food glorious food.

by

The This time it’s all about me edition.

Many more than a few of you have emailed me and asked what on EARTH I mean when I say that you should/one should eat clean.

Im certain —-as with all things fitness & food—-there are myriad definitions out there so I shall simply claim this as my own.

To me eating clean is consuming everything in its purest form (Im aware of the irony of all this when Im chowing down on (finger quote) grilled (unFQ) chicken from places like Fudruckers. Purest, in this case, does not mean organic).

High quality foods which are as free as you can get them of not-found-in-nature additives.

Back in the proverbial day (when I was a personal trainer) Id often tell my clients not to even bother picking up a menu when they went out to eat.

In response to the inevitable look of perplexednessment I’d respond that if it wasnt a cheat meal then their order was really quite simple:

grilled/steamed/poached (you get the idea. depends on the restaurant) fish/chicken/lean beef, steamed veggies (baked potato if they choose with everything on the side) and a salad.

That’s what I mean by clean (cue chorus of groans here. Ive heard it all before).

When Im truly eating clean? The packets of plan oatmeal are tossed out (too processed) in favor of the lumpybumpy goodness of slow cooking Irish oats.

That’s what I mean by clean.

When Im truly eating clean? All my 6 mini-meals include a portion of lean protein, some complex carbohydrates (whole wheat pasta/bread/brown rice etc) & a smattering of other fruits and veggies.

When Im truly eating clean? (here’s one for my man Mehmet:) I dont add any extra salt to my foods.

ok, Ive never, ever, *ever* hit that last one but you get the idea.

Eating clean is, perhaps, starting with “sauce on the side” and only adding as much as you truly need to make your meal taste good to you.

Eating clean is simply working toward reveling in the taste of the food (again big ups to Mehmet) and not the grease or sauces ladled on top.

What is eating clean not? eating less.

MizFit is not about the being hungry. Ever.

An emailer remarked to me that I must eat like a bird so I sent her a typical day of MizFit Food Consumption (Renaissance Man and our grocery bill also begged to differ but had no email access).

She was shocked.

The cleaner you eat the more calories you can consume while not gaining weight.

We’ve all seen the magazine articles where they show us a donut versus a large bowl of fruit and a stack of crackers and a few cubes of cheese and ask which would you rather have for the same amount of calories?

(yeah I know. I oft think: the donut, writerwoman, so bite me—-but that’s not today’s topic)

Eating clean is precisely like that magazine article except every, single day.

POSTS BY EMAIL

Never miss a post. Enter your email to get my latest posts delivered to your inbox.

Comments

  1. You are my idol, MizFit. Clean eating sounds hard, although I realize, if I did, it more, I would far more energy as well.

  2. precisely, my friend (uh, the energy part—not that Im your idol).
    it’s all about eating your way to making it through your day with energy to spare.
    (for however you choose to spend that nighttime excess. *wink*)

    M.

  3. Hilarious!! (“bite me writerwoman”!!) And so well put. Clean eating is one of the best discoveries (reversions?) I’ve made for my health. Not only do I feel better at the gym, but my skin is clearer my mental skills are sharper and I avoid that 4 pm sugar letdown/headache. I aim for perfection but fall so short. Darn the siren call of jelly beans and sour gummy worms!

    PS> Sorry for complimenting your arms – they are fab – but you are also the possessor of so much more including a snappy wit & an elegantly simple explanatory style. Thanks for making me feel like I can do it too!!

  4. ok, C, that made me laugh.

    Im soooo appreciative for the compliments (as FRICK it is harder the older I get) just laughed that I was gunning for Instructor of the Year (smile) more than Guns O’the ’08s.

    that said, by means of full disclosure, I have to say that Linda Hamilton in T2 was the entire reason I even hoisted the iron to begin with.

    yours,
    A mama to a Tornado who is already addicted to the BEANS & who has resorted to slicing em in half and deeming em TWO.

  6. Oh, Mizfit, I am at my momma’s and she just gave me a piece of cake for breakfast.

    See what I did there? Put the cake sin off on her.

    I give them M a clean diet (with a few notcleans thrown in here and there) but for me? whatever i can eat on the run. And I am always tired.

    So, when I go home, I’m going to try and go clean at least one meal a day and then go from there.

    Pinky swear!

