CrossFit’s nutritional approach is captured in two sentences: “Eat meat and vegetables, nuts and seeds, some fruit, little starch, and no sugar. Keep intake to levels that will support exercise but not body fat.” The first sentence describes what to eat, and the second sentence addresses how much.
In this article, we’ll focus on food selection (the what). Put simply, CrossFit recommends a diet consisting of high-quality, unprocessed foods. Unfortunately, this is easier said than done in a world where every aisle in the grocery store is filled with delectable, addicting, refined products that masquerade as food. These processed items have a way of ending up in our homes — and once these items are within reach, we inevitably consume them.
Compliance with a nutrition plan requires setting up our environment for success by stocking our pantries and fridges with high-quality unprocessed foods while at the same time removing the junk. Follow the simple instructions below to perform a kitchen makeover.
The Kitchen Clean out
Rules of Thumb
- Most items that come in a bag, box, or package are not real food. Get rid of them.
- If the food label contains more than a few ingredients and/or you can’t pronounce them, it’s not real food. Get rid of it.
- If the expiration date is measured in weeks, months, or years, it’s not real food. Get rid of it.
- Get rid of all items with added sugar. This is listed on the food label under “carbohydrates.”
- Get rid of all items with industrial seed oils — canola, corn, cottonseed, soy, sunflower, safflower, grapeseed, and rice bran. These are listed on the food label in the ingredients. .
Fridge/Freezer: Get rid of these items
- Sweetened drinks (sodas, fruit juices, sports drinks, energy drinks, sweetened waters, sweetened tea or coffee drinks).
- Alcoholic beverages.
- Most frozen meals.
- Ice cream and other frozen treats.
- Sauces, marinades, and dressings containing seed oils.
- Condiments (ketchup, mustard, relish, mayo, BBQ sauce) containing added sugar and seed oils.
- Processed meats and deli meat with added sugar and seed oils.
- Margarine.
- Processed cheese products containing seed oils and preservatives.
- Sweetened dairy products (yogurt, chocolate milk).
- Sugary toppings, jams, jellies.
Pantry: Get rid of these items
- Chips, crackers, pretzels.
- Cookies.
- Candy and chocolates.
- Nuts (sweetened and/or containing seed oils).
- Breads, bagels, baked goods.
- Cereals.
- “Health bars” such as granola bars, fruit bars, or cereal bars.
- Pastas, boxed macaroni and cheese.
- Nut butters with added sugar and/or seed oils.
- Canned fruits and vegetables with added sugar.
Instructions
Get a few big garbage bags and fill them with the items you want to remove from the house. After a thorough cleanout, take the bags out to the trash. If you feel uneasy with wasting these food products, take any unopened, unexpired items to your local food bank.
The Kitchen Restock
With the junk food gone, it’s time to restock the fridge and pantry with the whole, unprocessed foods that will support your fitness and health goals. Time to go shopping!
Fridge/Freezer
- Meat (beef, chicken, turkey, fish, seafood).
- Eggs.
- Whole milk, cheese (if tolerated).
- Vegetables (broccoli, spinach, Brussels sprouts, carrots, cauliflower etc.).
- Fresh or frozen fruits without added sugar (berries, apples, melon, grapes etc.).
- Butter, ghee, tallow.
- Natural nut butters (no added sugar or seed oils).
- Ezekiel bread (if tolerated).
Pantry
- Canned salmon, tuna, sardines.
- Potatoes, sweet potatoes.
- Avocado.
- Corn, squash.
- Beans (if tolerated), peas, lentils.
- Nuts with no added sugar or oils (almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, pecans etc.).
- Seeds with no added sugar or oils (sunflower, flax, chia, pumpkin etc.).
- Spices.
- Avocado oil, coconut oil, olive oil.
- Whole grains, if tolerated (buckwheat, millet, quinoa, whole oats etc.).
- Rice.
That’s it! Simple but effective.
Still, many of us have a strong emotional connection with the foods we eat, which can make the cleanout process harder than expected. If a complete kitchen cleanout seems too overwhelming, try stretching it out over the course of a month, removing some junk food and replacing it with real food every week.
Below is a sample plan:
Week 1
Add: Quality protein and fat sources.
- Meat (beef, chicken, turkey, fish, seafood).
- Eggs.
- Whole milk, cheese (if tolerated).
- Canned salmon, tuna, sardines.
- Butter.
- Olive oil, avocado oil and/or coconut oil.
- Spices.
- Marinades with minimal added sugar and without seed oils.
- Butter, ghee, tallow.
- Natural nut butters (no added sugar or seed oils).
- Nuts with no added sugar or oils (almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, pecans etc.).
Remove: Less desirable protein and fats as well as some junk foods.
- Processed meats or deli meat with added sugar and seed oils.
- Processed cheese products containing seed oils and preservatives.
- Sweetened dairy products (yogurt, chocolate milk).
- Sauces, marinades, and dressings containing seed oils.
- Condiments containing added sugar and seed oils (ketchup, mustard, relish, mayo, BBQ sauce).
- Nut butters with added sugar and/or seed oils.
- Margarine.
- Chips, crackers, pretzels.
- Cookies.
Week 2
Add: Fresh or frozen fruit.
- Strawberries, blueberries, blackberries.
- Avocado.
- Apples.
- Oranges.
- Melon.
- Bananas.
- Grapes.
Remove: Candy and other sweetened items.
- Candy and chocolates.
- Canned fruits and vegetables with added sugar.
- Sweetened drinks (sodas, fruit juices, sports drinks, energy drinks, sweetened waters, sweetened tea or coffee drinks).
- Ice cream and other frozen treats.
- Sugary toppings, jams, jellies.
Week 3
Add: Vegetables.
- Broccoli.
- Spinach.
- Brussels sprouts.
- Carrots.
- Cauliflower.
- Beans (if tolerated).
Remove: Processed meals.
- Most frozen meals.
- Pastas, boxed macaroni and cheese.
Week 4
Add: High-quality starches.
- Potatoes.
- Sweet potatoes.
- Corn, squash.
- Whole grains, if tolerated (buckwheat, millet, quinoa, whole oats, etc.).
- Ezekial bread (if tolerated).
- Rice.
Remove: Processed grains.
- Breads, bagels, baked goods.
- Cereals.
- “Health bars” such as granola bars, fruit bars, or cereal bars.
- Alcoholic beverages.
No matter how we get there, filling our home with high-quality, unprocessed foods and removing the tempting but deadly junk is a critical step in owning our fitness — and ultimately, our health.
Finally, we are never alone on this journey. We can always turn to our CrossFit coaches and our fellow athletes for advice, tips and motivation. For those of us interested in taking a deeper dive on the topic of nutrition, the CrossFit Nutrition I course is a great resource for further study.
About the Author
Stephane Rochet (CF-L3) has 20 years of experience as a collegiate and tactical strength and conditioning coach. Rochet was introduced to CrossFit in 2003. Over the years, he has had the opportunity to work as a Head Trainer for CrossFit’s Level 1 and Level 2 courses, as a project manager for the CrossFit Games, and as a content developer for CrossFit’s education department.
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