SW in a "clean" way?

[BE97]

Hi ladies,

I have put on nearly 3 stone in the last year trying to eat clean - I have many food issues and can't just be left to my own devices as it bought back my binging problems in a big way and has totally messed my head up. :(
My question is, do you find it okay to follow SW in a mostly clean way? I don't want to eat highly processed and low-fat but high sugar things.
Thanks so much for your help, I think I am going to bite the bullet. x

well the basic principle of slimming world is lean meat, fish, pulses, veg and fruit and pasta/rice.
That's it.

perfectly possible and easy to do without eating processed food.

what sorts of things have you been eating that have caused you to put on 3 stone?

It's more about the Binge Eating Disorder I have and being so strict and cutting out food groups triggered it off again in a big way...I cut out dairy, gluten, most carbs and was eating minimal fruit - looking back I can see I set myself up for a fall. Was pretty much only eating eggs/meat/fish and vegetables (some nuts/seeds and avocado too) on "good" days then binge days would be awful as I felt so deprived.
I have done slimming world in the past and was very successful with it but I was eating processed things at the time - low-fat this and that, tins of soup etc etc...
Thank you for the message. xx

I eat very little processed food on sw. The majority of it is "clean"

I think the good thing about it is within reason you can make of it what you want.

I have following the SW plan for about 5 years and eat very clean. I cook mostly from scratch and don't bother with Mug Shots/Muller Lights etc, which fill me with horror at the sugar and crap that they contain. I have been at or near target for years. It really works!!

That's very true - I think it will help take the pressure off.
Thank you for your comment.

yes cutting out so much is really not good

today i have had eggs, bacon and wholemeal toast
i am going to have strawberries for a snack in a bit

tonight's dinner will be chicken in a tomato sauce with cannelinni beans and rosemary and veg and rice

none of that is processed but all very tasty and filling

I have to be honest, I found SW hard for that reason

so things like Muller light were free food, but I wouldn't go near that. And things like Laughing Cow Light cheese, just not for me.

I do know others who stuck to SW without eating processed food so it can be done, it just didn't work for me.

If you don't mind me asking, what did you binge on? If I only have good food around, I don't tend to overeat, but there's always crap available in the office.

Mostly sweet stuff but can binge on anything really - if I even had a mouthful of something forbidden then I would see it as I have ruined the day and eat everything in sight or going to the shops to buy a large amount of chocolate to secretly eat in the car...I am going to give it a go again I think as I am so fed up and uncomfortable in my skin. X

I also find some of the SW plan bizarre which is why I haven't joined a group or on-line and am doing it on my own. Clean eating works for me I've been following the SW plan (ish) for nearly 3 months and have not eaten 1 mug shot or HiFi bar. I don't judge how other people make it work for them, and we all lapse at times, but trust your own instincts and if it helps you to avoid processed and high sugar products then do so. It may affect how much weight you lose and how quickly but if it works for you that's all that matters. Cutting out food groups entirely is never a good thing (unless you have an allergy or intolerance of course) which is one good thing about the SW plan as it doesn't ban any food. Good luck

I've been doing SW online for a year and don't eat any Muller Lights or stuff like that. Most of my food is made from scratch. I eat Babybels as they are a convenient way to get a measured amount of cheese. I also eat yoghurts, but not syn free ones as I prefer thicker yoghurt.

I don't really know much about binge eating, but are you less likely to binge if things aren't forbidden? I think the good thing about SW is that nothing is off limits at all, it's all about moderation. You can still have chocolate if you want it, but the syn allowance limits that. I don't know if the allowance will still make you feel like it's forbidden though.

OP, my bad, I thought sugary stuff was banned on clean eating.

to some extent, I don't think it will matter which method you try as long as you are okay to try and if you fall off the wagon, think in terms of getting back on rather than thinking "I might as well hang out at the roadside for a while" - so to speak!

I have done SW since January and don't eat processed things 95% of the time.

I don't eat Miller lights, mug shots etc. I don't eat pasta or rice due to allergies.

I mainly do the SP days with a few days with potatoes thrown in.

I only ever eat full fat cheese (but has to be lactofree because of my allergies).

I eat very clean and do SW.

I think that's why it works. I have cut foods out in medical advice. I can do it. For those that need Muller lights to get threw the day, you can.

Many people do SW in many different ways.

