount of honey, top it off with some pecans and cinnamon (supposed to help the metabolism!). Yum! I might have to have that in the morning

cherapple

I shoot for a 40/30/30 carbs/protein/fat, and it is hard to always get that much protein - but I know my body maintains/loses (not gains!) better when I eat less carbs (esp. processed!) than a typical 55-65% carb diet. I actually got into clean eating because I wanted the carbs that I do eat to be a low GI (glycemic index), which are whole grains.

You could try mixing in a 1/2 c. of cottage cheese in your oatmeal - I've done it and I actually liked it - for one, it helped cool off the hot oatmeal. :laugh: and two, it made it kind of creamy. I sweeten mine with fruit and a small amount of honey, top it off with some pecans and cinnamon (supposed to help the metabolism!). Yum! I might have to have that in the morning

I've been afraid to up the fat -- still coming from the low-fat mentality! Maybe I'll try that. I'd rather not eat such high carbs, even the good ones. I've tried cottage cheese in my yogurt and I like that, but I haven't tried it in my oatmeal yet. I like the cinnamon trick! Thanks for the tips. :flowerforyou: :happy:

jessmomof3

You could try mixing in a 1/2 c. of cottage cheese in your oatmeal - I've done it and I actually liked it - for one, it helped cool off the hot oatmeal. :laugh: and two, it made it kind of creamy. I sweeten mine with fruit and a small amount of honey, top it off with some pecans and cinnamon (supposed to help the metabolism!). Yum! I might have to have that in the morning

that's exactly what I do (see my oatmeal posted above for my breakfast). I cook the oats w/ the fiber one cereal (add water), sometimes cranberries, then add in the PB & fixin's. YUMMY!! Cottage cheese makes it so much creamier.

I aim for at least 25% of fat for the day, it works for me. I used to be a fat-free eater too but that never worked for me. I was just starving all of the time!!!!!!!

Jess

jessmomof3

What do you do for family parties, or when your family takes you out for dinner someplace that you don't really want to go?

Well, most of my family knows that I'm a healthy nut. :laugh: I usually take a veggie tray or fruit salad. And I stick to the basics, try to watch the sauces, don't eat the potatoes or other starches, and just go for a plain chicken breast, or lean protein, and load up on fresh veggies. Most restaurants will let you order what you want if you just ask. We were on vacation all last week and I never had a problem- had a yummy salmon w/ extra steamed veggies instead of a baked potato, another time had a grilled chicken salad w/ vinaigrette, etc. Just ask for everything on the side!! (I always feel like Sally from When Harry Met Sally!! )

Jess

jessmomof3

Snack:
Fage 0% yogurt + 1 T. NM PB + 1/4 c. Nature's Path Pumpkin Flax Granola cereal

Dinner:
3oz lean pork blade steak
Baked sweet potato topped w/ 1/4 c. cottage cheese + cinnamon
Romaine salad w/ 2/3 c. peas & balsamic vinegar

Snack:
1/2 c. NF plain yogurt (drained) + 1 T. NM PB
Sugar-free hot cocoa (unsweetened cocoa powder & light soymilk)

cherapple

Most restaurants will let you order what you want if you just ask. We were on vacation all last week and I never had a problem- had a yummy salmon w/ extra steamed veggies instead of a baked potato, another time had a grilled chicken salad w/ vinaigrette, etc. Just ask for everything on the side!!

Jess

What a freeing concept that I don't have to order directly form the menu! My family took me to Moosewood restaurant over Thanksgiving, and I felt like a pain in the butt. :devil: I wanted to know how much sugar was in a couple of things, and the waitress had to keep going to the kitchen to check. You would think a vegetarian restaurant would be used to people being picky! :laugh:

Plain lean protein and veggies it is! :happy:

cherapple

Emergency travel shopping list

I'm making of list of convenient items that I can buy in a pinch when I'm on the road or staying at someone else's house (like this weekend).

Oatmeal
Cottage cheese
Whole wheat wraps
Peanut butter
Nuts
Bananas
Apples
Oranges
Sweet potatoes
Carrots
Egg whites
Tuna
Yogurt
Grape Nuts
Herbal tea
Cocoa powder
Lean, unsweetened lunch meat (if there is such a thing)
Skim milk (which I assume most people I know will have in their fridge)

What's on your list?

cherapple

Snack:
1 c skim milk
1 Tbs cocoa powder
Stevia

Breakfast:
1/2 c dry oatmeal, cooked
1/4 c cottage cheese (not bad in my oatmeal! :laugh: )
1/4 c egg whites
1/8 c cashews
cinnamon
Stevia

Off to the gym for a lower body workout and a little cardio....