While clean eating is one of the simpler healthy lifestyles to understand, it does have its restrictions just like everything else. The important thing to remember is that you are eating whole, fresh foods, avoiding most things that are packaged and processed, and are beginning to read labels and cook more at home. Here are some additional tips to help with your clean eating diet.
Eat Lots of Fruits and Veggies
The first big change you might make is eating more fresh and frozen produce. A good portion of your meals and snacks will be of fruits and vegetables. If you currently eat a lot of fruit, but not much veggies, it’s time to switch it up. By having a good amount of both throughout the day, you stay full, get plenty of nutrients, and have enough variety in your diet so you don’t get bored. Frozen produce and even some canned veggies are okay, just make sure you are checking the ingredients to ensure it is clean.
Enjoy Your Whole Grains
If you are coming off diets like low-carb or Keto, you might not be used to having this carb, but clean eating is not a low-carb diet. While it can be a reduced carb diet simply by taking away things like white rice and processed breads, you still want carbs for every meal and snack. Your meals should consist of a protein and a carb, many times with whole grains like brown rice and quinoa. Filling up on whole grains increases your nutrients and keeps you energized for the day, so ti is definitely recommended.
Always Have Snacks Ready to Go
You want to be as prepared as possible to survive clean eating and get to the point where it is a simple lifestyle change. One way to do this is by having enough snacks on hand that are clean. This means enough fruits and vegetables, nuts and seeds in portion-controlled containers or bags, and any homemade snacks you have prepared like granola or oatmeal bites.
Meal Plan and Prep Weekly
Along these lines, you should also be planning out every meal for the week and prepping as much as possible. With clean eating, getting convenience foods while you’re out is not as easy, and most fast food is not considered clean, so you still need to plan to provide the majority of your own meals and snacks at home. If you can prep things like casseroles, making salads, and chopping veggies, then you are more likely to eat those meals instead of getting pizza.
