28 Day Motiv8 Clean Eating
Challenge!
Motiv8ers welcome to October's Motiv8 Food Challenge. Will you take on this challenge with me?
Motiv8ers trying to figure
out what to eat and which type of diet to go on can get
overwhelming in a hurry. Well, it is about to get a lot simpler because the key
to a clean diet that will help you stay strong, lean, and make you feel awesome
comes basically down to these simple words: “less is more.”
As a busy person, and as a coach who is
around busy people all day, I understand the difficulty in always having fresh food on
hand. You can’t always run to the grocery store, and sometimes you want to just
reach into the cupboard/freezer/fridge and have something almost make itself. I
get it. That’s why Motiv8 is here to hopefully make creating a healthy clean
diet much easier and I want us to work together to make this happen.
So the challenge is this. For 28 days I want you to try for one
or two meals each day for 28 days to only eat the foods on the shopping list
below. If you want to try the
whole day for 28 days that would be even better but I know how hard a sudden
change can be. You can make any recipe you like but the foods have to fit into
the list laid out. This might seem
very challenging at first because many of us are so used to buying packaged goods
but if you stick with it you will be so surprised on just how great you will
start to feel. Also every meal you make from the list below, take a pic and share it on your SETs facebook page. Lets start helping each other stay Motiv8ed!
So what exactly is a clean diet? It may
vary from person to person, but for Motiv8 it is one that contains unprocessed,
whole (mostly plant) foods minus chemicals or other strange ingredients. Here
are some tips for “going” clean, as well as the list of foods that Motiv8
recommends for the challenge to have on hand for quick meal prep. Use it as
your guide next time you go shopping.
By the way, if something sounds
unfamiliar to you, do a little research. I’m constantly learning about new,
interesting, good-for-you foods. You, too, will be amazed at the options out
there!
Clean Eating Tips
1. Start by saying goodbye to a few main "evils."
This includes all white stuff
(including sugar), plus caffeine and alcohol. Coffee and Tea is fine but any caffeine coming for sodas,
sports drinks, or processed foods is a no go. Processed sugar is a no go as well but fruit sugar is
fine. I know you are freaking out
about the alcohol but try it out for 28 days. You can do it!
2. Know that this will not break the bank!
Switching to 100 percent clean foods
can be challenging and even costly at first. But pay attention to the prices in the produce
section. The foods that are the
cheapest are usually the healthiest foods to eat in bulk like potatoes,
bananas, greens, beans, rice, etc.
Foods that are more expensive like some vegetables, meats, nuts, and
pricy fruits have in moderation and eat in small amounts. You will learn over time which foods to
buy in bulk to make sure you are fitting your calorie needs each day and which
foods to limit in order to not spend your whole pay check. Last October when i did this challenged I saved over 300 dollars. No joke. I was amazed by just how much I was spending on packaged goods.
3. Remember: less IS more.
The fewer ingredients an item has, the
“wholer” it is, as in less processed. Try to make or purchase items with five
or six ingredients at the most.
The less ingredients the easier it is on digestion and the faster your
body will process the meal and start allowing your body to enter into the
healing process.
4. Plan to create meals with just a few items.
Try mixing and matching from the lists
below. For example, boil quinoa
and sweet potatoes then toss in some black beans, cilantro and 1/2 sliced
avocado. Then put in some cumin, cayenne pepper, and any other seasoning you
find tasty. Fresh, clean, fast and delish! Once we are in the challenge post up
the recipes you make and lets start helping each out eat healthy!
MOTIV8 SHOPPING LIST
General Daily Summary
Starchy Carbs: 2-3 servings per day
Non-Starchy Carbs: 4-5 vegetable servings per day; 2-3 fruit servings per day
Proteins: 2-3 servings per day
Fats: 2-3 healthy fat servings per day; 1-2 oil/nut butter servings per day
-The lower range of these serving suggestions approximate a ≤1,500-calorie diet.
-The higher range of these servings suggestions approximate a ≤1,800-calorie diet.
-Add an extra serving each of vegetables, protein, starchy carb, and fat for an approximate 2,000-calorie diet.
