Whole Food Theory @OptimalPlate

The big picture Eat mostly whole/minimally processed foods Prioritize plants Get enough protein and fiber Eat a wide variety of foods Move your body regularly Walk after meals when you can You don't need a perfect diet, You need a good pattern you can repeat for years.

Move after meals One extremely simple habit: Take a short walk after eating. Even light activity after a meal can help reduce the post-meal rise in blood glucose. A 10–15 minute walk is an easy place to start.

What actually makes a diet healthy? It isn't one superfood. It isn't avoiding one ingredient. And it certainly isn't eating "perfectly." A healthy diet is mostly about getting the big things right, consistently. Here are the basics. 🧵

The takeaway: Legumes offer an unusually attractive combination of: 🫘 Protein 🌱 Fiber 📉 Low glycemic impact ❤️ Cardiometabolic benefits 💰 Affordability 🌍 Sustainability 🍲 Versatility They don't need to be your entire diet. But they deserve a regular place in it.

So if you're trying to improve your diet without spending a fortune: Start with the 'boring' Lentils. Beans. Chickpeas. Peas. They're not glamorous. They don't need expensive packaging. And they don't need a marketing campaign. They're just nutritional and very cost effective.

5 reasons legumes deserve more attention. 🫘 Beans, lentils, chickpeas and peas are some of the most underrated foods in the modern diet. They're cheap, nutrient-dense and remarkably versatile. And the evidence for including them in a healthy diet keeps getting stronger 🧵

If you could only keep 5 plant foods in your kitchen, what would they be?

Bottom line: Eat a variety of plant foods, prepared in different ways. You don't need to choose a "raw" or "cooked" diet. Variety wins. 🌱

For vegetables, I'd generally favor: 🥬 Raw or steamed if oxalates are a concern to you. 🥦 Steamed and chopped 🍅 Cooked or in tomato paste form. 🥕 Raw and cooked 🍓 Raw When boiling vegetables, consider using the cooking liquid in the meal rather than throwing it away.

Raw vs cooked: which is healthier? There isn't a universal answer. Cooking can: ⬆️ Increase the bioavailability of some compounds ⬇️ Reduce some heat-sensitive nutrients ↔️ Have little effect on others The answer depends on what food + what nutrient + how you cook it. 🧵