Buzzfeed's "Clean Eating Challenge"

Mitch and I have spent the past two weeks doing Buzzfeed's "Clean Eating Challenge," which was basically two weeks of almost-Paleo eating, all real food - no processed food, and a LOT of fiber (I realized later...).

Here is a link to the Challenge: http://www.buzzfeed.com/christinebyrne/clean-eating-challenge

A big part of the reason I wanted to do this challenge is because I needed a "boost" to get back into low carb, healthy eating and Buzzfeed made it super SIMPLE:

1. Every single recipe is planned out for you,
2. along with 2 grocery lists (you go shopping on Saturdays),
3. and the carb counting is already done for me so I knew exactly how much insulin to take before every meal without even having to think about it.

For those three reasons, this was a great diet. We also learned some delicious and nutritious new recipes!

For other reasons, it was not. Here's what I ran into:

1. We ate so many greens and uncooked vegetables that my digestion could not handle it very well. I wish they would have incorporated more cooked veggies or soups that go with salads to help with the digestion factor.

2. We ate a lot more legumes than I am used to eating, since Paleo does not allow legumes. And this seemed to make my bowels go crazy - lots of bloating, gas, and [minor] pain. I discovered that my body does not handle legumes well.

3. I did not lose any weight, though I had hoped to lose some. Maybe this is because I mostly eat healthy anyways? I was at a loss for figuring this one out...

Here is one new food I have never eaten before (that I remember): fennel. And it was delicious in a salad!



So anyways, I'd recommend giving it a try with some of the modifications I mentioned above.