Everyone says to Eat Clean, But What Does That Actually Mean?
Ask ten different people what it means to “eat clean” and you’ll get ten different answers.
Things like no processed food, no sugar, no carbs, only organic, whole foods, nothing from a box or bag, no dairy, no gluten, only ingredients your grandmother would understand, etc.
It seems that everyone has their own definition and everyone is just as confident theirs is the right one. Despite the simple rule of eating clean, it seems that most people are still confused about what they should actually be eating.
The problem with “eating clean” isn’t that the idea is bad. It is that the phase is so vague and usually emotionally charged that it doesn’t lead to anyone actually improving what they eat.
The Problems With How We Use "Eating Clean" Today
The concept of clean eating started with good intentions. Most experts realize that as a whole the American Diet is pretty terrible and if we don’t do something about it, healthcare costs will continue to rise and future generations may start to see shorter lifespans and more and more chronic disease.
It started with things like more fruit and vegetables, protein, whole grains, and healthy fats while limiting fast foods, soda, and processed snacks. Sounds simple, but then social media “experts” and influencers had to take the spotlight.
The simple things don’t sell so they needed more. Fruits and vegetables became bad. Saturated fats are now health foods. Everyone with a little bit of knowledge became dangerous to get more attention and clicks. While most people were lead misinformation and even more confused about what to do next.
Here are some of the big problems we are facing with this idea of clean eating:
1. Nobody Agrees on What It Means
With the problems I stated above, we have so many presenting contradicting information. From conspiracy theorists claiming hidden agendas, to those that are just not educated enough to discuss these topics, we get too much conflicting information.
Most so called experts have their own agendas they are pushing or simply just too myopic view of how nutrition really works. To prove my point just look up common foods like rice, whole wheat bread, oatmeal, fruit, etc. and see what people say about these foods. Some will say they are great while others will say they are terrible.
If you are trying to build a nutrition plan around a concept that has such a cloudy definition, it leads to more frustration and no action.
2. It Creates an "All or Nothing" Mentality
This might be the biggest problem, and something I have written about previously.
When you divide food into clean and not clean, or essentially good and bad, you set something up for a big problem. You eat “clean” all week and are feeling great. Then you have something from the naughty list and everything changes. You’ve eaten “dirty” and now feel like a failure.
This type of thinking assigns moral value or emotion to eating certain foods. You are either being good or bad. There is no middle ground with this process.
3. It Often Leads to Nutritional Imbalances
This isn’t always the case, but usually when people decide to eat clean it means they significantly limit the foods they are eating and often cut out whole food groups.
Often they are avoiding foods that really aren’t bad for them, and in some cases are providing important nutrients.
People get caught up in things like calories or sugar too much and forget about all of the other nutrients that certain foods provide their body.
Afraid of carbs? You might be chronically under fueled especially if you are exercising. Cutting out fat? You might be reducing nutrients to help your brain or hormone production.
Clean eating can often be taken to extremes and lead to unhealthy nutrition habits.
So What Should You Actually Focus On?
Here is the good news. Eating well doesn’t have to be overly restrictive or complicated. We our clients need help with their nutrition, we have found that flexible dieting and proper education are a magical combination that lead to long term success. Just focus on a few straightforward principles that are flexible, sustainable, and back by real scientific evidence.
✅ 1. Prioritize Whole Foods — But Don’t Demonize Everything Else
Like I mentioned. The idea of eating clean is a great starting point to build a foundation on. Eat more real, whole foods. This should be standard advice. The majority of your diet should be vegetables, fruits, lean proteins, whole grains, legumes, nuts, and healthy fats. Unless you specifically have an known digestive issue with any of these, you should make these are your foundation.
This doesn’t mean that everything else is poison though. There is a difference between consuming a diet a processed foods and occasionally having something that didn’t grow in a field or has preservatives. One will be damaging to your health. The other is being a normal human being in our modern society.
✅ 2. Focus on What You Add, Not Just What You Remove
Most clean eating diet conversations are solely about the foods you need to eliminate. The elimination mindset seems more restrictive and ultimately harder to follow.
Instead focus on what you can add. By shifting your attention to the nutrient dense foods it naturally crowds out the less nutritious ones without the psychological battle of restriction.
✅ 3. Get Your Protein Right
It is safe to say that most have realized the importance of protein. This is true for food companies as well. This is why we see protein everything, like cereal and candy even.
Protein is important and many are not getting enough in their diet. But focus on getting high quality sources of protein such as lean meat, fish, eggs, dairy, and plant based sources.
It is possible to overeat protein, but most don’t have to worry about this since protein is typically very filling. Aim to get a palm sized serving in every meal.
✅ 4. Think in Terms of Patterns, Not Perfection
Your health is determined by what you do consistently over weeks, months, and years — not by what you eat at one meal or one weekend. A nutritional approach that you can follow 80–85% of the time and actually enjoy is infinitely more valuable than a perfect plan you can only tolerate for three weeks before abandoning it.
Progress, not perfection. Every single time.
✅ 5. Make Peace With Flexibility
Food is fuel and it delivers important nutrients to the body. But it’s also culture, connection, celebration, and joy. A meal with family, a birthday cake, a dinner out with friends and these things have value too. A sustainable nutrition approach makes room for them without guilt, without “starting over Monday,” and without treating a single meal like it can undo months of good work.
Because it can’t.
The Bottom Line
“Eating Clean” as a concept isn’t wrong. It just got hijacked by an industry that profits from making you feel like you are doing it wrong.
The goal should never be perfection. The results are in the process of building a consistent, sustainable way of eating that fuels your body, supports your training, fits your life, and doesn’t make you feel miserable.
These are the simple steps we take every day with our clients at SDPT. Not rigid sets of rules or a one size fits all approach. A flexible plan you can live with for the long term.
If you need help figuring out what that looks like for you, we’d love to have a conversation.