5 Meals To Clean Eating – 90% Of Your Diet
Clean eating becomes sustainable when one focuses on simplicity by mastering the top five healthy meals that constitute 90% of the diet. Meal prepping these 5 meals ensures nutritious food is always available, preventing impulsive unhealthy choices.
How to Eat Healthy?
Most people are able to differentiate between a healthy and unhealthy meal. The reason behind healthy eating struggles lies in practicality, not information. What’s important in terms of healthy nutrition is fairly simple.
- Whole foods.
- Quality Proteins.
- Healthy Fats.
- Complex Carbohydrates.
Why do most still struggle to eat clean after learning nutrition? Practicality.
To eat healthy, one must fix the base first. This relates to hours spent working, food exposure, eating habits, grocery shopping, and meal timing. The key to healthy eating lies in understanding your circumstances and simplifying your diet to fit your needs and goals.
Make Eating Healthy a Habit
Humans are creatures of habit. If one can sustainably make healthy food choices readily available, eating healthy becomes convenient, which greatly increases the odds of success. Failing to plan meals ahead increases the odds of eating something suboptimal.
Why? Because when humans are hungry, they eat. Especially when there are extra work-life stressors put in the way. The need to charge one’s energy bank is always on. So food will always be something we gravitate towards.
When faced with a challenge of what to eat, most find themselves in need of a quick solution. At work, at a grocery shop, in a non-stocked kitchen with healthy staples – 90% of the time one will pick the quick way out. That’s an ultra-processed snack.
This is why we’re uncovering the simplest way to fix this.
- Pick 10 staple foods
- Master 5 healthy meals
- Plan, Shop, and Cook in advance
By far, the largest detriments of unhealthy eating lie in overeating processed foods, empty calories, and simple carbohydrates. Aiming to switch these to healthy fats, quality proteins, and complex carbohydrates does most of the heavylifting.
What does it mean to eat healthy?
Eating healthy means regularly consuming nutrient-dense whole foods including quality proteins, healthy fats, and complex carbohydrates while minimizing ultra-processed foods, empty calories, and added sugars. It involves creating sustainable eating habits that provide essential nutrients for optimal bodily function.
Why is it important to eat healthy?
Eating healthy is important because it provides energy for daily activities, supports proper immune function, reduces risk of chronic diseases (diabetes, heart disease, obesity), enhances cognitive performance, improves mood, promotes better sleep, supports physical performance, and contributes to longevity and quality of life.
The 90% Diet
The philosophy behind 5 meals – 90% diet is quite simple. Recognizing that the foundation of healthy eating lies in the meals we consume most often. Practicality and simplicity makes consistency and sustainability that much easier.
Most think they eat 100 different meals yearly. That’s not true. In most cases, humans thrive on routine and tend to rely on a limited set of repeatable eating habits.
By identifying our top 5 meals that make up 90% of our diet, we can start working. Improving the nutritional foundation of these 5 meals can make healthy eating much easier.
This diet isn’t restrictive, limiting eating windows or setting specific macronutrient ratios. It is about fixing the nutritional base which is far more superior in terms of what matters most for a clean diet. It follows a set of principles, allowing one complete autonomy, practicality, and adaptability.
How to eat 100% healthy?
There is no such thing as 100% healthy. Diets are versatile.
However, focusing on whole foods (vegetables, fruits, lean proteins, complex carbs, healthy fats), planning meals in advance, preparing food at home, practicing portion control, staying hydrated, limiting added sugars and processed foods, and creating sustainable eating habits that fit your lifestyle and preferences, is the way to go.
Key Principles of the 5-Meal Approach
Instead of putting specific restriction, the 5-meal 90% strategy emphasizes a couple of principles of healthy eating. This makes the diet adaptable to the individual. The only strong requirement is picking healthier, staple foods. Here’s an overview of the 4 principles of this approach.
Focus on Fundamentals
Prioritize meals built around essential nutrients: complete proteins, healthy fats, fiber-rich foods, and complex carbohydrates. This ensures the body gets the fuel it needs to function optimally.
Practicality Over Perfection
By concentrating on the most consumed meals, this strategy avoids overwhelming dietary overhauls. It’s easier to maintain a healthy diet when only a small set of meals need adjustment.
Adaptability
The approach isn’t tied to specific diets or foods. It aligns with personal preferences, cultural habits, and dietary needs (e.g., keto, vegan, Mediterranean), making it universally relevant.
