How Would You Define Clean Eating?

lilyann001
lilyann001 Posts: 75 Member
edited November 8 in Social Groups
I have been looking around the web for a particular definition of what "clean eating" is and I have found different types of clean eating definitions depending on how the person in particular views it.

So, I was wondering how you all define clean eating?

For me it means eating minimally/unprocessed foods without chemicals added to it from humans. People in clean eating diets eat a lot of plants and fruits. Meats, nuts, legumes, and grains are also eaten in the diet.
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Replies

  • harlequin0318
    harlequin0318 Posts: 415 Member
    Yes that is also what I consider clean eating - but I also build my eating around Macronutrients
  • bjbrown9
    bjbrown9 Posts: 15 Member
    I follow the guidelines on the "100 Days of Real Food" blog
    http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/real-food-defined-a-k-a-the-rules/
  • VegasFit
    VegasFit Posts: 1,232 Member
    When I grocery shop I tend to stay in the outer aisles. I do buy frozen because it tends to be cheaper as far as fruit and meat goes. Plus I'm not much of a cook so I appreciate the convenience of items like turkey and salmon patties. I don't do much dairy but that is just a personal preference. I use artificial sweeteners. My cousin stayed over about a month ago and she opened my cabinets and said I didn't have anything to snack on and we had to go to the store for popcorn and ice cream. Lol. So I don't keep that sort of stuff in my house. I do have a raging sweet tooth so I do use protein powder and bars. I also have that Real Food blog in my Feedly!
  • Hi guys new to the game I need your support. I can't do this alone. I hope you can feel my pain. I know I am more than a conqueror. I need and want to hear your challenges inspirations and truth I tell myself I can do this I have to lose wt.
  • Hi ! Im new to the group and I have a lot of weight to lose. I plan on following Dr. Joel Fuhrman's plan.I believe its the best one for me. {G bombs} Greens, Beans ,Onions ,Mushrooms, Berries, Seeds. Clean Living! I need friends and support. Lets do this together.
  • Sabine_Stroehm
    Sabine_Stroehm Posts: 19,263 Member
    bjbrown9 wrote: »
    I follow the guidelines on the "100 Days of Real Food" blog
    http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/real-food-defined-a-k-a-the-rules/

    That sure seems doable!
  • Jerilang
    Jerilang Posts: 23 Member
    So far I consider clean eating totally organic, meat, eggs, fruit and veggies, and heavy cream. Nothing with preservatives, everything fresh not frozen (well, except for the grass fed beef) No soy. Organic olive oil. One exception, I don't buy organic coffee.
  • sunfunnie
    sunfunnie Posts: 5 Member
    edited December 2014
    Fresh, real food, looks like it grew till you make it something. I count all veg, fruit, eggs, fish (no meat here), some grain (quinoa here) and grass fed dairy (local goats here)

    https://1fooddoc.wordpress.com/
  • magic71755
    magic71755 Posts: 3,964 Member
    edited December 2014
    bjbrown9 wrote: »
    I follow the guidelines on the "100 Days of Real Food" blog
    http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/real-food-defined-a-k-a-the-rules/

    thanks for this link...I am getting very close to following it. I still love my jam made with xylitol...darn...so good mixed with natural PB on ak mak crackers.

    But today's menu is all about fresh...and your link is pushed me to remove a few items and replace with whole foods--diced green chilies...instead of light mayo and sf ketchup...making a protein burger for lunch.

  • magic71755
    magic71755 Posts: 3,964 Member
    9jshv8x1ibdx.jpg

    This is absolutely beautiful...is this your house? Oh goodness...you really are a farmer!
  • mamarundrc
    mamarundrc Posts: 1,577 Member
    For me it is eating less processed foods, foods with ingredients I can identify, lots of vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds as well as meat (grass-fed, wild caught, free-range, pasture raised when possible). I am far from 100% clean eating, it is a work in progress but I continue to strive towards 100% clean eating (although I don't do all organic, my budget currently doesn't allow for it).
  • Jerilang
    Jerilang Posts: 23 Member
    I do not believe clean eating means perfection. I had 2 brownies yesterday, 1 glass of champagne, and did not exceed my calories or fats or sugars, and I still consider myself someone who embraces clean eating. I'm also using Himalayan salt, which is full of minerals. After eating out of control for so many months, I am beginning to feel clean and good inside again.
  • kellyschram72
    kellyschram72 Posts: 8 Member
    Clean eating is what you make of it. To me it means little to no processed foods. For some, their budget doesn't always let them eat this way. For example, I can't afford to eat grass feed beef etc. So I do the best I can with what I've got...... Please feel free to add me as a friend. I need all the help and support I can get. Just be aware that witty, funny, open minded and out spoken.
  • I really like the beautiful picture of clean food. I tend to think of clean food as minimally processed and organic with one more thing -- let the beauty of the food shine through . It's in the Italian style that emphasizes simplicity using the finest local ingredients possible .

  • Notreadytoquit
    Notreadytoquit Posts: 234 Member
    @magic71755. Thanks. Then I made applesauce.

