I think Food Rules by Michael Pollan is a great, intuitive start to clean eating. It's usually less than 10 bucks and has simple advice, like "if it comes through the window it's not food." (edit: it's also pretty short )

Transitioning from a SAD (standard american diet) to clean eating is a LIFESTYLE change. And Dr. Fuhrman says it takes anywhere from 3-6 months to really start enjoying and catching the variety of flavors offered in fruits and veggies without all that added sugars and salt added. But the weight loss should happen pretty rapidly!

Thanks for the Food rules suggest ion - I have read Omnivore's Dilemma

I bought the book Eat Clean by Tosca Reno. It probably would work for men as well as women. Tosca Reno who wrote it is married to Robert Kennedy (not political Kennedys!) and he publishes a lot of magazines including Oxygen. I can't remember which one but there is one for men. It might include some clean eating menus/meals.

Also there is a Eat Clean magazine with a lot of recipes and it is not necessarily geared to women.

I am also in the process of cleaning out the pantry. My goal is to get started this coming Monday. We have so much junk in the house because of Christmas right now. I've already warned my DH and DS's that a change is coming.

I've gotten all of Tosca's books from the library and made copies of the recipes that appeal to me. I own her first book and am familiar with the cooler plan....I like how she gives samples menus to play with for the first few week.

I've been reading through the posts in this group and have gotten a lot of good info here as well.

I began my clean eating journey when I purchased a book my masseuse kept talking to me about when we would discuss nutrition by Jillian Michaels called MASTER YOUR METABOLISM. It was quite an eye opener, written for the layperson from an endocrinology stand point. Turns out that specific foods and chemicals IN our foods inhibit or stimulate hormone levels that keep us fat or slim. Her mantra is, "Eat real food. If it didn't grow from the ground and it doesn't have a mother, don't eat it." (Have you ever seen an Oreo or Cheeto tree?)

The first 4 chapters are the basics of endocrine disruption before you get down to the actual what to avoid vs what to eat. Basically you eliminate everything from your diet that has preservatives or artificial anything in it. She did a great job of explaining WHY each food is good for you or not and how many servings you should eat a day. This book has tons of information, including chemical code words on labels to be on the lookout for, that I will go back to again and again. The back has sample menus, recipes and even a list of brands and resources for healthy real foods. Best part is its all DO-able.

Now we eat whole grains, and organic produce, dairy eggs, and meat. I've gotten used to using evoo instead of butter on all my veggies. Seems like I use loads of beans, onions and garlic too... Been trying to really read labels and shy away from things with flavor enhancers and other chemicals. Labels can sure be deceiving! Did you know according to the FDA for a product to be labeled whole grain it only has to be at least 51% whole grain? Shouldn't that be half-grain! tongue

So I've been doing lots of experimenting with things I've never eaten before like Greek yogurt, agave nectar and quinoa and finding I like them! Now I'm in the process of preparing a place to grow my own vegetables this year. It will make eating organics so much easier and tastier!

As John Maxwell says,“The whole idea of motivation is a trap. Forget motivation. Just do it. Exercise, lose weight, test your blood sugar, or whatever. Do it without motivation. And then, guess what? After you start doing the thing, that's when the motivation comes and makes it easy for you to keep on doing it.

I really recommend reading Jillians book also..... really opened my eyes to what we are doing to our bodies with all of the processed foods.

I began my clean eating journey when I purchased a book my masseuse kept talking to me about when we would discuss nutrition by Jillian Michaels called MASTER YOUR METABOLISM. It was quite an eye opener, written for the layperson from an endocrinology stand point. Turns out that specific foods and chemicals IN our foods inhibit or stimulate hormone levels that keep us fat or slim. Her mantra is, "Eat real food. If it didn't grow from the ground and it doesn't have a mother, don't eat it." (Have you ever seen an Oreo or Cheeto tree?)

The first 4 chapters are the basics of endocrine disruption before you get down to the actual what to avoid vs what to eat. Basically you eliminate everything from your diet that has preservatives or artificial anything in it. She did a great job of explaining WHY each food is good for you or not and how many servings you should eat a day. This book has tons of information, including chemical code words on labels to be on the lookout for, that I will go back to again and again. The back has sample menus, recipes and even a list of brands and resources for healthy real foods. Best part is its all DO-able.

Thank you for the great advise! I think I will be getting this book!