My Thoughts For This Thursday...

I see this a lot, and I just thought it should be mentioned.

If you've started embracing the clean eating lifestyle, that's great. But have you ever convinced yourself that now that you're eating clean, you 'prefer' the healthier version of a food over the unhealthier version because it 'tastes better' or simply because you know it is healthier?

Allow me to explain further.

Here's a scenario... you're a cake lover. You could eat moist, authentic cake all day, every day if you could. You especially love chocolate cake, with a delicious chocolate frosting. It's so decadent and now that you're eating healthier, it is not a daily occurrence that you can eat this cake every day.

Enter the protein cake. You have gotten your chocolate-flavored protein powder, and have been informed about how to make protein cake with it. Add a little egg whites, some sort of milk, maybe some stevia, nuke it in a mug or bowl or even bake it in an oven and boom. Protein cake.

Don't we all wish this was protein cake... ;) (Source)

Now you love the unhealthier cake more than ever. But clean eating has really taken a hold on you and you get antsy and nervous when you are stuck in a situation where you can't eat 100% clean. 

That cake that you once loved? You have now dubbed it as almost sinful to eat. There is NO WAY you can allow that cake into your body. You now 'prefer' the taste of your protein cake. But do you really? Or is it just your mind TELLING you that you now prefer the protein cake over the regular cake now because it is 'clean'?

I hope you all understand what I am trying to get at. I am definitely NOT saying that protein cake isn't good, haha. I think some people may take the concept of eating clean a little bit too far. You don't have to eat 100% clean for the rest of your life. I may sound hypocritical here as I am always preaching about eating clean, but even I eat what I most desire every now and then (I just prefer not to shove ice cream in my face everyday for the sake of 'bulking'). And stop labeling it 'bad' food. Food is food. Hot dogs are food. Zucchini is food. The zucchini may get you to your health goals faster, but either way both options are food. You can have your cake and eat it too in moderation. Stop lying to yourself that you like the 'cleaner' version better and the regular version is sinful.

Some other good examples are sashimi over sushi (because of the rice), sugar-free syrup over regular syrup, egg whites over whole eggs in baking recipes (because I understand that some people truly do not like egg yolks), protein pancakes/waffles over regular pancakes/waffles, etc.

Now I do understand that sometimes someone really DOES like the healthier version over the regular version, and that some people quite honestly CAN'T eat all the foods they want to because of stomach issues. Take sashimi for example, some people simply don't like the texture of the rice and I get that. I can go both ways: I love BOTH sashimi and regular sushi and it honestly just depends on my mood. But if you're a sushi fanatic and all of a sudden you're eating clean, do NOT tell yourself that sushi is now out of the picture and you like sashimi better now. Be HONEST with yourself and say "Well, I love both sushi and sashimi and I probably would rather the taste of authentic sushi. However, sashimi is healthier so sometimes I eat the sashimi knowing in my mind that I am making a healthier choice, but that doesn't mean I can never eat regular sushi again."

Don't deprive yourself. Another thing that should be mentioned is that if you're an avid follower of Nicole Wilkins and Erin Stern (figure competitors) like I am, you would know that they don't 'cheat' often and if they do, it's more like sushi and frozen yogurt. So really, they prefer not to eat pizza and burgers. 

Source

I know some girls out there, especially one who LOVES funnel cakes, who are competing and they say "Well I want to be like Erin and Nicole and never eat anything too unhealthy for me," fully aware that they're committing basically to not eating their favorite foods. The funnel cake girl? She is wrenching herself away from her beloved funnel cake simply because two other figure competitors don't eat that, even after competition.

No. Find what works for YOU. Just because one person does one thing, doesn't mean you have to do the SAME THING. Nicole and Erin are perfectly capable of not necessarily eating too many bad things, but let's be honest here, I am NOT. I admire those two fabulous ladies so much, but I genuinely WANT to have Oreos and Hawaiian pizza (yum!) sometimes, and I know if I commit to 'giving it up' I will feel deprived and my mind will go on a tangent. By doing so, whenever I am in proximity to those foods, I will go on a crazy binge and feel horrible afterwards.

It's a vicious cycle. I'm sure Nicole and Erin have learned through hard work and dedication what works for them to eat in moderation and how to control the hunger monster, and if it is simply frozen yogurt and/or sushi, then so be it. And once again, if you eat a mostly 100% clean diet because of medical issues, I get that. Some people can't have the garlic bread or ice cream they want because their bodies will attack them for it and they will get sick. But don't lie to yourself, saying you 'don't eat that' because you'll get sick when you know you'll be perfectly fine. 

So here's what I hope you got from this rant post: 1) Don't convince yourself that you like the healthier version of one of your favorite foods just because it is healthier and 2) You don't have to do everything the top competitors or models do for themselves, because they have different bodies and find what works for them. As a teen, I find it easy for my younger mind to be gullible and just 'do what everybody else does' but it works for them. But, still being young, I am using trial and error to discover how my body works and what makes me happy.

Okay guys, if you got through all of this, I appreciate it. Have a wonderful Wednesday. :)

Questions: Do you see this as well? Do you agree or disagree with me? (I allow all comments--positive or negative so share your throughts!) Have you ever convinced yourself you like the healthier version of a food just because it is 'clean' or followed a diet plan just because it worked for somebody else? Any other things you would like to comment on?

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