Struggling with eating better and you want to know how, I’ve got you covered. Below are the simple steps to eating real foods to eat clean for beginners.
I understand the overwhelm of switching from relying on packaged foods and fast food restaurants. Each of the steps below are to help you to master how to eat cleaner.
Let’s break down the steps to eating real foods so you can master clean eating and breaking free from processed foods…

Step 1: Know the Difference between Real Foods and Processed Foods
- The first step to eating real foods is detailed in this post: What are Real Food and Clean Eating
- You can snag my FREE Food Swap Guide so you can have a handy cheat sheet while grocery shopping
How to Eat Cleaner Step 2: Stock Pantry, Refrigerator and Freezer
- The next item of the steps to eating real foods is having real food staples on-hand in your pantry, fridge and freezer.
- Food that can quickly accessed is a MUST for every clean eating kitchen.
- Access the list of my Real Food Pantry, Refrigerator and Freezer Staples
Eating Cleaner Step 3: Plan Ahead – Clean Eating Meal Planning
- It goes without saying that in order to be successful in making the switch to cleaner meals, you need to plan ahead.
- One of the reasons that people fail to cook is because of lack of planning.
- Don’t get caught off-guard; plan your meals ahead of time.
Steps to eating real foods #4: Go Shopping
- Shopping for your clean eating foods can sometimes be tricky if you aren’t familiar with where to buy them.
- Although large box stores like Wal-Mart and Target have become better at stocking real foods, you can access a larger variety of products from stores like Whole Foods. My favorite place to shop are from online stores like Thrive Market. Also take time to visit local farms and your area’s farmer’s market for great-tasting, seasonal foods.
- For this step to eating real foods, take the time to learn about real food options. Browse your stores and search online for real food products. Use my FREE Food Swap Guide and list of Real Food Pantry, Refrigerator and Freezer Staples to know what to buy.
5th Step to Eating Real Foods: Meal Prep for Quicker Clean Eating Meals
- The final step to eating real foods and becoming successful in making the switch from processed foods over to all real foods is MEAL/FOOD PREP.
- Prepping ahead is the KEY to every person who chooses to eat clean meals routinely because all of your fruits and vegetables washed and cut in advance which helps to speed up the cooking time of your meals.
- Check out my post on Meal Prep and Time-Savings Ideas here.
As you can see, all of the five steps to eating real foods above are crucial for an effective real food kitchen to successfully produce nutritious, cleaner meals. By mastering these steps, you too, will know how to Eat Cleaner, especially if you are beginner.
Until next time…Keep it REAL, folks!