  7. My personal testimony – I eat (mostly) clean. (I mean except for “cheating” but every day meals and stuff is clean). Hubby does not. Hubby completes his day with a nap on the couch every night followed by video games from the same ass groove on the couch. Randi finishes her day with bouncing off the walls doing more than anyone thought possible and falls asleep instantly when her head hits the pillow and stays sound asleep all night, waking (mostly) refreshed. Hubby tosses and turns all night and drags himself out of bed, aided greatly by cups and cups of coffee.

    Oh, and I still eat just about every single awesome thing, but I make it myself instead of packaged. Chicken strips coated in bran and baked are amazing (but I eat with honey mustard so maybe not perfectly clean.)

  9. w.o.mommy? THANK YOU FOR BEING NORMAL, err, like the rest of us I guess I mean whom are decidedly not the norm.

    Oh Miss. P! Cake for breakfast? THAT IS THE PERFECT TIME TO EAT IT and what Id always tell my clients.
    you now have all day to burn it off.
    bravo!!

    Randi, that made me laugh and back in the DAY that was Renaissance Man (except for the coffee). I emailed you. I am on bendedlungedknee and want you for a GUEST CHEF POST!

    Meribeth?
    pray tell. precisely *what* at the ‘Bucks?

    M.

  10. Hi – stumbled over here from Cranky Fitness. It’s so funny that I read this today – have been trying to eat this way for the past month or so – just didn’t realize it had a “name”. I visited a nutrionist who explained what happened every time a food was processed….I can’t believe I was eating stuff that had little or no nutrional value. I already feel better…
    Now excuse me while I browse through your archives… 🙂

  11. “followed by video games from the same ass groove on the couch”

    dying laughing here over that one!

  12. We’ve been doing the “clean eating” thing as well. My problem? Knowing what counts. Frozen fish? (remember, I’m very land-locked here, so unless I’m eating catfish, the “fresh” stuff isn’t so very “fresh”). Cottage cheese? (which I LOVE as does toddlerman) Cheese? Frozen veggies steamed or stir fried? (that’s a “no knives around toddlerman” issue, as he now believes he needs to help me cook dinner every night. And not cutting the veggies the night before? A laziness/busy-ness issue).

    Not so much whether to eliminate or include those things, but whether they’re “anytime food” or “sometimes food.”

    We’ve discovered that our one eat out night a week, we tend to eat simpler things. The other stuff seems over-seasoned/too heavy & complicated.

    Except for peanut M&M’s for me and ice cream for my hubby. Life just wouldn’t be the same without those wonderful indulgences.

    My chicken trick? Olive oil cooking spray and a skillet. I cook up a couple of pounds of chicken breast in strips, pop it in the fridge, and we have an anytime yummy snack.

  13. Great post. When my children were younger, we used to go apple picking every fall. There is nothing like the “clean” taste of a freshly picked apple………..:)

  14. heather? I say dont overthink it.
    a good friend of mine once said to me (after losing 100ish pounds):

    I DIDNT GAIN WEIGHT EATING DESSERT WHEN I WENT OUT FOR DINNER—it was the whole pizza and pint of icecream AFTER which put me over the edge.

    my point? Im all about ease/frozen etc. mainly because for *me* it is something I can keep up forever.

    organic? fresh? always homemade? Im setting myself up for failure/something Ill only do short term.

    Lisa? welcome & so true.

    M.

  15. Oh easy, Light ice, decaf, nonfat, no whip, Mocha. Today was a birthday celebration and I had a piece of cake from Lucy’s! Tonight, the stationary bike! I’m old, I have to work harder than you young girls.

  16. I try to eat clean. I don’t do preservatives, flavoring, colorings, any sweetener other than real sugar. However, I still eat instant oatmeal. I’ll even do the flavored ones as long as the flavors come from real food, not a chemical plant. I find eating clean is great. My honey is diabetic and his sugar is lower when he eats cleaner food. It gives one more energy.

  17. Thank you for another great post. Eating clean has so many benefits and if you stick to it, I believe it works. Do you have any suggestions for snacks that fall under clean eating (besides fresh veggies, etc)? I’m already doing the 6 smaller meals per day but need more ideas for snacks. Thanks in advance! 🙂

  18. Meribeth, Im so longing for a picture as Ive heard rave reviews about your physique.
    are those YOUR ABS on your website?!

    Lillian, Ahhh MizFit aspires to that. seriously. Im still semi-preserved.
    (ok maybe more than semi-but Im not admitting it here.)