Flexibility With Consistency
While the core meals remain staples, variability is encouraged. For example, one can swap legumes for different varieties or alternate proteins and veggies while maintaining the nutritional integrity of the meal.
Healthy Staple Foods
Overconsuming ultra-processed, empty-calorie foods is the main challenge to healthy eating. The first rule of this approach is fixing the base, the fundamental foods that make up the majority of our diet.
The focus is on nutrient-density. Picking healthy staples that are nutrient-dense is the first step. Eating foods high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, fiber, phytochemicals, healthy fats, and amino-acids that provide significant value for the body. It represents what food should, nourishment.
Picking healthy staples gets most of the job done. Once go-to foods are identified, one can start structuring the 5-meals. Grocery shopping becomes straightforward, cooking and meal prepping are quicker, and routines run smoothly. It’s the way to gain efficiency, flexibility, and consistency.
Staple foods act more like food groups, allowing variability. For instance, choosing legumes can mean anything from chickpeas to black lentils. The idea isn’t to be rigid but to keep a solid base of nutrient-dense options while adapting over time.
Here are some of our favorites:
- Vegetables: cruciferous (broccoli, cauliflower) and leafy greens (kale, spinach)
- Red meat & organs: grass-fed beef, rib-eye, liver
- Complex carbs: whole wheat toast/pasta, quinoa, brown rice, legumes
- Low-GI fruits: berries, apples, oranges
- Seafood: salmon, sardines, mussels, oysters, caviar
- Healthy fats: olive oil, avocado, nuts, flax seeds, grass-fed butter
- Eggs & dairy: eggs, Greek yogurt, kefir, cottage cheese, chicken
- Antioxidants: dark chocolate, ginger, garlic, red wine, kiwis
What is the healthiest staple food?
There’s no single “healthiest” staple food, but full-fat dairy, eggs and grass-fed red meat are very nutrient-dense, loaded with quality protein, healthy fats and fat-soluble vitamins, while cruciferous vegetables and berries provide exceptional amounts of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants with minimal calories. Other top contenders include seafood, avocados, legumes, nuts, and seeds.
What are the healthy foods in the food pyramid?
Healthy foods in modern food pyramids include: vegetables and fruits (base of pyramid), whole grains, lean proteins (fish, poultry, beans, nuts), healthy oils (olive, avocado), low-fat dairy or alternatives, and limited amounts of red meat, refined grains, and added sugars (top of pyramid).
However, this is the general healthy pyramid, not necessarily optimal or individualized.
What are the most nutrient dense foods?
The most nutrient-dense foods include:
- cruciferous vegetables (broccoli, Brussels sprouts)
- berries (blueberries, strawberries, raspberries)
- fatty fish (salmon, sardines)
- liver and organ meats
- eggs and full fat dairy (butter, milk, cheese)
- nuts and seeds (walnuts, pecans, flax, chia)
- beans and legumes (lentils, chickpeas, quinoa)
- healthy fats (olive oil, coconut oil, butter)
- fermented foods (yogurt, kefir, sauerkraut)
- leafy greens (kale, spinach)
3 Steps to Healthier Eating
- Step – Identify your current dietary habits, most consumed foods and meals.
- Step – Healthifize those meals by adjusting the foods and macros to fit a healthier plate.
- Step – Find practical ways to make buying, cooking, storing, and eating as smooth as possible.
To elevate a plate, focus on quality nutrient-dense foods and substitute smartly. A few examples include
- swap simple for complex, fiber-rich carbohydrates
- include more quality protein in your meals
- include more healthy fats and exclude trans fats
- add antioxidant-rich spices and herbs to your meals
- Reduce the total quantity of calories or carbohydrates
So, if one eats white (simple) pasta with ketchup, mayo, and processed cheese, a great alternative would be whole-grain pasta with avocado, homemade pesto, tsp of olive oil, and feta cheese.
Instead of deep fried chicken wings and french fries, one can roast chicken thighs and add baked sweet potatoes with garlic and oregano. Still very tasty, still very delicious.
Mastering Your 5 Healthy Meals
Mastering the top 5 meals that make up the majority (90%) of our diet creates a strong fundamental base to build a diet off of. These meals should emphasize the most important, nutrient-dense foods that form the backbone of a healthy diet.
Here’s an example of what those 5 meals could look like.
Red Meat and Veggies
This meal typically consists of lean red meat like beef or lamb paired with a variety of vegetables. Red meat provides high-quality protein and essential nutrients like iron and zinc, while vegetables offer fiber, vitamins, and minerals.