Thanks so much ladies! Sugar isn't allowed on clean eating but that was my problem - I would have something like a cake at a special occasion and it would make me feel like I have ruined everything and binge...
I am feeling positive and am going to give EE a go (always went with green plan before)...Just wondering if I should go it alone or join a group.
Thanks again everyone. Xx

the whole weight loss thing is so much more than what we consume. Clean eating/Dirty eating....binging self loathing on and on it goes.

Find a nice group and slow and steady does it. Think in terms of weight loss per month and slow sustainable change. Once that deprevation binge thing sets in its awful.
I am doing this forever now. It will take maybe a year but so what?

When I did SW I more or less did it in a 'clean' way. No mug shots, muller lights or hifi bars but I did eat white rice and pasta etc.

I think it's a bit of a Mumsnet myth that SW is wall to wall processed junk. They encourage people to cook from scratch with low fat fresh ingredients and loads of veg.

I didn't even restrict dairy that strictly and never ate fat free yogurt, cottage cheese etc - just full fat versions and not loads, but more than SW 'allows'.

It works because you are only allowed a tiny amount of the real junk (sugar, cake, alcohol, chocolate, crisps white bread etc) and is very limited on bread (effectively 2 small slices of wholemeal a day).

Sounds like you are just looking for another diet to lose weight on as clean eating hasn't worked. Diets are the problem for you full stop. I eat clean and have had disordered eating all my life. Clean eating is the way I want to eat for life now. I don't eat wheat dairy or white sugar but I do eat sweet paleo treats made from coconut/almond flour or from dates and sweet potatoes with dark chocolate. I have lovely coconut cookies, fudgy choc brownies and lemon cake and cheesecake made from coyo coconut yoghurt. Maybe since you want to eat clean you could look into paleo and this would give you more scope. I don't feel deprived. Also get some books by Emelia Freer who eats clean. It still all requires mindful eating though and learning to only eat when you are actually hungry. I lost two stone last year .

Hi- I also have binge eating disorder and have found SW to be very helpful for this. I don't like mullerlights or all the other weird junk that is pushed at meetings although I am not a completely clean eater. I eat Liberte 0% fat yoghurt, plain oats etc. I save my syns for things like cheese and sauces. I also spend some on some sugary treats as I am trying to learn how to eat some sugar without it becoming a binge.

As PP said, make of it what you will, but I don't eat any processed shite and am on slimming world.

The SW recipes are fab and I think it is a myth that processed stuff is pushed as a healthy option at SW. I have never heard it at the meetings. It is always about eating and cooking healthy, protien rich food with lots of veg.

I eat processed junk...but i did before too, lol.

Mostly I cook from scratch, but if I fancy some rubbish and can be on plan doing it then I will do that.

The thing is SW is just an outline, literally the only rules are free food with preferably a third speed free, your healthy extras and your Syns as long as you stick with that it'll work no matter whether your free food is home grown organic lentils or a mug shot - it's entirely up to you what you have within the rules.

Practically the only 'processed' thing I eat is the Hi Fi bars, and that's because I need something chocolately sometimes.

I am a binger as well, but have found that since I got myself into the SW mindset, I'm less likely to write off a whole day or week because I had a bad meal.

I'm a binge eater,and have been in SW for two weeks now and haven't eaten any processed stuff, it's more of a lifestyle change for me than a diet, I'm really enjoying it and have three meals a day, I've never felt so full from meals, usually it's the binge that fills me.

It's worth a go. Go to a meeting so you can get to grips with the new style if you're used to green/red days.

I do SW in a partially 'clean' way. Well, I still eat the things that syns exist for - that's what helps me stay on track - but I try not to eat hugely processed foods. The ingredients in Mug Shots and Muller Lights read like a horror story. I'd rather have a boiled egg or plain yoghurt and fruit.

BE97 - I have some issues with controlling my eating, and how SW has mostly helped me isn the meetings. I have to confess sometimes i even slightly ignore syns and eat almost free, then have a few nuts or a bit of rye bread, but by weighing in weekly I am kept on track. If I then have a bad week, going to class steels my resolve for the next week. I almost use it like very cheap therapy!
However - where people do eat those things (Mugshots etc) I think the odd mug shot is better than breaking from plan and going rogue and eating whole bars of chocolate and big bags of crisps because you let yourself get too hungry. It's a better option, though, not as a habit.

BTW I am now 4 stone down (almost!) in a year and a half. Slow progress but it's made my life much better so far.