Beth Motley MD, FACLM

03/17/2026

Hey all - I’m working on some updates to my website.

If you’re a community member that has heard me speak publically, could you send a few lines of feedback please? Hoping to collect a few comments to share!

You’re welcome to post here or a private message is also great! Thanks so much!

03/17/2026

Just watched this SNL sketch and… it’s funny because it’s exaggerated… but also a little uncomfortable because it’s not that far off.

We’re in a moment where opinions are starting to carry the same weight as evidence.

Science isn’t perfect, but it’s how we make progress.

A trailer advertises a new high-stakes medical drama.Saturday Night Live. Stream now on Peacock: https://pck.tv/3n1IyzKSubscribe to SNL: https://goo.gl/tUsXw...

03/16/2026

We put our house on the market last week and as you can imagine life has been VERY busy!

The word “entropy” didn’t mean much to me when I learned about it in 7th grade science.

But now that I have kids who like to play with Legos, it is very meaningful.

Entropy: the universe’s tendency toward increasing disorder.

During busy times, I prefer to fall back on one-pot meals. The last thing we need is more to clean up! This is a favorite from Minimalist Baker and it’s on the menu for tonight!

Hopefully this rain will let up for a few minutes since I prefer to walk to the grocery store… get my exercise in! 🤰🏼

Curried Black-Eyed Pea Soup (Easy + Cozy)

Ingredients
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 sweet potato, cubed
• 1 red bell pepper, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Tbsp grated ginger
• 2 Tbsp curry powder
• 4 cups vegetable broth
• 1 can coconut milk (or less if preferred)
• 2 cans black-eyed peas, drained
• 3 cups chopped kale
• Juice of ½ lime
• Salt + red pepper flakes to taste 

Instructions
1. Sauté onion, sweet potato, and bell pepper for ~5 min.
2. Add garlic, ginger, and curry powder; cook 1 min until fragrant.
3. Stir in broth, coconut milk, and black-eyed peas. Simmer 20–30 min.
4. Add kale and cook until wilted.
5. Finish with lime juice and salt to taste.

Serve as is or over rice. Cozy, fiber-packed, and plant-based.

😋

03/11/2026

Early morning ☀️ … claiming their muffins before they come out!

Whole-Wheat Berry Muffins (Forks Over Knives)

🥣 Ingredients
• ⅔ cup plant milk
• 1 tbsp ground flax
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
• 2 cups whole-wheat pastry flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ¼ tsp baking soda
• ¾ tsp salt
• ½ cup applesauce
• ½ cup maple syrup
• 1½ tsp vanilla
• 1 cup berries (fresh or frozen) 

👩‍🍳 Instructions
1. Heat oven to 350°F.
2. Mix plant milk, flax, and vinegar; let sit 1 minute.
3. Stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.
4. Add applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla, and the milk mixture.
5. Fold in berries.
6. Fill muffin cups ¾ full.
7. Bake 22–26 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean. 

Makes 12 muffins. 😋

03/09/2026

No spoilers here… this one was from February!

My dad texted me this the other day: “You HAVE to do Wordle today.”

The answer was VEGAN. 🤨

It reminded me of something I talk about with patients all the time: vegan and plant-based are not the same thing.

Vegan is an ethical framework, avoiding animal products for reasons related to animal welfare or environmental concerns.

Plant-based is a more medically-minded term, focusing on whole plant foods like vegetables, fruits, beans, intact whole grains, nuts, and seeds.

You can absolutely be vegan and still eat junk food… Oreos, Coca Cola, skittles, Swedish fish, etc. Technically vegan… but not health-promoting.

A whole-food plant-based diet focuses on foods that actually move the needle on heart disease, diabetes, weight, inflammatory disease, and longevity

Both great causes, but with different goals. And while they do have a lot of overlap on the Venn diagram, they are not the same!

For you personally — is your interest in plant-based eating mostly about health, ethics, or the environment?

I guess I should include “all of the above” and “none of the above" as options also. 🤔

03/07/2026

Lunch from the sidelines today. ⚽️

Meaning… low effort and low mess!

