Friday, September 13, 2013

The Clean life [[Part 1]]


Let me begin by saying, most of society is crap. When I wasn't following along on Instagram and blogs with what I like to call, "The Clean Eaters of America", I was sucked into a world of lies. I can't even tell you how many times I see and hear "Heres a fab diet that will make you lose 7 pounds in 7 days", "Lose the fat FAST by juice fasting", "Buy this *insert some workout equipment* and you will have a 6 pack in no time at all". All of these gimmicks to make people think they will have the body they want with some magical weight loss joke. I say this because I have fallen for it PLENTY of times. "Oh maybe if I do a juice fast for a month I'll lose those extra few pounds I've been dying to get rid of, or maybe if I get Body by Vi, that will do the trick, or maybe just maybe if I cut out all sweets I'll be fit again"...

Here's the reality... 
  • Juice fasting can be great for a detox or a spiritual fast but it is not a lifestyle, you will end up going back to your normal ways of eating and in a matter of a couple of days you will have gained all that weight back because you have not established healthy lifestyle that works for you and trust me its not something you are a pro at overnight. Im no pro.
  • Body by vi and any other meal replacement diets are once again not lifestyle options... (Do not get me wrong, body by vi can be fine if you are using it for some kind of protein drink in between meals or after a workout, sure, but you can also just get a big ol' tub of regular protein powder for half the price or just get your proteins and nutrients from your food... your call.) The problem with the weight loss programs that offer special drinks and food to help you lose weight is that you and I both know we will never just live off of a drink and we will never consistently wait for our Nutrisystem to come in the mail and eat that food and ONLY that food for the rest of our lives. 
  • Cutting certain foods out of your diet is only setting yourself up for failure... you will not go your entire life without having some kind of sweets... you are human... and you will only feel guilty if you eat something you vowed not to eat. *Just the other day I was at Sam's club and they had their little sample stands and there it was, a bite sized raspberry cheesecake calling my name, so guess what, I ATE IT, and didn't feel bad about it because first of all I didn't overindulge in an entire cake and second of all I know that I am human and, well... I like raspberry cheesecake. 
Notice a trend? Extreme dieting is not the answer. I am sure you have heard all of this once before, but I think we tend to forget that the quick "fixes" don't work, we are just hopeful maybe it will be different this time. The only way to successfully lose/maintain weight and take control of your health is to create a lifestyle to meet the needs of your body. Your body wants all kinds of good and wholesome foods, and maybe it wants a bite of some raspberry cheesecake, and thats ok! ;] Just don't decide to buy the cake and eat the whole thing by yourself! If you stop worrying about how you look and worry more about how you feel you will see that making simple adjustments to your diet can make a huge difference to your health, looking great is just a side affect from eating great and exercising! How nice =]

Keep it simple.

One of the beauties of clean eating is the simplicity. Most of what you need to know can actually be passed down from the older generations, they knew how to keep it simple and inexpensive! Back in the day they didn't have all of the complicated processed foods we have today, they had gardens and farms that produced them with nutritious meals. Now our world has turned to boxed this, and packaged that, we are having to read all kinds of labels and half of the things we can't even pronounce! They try to trick us with flashy packaging that says low cal, low fat, low this, low that... lies. DON'T FALL FOR IT! They make things so complicated and I don't know about you, but Im feeling 22 (... for all you Taylor Swift fans ;]) but seriously, I don't like complicated... We go to the grocery store and buy some granola bars thinking they are going to be a great snack, and then you look at the label and see that you could basically eat a mickey d's cheeseburger for the same amount of nutrition! Then we stare at huge aisles filled with hundreds of cereals and millions of different condiments when it can be so much easier, find the one that has the best nutritional value and grab it and go! Maybe even realize that sometimes you don't actually need the extra stuff anyways... (Something I learned from a good friend... cereal really has no nutritional value anyways-- even cheerios-- so eat your eggs, oatmeal, fruits, and veggies for breakfast! You will feel so much more energized!)
Food is meant to be fuel for your body, so stop putting coco puffs in your gas tank!




Up next: The Clean Life [[Part 2]] 
..."Feed the machine"...

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