Can we please settle on at least a loose definition of...

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  • dym123
    dym123 Posts: 1,670 Member
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    i TRY to stick away from anything with additives that I cannot pronounce.... try to stay away from things with added sugar/salt or anything with "nautral flavors" added (seriously WTF is natural flavor?!!)

    Seriously, you do not want to know.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,022 Member
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    Why do you need a definition? I truly could not care less what anyone thinks of my diet, and I do not make my food choices based on some random definition of what's good or bad or clean or processed. I make them based on what I enjoy eating, what fits my calorie and macro targets, and what improves my performance in the gym. I eat lots of red meat. I eat lots of chocolate. I eat lots of ice cream. I lose weight, I lift heavy stuff, and I'm happy. Anyone who has a negative opinion about my diet can go pound sand, as far as I'm concerned.
  • CharliesInCharge
    CharliesInCharge Posts: 278 Member
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    Why do you need a definition? I truly could not care less what anyone thinks of my diet, and I do not make my food choices based on some random definition of what's good or bad or clean or processed. I make them based on what I enjoy eating, what fits my calorie and macro targets, and what improves my performance in the gym. I eat lots of red meat. I eat lots of chocolate. I eat lots of ice cream. I lose weight, I lift heavy stuff, and I'm happy. Anyone who has a negative opinion about my diet can go pound sand, as far as I'm concerned.


    but how do you REALLY feel ?:)
  • Jerrypeoples
    Jerrypeoples Posts: 1,541 Member
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    While I cant claim to eat 100 process free (by your definition) i have really cleaned up my act.

    One Year ago

    to me dinner was either, Mickey Dees, Wendys or Burger King. or just to change things up, pizza.

    this was after spending an 90 minutes at the gym. so i never gained weight but i also never lost it.

    my breakfast had to have sugar as the #1 ingredient and preferably some cartoony mascot on the front

    my lunches were the same as dinner.

    Now

    Breakfast is either Cascade Farms Organic Granola with Raisins and a half cup of skim milk

    my lunch is 7oz of chicken breast baked with Mrs Dash lemon pepper seasoning or something else, 1/2 cup of brown rice and 1 cup of broccoli. Sprinkled with Kraft Mexican Blended Cheese. topped with 2 spoon fulls of salsa

    Dinner is a Peanutbutter Fantasy Shake from the gym

    Snack is a homemade protein Shake.

    in between the meals i have 1 cup of cantaloupe 1 cup of grapes, 2 granola bars and a banana. before i leave from work to the gym its a homemade salad

    to me whether you eat organic or not the key is to try to make as many healthy choices as you can that you feel comfortable with
  • iAMsmiling
    iAMsmiling Posts: 2,394 Member
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    No
  • MLBuddecke
    MLBuddecke Posts: 13
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    Hi dym123, I agree, and I'm coming from a place where my parents grew their own organic wheat and milled it, but now that they are retired, changes have been made, I have to buy whole wheat floor in a bag at the store, I grow and freeze a lot of my own veggies, but where I live it's basically impossible to have fresh fruit and veg year round, organic or not, so Ido the best I can, and I really don't give a rat's about what other people think of my diet.
  • JUDDDing
    JUDDDing Posts: 1,367 Member
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    my definition:

    Pretty much anything that hasn't been dropped on the floor.

    but then again... we could argue the 5 second rule.

    heh. We could argue the 30 second rule. :drinker:
  • KenosFeoh
    KenosFeoh Posts: 1,837 Member
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    I don't think we have a definition section here.

    I find "clean eating" to be a really obnoxious term. It implies that anything else is "dirty".
  • CrankMeUp
    CrankMeUp Posts: 2,860 Member
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    No

    :angry:
  • Meg_Shirley_86
    Meg_Shirley_86 Posts: 275 Member
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    my definition:

    Pretty much anything that hasn't been dropped on the floor.

    but then again... we could argue the 5 second rule.

    Ha! I like you! :drinker:
  • NadineSabbagh
    NadineSabbagh Posts: 142 Member
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    'Processed' food, to me, is definitely not just ANYTHING that's been packaged (veggies in a bag for example), that's just a ridiculous assertion made by people who are bothered by the fact that you don't eat the way they think you should eat. Or people who just like an argument for the sake of it. 'Processed' quite clearly implies foods such as microwave meals, foods with a bunch of random chemicals thrown in etc, food that has gone through a significant amount of processing to add in extra ingredients... not just putting something natural in a bag!

    I think the definitions of 'clean' and 'processed' are extremely clear, and it's basically common sense which is which. People just can't seem to pass up the opportunity for an argument... as much as I can't stand it, I guess that's the nature of the internet :/

    I understand what you are saying here, but how do items like organic microwave meals (Amy's for example) fit into the definition? From Amy's Website:
    Amy’s food tastes so good because it’s made from the kind of real food ingredients that people use in their own kitchens…no additives, no preservatives, no GMOs. If a child can’t pronounce it, you won’t find it on an Amy’s label.

    It is definitely more than just putting vegetables in a bag and freezing them, and it is microwavable, but I could make something similar to their food at home without needing to buy a bag (vial?) of Polysorbate 80, etc.

    I am genuinely curious as I think it is a major grey area... it is the kind of food that I would consider non- or minimally- processed but others would avoid.

    Hmmm, I'm not so sure about this one actually. As a relatively clean eater I wouldn't have a problem eating packaged meals like that. It probably wouldn't be my first choice of meal, but I wouldn't kick up a fuss if I had to eat it. I think foods like that just come down to personal preference - if you consider it to be within your own definition of clean, then by all means include it in your diet. If I looked at the label and saw that everything on it was real food and there were no additives then I wouldn't have a problem eating it and I would probably consider it 'clean'! :) I wasn't aware you actually got organic microwave meals like that - I might actually look into trying some of them! It'd be a hell of a lot easier than cooking everything from scratch all the time!! :P
  • myofibril
    myofibril Posts: 4,500 Member
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    It's like porn.

