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Below are the rules we followed during our original 100 Days of Real Food pledge. If you are taking the 10-Day pledge you will follow these same rules.
What you CAN eat:
- Whole foods that are more a product of nature than a product of industry
- Lots of fruits and vegetables (we recommend that you shop for these at your local farmers’ market)
- Dairy products like milk, unsweetened yogurt, eggs, and cheese
- 100% whole-wheat and whole-grains (find a local bakery for approved sandwich bread and check the Understanding Grains post for more info)
- Seafood (wild caught is the optimal choice over farm-raised)
- Only locally raised meats such as pork, beef, and chicken (preferably in moderation)
- Beverages limited to water, milk, all natural juices, naturally sweetened coffee & tea, and, to help the adults keep their sanity, wine and beer!
- Snacks like dried fruit, seeds, nuts and popcorn
- All natural sweeteners including honey, 100% maple syrup, and fruit juice concentrates are acceptable in moderation
- Also check out the Recipes & Resources page for a more detailed list of meal options including links to recipes
What you CANNOT eat:
- No refined grains such as white flour or white rice (items containing wheat must say WHOLE wheat…not just “wheat”)
- No refined sweeteners such as sugar, any form of corn syrup, cane juice, or the artificial stuff like Splenda
- Nothing out of a box, can, bag, bottle or package that has more than 5 ingredients listed on the label
- No deep fried foods
- No “fast foods”
Please leave a reply below if you have any questions about what is okay to eat during your pledge.
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How to Avoid Processed Food in General
If you feel that you have the will, but not the skill to do the 10 Days of Real Food pledge then here are some general lifestyle changes to consider instead…
- Read the ingredients label before buying anything. For years, if I even looked at food labels, I was reviewing items such as fat grams, calorie count and sugar content. While this may be important to some, the best indicator of how highly processed a food is can actually be found in the list of ingredients. If what you are buying contains more than 5 ingredients and includes a lot of unfamiliar, unpronounceable items you may want to reconsider before buying.
- Increase your consumption of whole foods especially vegetables and fruits. I am sure you’ve heard similar advice a thousand times, and I hate to tell you that it couldn’t be more true. This will help to displace the processed foods in your diet, and will actually make your food selections in general very simple. No more counting calories, fat grams, or carbs when your only concern is selecting whole foods that are more a product of nature than a product of industry.
- Buy your bread from a local bakery. I actually used to eat white bread, but what I bought for my husband from the grocery store was what I thought was whole-wheat bread. When we finally checked the ingredients and found 40 different items on the list, including white flour and sugar, we decided it was time for a change. Why would there be so many on the list if it only takes a handful of ingredients to make bread? We since started buying our bread from Great Harvest Bread Company. Not only do they grind their own wheat every morning, but their honey whole-wheat loaf only has five ingredients – whole-wheat flour, water, yeast, salt and honey.
- In addition to your bread choice, when selecting foods like pastas, cereals, rice, and crackers always go for the whole-grain option. And don’t just believe the health claims on the outside of the box. Read the ingredients to make sure the product is truly made with only 100% whole grains – not a combination of whole grains and refined grains which is unfortunately how a lot of “whole grain” products are made. The white flour or other refined grain alternative is simply high in calories and low in nutrition.
- Avoid store-bought products containing high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS) and those “that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) listed among the top three ingredients” according to Michael Pollan. Despite the mixed research on if HFCS is really worse for you than good ol’ white sugar, it just happens to be “a reliable marker for a food product that has been highly processed”.
- Don’t order off the kids’ menu. The next time your family is out to dinner try to avoid the kids menu. Those selections are most often things like pre-made chicken nuggets, fries, and pasta made with white flour, among other things. Instead try assembling some sort of side item plate (like baked potatoes and whatever else your kid will tolerate) and/or try sharing some of your meal.
- Visit your local farmers’ market the next time you need to restock your fridge. According to Michael Pollan not only will you find “food that is in season, which is usually when it is most nutritious”, but you will also find a selection of pesticide-free produce and properly fed meat products. It is also better for our environment to purchase locally grown products as opposed to the supermarket produce, which travels on average 1500 miles from the farm to your plate.