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    5r3ko0586wv9.jpg

  • timerhagan
    timerhagan Posts: 4 Member
    Wow. Great posts here! To me, I agree that only shop the perimeter of a grocery store. I personally refer farmers markets :)
    A few tips I live by:
    If it comes in a bag or box, ditch it.
    If it contains and ingredient I can't pronoun, run away ;)
  • rendress269
    rendress269 Posts: 90 Member
    Hi! Loved reading the various responses and checking out the pics.
    Hubby and I began to dabble in clean eating about 3 or 4 years ago. My definition today has evolved, but simply put: Clean eating for us means selecting foods in their most natural, unprocessed state with minimal impact on the earth. Shopping the outer aisles of the store has become easier for us. I try to buy locally grown produce as much as possible, especially from farms that use organic farming methods. I have a small garden, but can't seem to produce enough to keep us in veggies! Our local farmer's markets are a great source of fresh, local foods, plus knowing who grows your food is really cool. We've stopped buying meat (mostly) from the grocery store and started buying direct from the farmer. So far I found excellent pasture raised beef and pork. I even started raising my own chickens ( for eggs) and find having fresh eggs daily a delight.
  • magic71755
    magic71755 Posts: 3,964 Member
    Notreadytoquit, your pics belong in a magazine. Your home is so inviting with the table showing off your bounty. Thanks so much...please do keep sharing.

    Love hearing the responses from everyone. I must say I am doing a whole lot better than a year ago...still have a ways to go...but did get a thumbs up from a member and that made me feel proud. (*)
  • Starting tomorrow I will embrace clean eating again, not only did I feel better but body completely changed while doing it My way of thinking will be 6 days a week trying to be 95% clean and one day a week to indulge some. My goal is to do this for at least 3 months. we will see how it goes
  • turboturtle
    turboturtle Posts: 2 Member
    I've been clean eating for exactly a year. I have gone from a size 14 to a size 6 and feel so happy! I've been blogging about my journey at ichoosehappyblog.com
    I wrote a post about what I eat: http://ichoosehappyblog.com/2014/07/31/i-eat-things-that-might-surprise-you/
    I always share a recipe with each post. My blog might give you some ideas on what to eat. I'm a working mom with two kids.
  • My husband and I have been "Paleo' for a year and a half. Together we have lost almost 100 lbs. Over the past 6 mos I started eating more and more sweets and have gained about 15 lbs. I began using MFP to help me keep track of what I am eating. I have been sweet treat free for 6 days! I have lost 3 lbs. I still eat strict paleo also log everything that goes on my mouth. It is a real eye opener to see the nutritional value of some of the "clean" or borderline clean food I have been eating!
  • jddnw
    jddnw Posts: 319 Member
    I really like what Michael Pollan has to say about eating real food. Real, as he uses the word, seems synonymous with clean to me.

    Pollan says everything he's learned about food and health can be summed up in seven words: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants."

    And by food he means real food -- vegetables, fruits, whole grains, fish, meat, etc.--as distinct from what he calls "edible food-like substances."

    Here's are a couple of his guidelines:
    • Don't eat anything your great grandmother wouldn't recognize as food. "When you pick up that box of portable yogurt tubes, or eat something with 15 ingredients you can't pronounce, ask yourself, "What are those things doing there?"
    • Don’t eat anything with more than five ingredients, or ingredients you can't pronounce.
    • Stay out of the middle of the supermarket; shop on the perimeter of the store. Real food tends to be on the outer edge of the store near the loading docks, where it can be replaced with fresh foods when it goes bad.
    • Don't eat anything that won't eventually rot. "There are exceptions -- honey -- but as a rule, things like Twinkies that never go bad aren't food," Pollan says.
    • Don't buy food where you buy your gasoline. In the U.S., 20% of food is eaten in the car.

  • TBrownCVT
    TBrownCVT Posts: 85 Member
    For me, clean eating is eating "real food". I like a quote I heard once, "Real food doesn't have ingredients, it is an ingredient." I also avoid dairy and minimize sugar and gluten, but those are things that I know my body does better without. Everyone has to find what they need.
  • Gottastopovereating
    Gottastopovereating Posts: 13 Member
    I think clean eating is avoiding saturated fats, processed foods, and eating lots of vegetables, drinking plenty of water.
  • c32876
    c32876 Posts: 9
    For me clean eating is eating food as close as possible to how God created food to be.
  • TBrownCVT
    TBrownCVT Posts: 85 Member
    I think clean eating is avoiding saturated fats, processed foods, and eating lots of vegetables, drinking plenty of water.

    Saturated fats can actually be very good for you if you get them from a healthy, natural source. For instance, coconut oil is high in saturated fat, and it is extremely healthy. Grass-fed beef is also very good.
  • nj15942
    nj15942 Posts: 2
    No chemicals!!
    lh3828 wrote: »
    I have been looking around the web for a particular definition of what "clean eating" is and I have found different types of clean eating definitions depending on how the person in particular views it.

    So, I was wondering how you all define clean eating?

    For me it means eating minimally/unprocessed foods without chemicals added to it from humans. People in clean eating diets eat a lot of plants and fruits. Meats, nuts, legumes, and grains are also eaten in the diet.

  • nj15942
    nj15942 Posts: 2
    Clean eating is eating real food, no chemicals !!
  • NK1112
    NK1112 Posts: 781 Member
    I think that clean eating is a multiple discipline way of eating ... That includes

    1 ... eliminating commercially processed foods in favor or food eaten whole ... like instead of lunch meat, have a piece of cooked meat. Instead of bread, cook the grain kernels whole and eat them as a side. Instead of fruit-flavored ice cream, eat the fruit plain.

    2 ... Eat oganic where it counts to do so. For example, organic strawberries, grapes, spinach, apples, are better for you than non-organic.

    3 ... stay hydrated with water instead of with soda pop.

    4 ... cook your own meals. You then control what goes into the food you are eating.
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