In a perfect world we would all eat whole, natural foods for every meal. We would never eat processed foods, white sugar or flour and everyone would be healthy and fit. It’s a nice dream, but definitely not reality. Life happens and let’s face it, there are times where a homemade dessert is just so worth it!!!

            For that reason and others, I try to live my life by the 90/10 rule. What that mean is that 90% of the time you are eating clean and 10% of the time, life happens. Let’s look at this a little closer.

 

Things to do 90% of the time:

 

***90% of the time I make a very concentrated effort to avoid processed foods, refined flours, sugars and artificial colors, flavors, and preservatives.

 

***90% of the time I include whole grains, lots of protein, vegetables, and fruit in my eating. Although I do have a pantry that has some health-food-store-only-products, I tend to use mainly traditional ingredients.

 

***The first thing you want to do is “Shop Smart”. That means having a grocery list with all the clean eating items you will need for the week. (Click on the Grocery List tab under Clean Eating). Buy organic when you can, grow what you can, do the best that you can. I don’t buy all organic food, although when I can, I do. If you have a local farmer’s market, visit it sometime and support your local farmers.

 

***Eat whole grains. Whole grains are popular and it’s pretty easy to find great simple whole grain products. My favorite has to be quinoa. It is very versatile; make it as a breakfast parfait, in a tasty salad, or as a side dish to your evening entrée.

 

***Embrace fats. Coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil and butter are easy to find and easy to use. If possible use butter made from organic grass-fed cows and in moderation.

 

***Eat your fruits and veggies, especially vegetables. Have a green thumb, grow a garden. There is something so cool about being able to go outside a pick a ripe tomato off the vine and if you have kids at home it’s amazing how much they LOVE what they have planted themselves and watched grow! Also try to eat what is in season. Don’t know what’s in season? If you have a farmer’s market, that’s a great place to go.

 

***Try to eat foods with 5 ingredients or less listed on the package and avoid ingredients you don’t know. Say no to artificial sweeteners, colors, flavors, and preservatives. You will clean up your diet tenfold by only buying things with ingredients that you know. It’s an easy place to start.

 

Love natural sugars. Honey and pure maple syrup are worth the cost and are great things to learn how to use. As an added bonus, they don’t leave a funky aftertaste like the artificial sweeteners.

 

10% is real life

 

Life happens! Maybe you have a luncheon at work, grandma’s birthday, or a vacation in the Bahamas. Whatever it is, you won’t always have total control over what foods are available to you. Now that doesn’t mean you go hog-wild; you should still try to make your choices as clean as possible, but if you do choose to eat something that is not a clean choice, make sure it is worth it to you and own your choices. If you’re going to feel guilty about it, what’s the point? Enjoy it and then get back to cleaner choices.

 

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Clean eating should never be about what you CAN'T have, but rather, all the wonderful things you CAN!