- Lastly, to once again quote Michael Pollan, he says to “eat all the junk food you want as long as you cook it yourself.” If you had to peel, chop and deep fry potatoes every time you wanted French fries then you might not eat them very often. Only eating “junk food” such as cakes, sweets, and fried foods as often as you are willing to make them yourself will automatically ensure the frequency is appropriate.
Hello I just sign up for the 10 day challenge and my Husband wants to know if honey greek yogurt is okay?
Hi Tonya. If it is less than 5 ingredients with no added sugars, it should be good to go. You can also buy plain greek yogurt and add your own honey. Good luck with the challenge! ~Amy
How can I lose weight by not eating processed foods?
Hi Anais. We don’t promote this way of eating as a weight loss strategy. However, some folks who cut out processed food do find themselves coming off with a bit of weight. These posts might help clarify: http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2013/01/04/healthy-eating-defined/, http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2011/04/29/mini-pledge-week-8-stop-eating-when-you-feel-full/, and http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/2012/09/19/why-are-americans-so-concerned-about-protein/. Hope these help. ~Amy
Anais – I lost 60 lbs over nine months by counting calories, during which I started to adopt mostly organic foods into my diet. You can lose weight by eating whole foods, but you still have to maintain portion control as you would with any other food. Good luck
Do you have any meal plans specifically for vegetarians? We do not eat eggs or drink milk and limit our cheese intake due to lactose intolerance. We often fall prey to meat substitutes as our “protein” for meals. Any suggestions beyond tofu and beans that would fit the real food guidelines would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Hi Mary. We do not have menus specifically geared toward vegetarians. However, if you scan our recipe index: http://www.100daysofrealfood.com/real-food-resources/recipe-index/ you will see many recipes that fit the bill. You may have to do some egg substitution with flax or chia: http://www.betternutrition.com/egg-substitutes/food/goglutenfree/1224 and I often substitute almond milk for milk. We encourage you to make whatever real food adaptations to the recipes that will fit your needs. Nuts, seeds, quinoa, flax, chia and hemp are a few suggestions of good protein sources that can be added to many recipes. Hope that helps. ~Amy
I buy organic dry stevia leaves from bulkherbstore.com When making tea just add a small amount (a little really goes a long what stevia leaves are very sweet) to the steeping tea for about 3 minutes and strain it off (doesn’t have to be strained but it gets stuck in your teeth if you don’t) It has a anise/licorice aftertaste but not too strong. I don’t like anise but I don’t mind stevia. To make a concentrated liquid/syrup fill a mason jar 1/3 full with dried stevia leaves and add water to about 1″ from the top of the jar. Put a lid on it and place the jar in a slow cooker on low (sit the jar on a cloth to keep it from breaking) for a couple of days. The water will take on a green color. Not too hot. You don’t want to cook the leaves. After a couple of days strain through a cheese cloth and store in the fridge. A few drops go a long way. I think this way is too strong so I’ve only done it once. You can just sprinkle the leaves on your tongue for a sweet touch. And remember: everything in moderation. Everything is bad for you if you ingest too much of it. Hope this helps.
is this classified as clean as a breakfast meal
chobani plain greek yoghurt wih raspberries and gluten free muesli or do i cut out the muesli?
thanks
Hi Christine. Sounds like a good breakfast especially if the muesli is just whole grain, nuts, and fruits. Beware of added sugars.
~Amy
Do you really cut out all fast food restaurants? Or is there some that can be okay in moderation?
Hi Jen. Yeah, no fast food while on the pledge. You can do it!
Amy
I have been using stevia for 13 years, I usually get mine from puritan’s pride. It is just pure ground stevia plant. The powder is very concentrated the amount runs like 1/32 of a teaspoon to 8oz, I use half a teaspoon and 2 tablespoons of unprocessed local honey for my gallon of home made Tea. Stevia powder is out there you just have to be sure what is in it. It’s been out for a long time you just need old school made. I carry it in a camping salt and pepper shaker so when we do eat out I use my own
Just wondering if tinned tuna, salmon, legumes, and tomatoes are OK… I know the fresh stuff is better, but it is usually a lot more expensive (the legumes being the exception)…
Just wondering what brand of maple syrup you use. My kids are having a hard time with any of the “real” ones I buy saying it is too watery or just doesn’t taste good.
