Eating real food may sound like a good idea to you, but you tell yourself that there is NO WAY you could ever do it. You tell yourself you love food that comes in a package way too much. You don’t think you could ever resist the temptations of processed foods because you just can’t control yourself. Well STEP ONE to actually making this happen is… CLEAN IT OUT.

I’m talking about your pantry.

Your refrigerator. 

Your desk at work. 

Anywhere that you have “food” in a package or a box. 

If it’s not there, you can’t eat it. If you don’t buy it, it won’t be there. If you throw it away, you won’t have access to it. Saying you don’t want to waste food is not an excuse. It’s either going to be wasted in your trash can or wasted in your body… you choose which one. I want you to look in your pantry/fridge/drawers and throw away anything that is in a box or package and has more than 5 ingredients. I truly believe this is the first step toward eating real food. If you don’t have it in your house, then you aren’t tempted and you won’t be able to eat it.

The Next Step:

The next time you go to the grocery store, don’t put it in the cart! Don’t even go down the aisle where you will be most tempted to buy processed foods. I recommend shopping the perimeter of the store and avoiding going into the middle as much as you can. Yes, you do have to for some items (rice, beans, juice, lara bars, spices) but for majority of things you can avoid going into the center of the store. 

I will testify that this really works. So many times I have cravings for things when I am at home, but I don’t have them in my house so I am STUCK. I can’t fulfill that desire for something super salty and processed. I end up having to snack on something I already have in the house (usually some nuts or fruits/veggies). In times of distress, this is the only thing that keeps me from grabbing that unhealthy snack (or beverage). I can’t rely on my own motivation and discipline because I WILL have times of weakness. I have to put myself in an environment that promotes my health. I can’t be in an environment where I have to trust myself to make good decisions in the midst of being surrounded by temptation. It really sucks at the time I will be honest, but once you pass the moment and you succeeded, you feel great. You didn’t give yourself the option to fall into temptation. When you are just starting to live this way, this is honestly the only way you can succeed at living a healthy life in the world we live in today. Eventually you won’t be desiring these foods as much anymore after you have eaten real foods for a while. Trust the process. 

I want to point out that I am not saying you can NEVER have anything in a package inside your house. Yes, treat yourself and indulge every once in a while. What I am saying is do not make this a normal part of your life. Don’t get yourself a treat every time you go to the grocery store. What will happen is you will buy that bag of yogurt covered pretzels and end up being tempted every time you are in your kitchen. That bag will stare you down until you go grab it. Yes, this can happen once in awhile. But if you are wanting to make real changes to your life you cannot make this part of your routine, ESPECIALLY at first. 

Remember:

You aren’t doing this just to DO IT. You are doing this for your health. To give your body the nutrients it needs to live fully. You aren’t doing this to get six-pack abs or to have the body you’ve always dreamed of (if that’s what you want, go for it, but that’s not what I’m getting at here). I want this for you because I believe so many people can live a higher quality of life if we just gave our bodies what it needed rather than depriving it of essentials.

That’s all my tips for now! Comment below and don’t forget to subscribe to receive updates!