Clean Eating for a Busy Student

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lydiababs
lydiababs Posts: 13 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I have been trying to eat mostly clean foods (I occasionally will slip up or give my self a cheat meal). I have been wondering if there are any clean foods that are quick, such as meal bars. I don't have much time between taking classes and working to cook every single meal.

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  • lydiababs
    lydiababs Posts: 13 Member
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    I am also looking for stuff that has a lot of protein to keep me fuller for long times like when I am in class or at work.
  • lynn_glenmont
    lynn_glenmont Posts: 9,981 Member
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    What's your definition of "clean"? I ask because meal bars would not fit many (most?) people's definition of clean, since their definitions include such factors as unprocessed or minimally processed, no ingredients they can't pronounce or don't know what they are, no more than three (or five, or some other arbitrary number) ingredients, "doesn't come in a box," etc.

    Lots of protein: meat, poultry, fish, greek yogurt, cottage cheese, eggs.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
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    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Some things that don't need a lot of preparation, are high protein, and might be considered "clean" by some definitions of clean eating:
    Boiled eggs, chop into a pre-cut salad bag for a larger meal.
    Egg omelet: doesn't take much time to make and you can add anything you want to it.
    Canned tuna and tuna pouches, add to quick rice or grain with some canned peas for a larger meal.
    Rotisserie chicken, shred into something or add to microwave steamers for a larger meal.
    Hummus: use as a spread, dressing or dip.
    Canned beans: make a salad with avocado, canned corn, and cherry tomatoes for something more substantial.
    Yogurt and cottage cheese: add things to them to make them sweet/savory.

    These are great ideas!
  • TavistockToad
    TavistockToad Posts: 35,719 Member
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    A meal bar is 'clean'? :huh:
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Some things that don't need a lot of preparation, are high protein, and might be considered "clean" by some definitions of clean eating:
    Boiled eggs, chop into a pre-cut salad bag for a larger meal.
    Egg omelet: doesn't take much time to make and you can add anything you want to it.
    Canned tuna and tuna pouches, add to quick rice or grain with some canned peas for a larger meal.
    Rotisserie chicken, shred into something or add to microwave steamers for a larger meal.
    Hummus: use as a spread, dressing or dip.
    Canned beans: make a salad with avocado, canned corn, and cherry tomatoes for something more substantial.
    Yogurt and cottage cheese: add things to them to make them sweet/savory.

    These are great ideas!

    The idea is to have a few cheap staples that are quick to prepare then mix and match: canned, packaged, frozen, ready bought, pre-chipped or small enough to throw in without chopping...etc. By some definitions of clean eating minimally processed things are alright because they are essentially whole nutritious foods that just happen to be packaged elsewhere. Some definitions of clean are too strict for that, but since she mentioned meal bar, I assume she means the kind of "clean" that focuses on whole foods and nutrition.

    Clean is such a loaded word! I can understand sometimes what people mean by it from context, but it will inevitably be misunderstood and could garner push-back due to the "moral superiority complex" associated with some of its practices. I wish there was a way to just get people to use words that are less loaded. Nutritious is a less negative word.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited May 2017
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    What's your cooking situation? One thing I do if I am going to be working late every night or to have lunches is cook some meat ahead (I have a turkey breast in the slow cooker right now). Prepare veg to go with it takes no time and sometimes I just grab my pre-prepared meat, some raw veg like carrots and broccoli, and then maybe half an avocado. Or I make a salad and put the meat on it.

    For snacks, hard boiled eggs, nuts, plain greek yogurt if you consider that "clean," cottage cheese (same). For a fast lunch along with the veg, again, I've also sometimes had greek yogurt with some almond butter stirred in and then some protein powder (but I'm guessing maybe that's not clean?).

    Something like a ground beef patty or, as mention above, an omelet is really fast too, and again I'd add veg to the omelet and have them as sides with the beef.

    Pasta and rice stir fries are extremely fast (again, if you consider them clean). When I was first starting to cook for myself, I'd do a rice and beans package (I'm assuming that's not clean, so not suggesting it) and add lots of veg and feta cheese. With pasta I'd make the pasta and quickly sautee in some olive oil a bunch of veg (whatever was on hand) and whatever meat I had around (shrimp is great, but anything, including leftovers).

    I also make extras when I cook so it will be multiple meats.

    Some things take more time but it's basically all downtime so you can be doing something else. A favorite of mine is roasted bone-in chicken for this reason -- I'll roast chicken, potatoes, and vegetables (put them in at different times) and basically do nothing but turn on the oven and put things in and take them out.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,576 Member
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    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    amusedmonkey wrote: »
    Some things that don't need a lot of preparation, are high protein, and might be considered "clean" by some definitions of clean eating:
    Boiled eggs, chop into a pre-cut salad bag for a larger meal.
    Egg omelet: doesn't take much time to make and you can add anything you want to it.
    Canned tuna and tuna pouches, add to quick rice or grain with some canned peas for a larger meal.
    Rotisserie chicken, shred into something or add to microwave steamers for a larger meal.
    Hummus: use as a spread, dressing or dip.
    Canned beans: make a salad with avocado, canned corn, and cherry tomatoes for something more substantial.
    Yogurt and cottage cheese: add things to them to make them sweet/savory.

    These are great ideas!

    The idea is to have a few cheap staples that are quick to prepare then mix and match: canned, packaged, frozen, ready bought, pre-chipped or small enough to throw in without chopping...etc. By some definitions of clean eating minimally processed things are alright because they are essentially whole nutritious foods that just happen to be packaged elsewhere. Some definitions of clean are too strict for that, but since she mentioned meal bar, I assume she means the kind of "clean" that focuses on whole foods and nutrition.