Hi Erin. We usually buy 100% organic maple syrup from Trader Joe’s or Earth Fare. It took my kids a little bit of time to adjust from the artificial stuff. ~Amy
I have been trying to eat a real food diet for a short while now, but I am curious what your view on organic palm sugar is?
Hello Jen. Coconut palm sugar is a lower glycemic, less refined, and more nutritious, form of sugar. It is what I use regularly to replace sugar if not using honey or maple syrup. There are, however, some legitimate concerns over its sustainability. ~Amy
In our house we only eat whole foods. Pastured meats, poultry and wild fish. Organic veggies and fruits mostly yet sometimes we use the clean 15. Local unpasturized honey if we must add sweetness to a food or drink. As I am gluten sensitive our home has no wheat, grains or gluten. We enjoy home made gluten free breads, cakes with 5 organic ingredients or less. Taste yummy and really doesn’t take very long to make. I just wrote a blog post about this very topic today. Awesome work. Thanks,
While my diet is generally already in tune, I’ve never understood the Cannot Eat Rule 3. For example, the fresh salsa that I buy has the exact same ingredient list as my recipe, which has well over 5 awesome ingredients. Ditto for hummus. Why is that problematic?
I most certainly will immediately grasp a person’s feed while i are unable to to seek out a person’s e-mail request hyperlink or even e-newsletter services. Do you have just about any? Please let me realize to ensure that I could subscribe. Thanks.
If you are using/processed the leaves yourself then it’s fine otherwise I would avoid the commercial stevia/truvia stuff.
Was this in reply to my questions? I’m confused…
I grew my own stevia, dried the leaves and crushed them. Now what? LOL should i treat them kinda like tea leaves? any idea?
Someone else suggested boiling them in water and making like a “simple syrup” straining off the leaves and have a liquid stevia/water blend.
thanks!
Truvia is splenda mixed with stevia; fun trick food industry.
Is there something wrong with the commercial process for getting stevia extract that I should know about?
I was looking forward to the answer to Kathleen’s question…
Hi Amy. I’m sorry but I don’t have an answer for you…I have no experience with this. Perhaps you could find some ideas online? Jill
Where did you get the Stevia plant?
Email me please
elisevonholtenen@gmail.com
Thanks
E
Amy,
I’m not sure if you’ll see this but Common Sense Homestead (on fb) has a recipe for stevia extract.
Hi Jason. I think the simple fact that it is a “process” speaks to what the issue with it is. Jill
Food for thought….10 years ago, I had cardiac surgery for an anomaly I was born with. Two years into my healing process, I had been eating Stevia from Trader Joes (before it became popular). I had such severe chest pain while on vacation I was held up in the hotel room most of the time and wound up in the hospital as soon as I got home. By the next morning my pain had subsided completely, and the only change that happened was that I was no longer consuming Stevia. My cardiologist had told me to be leery of supplements. I am convinced it caused this pain, which I have not had since. I have never heard of it from anyone else though.
Thank you. Jill
Actually no. It is a refined for of the leaf, Rebiana. This is to lessen the bitterness. It is then mixed with erithrytol, a sugar alcohol. Not natural but a far cry from Splenda.
Truvia is NOT mixed with Splenda. There is a product on the market that is a blend, but Truvia isn’t it. I get violent migraines from Splenda and I use truvia all the time. Also, the only processed aspect about Truvia is the part of the plant that is bitter has been removed. One of the big obstacles in trying to eat less processed and more naturally is that people don’t have unending amounts of time to cook foods in this day and age. Truvia only contains stevia leaves and is a great sugar substitute (the only one I can use without getting headaches)…so to tell people they can only use stevia if they grow and process the leaves themselves seems, to me, just one more way to make eating more naturally that much harder. As a popular meme says, “Ain’t nobody got time for dat!”
I had the same experience with Splenda. After a few weeks of excruciating stomach pain, including a trip to the ER and a colonoscopy to find a cause/relief, I went out on a limb and quit eating foods containing Splenda, noticing that I experienced this pain everytime I ingested it. Bingo! I have never run into another person who had this experience with Splenda. Artificial sweeteners are troublesome ground, huh?
When I was taking high blood pressure medication I was told to stay away from Stevia. It can cause your BP to rise. Not too many people know this. I am glad that you no longer use Stevia!
Oops, no, you are wrong. Read the trivia article on this site..l40 processing steps, gmo’s etc. Truvia is trash.