I Always Get Ahead Of Myself

I guess I should back up a moment.....I got all excited about "clean eating", but didn't really put any meaning to the specific term.  So in a nut shell, clean eating is consuming food as close to it's natural state as possible.  Now, there are a few more things that go into this whole lifestyle of clean eating, but that's pretty much the bare minimum.  Clean eating also entails:

• Eliminates refined sugar
• Cooks healthy meals
• Packs healthy meals
• Makes healthy choices when dining out
• Drinks a lot of water
• Eats 5-6 small meals per day
• Eliminates alcoholic beverages (or significantly limits it)
• Always eats breakfast

So now that you are scared out of your mind, and running for the door, let me stop you with this:

YOU DON'T HAVE TO CONQUER THIS ALL IN ONE DAY!!!!

Take baby steps.  I didn't get to this point over night.  It's taken me hours of reading labels, books, and magazines to fully develop my own sense of clean eating.  And that's the beauty of this;  you can make this your own journey, your own lifestyle!  And taking one step in the direction of trying to eliminate the junk is a step toward a long and healthy life.

A few suggestions on how to get started:

• Get to know your labels!  Read, read, and read some more.  Make sure that you can pronounce all of the words on the label.  A good rule of thumb is to choose the products with fewest ingredients.  (Also, being able to pronounce what you are eating is always a good thing!)
• Intimacy with your grocery store is sexy!  Knowing what aisles are filled with natural healthy foods, and what aisles have the junk is key to making your shopping experience pleasurable.  And after all the label reading you will be doing, you and your grocery store will be quite well acquainted!
• Pick one or two staples in you kitchen to make on your own.  This is your first leap of faith into really making the commitment to changing your eating habits. (We will get to changing those financial habits later on....let's stick with the fun stuff for now)  My suggestion would be to start by making your own stocks/broths and bread.  These are two very basic items that can contain tons of sodium, preservatives, and hidden junk.  Especially bread.  I really enjoy Bread Experience.  This website will give you everything you ever wanted to know about baking bread.  I am still toying around with this as you know.  Just keep reminding yourself - learn from your mistakes!

Once you have taken those three steps we can move on to bigger and better projects! PSSST!  Don't worry, I haven't forgotten to tell you about my new gadget and obsession.  Let's just say dry rubs were involved!