Eat Clean, Stay Prim
When we say “we eat clean” what is it that we mean? Is it a way to drop a few kilos or eliminate certain toxins? How do we achieve clean eating? Can we binge post clean eating? Is it a schedule towards a goal or a lifestyle interest? Let’s find out these and some other intriguing answers.
What does clean eating actually mean?
Clean eating is a simple concept. The idea is about being mindful of the food's pathway between its origin and your plate. At its simplest, clean eating is about eating whole foods, or "real" foods, those that are minimally processed or unprocessed / unrefined, making them as close to their natural form as possible.
The pathway to a healthy life
Clean eating is not a one off thing that you think of doing every month, but it is something that should be followed religiously every day. Let me share a plan with you that will help you detoxify your body in the simplest way possible.
Day begins with lemon water
Flushing toxins and energising your digestive tract sounds like a great way to start the day, right?
Start your day by waking up with a glass of warm or cold lemon water. Avoid adding sugar to it. The pectin from the lemon aids digestion, helping to make lemon a phenomenal detoxifying food. Water with lemon also helps curb your appetite and boosts satiety.
De-Bloat with breakfast
After water, fuel yourself with food, whole food! The advice I would give is to skip the bread, cereal or any version of them at breakfast as they will cause your body to retain more water, and instead focus your attention on protein, which will provide satiety. An egg-and-salmon scramble is a perfect combo of protein and metabolism-boosting omega-3s to start the day. If you must choose cereals on some days, choose whole grain ones like buckwheat and oatmeal.
Clean up your day’s diet
After breakfast ensure, lunch, dinner and at least one snack (absolutely no skipping meals!) with whole, real foods only. Include greens for vitamins, pulses for proteins, raw foods for fibers (before meals) and snack up with healthy fats from nuts, seeds or olives, avocado or coconut.
Foods to avoid
If you have made the decision to eat clean, you should make every effort to avoid foods which can affect the outcome negatively. Any cleanse or detox is likely to fail if your body remains overloaded by a continual onslaught of hard-to-handle substances, especially the white foods like refined wheat (maida), polished rice, and of course sugars. Coffee is another offender. Avoid drinking more than one cup coffee a day during your detox or begin by trying to reduce the quantity by about 25 per cent per serving. Gradually cut down on the number of cups by mixing in decaffeinated coffee during the first few days until you are weaned off completely or down to just one small cup a day.
Clean Eating Recipes
It may sound difficult to eat clean but with so many healthful varieties available in nature, it does not connote you have to eat tasteless and boring food. Let me share with you all an easy, healthy recipe that I love and which you can start to follow right away.
Detox green smoothie with chia seeds
This super drink has a mix of superfood Chia seeds, greens, fruits, and low calorie almond milk that can cover more than 50 per cent of calcium requirement in the day.
Ingredients
- 1 cup spinach leaves
- 1 banana, cut into pieces
- 1 cup frozen pineapple chunks
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 cup unsweetened almond milk, add more if needed
Method
Put all your ingredients in a blender until everything is combined and smooth. Add more almond milk as needed.
Millet Pomegranate Salad
Do not run away by reading “salad”. If you think salads are boring, you should definitely try this to change your mind in an instant!
Ingredients (for serving of four people)
- 1 cup rinsed millet
- 1 cup green rinsed lentils
- 4 pomegranates
- 2 lemons, juiced
- About 1/4th cup chopped parsley
- 4 chopped green onions
- Salt and pepper for taste
Method
Slow heat and dry roast millet till color darkens. Pour two to three cups of salted boiled water and cover. Cook for 30-40 minutes. Further cook lentils in four cups of water for about half an hour. Cool to room temperature. Mix lentils and millet in olive oil, garnish with pomegranate seeds, lemon juice, parsley and chopped green onions. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Clean eating will open up the doors to many creative, fun and tasty recipes. With clean eating, I assure you that your body and mind will forever be thankful for making this change when you feel the difference in your health and productivity.
From the August-September 2018 issue of FHM India.
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