Can Clean Eating Become Unhealthy? Orthorexia: a True Testimonial

I have had the opportunity to research and prepare an article on Orthorexia Nervosa, an undiagnosed eating disorder where healthy eating is taken to an unhealthy extreme. Have you ever wondered if clean eating can become obsessive or unhealthy? Unfortunately, it can and not because it's a food issue but a psychological condition where an unrealistic view of food is adopted.

After sharing the article on Facebook, I received an outpouring of emails from people struggling with the disorder or tendencies to the behavior. I was deeply moved with the many thanks for addressing the issue and providing awareness of the Orthorexia condition.

There was also quite a bit of backlash and reference to Orthorexia being 'bullshit' and just another money making for the doctors. Many came to the defense of clean eating as if this lifestyle was receiving a bad rap. I consider myself a clean eater but there's a difference in healthy eating and healthy obsessive eating. When our eating focus becomes so extreme it negatively impacts our life, this becomes a problem.

"Orthorexia is a mental health issue, not a clean eating issue, although sparked by "pure" foods.  It is an issue that requires us to look past the food and into the mind of a struggling person."

I want to introduce you to a woman suffering from Orthorexia and who has offered to share her story with privacy conditions. I have agreed to do so in order to bring awareness to the disorder and in an effort to reach others who may be struggling. Her story is authentic and her struggle is real:

I really appreciate your article on orthorexia. I have those tendencies, but not sure if I fall into the orthorexia category or anorexia category. I am 50 years old and mother of two children. I have a degree in advertising and passionate about the health and fitness field. I do most of my work from home so I can spend time with my kids.

For the last 25 years, I have worked out faithfully and followed a relatively healthy diet. When I turned 38, however, things seemed to fall apart. I began having joint problems, severe acne, and increased thyroid problems. After some research, I eliminated gluten and found relief in my joints, but not my skin. After further research, I found the paleo diet. It helped somewhat with the thyroid issues. I now eat a diet free of all grains/soy/beans/sugar/potatoes and most dairy.

Basically, I eat eggs, meat, veggies, fruit, nuts, and fats. I tried the Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) to clear my acne but it did not produce the desired results. My acne is worse and I lost about 15 pounds (I am below 100 pounds and am 5'1" tall). I am not quite sure how to pull myself out of this one but I am trying to. 

After "eating clean" for so long, it's a bit hard to add things back so that I can regain the much-needed weight. My weakness is anything chocolate, peanut butter and/or ice cream. It is hard, but sometimes I have to give myself permission to indulge. I still have to work on the guilt afterward. But baby steps...

I'm currently seeing a naturopath for my under active thyroid. He has been a Godsend. He is aware of my anorexia tendencies and intercepted what could have been a much more serious situation than I am in right now. He accepted me as a patient in the middle of a tailspin. The medical doctor I had been using for years decided to make a huge adjustment in my thyroid medication. The end results were not what he expected and told me to see a specialist.

I chose to find a naturopath instead. He is wonderful. But sometimes, it's hard to stop the tailspin mid tailspin. I have dealt with anorexia since I was 18 years old. That is a whole other story I hope to share someday in hopes of helping those in the same situation. 

In the past, I just starved myself but this time is different. I am eating but eating so cleanly and never deviating--until recently. Anorexia restricts food plain and simple, no explanation needed when I refused food. This time it feels like life is restricted. 

How do you try and explain that I only eat 'good-for-me' food and not that? I am not saying that eating healthily is a bad thing but there needs to be a balance. Of course, if you have sensitivities, then stay clear of the trigger foods. I have, through all this, found some sensitivities (gluten and soy) and I avoid them to the best of my ability. 

But relaxing and enjoying a not-so-good-for-you treat is still a struggle. I somehow feel like a failure when I give in to unclean foods. Shouldn't the important thing be that I'm enjoying a rare treat with my children? Believe me, they have noticed I no longer share in the special times. What kind of example am I setting for them?  I don't want them to think that it's all or nothing. They eat pretty healthily. They now eat more fruits and vegetables and much less processed foods.

Beyond that, I am so uncomfortable in my own body because I finally was able to see how thin I was thanks to my husband hurting my feelings. I thank God he was just plain honest even though it hurt.  My acne is embarrassing as well. I never thought that I would be fighting acne at my age even with all the positives changes that I have made. It's worse now than when I was in my teens.  

