Clean eating is about no junk, no preservatives, no fillers, etc. Many people write to me wondering what clean eating means and where they should start. Here are tips to eating clean for beginners.

1. EAT REAL FOOD: Just real whole foods is all you need to be eating clean. In fact, avoiding boxed food, or pre-made food is best since a lot of times they include fillers or preservatives or too much saturated fats/trans fats, salt or sugar. Also avoid artificial ingredients and colors. A good guide to clean foods is here: Clean Eating Food List
2. CLEAN OUT THE JUNK: Go through your cabinets, pantry, fridge and cupboards and clean out the junk! Use the guidelines and food list mentioned above and anything not on those lists or guidelines should be out of your house! Whether you donate it, give it away or throw it away – if you want to eat clean you will do this!
3. DRINK CLEAN TOO: water is best, of course. But really you should just avoid sugary drinks like soda or store bought juice. Tea and coffee are ok as long as you don’t add tons of sugar and processed creams. Stick with unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk instead. Also, fresh squeezed juices are great!
4. HAVE A PLAN: A lot of times we say were going to do something, then we don’t follow through. Having a set plan with goals can help. Even if you start out slow, take baby steps, get rid of one thing a week, this is good and you’re moving in the right direction of clean eating. This clean eating meal plan might help keep you on track.

As you can see, clean eating doesn’t have to be that bad. It’s a matter of being mindful of what is in your home and what goes in your mouth! Learn to love healthy foods and you’ll be on your way to good health and possibly weight loss with clean eating.

Tell me your clean eating tips in the comments below!

• fruity smoothies
• green smoothies
• protein smoothies
• dessert smoothies
• nutty smoothies
• meal smoothies (these are more filling with oatmeal, tofu or eggs included)
• quick smoothies

All you need is an iPhone or iPad, a blender and the ingredients and you can use our smoothie app. It even comes with a shopping list too, so you can add smoothies you like to your list which will make shopping for them easier.

Smoothies are tasty, fun and pretty easy to make. I make one daily, so having a variety of types to choose from is important. Buy the [app_link app="Smoothies" platform="iOS" text="200+ Smoothie" location="Blog Post"] app today.

Here are a couple smoothie recipes you’ll find in our app:

Mango and Cherry Smoothie

1 frozen banana
1 cup mango chunks
1/2 cup cherries, pitted
1/2 cup apple juice
DIRECTIONS: Blend everything together in a blender until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Apple Green Smoothie

1 banana, peeled
1 apple, cored
2 cups spinach
2 tsp ground flaxseed
1/2 cup water
1 cup crushed ice
DIRECTIONS: Add everything to a blender, blend until smooth. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Almond Joy Smoothie

8 oz coconut water
4 oz almond milk
2 TBSP flaked coconut
1/2 TBSP cocoa nibs
10 ice cubes
1 tsp coconut extract
1 scoop chocolate protein powder
DIRECTIONS: Blend everything together in a blender. Pour into a glass and enjoy!

Ok so it won’t actually make the recipes for you, but typically following Paleo requires the knowledge of what’s allowed or what’s not allowed, finding recipes that are Paleo and planning meals for the week ahead. With work, school, kids activities, and a social life to focus on, who’s got time for all of this? Well, look no further because we’ve done it ALL for you!

Paleo is essentially eating foods the way nature intended. Food must be real, unprocessed and natural. So we’ve done the hard part and gathered delicious Paleo compliant recipes and put them into meal plans just for you. A healthy and balanced selection of breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack recipes right at your fingertips. This app is all you need to succeed on this diet.

Not only that but every week you’ll get a new meal plan hand-picked by us, just for you. There’s even a shopping list for your convenience, plus the app has been designed to work great on both the iPhone and the iPad.

There’s nothing to lose because the app includes a free trial with dinner recipes for a week. If you choose to subscribe for just $0.99 a month – a ridiculously low price – you’ll receive personally curated & balanced recipes every day of the week with an auto-renewable subscription plan.

So make life easier and get the results you want with the Paleo Meal Plan app today!  

Ingredients 

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2-3 bell peppers, chopped
• 2 large carrots, shredded
• 2 cups mushrooms, chopped
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 6 boneless, skinless cooked chicken breast, shredded
• 4-8 cups chicken broth
• Seasonings to taste: salt, pepper, anise seed, fennel seed, dried oregano, and dried basil

Instructions 

1. In a large saucepan, heat olive oil and add garlic until fragrant.
2. Add onion and season with salt. Heat the onions for about ten minutes , stirring constantly.
3. Add the bell pepper and heat until tender.
4. Add the shredded carrots and mushrooms and cook for five minutes.
5. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, chicken, and seasoning to the pot and simmer for 30 minutes until the flavors blend.

This recipe will make about 6-7 servings totaling around 150 calories per serving. 150 calories may sound like nothing for a meal but trust me this soup fills you up. I like to have it for lunch as it keeps me full for hours after I eat it for a fraction of the calories.

Breakfast
Veggie omelet: Whisk together one egg and three egg whites with 2 tablespoons each of sliced peppers, onions, mushrooms, and tomatoes. Pour mixture into a skillet over medium heat. Cook for about five minutes turning after three minutes. Season with salt, pepper, and a little hot sauce.

Lunch
Chicken and broccoli: Combine steamed broccoli with a grilled chicken breast and top with a low sugar condiment such as soy sauce, hot sauce, or rice vinegar.

Dinner
Grilled chicken salad: Top 2 cups of salad greens with chopped tomatoes, a slice pepper, mushrooms, and a sliced grilled chicken breast. Dress the salad with your favorite fat free balsamic vinaigrette.

