Clean Up Your Diet

Are you focused on ‘clean eating’ ? There is so much conflicting information on what clean eating really is, so here are some simple swaps and suggestions to ACTUALLY get you there.

1. Removed Refine Sugars: white breads, pasta, sugar, lollies (adding to coffee, tea, cereal); these highly refined sugars spike insulin levels and eventually feel you leaving low on energy, depletes essential nutrients from your body, affects your liver and promotes weight gain.
2. Remove additive and preservatives as much as possible: Eat as much raw whole foods (fruit, vegetables, nuts, seeds etc.) and stay away from packaged foods as much as possible. The more attention you pay to food labels, the less likely you will want to eat what’s in them anyway!
3. Swap high salt high fat meat for lean meat & fish:  swap ham, and cheap high fat meat for good quality lean meat and seafood. High salt and high fat meats promote weight gain and water retention; whereas lean meat & seafood will give you more protein, nutrients and essential fatty acids minus the salt and saturated fat.
4. Skip the pre-workouts & ‘fat burners’: stay away from supplements that aren’t pharmaceutically regulated because often they have harmful chemicals and harmful amounts of them in the product. Whilst it may give you a bit more motivation whilst working out, the effects it has on your liver and digestive system will eventually become apparent in the poor of poor digestion, mood swings, malnutrition, liver dysfunction and more. Do you research!
5. Flavour with herbs and spices: stay away from bottled sauces they are EXTREMELY high in salt and surprisingly high in sugar and who can forget the additives and preservatives. Use garlic, ginger, basil, thyme, chilli and all those wonderful natural flavours.
6. Say no to extras: when you having a salad so not to the heavy dressing and use balsamic vinegar instead, say no to mayo on your wrap and use hummus or avocado instead, say no to butter on your crackers and use ricotta with spinach and tomato instead
7. Cut the diet drinks: yes they have no calories BUT there are so many studies that have concluded those that drink diet soft drink are more likely to be overweight. The artificial sweeteners stimulate the sweet receptors in your brain which cause you to crave more sweat centre in your brain causing you to crave sweat foods consistently. Not to mention the harmful effects of artificial sweeteners and chemicals coming into your body on a daily basis. Get rid of it & get some water!
8. 1 x treat per week: If you’re 100% focused on clean eating & weight loss, don’t convince yourself that a ‘treat’ more than once a week is ok. A treat can be anything from chocolate, to alcohol, to a big pasta meal. Once a week until you get to your goal is enough to keep you focused on your goal without depriving yourself, your goal is bigger than that block of chocolate!
9. Ditch the excess sugar: this can come in the form of fruit juices and dried fruit. Both of these are VERY high in sugar. A 250mL glass of OJ can contain the sugar of 5 oranges, but not the nutrients. Dried sultanas can contain over double the sugar (as well as preservatives) as a grape. Stick to the real deal and go for whole fruit.
10. Increase your veg: for most people this is the most difficult and here are some helpful hints

·  Cut up carrot and celery to snack munch on during the day

·  Add an extra cup of salad to lunch

·  Add an extra cup of vegetables to dinner

·  Have an omelette in the morning with spinach, tomato and mushrooms

·  Prepare your veg the night before – that way you  have no excuses to eat it the next day

·  Shop at your local markets – veg is cheap, lasts longer and tastes better

Most of all enjoy your food. Be creative and have variety in the foods you eat, you are more likely to enjoy it with setting yourself a goal to use a new recipe each week.  
If you struggle to eat right make simple by starting with the 7 Day Clean Eating Meal Plan