Darla, thank you for addressing this issue and giving me awareness. I hope to get myself back. My dream is just to be healthy and be able to help others suffering like I do. If you feel that my story can help someone, then please use it. I feel like we all go through things for a reason. If my story would bring awareness, I would feel blessed! 

Sincerely,

An Orthorexia Sufferer

If you have not had the opportunity to read my article on Orthorexia, take a few moments to become aware of an issue that is more problematic than realized.

I am thankful to this beautiful woman who reached out completely vulnerable sharing her life and struggles with orthorexic tendencies. I pray for her recovery and I hope her story touched you as it did me.

Orthorexia is definitely a real issue and bringing this undiagnosed disorder to the forefront is timely. Awareness of the condition is important so that we may be able to help those who are struggling. At the very least, understand the mentality of someone suffering from Orthorexia.  

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Fitness Means Being Mindful Of How We Treat Our Body

Fitness includes so much more than weight loss or achieving a personal best lift at the gym. Being a fit person involves discipline for each day, creates awareness, and instills conscious living. It means being mindful of how we treat our body, how we think, and feel.

Fitness is a lifestyle and goes way beyond the physical. Living this way starts in our minds and pushes us to live a quality life. It's not just a desire but daily actions we choose moving us closer to being healthy people. When our focus remains on health, we can truly say we are living a healthy life with our whole being.   

We put so much pressure on ourselves to squeeze into skinny jeans or tank shirts and tend to forget how being fit is supposed to feel. A fit and healthy body should feel good but instead many of us accept and accommodate pain on a daily basis. In this case, the focus isn't on health and often with a temporary goal based on outward appearance. Healthy lifestyles are meant to be enjoyed for a lifetime, not just for a few months.

A fit lifestyle includes physical exercise and not even to an extreme but effective enough to maintain a healthy body. It also means eating foods containing a high nutrient value helping us feel energized and creating an antioxidant environment protecting us from illness and disease.

Rest is also on the menu for a fit body and a very important part of the program.  Without proper rest and sleep, our bodies will not recover from the demands placed on it through workouts, stress, and the overall daily grind.

A healthy life requires a balance of work and play. We often lose sight of our inner child replacing it with busy demands of adulthood. Staying young at heart helps reduce our stress and enables us to enjoy life more. It creates a positive, happy mindset that looks forward to shutting down to recharge the mental batteries. Too many of us don't take advantage of this very important part of being healthy and happy.

The reality is we can enjoy life and live a healthy lifestyle at the same time. This is accomplished by making health a priority and being consistent with our choices. Being fit doesn't means slaving for hours in the gym and resolved to eat boiled fish and broccoli for life.This is far from what living a healthy lifestyle looks like.

When the focus is on health and improving the quality of our life, becoming fit happens naturally along the way. This also allows us to let go of the stress of unrealistic fitness goals and quick fixes. The pressure to look a certain way loses its importance as we concentrate more on how good being healthy feels.

Our awareness of the importance of being a healthy person becomes primary in more ways than physical. We are mindful of eating right, how we move our bodies, and what we think about ourselves. Applying this healthy attitude and lifestyle creates the body we want in the way it should happen.

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The Benefits of Different Workouts and What Works Best For You

The good thing about workout programs is they’re individual and not universal. We all differ in fitness level, personality, lifestyle, and goals. Taking this into consideration, selecting the right workout program is an important part of our fitness journey. There’s a wide-variety of exercise modalities available to accommodate every individual and lifestyle. It doesn’t matter if you’re a seasoned athlete or newbie fitness enthusiast, there’s something for everyone. The best and most effective workout is one that you do consistently, enjoy, and works with your lifestyle and goals. 

Selecting the right workout program can be a challenge with all the different options available. A helpful tool in choosing the best exercise plan is writing down your health and fitness goals. Are you an active adult or athlete who wants to increase exercise intensity or a beginner with a desire to lose a few pounds? What about a bodybuilder trying to increase lean mass or an individual struggling with flexibility? Whatever your fitness goal, there are specific workout programs supplying these benefits.