    I can't define it. But I know it when I see it.

    Baby.
  • sullus
    sullus Posts: 2,839 Member
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    Clean and Processed aren't necessarily mutually exclusive, and that can be an issue. I get that processed implies chemicals/convenience foods/tv dinners/ etc but ...

    There's a couple things that are on my every day list that are processed .. but I consider them clean (and whole, no less)

    Triscuits (Not the baked ones, though)
    Plain Fritos/Tostitos


    Triscuits Ingredients:
    Whole Grain Soft White Winter Wheat, Soybean Oil, Salt

    Fritos ingredients:
    Corn, Corn Oil, Salt

    Clean and processed are words that many people can't define as clearly as they would like, but they "know it when they see it" ...

    Good luck with getting consensus on this, Sisyphus ...
  • etoiles_argentees
    etoiles_argentees Posts: 2,827 Member
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    i TRY to stick away from anything with additives that I cannot pronounce.... try to stay away from things with added sugar/salt or anything with "nautral flavors" added (seriously WTF is natural flavor?!!)

    a nice name for MSG.
  • Meg_Shirley_86
    Meg_Shirley_86 Posts: 275 Member
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    i TRY to stick away from anything with additives that I cannot pronounce.... try to stay away from things with added sugar/salt or anything with "nautral flavors" added (seriously WTF is natural flavor?!!)

    Natural flavor is quite possibly any number of things, but one of my favorites is beaver anal secretions to flavor stuff that's raspberry or vanilla flavored....
    And as gross as that is, it's probably less harmful than the other BS in anything.
  • nomeejerome
    nomeejerome Posts: 2,616 Member
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    asking an internet forum to settle on a loose definition?












    good luck with that.....
  • Gangwolf
    Gangwolf Posts: 40
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    This is a rant but what's wrong with that?

    My definition of clean eating means avoiding foods which have been "tampered with" chemically. Tampering with foods in other ways (cooking, slicing, etc.) is not what I consider a process. A package of carrots grown organically is not processed because nothing unnatural has been deliberately added to the carrot to enhance its flavor or prolong its shelf-life. And so on and such.

    In my experience, most people are hostile to any type of diet are the type that feel anyone who doesn't indulge in their own vices is somehow judging them.
  • Meg_Shirley_86
    Meg_Shirley_86 Posts: 275 Member
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    It's like porn.

    I can't define it. But I know it when I see it.

    Baby.

    That is absolutely beautiful.
    I'm actually pretty sure you quoted a Supreme Court justice. I like your brain.
  • chezjuan
    chezjuan Posts: 747 Member
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    'Processed' food, to me, is definitely not just ANYTHING that's been packaged (veggies in a bag for example), that's just a ridiculous assertion made by people who are bothered by the fact that you don't eat the way they think you should eat. Or people who just like an argument for the sake of it. 'Processed' quite clearly implies foods such as microwave meals, foods with a bunch of random chemicals thrown in etc, food that has gone through a significant amount of processing to add in extra ingredients... not just putting something natural in a bag!

    I think the definitions of 'clean' and 'processed' are extremely clear, and it's basically common sense which is which. People just can't seem to pass up the opportunity for an argument... as much as I can't stand it, I guess that's the nature of the internet :/

    I understand what you are saying here, but how do items like organic microwave meals (Amy's for example) fit into the definition? From Amy's Website:
    Amy’s food tastes so good because it’s made from the kind of real food ingredients that people use in their own kitchens…no additives, no preservatives, no GMOs. If a child can’t pronounce it, you won’t find it on an Amy’s label.

    It is definitely more than just putting vegetables in a bag and freezing them, and it is microwavable, but I could make something similar to their food at home without needing to buy a bag (vial?) of Polysorbate 80, etc.

    I am genuinely curious as I think it is a major grey area... it is the kind of food that I would consider non- or minimally- processed but others would avoid.

    Hmmm, I'm not so sure about this one actually. As a relatively clean eater I wouldn't have a problem eating packaged meals like that. It probably wouldn't be my first choice of meal, but I wouldn't kick up a fuss if I had to eat it. I think foods like that just come down to personal preference - if you consider it to be within your own definition of clean, then by all means include it in your diet. If I looked at the label and saw that everything on it was real food and there were no additives then I wouldn't have a problem eating it and I would probably consider it 'clean'! :) I wasn't aware you actually got organic microwave meals like that - I might actually look into trying some of them! It'd be a hell of a lot easier than cooking everything from scratch all the time!! :P

    I think the Amy's frozen meals are quite good - I keep a couple in the freezer at work in case I forget to bring my lunch or don't have enough leftovers in the fridge. The only ones I don't like are the Indian meals, because my wife is from India and her fresh meals are soooo good that the Amy's ones (which aren't bad - I used to like them) pale in comparison.
  • AJ_G
    AJ_G Posts: 4,158 Member
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    I'm in the IIFYM crowd, that being said, the majority of what I eat is what "clean eaters" would label as clean anyway. I steer clear of high fructose corn syrup, I steer clear of anything with trans fats or hydrogenated oils. Most of my carbs come from fruits, vegetables, and milk. The IIFYM is for body composition, the choices of the food I eat is for the nutrients in them, and long term heath. Most of the IIFYM crown absolutely hate anything to be defined as clean because to be honest it is a made up definition, but who cares what you eat or what anyone else eats. Eat whatever you want, and don't preach to other people about how your "clean diet" is so superior to theirs and don't look down on other people for their food choices, it's their life, not yours so don't worry about it.

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