It feels like forever since I created a recipe for this blog, my baby.
Life has changed so drastically in the past six months that the landscape is like Mars. Nothing remains the same except for the kids, but they grow and change daily as well, so I guess they’re out too. My workouts are different, my marriage is different, we got a second dog, the garden is in and organized, my parents are back to visit from Mexico, so much change. But the biggest change of all was to my diet.
No longer could I look at food and see recipes as I did before. After two years of hardcore fitness and not seeing the results I wanted, I was at the end of my rope. I decided to do the drastic. I decided to cut out all the things I knew I shouldn’t be eating anyway. No more white bread (sourdough!), no more booze (the beer! the cocktails!), no more sugar (the candy!) and no more dairy (Greek yogurt!). I tried this for four weeks with some pretty good results. Then I changed my macronutrient profile to a 20/40/40 split. Which means I started tracking (using My NetProDiary for iPhone) all the macronutrients I consumed in a day. 20% fat, 40% carbohydrates and 40% protein.
Those last five pounds literally fell off my body.
And I’ve been sticking to it ever since. As you can see from the picture above there’s not much of a recipe to a clean eating diet. I grilled up some pork chops (brined first) and roasted some sweet potatoes and asparagus. I served it with a quarter of an avocado for a little healthy fat.
And I love it. I love eating every three hours. I love that I know what is going into my body with no question of ingredients and I love the way I look and feel
My next post will be more fitness based, and I think from now on I will be writing a lot more about clean eating, health and fitness. I want you all to journey with me in this exciting new world of mine. We’ve already run our first 10K, joined a local Bikram yoga studio and are almost finished our first round of P90X (photos to come!)
So come along for the ride of your lives and maybe I can try to teach you a thing or two along the way.
Thanks for being there with me through these past three years. I appreciate each and every one of you. Keep the comments, emails, tweets and Facebook posts coming!
Cheers,
Elizabeth
Liz,
I am in awe of your dedication to this new way of life, and I love your authenticity, as always. Cannot wait to read more!
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Thank you Winnie, I really appreciate your opinion and your comments always make me smile. Thanks for always being there for me. 🙂
YES I love Bikram yoga- completed a 30 day challenge last spring and it was the best thing I did. Unfortunately, I can’t afford it anymore, but I dream of the day I can get back in there. Congrats on everything you’ve achieved!
Loving the Bikram and thanking my local studio for the deals and sales they have been offering lately!
Well done, Elizabeth! It takes such dedication to make that kind of change, but the rewards can be great. I can’t wait to read more…and see the photos!
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Thank you Dara! I read your story with much admiration. We’ve both come a long way!
I am looking forward to some interesting ways to eat clean. I definitely need to try this about now after getting back from a weekend of travel, food and drinks! Congrats to you!
The Wanderfull Traveler
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Always a good time to start!
Hi! I am a new blog reader and just had to comment to say that I am very excited that you’ve decided to share your journey and dietary changes. I feel like I am in a similar place as you were, with lots of running and two weeks into working through Bodyrock.tv workouts five days a week, but no major changes to my diet.
I hope your insight helps me to make some significant changes!
Thanks again for sharing.
-Jen
I’m also on a clean diet and happy to hear more & more people are into it.
I do include non-fat or low-fat greek yogurt in my diet as a low protein. That is basically the only dairy in my diet. Why did you quit the greek yogurt as well?
I quit all dairy entirely as I find it does not agree with me. I have always had a slight dairy intolerance and once I cut it completely out, I actually did feel a whole lot better. I do admit that it’s never going to leave my life though. I still have butter every now and again (actually only once in three months) and I had a bite of blue cheese the other day.
My eating is similar to this but def a work in progress, I eat more fat (usually plant based) than 20% though, so in carbs are you counting fruits and veges in that? Just curious
As I said, I use MyNetProDiary to track my macronutrients. Anything with as little as 1 gram of carbs will be counted as carbs, so yes, fruits and veggies are my main source of carbohydrates.
You did indeed say that, thanks
It has been a world of change. It has also been a world of education for us. Thanks for sharing it with everyone Elizabeth!
Congratulations on the weight loss, the switch to healthier eating and for completing your first 10K (and on getting another dog!) Looking forward to your upcoming posts.
WOW. I love it! Does cheese still fit into this at all? Seriously though, amazing! I can’t wait to see what you make so I can copy you. I MEAAAAAANNNN.
This blog is now a source for my Inspiration + Motivaton + Dedication! 🙂 Randomly on the weekend, I was perusing your old posts, getting lost in recipes – incredible the difference between then and now! You’ve provided this household standby recipes and now a guide into this new healthy world!
I’m so glad that I could help you and your family through these years. And I’m looking forward to working out with you!
I’ve always liked your posts, but I’ve especially enjoyed reading and seeing your transformation here and on Twitter/Instagram.
Did you find it hard to cut things from your diet? I have been slowly going healthier but it’s hard to cut certain things out (especially as my husband isn’t on board).
Also, do you put protein powder in the “clean” category? I want to get my protein up to 30% but protein powders always seem like fake food to me.
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That’s a tough question Megan. And I struggle with it. Protein powders are so very processed. They are really broken down forms of food and I don’t consider them to be part of the “clean eating”. But I couldn’t do it without them! I feel like having cut out every form of sugar, processed food, alcohol and bad fats that I’m not doing too bad, so I just try not to think about it too much…:)
As for not having a husband on board, that is a MAJOR road block. I wasn’t doing it at all until Adrian joined in. It was too hard, too many temptations. Ordering salads while he ordered a burger? Not having popcorn at the theater while he did, not having chocolates at Easter? Yeah, it’s pretty much impossible with at least their understanding that you can’t be around that stuff…at least for the first little while. It does get easier! I have no problem now being around temptations, I know I’ve worked too hard to blow it all.
Thanks for the honesty! I definitely think it’s a pick your battles type of thing – and it’s hard to get lots of protein without associated fat. Happy to see you don’t do soy either, as I try to stay away from that aside from the odd tofu dinner once every two months or so.
I’m doing so much better than I used to on the temptation front, but considering I grew up on a meat-and-potatoes-and-junk-food diet it’s a hard transition. I’ve gotta be happy with the progress I’ve made so far, at least.
I hear ya Megan, I grew up on the same diet. As I’ve told the story before, i won’t go into detail but losing 65 lbs and never gaining it back has been an epic battle of wills for the past 11 years. I’ve finally found a place where I am happy with my diet and exercise and my life and how they all fit together. It’s not for everyone and some people think I’m crazy, but I feel amazing and I look great so I will keep going!
You have an amazing dedication, and I love your spirit and commitment to healthy eating. You are an inspiration truly! But, I really feel that there are lots of healthy, nutritious alternatives out there that are quite tasty too.
I was never even that heavy a drinker but as soon as I eliminated booze from my diet, I near isntantly lost about 5 pounds! It’s a sad reality of calories in and calories out on that one. There are just more satisfying things I would like to consume. Like cheese. I will not live without cheese. One of the things I’ve come to love about long distance running is that it is a great motivating to eat cleaner – by 12K or so, my body WILL hold me accountable for an bad choice, and the momentary gratification just isn’t worth paying for later!
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