Most of us have a tough time with breakfast. We either eat a horrible nutritionally weak, sugar-laden, processed-carbohydrate, fat-promoting mess or nothing at all. Typical excuses for these breakfast choices are: “I don’t have enough time,” “I’m not hungry in the morning,” or “I just do coffee (with fat-free creamer and artificial sweeteners) to get me going.”
What’s wrong with this picture? First of all, you haven’t eaten since dinner the night before. That is a fast of 7 to 10 hours. Our bodies are in desperate need of nutrition at this point and it is sending out signals of “feed me, feed me.” Ignoring your body’s signals and prolonging the evening fast a few more hours to the point that it is now 12 hours since your last meal means you are now in starvation mode. This means your metabolism is shutting down in order to conserve energy. Guess what? You are now training your body to stay fat. Feed your body, jump-start your metabolism and eat breakfast.
Here are my answers to all those excuses:
- “I don’t have enough time in the morning for breakfast.” Solution: Get up earlier! Prepare your meal the night before.
- “I’m not hungry in the morning.” Solution: Eat anyway. Retrain your body to expect food at this time and send out hunger signals.
- “I just do coffee to get me going.” Solution: Instead of using caffeine for an energy boost use whole balance foods that are good for your health and body composition.
Your breakfast meal should consist of lean protein, complex carbohydrates, as much fiber as possible and a little bit of healthy fat. Here are some examples:
- 2 Eggs scrambled with fresh spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms with a side of fresh fruit;
- Mix a scoop of whey protein with milk or water, a little flax seed oil, berries and a banana. Blend, poor and enjoy;
- 2 Tbsp of natural peanut butter, sprouted grain bread and an apple.
Here’s what the scientists tell us:
A study published in the British Journal of Nutrition showed that increased dietary protein consumed at breakfast leads to an initial and sustained feeling of fullness during energy restriction compared to other meal times.
Another study showed that men who ate eggs for breakfast had a positive influence on plasma glucose and ghereline while reducing energy intake over the next 24 hours.
Stay Strong and Healthy,
Peter Holmes
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