Upgrade Your Breakfast

​Breakfast is often referred to the most important meal of the day.  Some people get this concept some don't.  Breakfast for a lot of people actually looks lot more like dessert.  Just yesterday we were in a local restaurant and watched a guy sitting in the booth across from us enjoy waffles à la mode.  Really, ice cream for breakfast on top of a sweet bread, topped with liquid sugar and whip cream.  Why is that even an option for breakfast?  Seriously!!!

They all look pretty delicious don't they!  

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You might recognize that waffles à la mode isn't an ideal breakfast but do you know why?  
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#1 - The obvious one is this type of breakfast is packed with sugar.  I don't think I need to explain why the sugar in this amount is bad. 

#2 - We love our fat but we also love getting it from quality sources and this type of breakfast is also extremely fat dense.  This combination of high fat and high sugar/carbohydrate is the reason we have the obesity epidemic that faces us in this country.  The calorie density is through the roof when you combine sugar and fat, our brains just don't know when to say enough is enough when you combine those things.  

#3 - Breakfast is also a unique meal.  If you look at it's name "Break - Fast" this is the meal that breaks what is likely a 8-10 hour fast depending on when you last ate the previous night.  It is because we are in this fasted state that our body is primed to absorb more of the energy that we provide it. 

This happens mainly due to us being more insulin sensitive after a fast.  That means that your body will easily transport blood glucose (carbs) into cells.  Now if you worked out at 6 a.m. and you then consume a carb dense breakfast that carbohydrate/glucose will get transported to muscle tissue.  That's a good thing!  If you roll out of bed and have an Ego waffle, bowl of cereal, or a bowl of oatmeal topped with brown sugar and raisins, that carbohydrate will likely get stored in fat cells.  

#3 - Lastly, a meal like those mentioned so far is lacking almost all nutritional value.  In general, color is a sign of a food's nutritional value.  If you didn't cook a waffle, that whole plate would be white = zero nutrition. 

When you combine combine, calorie dense, blood sugar spiking, and nutrient poor all together in one food/meal you are either having one hell of a treat meal or trying to develop diabetes.

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How do you upgrade your breakfast?

#1 - Eat a balanced meal or for some a lower carbohydrate meal depending on how sensitive you are to carbohydrates.  Balanced meal means getting equal amount of calories from protein, fats and carbs.  The one that is hardest for most is the protein source. Some of our favorite ways to add protein to breakfast is egg whites, protein powder via a shake or pancakes, or meat of some kind.  Studies have even shown that a protein dense breakfast will help stave off hunger throughout the entire day, meaning less snacking and more calories consumed.  

Sweet Potato and Black Bean Hash

#2 - Add some vegetables!  Yeah we said it veggies for breakfast.  Not only does this up the nutritional value the meal it also adds some fiber.  Try to make 1/3 of your plate a veggie!  Our go to is sauteed broccoli slaw or steamed broccoli.   By adding fiber you you slow down the digestion process and therefore will avoid blood sugar spikes and as much of that energy getting sent off to fat cells. 

Pumpkin Spice Protein Pancakes and Broccoli

#3 - Keep it simple.  The morning can be a tough time to put a fancy breakfast together.  Why do you think cereal is a breakfast staple, convenience.  So just make something else that fits the above criteria convenient for you.  For a long time this meant have a shake for breakfast that was balanced nutritional and loaded up with some greens to get veggies.  Overnight oats that contain some extra protein, greek yogurt with berries, or egg muffins.

#4 - Find something that you like and works for you and stick with it.  Variety is important for diet but that means throughout the day, not day to day.  Breakfast for us is almost identical 5 days a week, eggs, broccoli of some form and plantains.  Find what works for you.  ​

Our Typical Breakfast

The common thread that connects all these tips, is having a plan.  That starts with maybe building anywhere from an extra 5 minutes up to 20 minutes to prepare an upgraded breakfast.  It means having some healthier options stocked in the fridge, freezer and pantry.  It means knowing ahead of time what you are going to make or meal prepping earlier in the week.  

We would love to hear what are your go-to breakfast options?  

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Want some healthy breakfast options along with an entire week oF healthy, simple recipes?  Just follow the link below and we would love to share our 5 Day Meal Guide with you.  

YES, PLEASE!!!