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Breakfast isn't just cereal
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Photo credit: Dirk Westera
Eating breakfast will:
- Increase focus and mental clarity
- Enhance fat loss or muscle gain
- Improve performance in fitness training
- Support overall health, including reducing the risk of heart disease, stroke, and diabetes, and bolstering your immune system.
The rising adage of “Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and supper like a pauper” is a great tip. A hearty and healthy breakfast will fuel you for the day to come, and help prevent gorging on the junk food in the break room when the burrito lady or bagel guy comes in at 10:00.
Most people know from experience with morning-after pizza that they can eat items outside of the “accepted breakfast food” list first thing in the morning, but for the most part Americans stick to the tried-and-true list of pastries, cereal, and juice – if they eat breakfast at all.
What should breakfast entail?
Like every meal, breakfast should have noticeable amounts of protein, healthy oils, and some fibrous vegetation. Along with that, however, you’ve just gone for several hours with no water. Sure, have your coffee or tea if you need it, but make sure you have a nice big glass of pure, clean water. In addition, breakfast may be the best time to get some complex carbohydrates, depending on your personal goals and individual needs.
On that note, here are a few ideas for taking breakfast beyond the cereal bowl.
The traditional breakfast
Eggs have gotten a bad rap based on the cholesterol in the yolk, but studies have shown they have minimal impact on blood cholesterol, and appear to have no impact on coronary heart disease. Further, the satiety from eating whole eggs is showing promise in promoting weight loss.
For a traditional breakfast, nothing beats a scramble with some meat and veggies. Try scrambling 1-2 whole eggs plus another 2 egg whites with turkey breast, sautéed onions, and chopped broccoli or asparagus. Frozen veggies work great for these – just pop them in the microwave for a minute to thaw them before adding them to the skillet. Use a spritz of olive oil to lubricate the pan, add a few avocado slices to the top, and you’ll have a couple other sources of healthy fat. Fresh fruit on the side, and you’re all set with a healthy, complete breakfast.
Need to add some carbs? A small bowl of quick-cook oatmeal takes no longer to prepare in the microwave than instant oatmeal, and has one of the lowest glycemic loads in the starchy-food menu.
The international breakfast
But who says breakfast has to be eggs? Some of the foods we consider to be for dinner are actually better breakfast foods, just because they take longer to digest, and provide a steady source of nutrition for hours.
We think of breakfast burritos using eggs, sausage, and potatoes, but a great day-starter is lean beef or chicken (use leftovers from last night’s dinner!), beans, chopped onions, chiles, and tomatoes, and a corn tortilla. Use a tablespoon of full-fat plain Greek yogurt instead of sour cream, and a little bit of shredded cheese, and you’ll have a breakfast to sink your teeth into! And feel free to use some of the avocado if you have some left from yesterday’s scrambled eggs.
Another option is steamed brown rice with stir-fried fish and vegetables. Add a dash of sesame oil for a great flavor burst.
The “really fast”, or the “I don’t like to eat when I wake up” breakfast
A lot of people skip breakfast to get an extra 30 minutes sleep, or because they can’t bring themselves to actually eat first thing in the morning. For them, the breakfast shake is a perfect option. Throw the liquid of your choice (water for the lowest calories, milk for added protein, or juice if you’re trying to add extra calories) into a blender with frozen berries and a scoop of vanilla protein powder. Blend until smooth and creamy, and drink while you’re getting ready for work.
If your mornings are terminally jangled, blend it the night before, and put it in a wide-mouth bottle in the fridge so you can just grab it and drink it in the car. For best results, use it to wash down a couple of fish oil capsules for the omega-3 fatty acids your body and brain need to function properly.
Other options
- Try a whole-grain wrap with roast beef, lettuce, tomatoes, and canola or olive oil mayo.
- Protein bars like Zero Impact by VPX offer great nutritional bang-for-their-buck, in a highly convenient package. Just be aware of the caloric impact (the Zero Impact is 400 kCals per bar, and may constitute two meals or snacks for some people), and make sure you drink plenty of water to allow your body to absorb the nutrients.
- Prepare some healthy quiche over the weekend and grab-and-heat a serving of it each morning. Find a great recipe here.
Your mother always told you that breakfast was the most important meal of the day. Science has proven her to be right, and a little bit of culinary engineering can make it easy and tasty as well. Think outside the cereal cabinet and start to enjoy breakfast!
For more info:
Studies on eggs by Dr. Bruce Griffin in Nerdy Science and in the Nutrition Bulletin.
Zero Impact bars are available at The Nutrition Company in Westminster and Boulder
Have a question for Jonathan? Send it to defylimitations.com!
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