Whole wheat pasta, cucumbers, tomatoes, blueberries. 🫐 🥒 🍅

Not every meal needs to be a big production. Keep it simple!

03/02/2026

Join us for a deep dive into the science of sustainable change.

Head on over to the Pear Down community. The link is in the calendar! 🗓️

🍐 www.Skool.com/pear-down

Q&A to follow. Hope to see you there! 👩‍⚕️

03/02/2026

Every visit, his weight was up.

Diet recall was what many people today would call “dialed in”:

- Protein shake for breakfast
- Protein snacks
- Macro-based meals

At one point he looked at me and said, “I can’t eat any better than I already am,” and he really meant it.

Right now we are living in a culture that has done a very effective job convincing people that health = more protein.

So they double down… more shakes, more bars, more processed “high-protein” foods.

Meanwhile the scale keeps climbing and the hunger never really improves.

If what you’re doing isn’t working, it’s worth asking whether the model itself is the problem, not your willpower.

Health doesn’t come from fad diets or chasing macros. It comes from foods that are actually filling, high in fiber, and hard to overeat.

I suggested to him that we try a completely different approach.

I referred him to the Full Plate Living program because it’s a very approachable starting point, focused on adding real food, building a plate, and letting physiology work in your favor.

To get well, you cannot keep eating the same foods that made you sick. Perhaps it’s time for a new approach!

I’ll update you in a few months and let you know how we’re doing! 😉

02/28/2026

🌾 Not all “whole grains” act the same in your body.

A food can be technically “whole grain”…
but once its structure is broken down, your body can absorb the starch much faster, which means less fullness, less satiety, and a bigger glucose rise.

This is why the form of the grain matters just as much as the label.

The closer the grain is to its intact, chewable, fiber-packed state, the more it:

- Keeps you full on fewer calories
- Gives you steady energy
- Helps with weight management
- Supports metabolic health

As the grain gets more processed into flour, flakes, or puffs, you lose that built-in slowing effect.

The answer is not cutting out grains. It’s about making simple upgrades most of the time.

Intact grains are a metabolic game-changer for sustainable weight loss, insulin sensitivity, long-term health

Do we eat intact whole grains all the time? Certainly not. We enjoy whole grains all over the spectrum here. But when I’m postpartum and have some weight to lose… I definitely tighten up! This is also a very important tool that I use in the office with patients who have not met their health goals, e.g. those working to lose weight or overcome diabetes.

💬 What’s one grain you could move “up the ladder” this week?

02/27/2026

Grateful for a clinic full of absolute superstars. ⭐️

This patient was a little discouraged because she’s “only” down 15 pounds in 6 weeks…

…but let’s put that into perspective:

That’s ~2.5 lbs/week, which is right in, or above, the average rate seen with a weight loss medication.

More importantly, she’s not just chasing a number on the scale. She’s building the metabolic habits that will carry her through the next several decades.

- Low calorie density eating
- Daily movement + strength training
- Focusing on intact whole grains
- Layering in some of Dr. Greger’s 21 Tweaks

This is the work that makes weight loss sustainable, physiologic, and protective against chronic disease.

She is one of my out of town patients, committed to lifestyle medicine as her long-term path to health. 💚

We still have more to accomplish together, but she is firmly on the right road. I’ll catch her on the other side of my maternity leave! 🤰🏼

Want to get started?
Start with the “Low Calorie Density Eating for Weight Loss” course in the Pear Down community:
🍐 www.Skool.com/pear-down

02/26/2026

Come join our wonderful clinical family at Greenville Family Medicine!

02/26/2026

All set up for today’s Diabetes Remission Shared Medical Appointment!

Today’s prescription:
Exercise 🏃‍♀️ + Sleep 😴

Both are powerful tools for improving insulin sensitivity!

This group continues to inspire me. Individuals doing the real work of addressing the root cause of type 2 diabetes: insulin resistance, using the foundation of a whole-food, plant-based diet and Lifestyle Medicine.

Our next cohort begins in September
📅 Every other week for 6 sessions

Small group, lots of support, and real results.

Lifestyle Medicine is first-line therapy. Let’s treat the cause — not just the numbers.