Once your fitness goals are defined, choosing an exercise program becomes simplified. The next step includes understanding the definition, purpose, and benefits of each workout modality. The following popular exercise programs are shown to be effective for health and fitness improvement:

High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT)

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has become one of the most popular training methods. What makes this exercise program so appealing is being able to complete a workout in a short period of time. According to research, HIIT is a time efficient strategy to improve our health and fitness and cuts our exercise training in half.

High-intensity interval training (HIIT) is also referred to as high-intensity intermittent exercise (HIIE) or sprint interval training (SIT). HIIT is a vigorous form of exercise combining interval training and cardiovascular exercise. As a participant of HIIT, you would be challenging your body with low and high-intensity work. An example would be performing a maximum sprint for 100 yards followed by a few seconds of light jogging or walking to recover. The workout duration is typically 30 minutes or to exercise exhaustion.

Research indicates high-intensity interval training is effective for reducing body fat, improving athletic performance, and flexibility. However, due to the extreme challenge on the body, some studies show it may not be the best fit for inactive individuals beginning a fitness program. In this instance, HIIT could be a progressive program implemented later once fitness and activity levels have increased. It appears to be highly favorable for active adults and athletes taking their workouts to the next level. 

Strength Training

Strength or resistance training is another popular and effective exercise modality. This form of exercise is designed to improve muscular fitness by challenging a muscle or muscle group using external resistance. External resistance can include free weights, resistance bands, or cable machines for example. Strength training can be modified to the fitness level of an individual making it a superior workout option.

Resistance training is the preferred method of exercise for bodybuilders to increase muscle strength and size. It’s also favored among new exercisers and active adults who desire to improve muscle tone and stimulate fat loss. The program is best performed using a progressive style increasing in weight resistance, sets, and repetitions as muscular strength is increased. Beginners may find it easier to start with machines before moving into more complex free-weight exercises. The American College of Sports Medicine recommends strength training at least two non-consecutive days per week for optimal results.

Besides being one of the most versatile and enjoyed ways to exercise among the general population, strength training is indicated to provide numerous health benefits. Chronic research has shown regular resistance training to reduce our risk of heart disease by lowering body fat. It’s also said to increase our metabolism, decrease blood pressure, increase bone density, and improve cholesterol levels.

Bodyweight Training

Bodyweight training or exercises take us back to the basics and a great workout option for individuals without access to gym equipment. This method of training uses body weight as the resistance to build muscular strength, lean mass, endurance, and flexibility. Bodyweight training is considered the ‘no gym, no excuses’ workout program you can perform anywhere.

Bodyweight training is still considered strength training and accomplished without free weights or machines. Another bonus to this program is no gym membership fee and time efficient because it can be done right at home.

Popular body weight training exercises include pull-ups, push-ups, crunches, planks, and squats. Advanced movements incorporate handstands and strength holds. Bodyweight training is very challenging but is easily modified to accommodate any fitness level. It is also shown to have a reduced risk of personal injury compared to weighted exercise.

Group Training

Group training is an excellent workout choice for those who like the push of being in an exercise class environment. This mode of exercise is led by an instructor and performed by a group of individuals. Gyms or boot camps commonly offer modified versions to exercise accommodating all fitness levels. This makes for a fun, active and social exercise experience.

Group training formats can include muscle conditioning, body pump, yoga, Pilates, step, and kickboxing. The wide variety of class options creates an ever-changing workout atmosphere helpful to avoid burnout. Also, the classes are typically well-structured, effective, and completed within a one-hour duration.

Working out with friends is another way to describe group training. When we exercise with others, it provides an accountability factor not given when we train alone. Group settings are shown to keep us motivated and interested. This is important for continued success and maintaining our fitness.

Yoga

Yoga is considered holistic therapy with the purpose of creating strength, awareness, balance, and harmony within the mind and body. There are many disciplines of this exercise method, one of the most popular being Hatha yoga. Hatha yoga focuses on physical applications to strengthen the body along with exercises to center the mind. This practice also emphasizes proper nutrition to detoxify the body and breathing techniques supporting relaxation.

Yoga includes physical posturing to strengthen the body, increase flexibility, promote relaxation, and enhance our concentration. Research indicates yoga as a safe way to exercise to improve physical function along with mental and social well-being. It’s also indicated to help with stress-relief, improved energy, and vitality. 

