Eat Clean Using One of Three Diets Clean Eating Diet vs The Atkins Diet vs Raw Food Diet
Edited by Andrea Jaenen, Eng
Contents
What is Eat Clean
Everyone and their doctor has different ideas of what "eating clean" actually means. In this case, clean eating is defined as eating whole, unprocessed, and healthy foods. These three diets accommodate different needs and lifestyles. Be sure to talk to your doctor before pursuing any dramatic changes to your lifestyle.
Method 1: Clean Eating Diet
The Clean Eating diet is more of a lifestyle change as opposed to a short-term diet. This diet is a much longer process, and can be used for a variety of different reasons. Many choose this diet to feel better overall, to have more energy, and to lose weight. The focus of this diet turns the most focus to what makes up what you're eating, as opposed to changing what you eat. Here are the steps to follow for the Clean Eating diet.
- 1Eat the Good Fat. For ages now, people have been operating low-fat diets. The problem with low-fat diets is that the focus is lowering the intake of all fats or just avoiding food high in fat altogether. In this case, fat in the right foods is good. So focus on adding healthy fats to your diet and avoiding saturated fat. Fat in foods is essential to any good diet. Focus on foods like nuts, avocados, and eggs. Certain types of fish like tuna and salmon are also beneficial to a clean diet.
Advertisement - 2Love Your Fruit. There is a section specific to fruit on the essential foods list for a reason. When it comes to clean eating, fruit is your go-to. From a quick and easy snack to a whole meal, the fruit food group provides a large range of flavours, textures, and color. Adding more fruit to your diet gives you healthy sugars that you need. Throwing strawberries into a salad can also add a splash of taste and essential vitamins to your meal. Be sure to add more fruit to your grocery list.Advertisement
- 3Don't Forget Your Greens! Vegetables are looked on with disdain by kids and adults around the world. Fortunately, there are ways to incorporate your greens into your meals. Start off by mixing vegetables with your meat. Red peppers taste fantastic with chicken and broccoli goes well with any red meat. Vegetables offer the vitamins and nutrients your body needs, and many are high in fibre. Fibre is what keeps us full, so be sure to introduce more vegetables to your diet.
- 4Try Natural Sugars for a Boost. As mentioned before, fruit contains a lot of natural sugars. Our body craves sugar, so feed it naturally occurring sugar found in fruits, vegetables, and milk.
- 5Whole Grain Everything. When grains are refined a lot of the nutrients are lost in the process. To ensure that your body is getting the most out of every bite, focus on whole grain foods like brown rice, barley, popcorn, and whole-wheat bread and pasta. Whole grains help you feel full and present you with proteins and fibre that you need to function.
- 6Oil Over Butter. Some types of butter and margarine are debated to be the healthier and tastier alternative, but that isn't the case. Both butter and processed margarine are filled with saturated fats, trans-fatty acids, and excess amounts of salt. Olive oil and canola oil, on the other hand, contain mostly monounsaturated fats that are healthier than the fats found in butter and margarine. Be sure to cook your foods with oil from now on.
- 7Eat the Right Carbs. Carbohydrates are your best friend. In the right amount of course. No-carb diets are a fad that needs to pass. Carbohydrates give us the energy we need to function in our day-to-day lives. If we lack carbohydrates, our body will instead use the protein from our muscles to fuel itself, effectively eating away our own body. Make sure to fuel up with vegetables, whole-wheat bread, and some quinoa.
- 8Drink More Water. Every professional will tell you to drink more water. Water flushes our system and keeps on going. Grab a bottle of water before class and during work and make sure to stay hydrated.
What to Avoid While on the Eating Clean Diet
- 1Ditch the Processed Foods. Most foods that we eat are processed in some way. In this case, we're talking about foods mixed with preservatives, colourants, and artificial flavours. Consistently consuming processed foods can increase our chances of heart disease, high cholesterol, and blocked arteries. To keep yourself functioning better and healthier avoid lunch meat, breakfast cereals, and microwave-ready meals.
- 2Cut Down on Saturated Fats. As discussed prior, saturated fats increase chances of heart issues and the possibility of a stroke. Be sure to read the label of everything you buy, so you can stick to less saturated fats.
- 3Slow Down on the Drinking. While alcohol may be fun in the right amounts, it is well known to be bad for you. Many types of beverages can actually cause you to gain weight. Excess drinking can lead to problems with your liver as well. Cutting down on the drinking can help you feel better.
- 4Reduce Unnatural Sugars. This includes soda, snack foods, and many desserts. Too much unnatural sugar can be bad for you. If you are craving sugar, grab an apple instead.
- 5Get Rid of Bread. Bread is often a favourite comfort food. While quick and easy, most bread is not good for you. If you find yourself struggling to remove the favourite from your diet, try to stick to whole-wheat bread instead.
- 6Say No to Fruity Juices. Surprisingly, fruit juices are as healthy as one may believe. Many juices have added sugars and flavouring. If you are looking to increase your nutrient intake, focus on concentrated juices and ones without added sugars.
Method 2: The Atkins Diet
The Atkins Diet is arguably one of the most popular diets. This diet is recommended for weight loss. This diet focuses on eating foods low in carbohydrates, all the while continuing to eat foods with as much fat and protein as you feel. The Atkins Diet consist of four phases to follow for your optimal weight loss.
