Coach Zoe Simple clean eating for beginners tips for an easy method to meet your nutritional needs while supporting your fitness goals.
**Disclaimer: I am a fitness coach, I am NOT a registered dietitian or certified nutritionist. My posts about nutrition are not to replace the advice or guidance a medical professional or physician. My goal is to speak from personal experience and within my scope of practice as a fitness trainer!**
Over the years as I threw myself down the rabbit hole of nutrition. I often came up more confused than when I started. I felt like there were so many diets and “secrets” to eating healthy, especially when it involved weight loss. So many conflicting views and data sets.
Yes, we all know not to only eat fast food and dessert all day. But, it seemed like there was just so much information. It felt as if I wanted results, I needed a well developed meal plan that was created by a professional.
I refused to accept this idea (partially because I am stubborn and partially because of cost). I figured that I might as well try to learn it all (well… as much as I could).
Macronutrients, micronutrients, calorie counting, and anything else I could find. There was so much trial and error. So much tracking. So much…everything. I usually felt overwhelmed and like I just wanted some brownies, I mean when don’t I though?
Don’t get it twisted, I am by no means negating the knowledge and expertise of nutrition professionals that make a career out of educating and helping people.
Nutrition is very in depth and goes so much deeper than just calories and protein (although those are the favorite buzz words of the fitness industry). That’s because everything we eat affects our biology. It’s complicated because everyone has a different lifestyle and different goals!
What I AM going to do is give you the simplest nutrition tips on how to eat a healthy and nourishing diet, regardless on how much you know about nutrtion.
My little “secret” that changed how I view food is… clean eating.
How do I start eating clean?
Simply put, eat foods that are as minimally processed as possible with the least added ingredients.
To do this you will need to reduce your consumption of food (products) and create meals out of “ingredients”. Foods that are in their “wholest” form.
What really qualifies as processed? I mean, unless we pick the fruit from the trees and mill our grains, isn’t all food processed to some degree?
Yes. HOWEVER, we want to consume our food from it’s most natural form as possible. So less additives, less ingredients, less “made in a factory somewhere.”
An obvious example is a fruit cup. They may contain fruit but, also added sugar and preservatives promote “shelf-life” and color retention. Whereas a piece of fruit is… fruit, that’s it.
My favorite and simplest way to find the least processed foods are to buy foods that ARE the ingredients. Banana. Rice. Broccoli. Get it? There is no ingredient list because the food itself is the “ingredient.”
This will require you to learn to cook or just get a little creative in the kitchen. It’s obviously easier to microwave a frozen dinner than it is to chop, prep, season, and cook your foods into a meal. Or at least a tasty one.
I’m also aware that it’s not always easy to buy only “ingredient foods”, especially if you’re not a world renowned chef like me.
Make a habit to check the ingredient list! My general rule is if you can’t pronounce at least half of the ingredients or aren’t sure what they are, skip it.
Otherwise, look for a cleaner alternative. Minimize the packaged convenience foods, and switch them out for nature’s finest! Fresh fruits and veggies make for quick snacks that can be taken on the go.
If you are not a fan of veggies but know you need to make a change, check out my 5 simple tips for training yourself to like vegetables!
To start eating clean, remember these tips…
- Buy “ingredient” foods
- Check the labels for added or unknown ingredients
- Cook and prepare as many of your meals as possible
- Opt for fresh or frozen produce
- Choose whole grains
- Give up “junk” food and drinks
- Expand your collection of seasonings
- Get comfortable in the kitchen
- Grow your reference of recipes
What can you NOT eat on a clean diet?
It’s best to avoid premade snacks, meals, sauces, and even drinks. Things like granola bars, hambuger helper, terriyaki sauce, or sports drinks. These items always contain added ingredients to maintain shelf-life, color, and flavor.
Sometimes the ingredient list is short and sweet or maybe you DO know what is in there. But that doesn’t mean it is the best option.
And sometimes, it’s not that easy. For an example, the pictures below are from the same box of granola bars. Even though the picture on the left shows a heavy ingredient list, you may know what most of them are. Yet, the picture on the right shows the nutrient values are very low.
Therefore, given the amount of ingredients and the lack of nutrients, this would be a food that we would skip.
Again, I am going to reiterate that cooking at home is usually your best and cleanest option.
Remember when I said minimize convenience foods? That’s things like granola bars, salad dressings, marinades, sauces, premade smoothies, soups, rice mixes, etc.
If you can find a recipe for it online, make it at home instead. There are many easy recipes or swaps for items like these that can skip those sneaky ingredients. There only may be a few, but they add up over time.
An easy one is oil, vinegar, and lemon juice instead of salad dressing. Chicken breast for chicken nuggets. Baked homemade french fries instead of frozen.
Can you eat pizza on a clean diet? Of course. By making your own dough, using tomato sauce and seasonings, and shredding a block of cheese, you can create a minimally processed, clean pizza.
For the foods that we just can’t make at home due to time or ability, like pastas and bread products, find the ones that are made with whole grain flours or even things like chickpea or lentil flour!
Can you lose weight just by clean eating?
Clean eating can organically reduce caloric intake while supporting an active lifestyle resulting in a calorie deficit, i.e. weight loss.
This is because processed foods tend to have added “empty calories” that lack the nutrients your body needs. This can cause you have a large appetite because your body is not getting the nourishment it needs and lead you to overconsume.
Plus, these highly processed foods can cause stomach upset and other problems that may hinder your activity level.
What foods help burn belly fat?
There are no foods that can target the use of fat stores in any particular part of the body. You cannot “burn belly fat” by eating any specific foods.
In order to lose belly fat, you must maintain a caloric deficit by eating fewer calories than you burn. This deficit will result in overall fat loss, and at some point, leading to fat loss in the belly area.
However, as we eat cleaner, our digestive systems will work more efficiently. An efficient and cleaner digestive tract means less bloat!
Is Clean Eating A Fad Diet For Beginners?
No. Remember that fad diets tend to be what is a popular, quick fix diet that may get you short term results.
Their rules are usually hard to sustain over an extended period of time, either due to lack of proper nutrition or because they are unrealistic.
Remember, clean eating is a concept of diet that has simple criteria for foods to meet. Eat food in their wholest form possible.
And this is why I love this strategy. When you follow this “rule” you will easily be able to eat highly nutritious foods that offer more micronutrients, like vitmains and minerals, relative to their calorie content.
This helps you to eat meals that keep you fuller or satisfied longer because your body is not missing out and causing cravings. Foods that are less processed also have less added sugars and fats because they aren’t products that need to “last” or have shelf life. We all know fruits and vegetables go bad quickly, right?
I also love this strategy because it works regardless of what your fitness goal is. If you are trying to lose weight, add muscle mass and strength, or even maintain adequate nutrition for a sport or physical event.
Our bodies will always require vitamins and minerals, carbs, proteins, and fats to do our daily processes. Our bodies do NOT need highly processed garbage that gunks up our digestive systems and offer little nutritional value other than “empty calories.”
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