    Clean is such a loaded word! I can understand sometimes what people mean by it from context, but it will inevitably be misunderstood and could garner push-back due to the "moral superiority complex" associated with some of its practices. I wish there was a way to just get people to use words that are less loaded. Nutritious is a less negative word.

    OP is probably new and doesn't know what a trigger the term is on this site.
  • accidentalpancake
    accidentalpancake Posts: 484 Member
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    Post here for a rational discussion on the topic, sans judgement: http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/group/133-clean-eating-group
  • Nazeem1234
    Nazeem1234 Posts: 1 Member
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    How much is one cup rice equals in measurements
  • alexmcastelli
    alexmcastelli Posts: 3 Member
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    Hi!! New here :) I have been trying to eat clean since January. It has been a slow process. First, I stopped going out to eat all together, then started watching what I was making my meals with, now I am on a full meal plan that was created by my trainer. But, I have to come up with all the food for both me and my fiance. We also both have 2 jobs and are extremely busy, so I feel your pain!

    So.. what do all of you do for meals and not get tired of grilled chicken breast and vegetables? For snacks, I typically stick with apples and peanut butter, pistachios, veggies and hummus, or yogurt. Some quick meals I have found are chicken sausage with a steamed veggie or even just deli (plain chicken or turkey) meat on a salad with some veggies or cranberries. Help!! This gets old. I have a few recipes: turkey meatloaf, balsamic chicken, pork chops with some brushed bbq sauce, turkey tacos.

    Any other ideas for how to diversify??
  • L1zardQueen
    L1zardQueen Posts: 8,754 Member
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    alexmcastelli wrote: »
    Hi!! New here :) I have been trying to eat clean since January. It has been a slow process. First, I stopped going out to eat all together, then started watching what I was making my meals with, now I am on a full meal plan that was created by my trainer. But, I have to come up with all the food for both me and my fiance. We also both have 2 jobs and are extremely busy, so I feel your pain!

    So.. what do all of you do for meals and not get tired of grilled chicken breast and vegetables? For snacks, I typically stick with apples and peanut butter, pistachios, veggies and hummus, or yogurt. Some quick meals I have found are chicken sausage with a steamed veggie or even just deli (plain chicken or turkey) meat on a salad with some veggies or cranberries. Help!! This gets old. I have a few recipes: turkey meatloaf, balsamic chicken, pork chops with some brushed bbq sauce, turkey tacos.

    Any other ideas for how to diversify??

    Diversify? Eat all foodz!
  • fishcat123
    fishcat123 Posts: 74 Member
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    If you're grabbing something from a cafeteria - yogurts and soups (not cream based) are usually good and cheap options.
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
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    alexmcastelli wrote: »
    Hi!! New here :) I have been trying to eat clean since January. It has been a slow process. First, I stopped going out to eat all together, then started watching what I was making my meals with, now I am on a full meal plan that was created by my trainer. But, I have to come up with all the food for both me and my fiance. We also both have 2 jobs and are extremely busy, so I feel your pain!

    So.. what do all of you do for meals and not get tired of grilled chicken breast and vegetables? For snacks, I typically stick with apples and peanut butter, pistachios, veggies and hummus, or yogurt. Some quick meals I have found are chicken sausage with a steamed veggie or even just deli (plain chicken or turkey) meat on a salad with some veggies or cranberries. Help!! This gets old. I have a few recipes: turkey meatloaf, balsamic chicken, pork chops with some brushed bbq sauce, turkey tacos.

    Any other ideas for how to diversify??

    I personally eat whatever I feel like eating, but much of what I eat would not work for a busy college student. Today we're having stuffed zucchini and grape leaves (stuffed with rice, ground beef, and spices/herbs). These take about 2 hours to prepare and about 2 hours to cook. Yesterday we had braised potatoes, cabbage, and ground beef with a side of sorrel soup. Something similar to this recipe but we didn't have mushroom and had extra ground beef we wanted to use and we added some tomato paste. Don't skip the fat in this dish, it's what makes the dish when it emulsifies with the starches. Very nutritious.

    How to diversify? Think of any food you wish to eat, then look up recipes for it. Most home prepared dishes are quite nutritious, so don't limit yourself to a couple of token dishes. You could use shortcuts like using canned foods and pre-cut vegetables to make things faster and only have to deal with idle cooking time, or use the word "quick" in your search. If not sure what you want, you could just search for "quick dinner" or something and pick the dishes that look nutritious to you.
  • RodaRose
    RodaRose Posts: 9,562 Member
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    Tiny_Dancer_in_Pink wrote: »
    alexmcastelli wrote: »
    Hi!! New here :) I have been trying to eat clean since January. It has been a slow process. First, I stopped going out to eat all together, then started watching what I was making my meals with, now I am on a full meal plan that was created by my trainer. But, I have to come up with all the food for both me and my fiance. We also both have 2 jobs and are extremely busy, so I feel your pain!

    So.. what do all of you do for meals and not get tired of grilled chicken breast and vegetables? For snacks, I typically stick with apples and peanut butter, pistachios, veggies and hummus, or yogurt. Some quick meals I have found are chicken sausage with a steamed veggie or even just deli (plain chicken or turkey) meat on a salad with some veggies or cranberries. Help!! This gets old. I have a few recipes: turkey meatloaf, balsamic chicken, pork chops with some brushed bbq sauce, turkey tacos.

    Any other ideas for how to diversify??

    Diversify? Eat all foodz!

    http://blog.myfitnesspal.com/category/nutrition/recipes/

    http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/categories/recipes

    http://www.hungry-girl.com/recipes

    http://www.skinnygirldressings.com/skinny-recipes/

  • yskaldir
    yskaldir Posts: 202 Member
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    Try the salad bar at your cafeteria.

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