Square One: What Is Clean Eating?

I am a firm believer that You Are What You Eat.  This saying has become somewhat of a joke, however, we all know that when we eat junk, we feel like junk, and when we eat well we feel well!  So what's the hold up?! Why do we continually find ourselves grabbing quick snacks, sugary treats, and greasy hamburgers? Because we are turning into...Zombies!

When we are hungry, tired, upset or bored, we tend to go into Zombie mode.  We stop thinking about what we can do to to solve the problem in the long-run and just find a quick fix.  It's like we're out of our minds for a moment!  And unfortunately, those zombie foods that we tend to choose end up causing us to feel even MORE like a zombie (tired, hungry, upset, etc.) and the vicious cycle continues!

But I have found the zombie antidote.  And you will be happy to know that it doesn't involve cutting off your head. :)

It's WHOLE FOODS!  Not the grocery store, although they have plenty of good stuff there, but I'm talking fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean meats, nuts, seeds.... Single ingredients that come from the Earth and are meant to be eaten, not created in a zombie lab and then fed to you via flashy commercials or cheap prices.

Clean eating is all about whole foods and nourishing your body.  It really is simple if you can pull your head out of zombie mode long enough to whip something up with your whole ingredients (and the cool things is that some of them don't have to be made into anything! Fruits, veggies, nuts and seeds can often be eaten as they are!).

Here are a few simple rules for eating clean:

#1. FOOD IS FUEL-
   This is the most important thing to remember.  When you eat, you are energizing your body.  Your body needs protein, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals, and yes, fat.  And it needs a good combination of all of those things, not loading up on one and completely avoiding another (I'm looking at you, Fad Diets).  When your body is lacking something, it will retain some things (water, fat, etc.) and overuse other things to try to compensate.  Be sure that you are choosing to eat things that your body can USE and that you are getting a good variety of foods.

#2. Check the labels- 
   Here's a task for you: Go find your favorite packaged snack or meal and check out the list of ingredients.  THEN, pick one that you don't recognize and Google it.  What the heck is it?  You might be surprised to find out where some of those ingredients came from, what else they are used in, or what the effects can be on your body.  If you do not recognize the names of some of the ingredients in your food, it is probably not a clean food.  But here's the cool thing: how many ingredients are in a banana?  ONE.  A BANANA. BOOM. DONE.   That was easy.  Clean eating is all about knowing what's in your food.  If you don't know what it is, don't eat it!  If you can make it at home, you are better off buying a few extra items and making it yourself (you'll probably end up with more than the packaged stuff gives you anyway, AND I guarantee it will taste better).

#3. It's YOUR body, learn to listen to it- 
   All in all, clean eating is personal and totally up to you.  Some people consider cheese and dairy products unclean.  Some people won't eat anything that's not organic.  Those are your decisions to make.  All you need to do is give your body proper nutrition from natural foods that come from the earth, and then just wait and listen.  If you are properly fed, you will be able to understand what it wants on a regular basis.  Trust me when I say that after eating clean for even 2 to 3 weeks, you will begin to stop craving fast food, junk food and processed food.  Not only that, but when you DO eat that Zombie stuff (because you will..."One won't kill me," we think to ourselves), you will NOT feel well later on.  It's that zombie antidote taking effect... ;)

I am in love with food and teaching people about eating clean.  I encourage you to try eating clean for a couple of weeks and see how it goes.  And if you are looking for support, email me about joining my online Dreamlife Fitness group where we work on health and fitness goals all the time!  Please comment if you have any questions!

PiYo Launches Today!!

I'm just so excited I can't even...

The build-up to this program has been so huge that I can't believe it's going to be available today! This is going to change the face of yoga and Pilates, and I get to be one of the first to try it!

PiYo is Chalene Johnson's latest workout creation and it is INTENSE! I have had the pleasure of testing out a few of the routines between a Beachbody event and private lessons from my friend Britny who is certified to teach the classes. It's amazing... If you can imagine yoga, Pilates and cardio all synced together into one perfect workout, this is it. It focuses on strength, flexibility, balance, stretching, cardio,...everything you need for long, lean, toned, sexy muscles.

And the great thing is that PiYo is low-impact and can be modified for ANY experience level! So if you are a beginner, the moves can be simplified, and if you are a pro, they can be made more challenging.

This program is SO NEW that it hasn't even been released yet! It will launch today (June 19, 2014) at 12pm PST, and you can bet that I will be sitting by my computer READY TO GO at noon! 

To kick off the launch of the program, Britny and I will be hosting a PiYo Test Group for a few people who want to be the FIRST to try it out! This is going to be a Challenge Group (follow the link for more info about what a Challenge Group is) and we will all be doing the PiYo workout and using Shakeology for 60 days starting on June 30th.  And, lucky us, the Challenge Pack is being released at its sale price of $140 (regularly $160)! That price will include EVERYTHING that you need to get started with us on the 30th (inuding your Shakeology and a meal plan).

To order your PiYo Challenge Pack and to join our PiYo Test Group, visit www.beachbodycoach.com/breannawhittle at 12pm PST/3pm EST today, choose "Buy a Challenge Pack" in the banner at the top of the screen, and select PiYo. If you have ANY questions about how to purchase PiYo or about the Challenge Group, email me at breannasdreamlife@yahoo.com and I will be more than happy to help!

I'm so pumped to do this!!

-B❤️