    Eileen? I sure do (snack) and it’s coming next week!

    M.

  19. I’m with Meribeth – I have just noticed my body change in the past year and at 48 with a five year old, I have less time to take care of myself than ever before – when I’m not working, I feel like I am cheating both of us if I don’t spend my free time with him. Of course I do realize that by taking care of myself, we both benefit in the long run. Catch 22.

  20. This leaves me wondering whether plain potato chips are cleaner than those sour cream and onion ones that are sitting in my pantry? Darn those sleepovers for my son that require junk food!

  22. Karen, I totally hear you. I already feel badly when Im on the stationary bike for 30 minutes and the Tornado is with Renaissance Man.
    Guilty.
    and it isnt at ALL made worse when I hear her saying:
    mamaBIKE. mamaBIKE.

    Ive no answers—-for me I just steal the time in the a.m. and feel “less worse” about it. I know in your world it isnt quite as uncomplicated…

    Catherine, of course the plain are better! and eat them in front of the cupboard and they are CALORIE FREE as well!!

    Better yet, follow Lisa’s advice!

    M.

  23. Those are my 47 year old abs, yes. Working hard to keep them that way after the coldness of Winter. Those in the North are saying “what does she know about Winter?” I know this…anything under 70 should be a golf score.

    Off to workout. Grrr.Legs and Back. Not a favorite.

  24. meribeth?

    one punctuation thag:

    !

    MizFits? you MUST click on M’s link and see her abs.

    go.

    I’ll wait here.

    M.

  25. Hi M,

    I’m so glad to see more and more bloggers who are living the clean eating lifestyle – I feel so awesome by sticking with the whole foods and leaving out the processed, dead foods. Keep spreading the word! 🙂

  26. Your definition of clean is great. Not ignoring our body’s need for fuel and applying simple logic to making choices. I love food and this is where I struggle daily. As a family, I’ve tried to really focus on buying “clean” and avoiding the processed foods. We’re getting better and I’m enjoying all the fresh vegetables and fruits. Our pantry is definitely more empty, but the rewards are showing.

    My little 2 year old comes up and grabs full carrots and starts eating it around the house. I’m pulling out extras when making our stir fry because both the little ones grab some veggie! It’s amazing.

  27. I agree with you on the clean-eating thing. I’m lucky because I naturally prefer things without sauces and dressings. Everyone makes fun of me because I get my salad dressing on the side and just dip the tip of my fork into it to get a very tiny bit of flavor for my salad. But I LIKE the taste of the veggies. Why cover it up? I do need to work on getting more foods that are preservative-free, though. And more fruit….I’m not good at eating fruit. I have a question for you. Do you eat cheese? If so, what kind? I know cheese has protein, but aren’t most of the kinds available really mostly fat?

  28. I’m totally doing this thing. A while back, I followed the first two weeks of the Fat Smash diet by Dr. Ian Something. I’ve realized that I need structure and lists and a plan to get me motivated and committed. I know that it is “taboo” to be on/off, but… I am on/maintaining.
    Anyway, I was thinking and realized that his food plan is basically eating clean. I eat as many fresh fruits and veggies, up to certain amounts of egg whites, oatmeal, brown rice, lowfat milk, lowfat yogurt, beans, etc… as I want up until I am full. And you space your meals.
    Anyways, I felt like telling you! This isn’t an on/off (HELLO! Easter+boyfriend’s Italian family+my family dinner=FOOD), but rather a plan I follow as much as I can as often I can.
    Go clean! (Don’t you feel so much better without the processed foods?)

  29. Thanks for that def. I am working on clean eating by working my way through the recipes in the YOU on a Diet book. Fantastic book by the way. Ditched iced mocha’s for tea or water…five servings of fruit a day..should be well on my way to a lean mean machine, I expect.

  30. I am a big fan of the eat clean way, but not the greatest follower. I heart Tosca Reno’s book and cookbook, which go along the same principles. I know it is the healthy way to live, I know it makes me feel better when I eat that way. I even love veggies, fruit, nuts, etc. I just don’t have the will power! I go all good girl for a short while, then chocolate cake catches my eye. Or McD’s fries. *sigh* I was once borderline anorexic and look back and think to myself: Huh? Was that the same self? Not AT ALL a healthy way to live, quite the opposite end of the spectrum, but where did I muster up the strength to turn down food?

Trackbacks

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This