Snacks:
Baby carrots dipped in a mix of nonfat plain yogurt, chopped garlic, and a multi spice seasoning.
1 serving nonfat plain Greek yogurt topped with 1 cup fresh or frozen berries.

Looking for similar meal plan ideas? We’ve released a meal plan app for 17 Day Diet onto iTunes for you iPhone or iPad. Each week we send out hand-picked meal plans that are balanced and fit the guidelines of the diet. This diet is healthy in general and recommended to anyone wanting to lose some weight.

Helps Control Weight
I know what I just said. Diet aids weight loss more than exercise. But, exercise still burns calories, boosts the metabolism, and allows you eat more!

Fights Disease
Being active, no matter your weight, helps to reduce your  bad cholesterol levels which can lower your blood pressure and works to prevent heart disease.

Improves your Mood
“Exercise gives you endorphins and endorphins make you happy.” Thank you ‘Legally Blonde‘ for that insightful saying. Physical activity stimulates brain chemicals that leaves your feeling happier.

Boosts Energy 
Regular exercises increases your bodies endurance and strength allowing for more oxygen to be delivered to your muscle tissues and quicker delivery of nutrients throughout your body. This creates a more efficient body and more energy.

Promotes Sleep
Regular exercise helps you fall asleep faster and sleep deeper.

Improves Self-Confidence
The combination of calories burned, boosted energy, and endorphins moving through your body is the perfect way to improve self confidence and have an overall positive influence on your life.

“I wanted to give you an update: My husband and I are on day 3 of cycle 2. I have lost 21 lbs, he has lost 27 pounds. We are excited to see such quick results. That is what keeps us going! Our joints don’t hurt like they used to and breathing is not as difficult either.” ~Mrs. R

For the past year and a 1/2 I have been chatting daily with HUNDREDS of people on the 17 Day Diet, Paleo Diet, 3 Day Diet and 3 Day Military Diet. We currently have iPhone and Android phone apps for all 4 of these diets and within the app we have a support chat feature where you can ask me ANYTHING! I am not kidding, I will answer any question you have that is diet related. Whether it is about the diet you are currently on, or just diet/fitness/health related… at no extra charge. Pretty cool right! So, like I said before, I speak with 100′s of people daily and I get just as much out of it as the dieters who are talking to me. It’s a pretty amazing experience. I have met so many wonderful people and HELPED so many wonderful people as well. It’s so rewarding when I get comments such as:

“The app is essential to this amazing diet! It keeps you on track with meals, exercise and water. It provides recipes and foods that are allowed in each cycle. I cannot stress enough how PHENOMENAL the support is on this app! Whenever I have a question, it is ALWAYS answered! It’s a flawless way to enter this diet!” ~Drea

Having a person or group you can talk to can mean a world of a difference for anyone trying to lose weight. I personally give guidance, help, answer questions, motivation, a little push, ideas and much more for the people I talk to on a daily basis. I share recipes, website articles I think they’ll find helpful, quotes, and I am always answering any questions they have in a timely period… Right there within the app! Whether you try out our apps for support, guidance and motivation or some other app – I highly suggest you find some kind of support group or mentor. It can help you so much in your journey. Why go it alone when you can have a helping hand to hold onto and give you the push you need.

One more compliment from another lovely 17 Day Dieter:

“I am so glad for this app! It is very helpful. I always have questions popping in my head and I love the fast response from the support center!” ~Ms. Z

Pumpkin Spice Latte Recipe
Serves 1

Ingredients

• 2 -4 tablespoons canned pumpkin
• 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup STRONGLY brewed coffee or 2 shots espresso
• 1-3 packets of stevia

Mix all the ingredients in a saucepan over medium to high heat, whisking continuously, until the “latte” begins to steam.

This cleaned up version has….drum roll please…. ONLY 55 calories and 2 grams of sugar!

Looking for more clean eating recipes? Try this clean eating meal plan. 3 meals + 1 snack planned each day. Hundreds of extra recipes to swap with, too!

Nothing beats chocolate covered fruit and this dessert is no exception.
Plus, it is Paleo and Flat Belly Diet Friendly.

All you need to create this super simple dessert is 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (MUFA), 1 tablespoon of coconut oil, and 1/2 cup frozen berries (you can use fresh but I always have frozen berries on hand).

In a microwave safe bowl, melt chocolate and coconut oil. To melt, heat the chocolate and oil, stirring every 20 seconds. It should take about 1 1/2-2 minutes. Allow chocolate to cool for a few minutes. Once chocolate is cooled slightly, dip the berries in the melted chocolate and place on a foiled-lined baking sheet. After all the berries have been coated in wonderful,yummy chocolate, place the baking sheet in the refrigerator  to harden the chocolate. Once the chocolate has harden, about ten minutes, pop these lovely little berries in your mouth and enjoy!

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice
• 3 teaspoon canola oil
• 1 egg plus 2 egg whites, beaten
• 1/3 cup nonfat plain or vanilla Greek yogurt
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 1 cup uncooked quick oats
• 3/4 cup mini chocolate chips (MUFAS)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Mix all the dry ingredients (omitting the oats) in a large bowl
3. Add all the wet ingredients (omitting the bananas) to the dry mixture
4. Add the mashed bananas and oats to mixture and fold in
5. Line muffin tin with muffin liners and spray with nonfat cooking spray
6. Fill cups about 2/3 full
7. Bake for about 30 minutes. Insert toothpick, if it comes out dry then they are done.

Makes about 12 muffins.

Photo by piyato, published on 09 August 2012 Stock Photo – image ID: 10095910