Hey! Thanks for checking back. I really need to get back into this because I feel like I have lost sight of what I really need to be doing. I really need to be writing in here a couple times a week! Seriously! But for today's post... One of my biggest pet peeves is when people think that CLEAN EATING is a diet! While you may be changing your diet, I don't look at it as if it were a diet. SlimFast is a diet. Jenny Craig is a diet. Weight Watchers is a diet. You're buying something from those companies that is on their "plan" and you're counting points, calories, or paying enrollment fees.
Just this week, I have heard on three different occasions something about "the diet." Here are a few quotes that I'd like to address. "I don't do diets," "I'm dieting," and "Are you allowed to have that on your diet?"
First of all, I don't do diets either. When I first started my journey to a healthier me, I was hesitant. I really was. Truth is, I had never tried anything else before and I was scared. It was something new and something that I wasn't sure if I would be good at. I hate failing and I was never allowed to fail. When I discovered that the 21 Day Fix allowed me to eat the same foods I had already been eating, I was thrilled. I'm talking foods like cereal, fruit, veggies, rice, etc. Only this time, it was in portions. This time it wasn't a heaping bowl of Lucky Charms. It was 2, 1/2 cups (2 yellows) of a whole grain cereal and 4oz of almond milk. I had to adjust to certain things like almond milk instead of regular cows milk, Greek yogurt (plain) instead of flavored yogurt, leaving behind my cookies, chocolate bars, icecream, and occasional bottle of wine. Although, 21 Day Fix allowed for 4oz of wine, 3 times a week. A diet? You're kidding, right? Wine on a diet? Yeah... whatever you say. So to tell me that you "don't do diets" is like telling me that you don't want to go to a funeral because you might die. It just sounds silly!
Second... "I'm dieting." Really? You're dieting? So does that mean that once you've reached your goal weight or your goal fitness level, you're done with your "diet?" Clean eating, again, isn't a diet. It is literally a life style and once you've realized that your body likes the clean food, you're going to feel so much better. I have a friend who wanted to take an entire week away from eating clean. After day 2, she was messaging me saying "Hol, I can't do this anymore. I feel like crap. I think I'm going to go back on tomorrow and eat better." When you dial in your nutrition, then you eat something very bad (a Big Mac for example), your body is going to react to that food in a negative way.
Perfect example... a couple nights ago my husband comes home and asks if I'd like to order out. He chooses his favorite place in town, Vinny's. While Vinny's is a pizza place, I know that if I have pizza or anything other than a salad, I'm going to feel like what I ate. Cheap, easy, and lazy. I got a buffalo chicken salad and he had bacon cheese fries and a salad. However, he did not eat the salad. Let's just say this, after 10 minutes into the workout that night, he was in the bathroom remembering how good those fries tasted going down. My point is this, after a period of time that you're fueling your body with healthy, nutritious foods, one bad meal will make you remember why you have stayed away. I'm no expert but I know that the chemicals in processed food make you feel way more lethargic than if you were to eat a clean meal. It's up to you!
Again, I ask, once you've met your goal, are you done "dieting?" Because if you are, expect to gain your weight back and lose energy.
Lastly... "Are you allowed to have that on your diet?" Seriously? My grandmother tells me that she doesn't buy "special food" for me and Anthony because she doesn't know what we are allowed to have. Okay well, even though we've told her over and over, she still doesn't get it. That's fine. She's 73. But other people see me eating things and they ask the same question. I just turn my head and say, "Do you really think that I would want to feel like a pile of dog shit after I eat this? YES. I am getting this to eat because I am ALLOWED to have it." Anywhere that we go, I always find something that can be considered "clean." If I have to ask the waiter or waitress to put something on the side, I do. If I don't want dressing but oil and vinegar instead, I do. I love Mexican food. I love it!! When I go there, I have the fajitas. I don't eat the tortillas, rice, or guacamole. I eat the chicken and veggies with some salsa on top. I toss in a little hot sauces for good measure. And that literally fills me up! I don't need the added crap they put on.
My friend was going out of town with her husband and sent me a menu of a place they were going to be stopping to eat. She asked me, "Hol, I don't know what to get. What do you think?" I looked over the menu and gave her my response. It wasn't want she wanted to get but again, do you want to be 300lbs or do you want to feel better? Do you want to see results? Because if you do, you'll listen to me. Honestly, I am a straight shooter. If you ask me a question that requires my opinion, you'll get my opinion. It might not be what you wanted to hear, but that's what's great about an opinion. :) #sorrynotsorry
So to wrap up... In my honest opinion (again, how great!) eating clean is NOT a diet. I'm not counting calories, paying enrollment fees, or adding up my points. I am simply cutting out the processed, heavy foods. When you fuel your body the right way, your body will treat you much better. That's a fact, Jack.
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