Eating Clean Meal Planning

Everything we put into our bodies is simply out of habit and routine. When I'm busy I tend to cook the same few meals and eat the same snacks. For a while, I wasn't eating terribly but I wasn't eating fresh food either. I  started to feel a little sluggish and desperately needed something to help me change my routine. I wasn't looking to start a new diet, I just knew that I was eating certain things simply out of habit and was looking for something that would force me to change my bad habits into good ones.

 I think I read about 20 articles about good carbs, bad carbs, the Paleo diet argument, the "whole grains are bad for you" argument, the "beans cause inflammation" argument, the "you're eating too many bananas" argument, and so on and so forth. Everyone from your family doctor to some health nut in your office has their own argument.  I'm not a nutritionist so my mission is not tell you this is the ideal meal plan, but rather to share what helped me change my personal bad habits.  I'm a firm believer that with an active lifestyle,  anything in moderation is ok for you whether it's dessert, beans, or dairy. 

I eliminated the following foods for 30 days. I plan on incorporating meat, chicken, and dairy back into my diet on a more regular basis but will avoid processed foods and reduce my sugar and bread intake.

No 

Processed foods

Sugar

Bread

Meat

Chicken

Dairy

Alcohol

Caffeine

Anything bleached (like white rice, pasta etc)

The Results

It amazes me how much I had to plan to make cleaner choices. It forced me to slow down and think clearly when I was at my hungriest rather than frantically grab the Nutella jar or fly into a drive thru for a sandwich. I lost a few pounds the during the first month, but more importantly I felt much better after every meal. I was full but not stuffed. 

Eating Clean Meal Planning Ideas

I used to meal plan before I decided to change my eating habits, but I had to take meal planning to an entirely new level with these changes considering bread was part of every single meal of the day. It was  very difficult at first because I didn't know where to start but once I got into the habit of planning in advance and buying the right ingredients, I was right on track. 

Breakfast

Muesli with a tablespoon of agave nectar sweetener

Plain oatmeal with a tablespoon of buckwheat honey and fresh blueberries 

Plain brown rice cakes with a teaspoon of all natural peanut butter

Sweet potato with cinnamon and walnuts

Lunch

I always had a little bit of what I made for dinner the night before for lunch. However, some ideas:

Baked potato 

Salmon salad with olive oil and lemon juice dressing

Green bean salad with pine nuts 

Vegetable soup with salad 

Black bean soup with fruit on the side 

Dinner

Fish and shrimp tacos with couscous salad and spicy tomato sauce on Ezekiel tortillas

Vegetable or shrimp gumbo with brown rice

Grilled swai fish with baked brussels sprouts and sweet potatoes 

Wheat pasta salad with tomato, olive oil, olives, pine nuts, chick peas, and beans

Vegetable or shrimp stir fry with whole wheat spaghetti and homemade peanut sauce

Lentil soup

4 bean soup

Vegetable or shrimp quinoa pasta with asparagus and  cashew sauce

{Quinoa pasta carbonara from Mustard Seed Market Cafe}

Snacks 

Clementines, bananas 

Apples with peanut butter

Freshly juiced orange juice ( I used a juicer but you can buy 100% juice)

Plain brown rice cakes with peanut butter

Walnuts 

Baked sweet potatoes