A great example would be a Rib-Eye Steak with a side of poached potatoes and steamed asparagus. Some salt, pepper, and pesto and a small cube of grass-fed butter on top.
Alternatives:
- Beef liver (pan-fried) with caramelized onions and mushrooms
- Chilli Con Carne → ground lean beef, red kidney beans, onion, peppers, rice, and tomato sauce
- Grilled Venison Steak with green peas and mashed potatoes in soy sauce
Egg Veggie Omelette
An egg veggie omelette is a nutritious and versatile dish made by whisking eggs with chopped vegetables like bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, and spinach. Eggs are an excellent source of protein and essential nutrients, while vegetables add fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants.
It can be any type of omelette combination you desire. Our top three favorite combinations include
- avocado toast with eggs and bacon combination
- eggs, leek, and mushrooms omelette, with spinach on top
- veggies omelette → mixing eggs, onion, jalapeno, bell pepper, zucchini, and black olives
- broccoli and cheddar omelette, with black pepper and whole wheat toast
Oats, Nuts and Berries
This one is a great nutty combination that packs a ton of fiber, a lot of healthy fats, and antioxidants. It combines oats, nuts, nut butter, seeds, and berries. Yes, it’s high in healthy fats which means high in calories. Reducing the amount (or excluding) of nuts and butter will make it slimmer.
- 2 scoops of ground oats
- 1 scoop of ground walnuts
- 1 scoop of protein
- 10 nuts of your choice (cashews, walnuts, almonds)
- 1 tbsp of flax seeds
- 1 scoop of superfood mix (not essential, great for taste, chocolate version)
- 1 tbsp of peanut butter
- 1/2 glass of hot water
Mix it until it’s nice and thick, thicker than a pudding. Then add ~150 grams of Greek yogurt and mix it well. Now add 1 cup of fresh berries, or unfreeze the frozen ones with hot water and drop it in. With a cup of coffee next to it, you’re ready to go.
You can remove the peanut butter and cut on the nuts to go lighter on the calories. This way you have a protein-powered oatmeal
Seafood and Salad
This meal typically includes seafood in combination with different veggies. This combination offers a low-carbohydrate but high-protein and healthy fat content.
Seafood, including fish like salmon, shrimp, and tuna, is rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which are essential for heart health, brain function, and reducing inflammation in the body. Seafood is also an excellent source of high-quality protein and contains various vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin D, vitamin B12, selenium, and iodine.
Leafy greens like spinach, kale, and arugula are particularly rich in vitamins A, C, and K, as well as folate and iron. Adding ingredients like avocado, nuts, and olive oil provides healthy fats, while protein sources like grilled chicken, shrimp, or tofu make salads a balanced and satisfying meal option.
Meal Ideas
- Grilled salmon with potatoes, asparagus, and green peppers
- Tuna Poke Bowl – tuna marinated in soy-sesame dressing with sushi rice and mixed greens, topped with an avocado
- Orzo salad – shrimp sauteed with garlic and lemon, served over cooked pasta mixed with herbs, olives, feta cheese, and tomatoes.
Pesto Pasta and Avocado
For all the pasta lovers out there, there’s a healthier way to eat pasta. The white version is made up of simple carbs that spike glucose and insulin high, leading to an energy crash. Making pasta healthier has to do with quantity and carb complexity.
Eating a smaller amount of whole wheat pasta [complex carbohydrates] with mashed avocado, a teaspoon of olive oil [healthy fats], and a few feta cheese cubes [protein] on top. It’s delicious
Other healthier pasta alternatives include pasta made from chickpeas, lentils, or peas. For the sauce, we can go with a Mediterranean style, like tomato, garlic, and olives, or throw in some Greek tzatziki, zucchini, and herbs. Your call.
Weekly Examples
This is the weekly combination of these meals, including some snacks in between
- Monday → meal 1 (protein oatmeal + berries) and meal 2 (grilled salmon with veggies)
- Tuesday → meal 1 (veggie omelette rolls) and meal 2 (liver, mushrooms, and onion)
- Wednesday → meal 1 (toast with peanut butter & berries) and meal 2 (pesto pasta with avocado)
- Thursday → meal 1 (protein oatmeal + berries) and meal 2 (grilled salmon with veggies)
- Friday → Meal 1 (omelette with leek and pepper) and Meal 2 (beef stake with potatoes and onion)
- Saturday → meal 1 (protein oatmeal + berries) and meal 2 (pesto avocado pasta)
- Sunday → variable, leftovers, eating out.
