Clean Eating

Eating clean basically means that foods are selected from those in their natural state; unprocessed and whole. For example tomatoes are a clean food whereas ketchup is not. Homemade tomato sauce may be considered a clean food if it is prepared from scratch with all ‘clean’ ingredients.
This is not necessarily a low calorie approach to dieting with a greater emphasis being placed on the quality of the foods selected. It's important to eat a healthy breakfast every day and never skip meals. Prepare for meals that must be eaten away from home by packing nutritious foods that travel well and by planning in advance.
I try to do five-six small meals every day that are to be composed entirely of clean foods. Each meal should contain around 300-400 calories and must contain protein as well as complex carbohydrates.
Cheat meals are allowed only once a week or so. (I didn't cheat at all my first 90 days of p90x) This means that this is a very strict plan that will require a great deal of discipline in addition to implementing a dramatic overhaul of diet and lifestyle for most people.

 

Recommended Foods

• A wide range of fresh fruits and vegetables form the foundation of the diet.
• Complex carbohydrates include legumes as well as whole grains such as brown rice and oats.
• Lean proteins such as chicken breast, turkey and fish.
• Sources of healthy fats include olive oil, avocado and raw nuts.
• Foods to avoid include all processed foods, refined grains, sugar, foods containing saturated and trans fats and alcohol.

Sample Diet Plan

Breakfast Shakeology

Morning Snack Apple with raw nuts and dried fruit

Lunch Mediterranean style French lentil salad

Afternoon Snack Smoothie with fresh fruit and yogurt

Dinner Roasted chicken breast with sweet potatoes and asparagus

Dessert Apple cranberry crumble

Look for other meal ideas here.


On the whole this is probably one of the best plans available when considered from the perspective of the nutritional quality of the diet. Eating clean requires tremendous discipline and may interfere with some aspects of your lifestyle, but with careful planning it can certainly be achieved and you will see the difference in your body. I do this type of eating in 30-60 day stretches.... I implement the concept into my diet long term but I only stay super committed for shorter, set out, periods of time. 

Check out this article and recipes in Shape Magazine. 

More good recipes here! 

Real or Fake?

This has been something on my mind for quite a while. The debate between real and artificial sweetener. I don’t want to make this a Master’s Degree paper on all of the insulin triggers and everything else, I just want this to be as real as possible so that YOU can try to plan your diet and get the most out of your workouts.


Now before I divulge my preference, I just want you to refrain from shouting “Hypocrite!” when you see me doctoring up my quad-shot espresso at Starbucks. I am a recovering Artificial Sweetener Addict (ASA) so this is fairly difficult for me.

So what types of sweeteners are available? Many. Let’s check the Mainstream.
Natural (Sugar, Molasses, Agave Nectar, Honey, Stevia, Fructose)
Unnatural (HighFructoseCornSyrup/HFCS, Splenda, Sucralose, Aspartame, Saccharin, Sugar Alcohol such as Xylitol)

The benefits of natural sweetener are that your body is very familiar with how to break down the natural ingredients. This is definitely a bonus from a health standpoint. The PROBLEM is that our bodies are not used to consuming the amount of sugar that we have been ingesting for the last 100 years. It is no wonder that there is a rise in obesity and diabetes with the amount of sugar we consume. That 12oz. Coke? 140 Calories and 40 grams of sugar. Worldwide, the number one caloric contributor is soda! So I tread lightly when I speak highly of natural sugar. Trust me, we could all do with a little less.