Closing thoughts:

Regular exercise is an important part of achieving and maintaining our health and fitness. The great news is we have options in what works best for us, our body, and individual goals. Research indicates strength, aerobic, and flexibility training should be included in a well-balanced exercise program. Providing this variety is something to keep in mind while planning the best workout routine for you. Many individuals opt to include a supplement program along with their exercise routine. Certain supplements, such as whey protein, are shown to benefit workout recovery. This or other supplements can also be beneficial but it’s always a good idea to discuss with your doctor.

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Be well and Stay Healthy

I prepared this article as a compensated feature post for Life Extension and you can read more about them below:

About Life Extension: Life Extension has been helping people stay healthy and live better for more than 35 years. Life Extension is committed to sourcing the highest quality raw materials, and creating the best supplements since 1980. Life Extension provides the latest research on health, wellness, nutrition, & aging. Offering unique, premium quality dietary supplements, vitamins, minerals, herbs, & hormones. Visit our website at http://www.lifeextension.com and connect with us on social media; Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest! 

We Control What Our Body Looks Like

The truth about health and fitness is we either want it or we don’t. Let’s face it, many of us come up with reasons not to exercise or eat healthy. We even sound pretty convincing. Unfortunately, all the reasons in the world eventually catch up to us in the form of illness or injury.

What we fail to realize is how much our lifestyle impacts our health.The food we eat, how we move and rest our body is truly our medicine. Many of us continue to walk around in an unhealthy body and come to accept this existence. We are missing out on how good we're supposed to feel and look. Our body reflects our lifestyle. True story.

I want to believe all of us have a strong desire to be healthy people. Working in the health and fitness industry, I certainly hear this loud and clear. We talk about wanting to feel and look better, but what continues to be lacking is the action required to make this happen. More often than not, healthy living isn't a priority.

Living a life of excuses will not change our health or appearance. It only guarantees us not to feel our best most often accompanied by unhappiness. Change takes changing our daily habits. The body we have is controlled by what we do. I'm sure we can all agree on that statement. Let me clarify my reference is to the general population who have the ability to get healthy. Some medical conditions and illness are out of our control, but I have seen those who struggle to live the healthiest lives. Another true story.

Our first step to change our body for the better is owning our current lifestyle. This includes admitting we are making excuses not to eat healthy, exercise, sleep more, reduce stress and the list goes on. It's important to understand why health is not a priority.

Admitting our part in creating an unhealthy body can piss us off and it should. It's in that frustrated moment we can really be honest about our life and body. That proverbial slap in the face is often the beginning of getting serious about a healthy lifestyle becoming our medicine. Think about these things:

• We're responsible for replacing reasons with action. 
• We're capable of taking care of our health and making it a priority.
• Having a fit body can happen at every age and it's never too late to start.
• We control what our body looks like. 

Being healthy and having a fit body is achievable for all of us and should be our lifetime goal. Dependence on prescribed drugs for self-imposed health conditions continues to increase and becoming an epidemic problem. Let me clarify certain medications are required for a small percentage of the populous but not for the general population who can get healthy. Many cholesterol lowering and blood pressure medications can be discontinued when weight is lost and body composition improved.

The problem is accommodating an unhealthy lifestyle justifying it with reasons that really can't be validated. A healthy lifestyle is not an occasional event and requires full-time effort. Life is the event we need to be fit for and we only get one chance to do it right.

The bottom line is results can and will happen, but the choice is up to you.

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Make Progress Your Goal and Forget About Perfection

Fitness is about progress and not perfection. Many of us struggle with a perfectionist personality to the point of interfering with our quality of life and derailing fitness attempts. When our focus becomes more realistic, not based on comparisons or the way we think fitness should be is when awesome stuff happens.

First, allowing ourselves to be a beginner is important. No one starts at the top and sometimes we even need to start over due to an injury or illness setback. I speak from experience when it comes to being knocked down from an injury and although the setback was difficult, I applied a progressive program to recover. There is nothing pretty or perfect in hard work and if you look good at the end of your workout, it certainly wasn't done correctly.

