Thursday, March 19, 2015

What IS clean eating? NOW...

I am sitting here eating a piece of pineapple carrot cake I purchased at a farm market over the weekend.  OMG so NOT clean.  How ironic that I am eating this, while blogging about eating clean.

Why do I have this round tin of badness?  We went out last weekend with my sister-in-law for a wine tasting, and the tasting room was in a small farmers market.  Part of the tasting was a coupon for $5 off at the farm market, if you spent $25 or more.  Well, it's so easy for me to spend $25 on fruits and vegetables normally.  In March in New Jersey, not so much.  We're still awaiting all the now to melt.  There was a very limited selection, and if the coupon didn't expire in April we would've considered taking the hour drive back to use it at a later date.  So around the market I went, picking up apples, lettuce, cucumbers...knowing that none was grown here (well, maybe the lettuce in a greenhouse) but still happy to be coming home with fresh yummies and happily avoiding a shopping trip once I got home.  I was a little short with what they had that I wanted...so I came home with a pineapple carrot cake.  I was pleased with the ingredient list; nothing but recognizable ingredients, no preservatives, so home it came.

I think I have been doing this more than I realize.

Let's look back at the post from November 17, 2102.

My Clean Eating Rules

Here was my rule:

My "rule" is this: is it in it's natural form?  
Yes? I can eat it.
No? Why not? How has it been modified? (I am not grinding my own wheat into flour...) How many ingredients are on the label and more importantly WHAT ARE THEY? If I don't know what it is, I WILL NOT EAT IT.  With the exceptions above. :) But even in my exceptions, I read labels closely.  Minimal ingredients are key for me.  

I am still following my rule.  But I think those exceptions are growing more and more.  I still only purchase pasta, cereal, graham crackers, yogurt, macaroni & cheese (see yesterday's post,) will pick up a loaf of bread every now & then if I don't have time to make a loaf for sandwiches, but haven't added anything else back into my pantry that isn't a one ingredient item.

The exceptions are when we are out.  I admit I've brought home donuts a few times more than I want to.  I'm starting to get lazy and not wanting to put in the effort to bake everything.  I loved making donuts in the beginning; it was fun, I was proud; now it's a chore.  Am I getting old and grumpy?  Not sure.  Am I tired from work?  Not sure. The thought of the dishes afterwards gets overwhelming, after cooking and cleaning up from dinner.  I find that if I bake in the afternoons, on my day off, it's a bit more fun.  But overall, I am feeling lazy.  I still refuse to bring home a box of cake mix - we won't have cake before that happens - but if we are out instead of going hungry when I don't like choices (like I used to,) I will get that hot dog on the run, or grab a sandwich from Starbucks.  I used to plan my shopping trips and errands around eating, and I don't do that anymore.  Now it's all about how much can I get in one day in one trip from store to store to store.  

Life is moving too fast.  I think it's time to slow it down.

Kathy

No comments:

Post a Comment