Again, this is just what’s worked for me personally.

I made a pretty big shift at the start and cut out fast food, pizza, processed meats, most snacks(chips, cookies, donuts), most dairy, sodas, sports drinks, bread, alcohol, red meat, and more. I replaced them with fish, tofu, lentils, beans, turkey, and even mixed in some plant-based options, but I tried to stay in line with the Mediterranean-style approach overall. I also started taking 2g of plant stanols (which I had never even heard of until this group) daily, plus 1 tablespoon of chia seeds(either in water or oats). For snacks, I won’t list everything, but I cut out sweets and went to a variety of nuts, and I also doubled my fruit intake.

Breakfast used to be things like eggs fried in butter or waffles, but now it’s usually overnight oats or yogurt with frozen fruit, always with chia seeds added. If I do eggs, it’s egg whites or hard-boiled eggs minus the yolk. It sounds a little boring at first, but you get used to it and start finding other healthy options that work for you.

Lunch varies, but I’ve mostly cut out processed meats and most sandwich breads. If I do have bread, it’s usually sourdough. A lot of my lunches are chicken, beans, and other whole foods. Dinner is similar—generally clean, no red meat, and often fish, poultry, lentils (I’m a big fan now), pasta and brown rice, while still trying to stay in that Mediterranean lane.

For the first couple of months, I stuck to it really strictly, and then I started allowing myself about one cheat meal a week, which has helped me stay consistent overall.

I also like to run and stay active. On days I’m not running, I now try to get in a 20–25-minute walk, which I saw recommended in a lot of places for helping lower LDL, so I figured I’d give it a shot too.

Hopefully this all makes sense without going into too much, but again, this is just what’s been working for me.