We can put so much pressure on ourselves with exercise programs doing too much too soon. Somehow we take on this belief that we should be at the same level as a seasoned athlete. This only leads to discouragement and frustration. It takes months and years to develop our fitness levels. If your goal is to run a marathon, it takes baby steps of progression and adaptation to this type of program. The same applies to muscle development. We certainly are not going to see a bicep cap after one session of resistance curls.

When we approach our fitness programs with a progressive attitude, it's more realistic and enjoyable. Progressive simply means:

• starting where you are
• accepting where you are
• not comparing yourself to others
• doing what you can
• mastering what you are able to do
• then moving forward to the next level

Progression is what gets us to the next level of fitness without injury and with a healthy body and mind. Let's say you struggle to perform a pull-up and hang there stuck on the bar. First, the pull-up is one of the hardest body weight exercises to perform and we have all been in this position as a newbie.

Believing your first attempt should be a successful body lift with head over that bar is unrealistic. It takes a progressive training program of slow back strength development to accomplish this challenging exercise. Those who can perform one or more pull-ups have been doing this exercise for years and have built enough back strength to perform the exercise. This is called realistic fitness progress.

Progress includes modification to exercise to build strength. Let's take another look at the pull-up and apply realistic methods of progression. In order to build back strength over time to achieve the goal of performing a pull-up, implementing modifications is necessary and may include:

• negative pull-ups (starting at the top and lowering yourself slowly)
• using a spotter 
• bench spot
• Gravitron machine (removes a percentage of your bodyweight for easier lift)
• TRX straps or resistance bands hooked around feet 

Consistency with modified exercise and building strength will enable you to progress and eventually perform the exercise without assistance.

Progression can also be applied to incorporating healthy foods into our nutrition.  Begin slowly by eliminating one thing like soda, and replacing it with drinking water and herbal tea. This process continued over time will enable you to adopt healthy eating as you eliminate unhealthy food choices. The goal should be to eat healthy 80 to 90% of the time without feeling deprived. Implementing eating well using progressive methods is shown to be less stressful, enjoyable and lifetime sustainable.

Life is already hard enough without making a healthy lifestyle feel like a burden with unrealistic expectations. Applying progressive methods to our workouts and daily food intake creates a positive outlook mentally and physically. It enables us to feel accomplished with our programs and feel good with each step taken toward our goals. 

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Are You Taking Responsibility For Your Fitness?

Face it, we're all responsible for our health and fitness. I'm not talking about medical illness out of our control, but the everyday individual who has the ability to get healthy. This is the majority of us, right?

In this world of comparison, it appears many of us want someone else's body instead of our own. Why is that? It really is a projection of what we want for our own life but not willing to put in the effort. That may have hit hard, but let's get down to the honest truth about our health and lifestyle. You may be tired of hearing 'what's your excuse' but the question is somewhat relevant.  

Instead of owning the behaviors creating an unhealthy body, we tend to place blame where it doesn't belong. We blame our spouses, friends, and even media personalities for spouting unrealistic goals. Are they unrealistic or just our way of justifying the state of our health?

What it comes down to is no one but you and I can make health happen. It's an individual choice to be healthy or unhealthy. It seems like a simply stated sentence but very much accurate. No amount of misplaced blame is going to help any of us reach our goals. We can't put up a defensive posture because others are doing what we're not willing to do. In order to change our health and fitness, it requires owning our current health status. 

Part of owning our fitness is getting rid of the reasons and excuses so often used to not live healthily. Unfortunately, excuses have become acceptable behavior and our health is suffering the consequences. Being over fat and obese has grown to an epidemic status with over 30 percent of the American population adversely affected.

The excuse of being too busy should be null and void. We all have the same 24 hours in a day and the choice of how the time will be used. Fitting in an hour workout a few times per week isn't unreasonable and shouldn't be considered a burden. Eating healthy actually takes less time and money than dining out, but we are so hooked on fast and convenient to consider this option. The mindset about health and fitness requires re-evaluation. Don't you agree?

Nobody likes to hear, what's your excuse and it seems to ruffle feathers all over the place. Honestly, it's a question to ask yourself in front of the mirror. Forget about anyone else. Are you happy with your health and fitness? Are you owning your role in causing the problem? If not, why?

When we start accepting responsibility for our actions, stop comparing to others, and implement a fitness solution is when positive changes begin. No one but you can make the choices to move past the excuses and the feelings that keep you from getting healthy.

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