The benefits of artificial sweetener are that they offer the same sweet taste but none of the calories. If you replaced a Coke-A-Day with a CokeZero-A-Day you would reduce your weekly calorie intake by 980 calories. Not bad. The problem with these types of sweeteners (sorry friends) is that they are… Artificial! They are usually derived from chemical processes and therefore are not handled well by your body. This is because your stomach really doesn’t like artificial sweetener. It says, “I wasn’t made to process this substance”. There are other issues with artificial sweetener that can be discussed more in detailed articles. If you really want that many details, let me know. They provide false sensations to your body and therefore still provide blood sugar spikes. For info on HFCS, see this article. And, by the way, make sure you look at the labels. HFCS is cheap compared to sugar so it is in almost everything that you buy! (Warning: Long Read)

What can I have, then? I recommend some real sugar in your diet for specific, functional reasons. Post workout, your body should have a mix of simple carbs and protein for muscle recovery. This should happen with about a 4:1 ratio mix of the carbs to protein. Otherwise, I wouldn’t take in too much extra refined sugar just to keep the blood sugar consistent. Stevia (Sun Crystals, Truvia, etc.) are good natural sweeteners that are low/zero calorie. Japan has been using this to sweeten their Diet Coke for the last 20 years. However, it should be used sparingly for the same reasons mentioned with artificial sweeteners about the false sensations for triggering blood sugar increases.

So what should I do? Fill your diet with natural foods that can feed your cravings. Fruit is full of the most natural sweeteners you can get. Any fruit with an edible skin (like apples and peaches) are perfect options. Also, eat plenty of protein and drink lots of water. Shakeology is my perfect sweet-tooth satisfier and it has very low amounts of naturally derived fructose for sweetness. After a few weeks of weaning yourself off of the sugar (or Splenda binge) you subject yourself to every day, you will find that you no longer crave those types of foods.

Looking for more support? Bookmark me or sign up for a free Beachbody account. I would love to help you start a new journey in becoming a more fit, and healthier, version of you!

The beautiful “cheat meal”

For some people, this happens at least three meals a day, seven days a week. Before you know it, the cheat meal becomes the way that you eat and your body grows accustomed to the garbage. You feel horrible. You are tired, irritated and lethargic. You have digestion issues or upset stomach often. Bloating and discomfort are common. However, when you keep your nutrition in check and are consuming lean protein, good carbs, good fats, and plenty of Shakeology, the cheat meal becomes a key to your overall health and fitness plan. A little confused? Let me explain…

There are many benefits of a cheat meal but I will cover three.

1.) Reduce Cravings – If you are eating fairly strictly while working out and you were a food-a-holic before, then you are probably having some pretty intense cravings. Greasy, salty, or sweet usually break people down at some point. While Shakeology is a major craving reducer, I still like to have some real sweets. If you know that you can have a meal + snack a week then you are less likely to cheat during the week AND it keeps you from binge eating after you finish your workout program

2.) Boosts Metabolism – While eating a restricted calorie diet, your body gets used to operating at a certain level. You should be eating small meals often during the week, so hopefully your metabolism (how you burn food) is increasing as well. With a cheat meal, your body enjoys the calories and subsequently boosts your metabolism. This should give you great energy the next day, but it also explains why you still want a big meal after Chinese buffet. In addition, your body is becoming more efficient at burning calories, so it can quickly dismiss a high calorie meal like that. CAUTION: I said one meal. If you do this for three days, then you have to re-train your metabolism.

3.) Lets people know you are human – Anyone that has been on a “diet” (I hate that word, and if you know me then you know why. Diets are temporary.) knows what it feels like to be invited over for dinner or out to eat and not have much control over the menu. While I do advocate being good, sometimes it is unavoidable. In these social settings, it is good for your friends and family to know that you are not a freak and you can eat “normal” food. My mother says that a little bit won’t hurt you. It also keeps you from obsessing over food and not allowing yourself to enjoy it. I do believe wholeheartedly that food=fuel but our bodies were created to enjoy it, too. You should enjoy it in a healthy way.  My CAUTION here: Don’t find lots of reasons to get together just so you can make food excuses. You are doing yourselves no favors here. More often than not, it is better to invite friends and family over so YOU can cook for them.

So there it is. You are now informed. Don’t go buck-wild, but do remember these things as you are approaching the weekend. Trust me. Your mother will thank you for it.

2010 changed my body and my life

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