STARCHY CARBOHYDRATES (½ - ¾ cup; 2-3 servings per day)
Grains
- Rice (brown, jasmine, wild)
- Quinoa (also a complete protein source)
- Millet
- Buckwheat
- Amaranth
- Oats
- Pasta (Soba/buckwheat, quinoa, noodles and other noodles made from the grains listed (also a protein source)
- Squash (butternut, acorn, spaghetti, kabocha, pumpkin)
Vegetables
- All types of potatoes
- Squash (butternut, acorn, spaghetti, kabocha, pumpkin)
- Corn
Legumes
- Lentils (brown, green, red)
- Beans (black, pinto, mung, kidney, garbanzo)
- Green peas
- Edamame
NON-STARCHY CARBOHYDRATES
Vegetables (1 cup; 4-5 servings per day)
- Onions
- Tomatoes
- All types of leafy greens
- Broccoli
- Asparagus
- Bell peppers
- Cauliflower
- Celery
- Fennel root
- Carrots
- Parsnips
- Beets
- Radishes
- Eggplant
- Green Beans
- Brussels Sprouts
- Okra
- Jicama
- Snow Peas
- Mushrooms
- Cabbage
- Sprouts (broccoli, bean, alfalfa)
- Cucumber
- Zucchini/Yellow Squash
Fruits (1 cup; 2-3 servings per day)
- Lemons or limes
- Papaya
- Apples
- Pears
- Bananas
- Mango
- Oranges/Grapefruit
- Apricots
- Berries (strawberry, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries)
- Melons
- Grapes
- Peaches
- Nectarines
- Plums
- Cherries
- Figs
- Salsa, pico de gallo, spaghetti sauce -- no added sugar
- Dried fruits* (dates, cranberries, cherries, gogi berries, apricots)
*Reduce serving size to small handful. Dried fruits are high-calorie and easy to overeat! Read the ingredients - oil and sugar are added to enhance flavor.
Beverages (12-16 oz; 1 servings per day in place of a fruit serving)
- Coconut water
- Kombucha
PROTEINS (2-3 servings per day)
Complete Proteins (contain all 9 essential amino acids)
- Wild game
- Wild-caught fish
- Free-range chicken/turkey
- Free-range eggs
- Grass-fed beef
- Non-GMO Tempeh/Tofu
- Edamame
- Quinoa
- Note: leafy greens, rice, and legumes are also excellent (but incomplete) protein sources, and meat is not necessary for every meal.
Serving Size:
1-2 palm-sized pieces of meat/tempeh/tofu;
1-2 eggs;
½-¾ cup edamame/quinoa
All processed meats like sausage, packaged or deli-sliced sandwich meat, bacon, fatty meats, and hot dogs are a no-go.
FATS (2-3 servings per day)
Healthy Fats
- Avocado
- Nuts (Almonds, Walnuts, Macadamia, Pecans)
- Cashews
- Peanuts
- Seeds (Flax, Sunflower, Pumpkin, Chia, Hemp)
- Coconut milk (canned)
- Dried coconut (no added sugar)
Nut Butters & Oils
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Coconut oil
- Sesame oil
- Walnut oil
- Nut butters (peanut, almond, cashew)
- Seed butters (pumpkin, sunflower, sesame [tahini])
Other
- Cacao powder
- Non-dairy milk (Almond, hemp, cashew, coconut - in the carton)
Serving Size:
¼ cup avocado, large nuts, dried coconut, canned coconut milk;
1 Tbs seeds (use them to top your salad or smoothie);
1 Tbs cacao powder (add to smoothie)
2-4 tsp of oil/nut butter or 1 Tbs salad dressing (e.g., oil mixed with vinegar & spices)
1-2 cups of non-dairy milk
Condiments/Flavorings (as much as you want!)
- Black pepper
- Grey celtic/pink himalayan salt
- Hot sauce (no added sugar)
- Garlic
- Ginger
- Mustard
- Pure flavor extracts (vanilla, peppermint, almond)
- Spices (Turmeric, Cayenne, Cinnamon, Black Pepper, Red pepper flakes, Cumin, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Paprika, Chili Powder)
- Fresh or Dried Herbs (basil, dill, rosemary, bay leaf, cilantro, parsley)
- Tamari/liquid aminos/coconut aminos (instead of soy sauce)
- Stevia*
- Vinegar (apple cider, rice, red wine)
- Maca powder
- Spirulina
- Lemon/lime juice
*Even though stevia is a natural sweetener, limit consumption of stevia because it still triggers your sugar cravings!
Beverages
- WATER (at least half your weight in ounces every day)
- Coconut water (contains sugar and no fiber); see servings under Non-Starchy Carbohydrates
- Kombucha; see servings under Non-Starchy Carbohydrates
- Herbal teas (unlimited)
- Non-dairy milk (Almond, hemp, cashew, coconut - in the carton); see servings under Healthy Fats
Happy Shopping!
Motiv8ers I want you to challenge
yourself. Can you do this
challenge for 28 days? Doing this
challenge for every meal is ideal but if you want to take it slow and use this
challenge to create some healthy habits for one or two meals then that is great
too. As you can see that dairy is
not apart of this shopping list.
Motiv8 believes that dairy is not necessary for a complete whole natural
diet and if eaten should only be used every once in a while.
Motiv8ers this is going to be Motiv8’s
biggest challenge to date and we know that if you adapt this challenge you will
start to feel better, have more energy, and see the results you are looking
for. And remember don't take on this challenge alone. If you make a meal based off the list take a pic of your meal and post it on your Motiv8's SET Facebook page.
Lets support each other and get crazy healthy in the process.
Stay EPIC and Don't Forget to Be AWESOME!
Coach Ty Out!
Lets support each other and get crazy healthy in the process.
Stay EPIC and Don't Forget to Be AWESOME!
Coach Ty Out!
