Eating "Clean"

Your grandmother's coke didn't have high fructose corn syrup made from GMO's.

Why is there such an obesity epidemic in adults and children in this country? It's obvious because of what is in our food!

I know better than to trust Wiki, but according to Wiki, the coca cola I was drinking at grandma's most definitely had HFCS in it. She kept a lot of it around. I never ever saw my grandmother overweight. Now that I think of it, I think she could have been one of the pioneers of IIFYM.

"Wrong! It is lack of activity. People sit around way too much."
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So obese people got that way from lack of activity and sitting around?

Why is there such an obesity epidemic in adults and children in this country? It's obvious because of what is in our food!

It's because we have a surplus of calories available and most of us live sedentary lives. Both of my great-grandmothers (both of whom died before I was born, which may not speak well of their lifestyle's contribution to longetivity, although I'm not going to assume) lived on farms. I suspect they were way more limited in what they could make than I am (including in the particular whole foods available to them), but I'm certain they had to be a lot more active on a daily basis than I do--for me it requires making an effort, as opposed to just living my life. (I'm sure my life is easier, though.)

I'm generally really into cooking from whole foods, getting excited about seasonal ingredients and getting them from local farms,etc. (I think as a city-dweller I fetishize all this far more than my great-grandmothers would have--at least my mother, who actually grew up on a farm and was excited to leave, has always been really happy about convenience foods, but it also works for me and gets me excited about eating in a healthy manner.) Anyway, I also love vegetables, think most people who don't like them probably haven't had enough of them cooked correctly, etc. So you'd think I'd be into clean eating, but something about the term bugs me. I suspect it's because of stuff like "Clean Eating for Dummies" or turning it into a program or some sort of diet. You don't need special recipes or to self-define as a clean eater. Aren't we just talking about mostly cooking and eating whole foods? Just learning to cook accomplishes that.

I've just realized or more like caring what exactly is in the food I eat. I can barely pronounce most of the ingredients. I want to eat clean, I really really do. I just don't know where to start.. I have a 12 year old with my same food habits and well she's even worse than I am.. she has an aversion to fruits and veggies - so much so it's almost a phobia. When I go to the grocery store I feel like everything is bad. The meat is bad because of what is fed to the animals, the dairy, the eggs, and the vegetables and fruit with all the pesticides and fertilizer... are strawberries really suppose to be that big??... I feel like I'm going crazy. I want to eat clean, but I don't know how...

First - take a deep breath. You are getting lots of great advice and support here, and it is wonderful that you are looking to make a change for you and your daughter!

It can be a challenge to go from processed foods to straight up veg & chicken so what I'd recommend is a slow and steady approach. Find a good, organic/whole/natural stuffed grocery store and exclusively shop there for one month. I love Whole Foods. There are lots of great already packaged options that will look and feel similar to what you already enjoy, but are a step in the right direction as they are sourced from organic/whole farms. Gradually, try to phase these out because they are both expensive and because making food yourself is healthier, but to start out try to replicate your normal grocery list from a whole grocer and then take baby steps from there.

PS - for me, the added expense of shopping at Whole Foods is 100% worth it. I know it isn't for others but the higher cost and quality of food means that food lasts longer, I actually make sure I consume it before it DOES spoil, and I am less likely to over eat serving size because because it is expensive!

"Wrong! It is lack of activity. People sit around way too much."

So obese people got that way from lack of activity and sitting around?

That's what happened to me. When I began to make an effort to not be lazy, I found that it benefitted me in many ways, especially by being able to drop the excess fat.

Here's my take on it.

Over the last couple years I've transitioned into eating "cleaner". I make food from scratch as much as possible. Not only does this reduce sugar and sodium, but it's cheaper and tastier. I don't feel that cutting down on wheat and dairy are necessary, but they do have a lot of calories so I've cut back. I also plan on visiting farmer's markets more, and next year I'll have my own small garden. I like the idea of supporting small ag, and it's good for the environment in a lot of ways, for example bees have more places to eat and pollinate. So there's my motivation for that. No idealization or idea that it's magical in any way.

I am just not concerned about GMOs. Eating something that has had its genetics tweaked just does not affect yours. I would say that something that is genetically modified to fight off pests is safer to eat than something that's been chemically modified with pesticides. All those nasty things fed to animals are fed to them for a reason and have been proven again and again to be safe.

Recently I got sick of counting calories and stopped. I figured if I mostly ate clean that I wouldn't have a problem. WRONG. I instantly gained 10 lbs so I'm back over here again- almond butter adds up quickly yo. You'll lose weight with IIFYM but you won't look or feel your best if you spend all your calories on junk. If you eat clean, you can still eat too many calories. Both help, but neither fill the big picture alone.

Like with all things, be sensible. If a plan sounds like a bunch of voodoo, it probably is. Read with a scientific critique mindset. Some people sound like they're part of a damn cult, and are more than likely orthorexic.

"Wrong! It is lack of activity. People sit around way too much."


So obese people got that way from lack of activity and sitting around?

I went to the park yesterday. The "leaner" people and children were all up playing and having fun expanding energy. The obese people were all sitting down and,you guessed it, eating. See the difference.

I see the same thing at the dog park. All of the people who are sitting on the benches and throwing toys or just pettings dogs are larger than the people who are running around with the dogs.

You don't need to eat or not eat anything to lose weight. You need to take in fewer calories that it takes to maintain your current weight.

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