- 1Phase One. This is the most important and longest step to the Atkins Diet. This step causes your body to switch to burning fat instead of carbohydrates. This is done by eating high-fat, low-carb, and protein intensive foods under 20 grams of carbohydrates a day. Focus on eating carbohydrates found in green vegetables, like spinach and broccoli. This phase is supposed to last for a few weeks or until you are within 15 pounds of your goal weight.Advertisement
- 2Phase Two. This phase consists of incorporating more foods back into your diet, while still maintaining weight loss. With this step you will gradually add more nuts, low-carb foods, and fruit back into your diet. Maintain this diet until you are 10 pounds from your goal weight.
- 3Phase Three. This step is where your weight loss begins to slow down. You will gradually add more and more carbohydrates back into your diet. The key step in this phrase is understand what your body can handle and what will cause you to lose or gain weight.
- 4Phase Four. This phase is all about maintaining your current weight so the pounds don't come back. Use what you have learned throughout the Atkins Diet phases and incorporate them into your daily life. This phase will continue as a life-long maintenance, and can help you stay the same weight.
Foods to Avoid on the Atkin's Diet.
- 1Sugar. When looking to lose weight it is best to avoid foods with artificial sweeteners or excess amounts of sugar. This includes candy, pop, and most desserts.
- 2Bread. Avoid bread, especially white bread, as bread has many simple carbs hidden within.
- 3Pasta. Just like bread, pasta has many simple carbs. It is very difficult to include a carb-intensive food such as pasta into a diet that focuses on reducing carbohydrates.
- 4Trans-Fats. Like most diets, the Atkin's Diet looks to avoiding trans-fats. Trans-fats can typically be found in processed foods.
Method 3: Raw Food Diet
The Raw Food Diet is a plant-based diet that focuses on eating whole, unprocessed, and uncooked foods. Following this diet there is a belief that cooking vegetables causes nutrients to be lost in the process. The primary focuses of this diet are to cleanse the body, give you more energy, and to maintain a healthy weight. Here is a few guidelines to follow if you are attempting the Raw Food Diet.
- 1Process Your Own Food. For this diet you can use blenders, food processors, and food dehydrators to change the form of your food. This can enable you to expand the range of foods you can eat. You make smoothies and create your own dried fruit.
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Unpasteurized Foods. This diet can be manipulated to fit the mould of eating unpasteurized foods like eggs, raw milk, and unpasteurized dairy products.
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What to Eat. While there are a lot of foods you cannot eat, there is a large number of foods you can eat on this diet. You can eat things, like raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, grains, and seeds.
What to Avoid on the Raw Food Diet.
- 1Heating Your Food. While it seems tempting to steam up those veggies, the purpose of this diet is to have all the nutrients you can, and cooking eliminates some of the nutrients. So avoid cooking up your foods.
- 2Meats. It is unsafe to eat most meat raw, so it is best to avoid any meat during this diet. The one exception is some types of sushi. However, keep in mind the this is a plant-based diet. Alterations can be made to fit.
Tricks to Make Eating Clean Easier.
- 1Spice it Up. Eating clean and eating whole foods generally, has a bad wrap for being bland. Learn how to spice your food and utilize sauces to your advantage. Eating clean doesn't have to be boring.
- 2Balance Your Intake. Your diet doesn't suddenly have to include only vegetables and fruit. Be sure to incorporate foods from different food groups into each meal. This allows for variety and ensuring that you're receiving all of the nutrients that you need in a clean diet.
- 3Eat When You're Hungry. There is this idea that when you eat clean, you are not allowed to snack. This is most certainly not the case. Eat when you are hungry, doing so can actually prevent mindless snacking.
- 4Make Your Own Meals. Chances are you won't find anything healthy if you're running to the convenience store across the street for lunch every other day. Making your own meals is making the choice to pick healthier alternatives and be conscious of what you are putting in your body. Through this, eating clean is much easier and knowing how to cook for yourself is a useful skill.
- 5Plan and Make Your Meals Ahead of Time. If you plan to eat clean, there is a higher chance that you will. Make your food ahead of time, so when your stomach starts growling you can grab something pre-made that is sure to be healthy. This is easier if you live alone or with a smaller family. If your family is larger, pre-make items that won't spoil, and organize in a manner that makes cooking for more people easier.
- 6Try Mindful Eating. Mindful eating is paying attention to every bite. Focus on the texture, the flavour, and how much you chew. This slows down how quickly you eat and leads to you appreciating the entirety of your meal and feeling much more full afterward.
- 7Pace Yourself. Changing your diet for the better is a commitment. If your intention is to maintain a cleaner diet, start off slow. Don't force yourself to change how you eat immediately. Instead, gradually add and take away foods. This way you can ease yourself into this change and allow for a less drastic and more comfortable change.
- 8Quit the Guilt. Feeling extreme guilt for eating a pizza or chowing down on a bag of chips once in a while is detrimental to your mental health. A key step to healthier eating is knowing that it is not a bad thing to enjoy munching on a cookie or occasionally binge-eating ice cream after a bad day. A quick solution to getting rid of guilt is being responsible and recognizing what you and your body needs, whether that is a piece of fruit or a cheeseburger.
If you have problems with any of the steps in this article, please ask a question for more help, or post in the comments section below.
