Were you, like me, a bit indulgent over the holidays? Do you feel like your metabolism needs an overhaul? Then come and join me for Eat Clean Friday.
Eat Clean Friday is a new nutrition oriented link-up dedicated to nothing but delicious and healthy recipes. It is a new year and we all want to rev up our diets. When I re-started started my fitness journey in 2012 after battling hypothyroidism related weight gain, I was amazed at how much progress I made once I changed the focus of how I ate. Notice I am not saying "when I started dieting". And that is because CLEAN EATING is a lifestyle change not a fad. I am not ashamed to admit that this past year I kind of fell off the wagon and I noticed the difference almost immediately. If you read my post about my 2014 goals, you know cleaning my diet is one of them. This is why I am starting EAT CLEAN FRIDAYS, not only as accountability but also as a way of sharing among ourselves the clean recipes that have worked for us. Plus you get to meet some great people in the process.
If you read this blog, you probably already know what CLEAN EATING is. But just in case you are new, here my probably over simplistic definition: it is eating food as close as possible to their natural state {no I do not mean eat raw meat}. Just minimally processed food that nourishes the body. When it comes to the "tenets" of eating clean they are not rocket science {even if some want to make it sound like it is}:
- No. 1 Eat 5-6 meals a day (this includes two snacks) througout your day ensuring you include a lean protein, complex carbohydrate, veggies and fruits.
- No. 2 Drink water! It is good for you and it is vital to proper body functions
- No 3 Read labels: if you cannot pronounce the name of an ingredient, it is probably not clean. Further more, if the list of ingredients is longer that the Bill of Rights... you guessed it: not clean.
- No. 4 Stay away from processed foods. White flour, bread, sugars and pasta are a no-no. I personally believe in moderation and once in a while I do not see why not. Also favor complex carbohydrates like sweet potatoes and whole grains.
- No. 5 Consume healthy fats. Saturated fats: BIG NO! Essential fatty acids: BIG YES!
Still confused? Here is a handy dandy cheat sheet that I think it is very helpful from the Rebel Dietitian. I have it attached to my refrigerator :)
The link-up will kick off on Friday 17 JANUARY and will go up on Friday mornings. I do not have any rules but I do ask that 1) the recipe is really is "clean" and that 2) you link back to this blog. So, what do you say? Are you going to join me? I hope you do! Have a fantastic weekend!
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