Daily Archives: February 25, 2011

Lately I’ve been obsessed with the idea of ‘eating clean’. So this morning I decided to bite the bullet and really get serious about it. I’ve been feeling more motivated than usual lately when it comes to eating well and getting fit, and my sister in law and I have signed up for boot camp/personal training together starting next week. I think that eating clean will certainly help me maintain the energy I need to get through 3 sessions of that a week, plus other general exercise, working full time, studying and generally attempting to live a good life.

So what is ‘eating clean’? There are plenty of websites and books available on the subject, but in a nutshell it’s basically eating the foods we all know we should be eating. Cutting out overly processed foods, refined sugar and alcohol and generally trying to eat foods that are as close to their natural state as possible. So if you’re eating pasta or bread, stick to wholewheat, rye or wholegrain products. It’s also recommended to eat 5 small meals a day while eating clean to keep your metabolism working. It’s all a matter of common sense really. I’ve set myself a personal challenge to eat clean for a week and see how I feel and how it effects my day to day life. Today was day 1, and I feel satisfied with everything I ate today. I wasn’t particularly hungry throughout the day, but I did find myself thinking more about food than I normally do. I think that was because I was planning things in my head, and making sure I was sticking to my plan. Just to give you an idea of what an eating clean diet might contain, today I ate:

Almond Milk, Blueberry, Banana & Chia Seed Smoothie

Wholegrain Ryvita Crackers w. Fresh Tomato, Sea Salt & Cracked Pepper

Tuna & Brown Rice Salad

Garlic Chilli Chicken, Sweet Potato Fries & Salad

I love how bright and appetising everything I ate today was. I certainly wasn’t disappointed by my food choices! I’m sure I could cut back even more on the processed foods that I’m eating, but I want to talk to my personal trainer next week about a food plan and what the best options for me and my lifestyle are. I also need to come up with some good options for meals throughout the day that I can take to work and are quick and easy to prepare. Has anyone else tried eating clean before? If so, do you have any tips for me?