Quick breakfast suggestions
Last time, I discussed how what we do first thing in our day, has a major impact on our energy and performance. Part of that healthy early morning routine, is having a nutritious breakfast.
Now I realize that we all have different body clocks and that some of us are not hungry when we get up. If you’re one of those, you won’t at first see the point in forcing yourself to eat, especially if like most people, you’re always mindful of weight control.
The thing is, there is too much scientific evidence to ignore on the benefit of breakfast for optimal body functioning, and for weight management for that matter.
And some people are not hungry in the morning because they ate too much late at night. Some of that is sheer habit, and some is a way of destressing, whether we realize it or not. Once again, studies prove that having breakfast can help improve both the stress and late hunger levels.
Just about all of us are rushed for time so whatever we have must be quick, but it has to be nutritious so it can’t be a donut, danish, croissant or plain bagel with butter and jam. After all, despite all of the confusing and contradictory opinions on diet, there is consensus that refined flour and sugar are not good fuel for the body, quite the opposite.
So here are a few ideas for breakfast newbies, some lighter in quantity than others to accommodate those who really would rather skip it all together:
- Whole grain toast and peanut (almond, or cashew) butter
- Have it un-toasted if you are really time challenged
- Have it with fruit (banana, apple, or pineapple slices)
- Have it with cheese instead of nut butter
- Whole grain cereal (preferably unsweetened) with milk, soy or almond milk
- Yogurt with berries and nuts tossed in it for protein
- Boiled egg(s) (boil several ahead of time to have them ready to go in the morning)
- Have a fruit as well with the egg(s)
- Leftover whole wheat pizza slice
- Protein shake (in a water bottle to go, if you must)
A few words on protein shakes: You can of course make your own, but I’m assuming here that most people wouldn’t want to take the time for that. Then you can simply buy a good brand from health food stores, grocery stores, or online.
What makes a brand good? As in all foods, it’s always better to choose the brands with the fewest artificial ingredients. For example, there is growing evidence that aspartame and other artificial sweeteners are, shall we say, a bad idea. Also, you can work around any food allergies by choosing from different protein bases, whey and soy being the most common.
I personally like and use the “Nutrition Now” shakes which I order online at: http://www.phporder.com/RetailProductSearchResults.aspx?Search=nutrition+now&ID=hd . What I like is they have no artificial products or sweeteners in them.
One final word about my old breakfast favorite: muffins. They are convenient, tasty,…and are basically cakes. If you happen to love cooking at night or on weekends, or have a family member who does, you can find healthier recipes for them and then they can be an option. Just make sure you have protein with it: cheese or nut butter.
If anyone has any ideas about breakfast, I’d love if you shared them with us in a comment.
How to have energy left at the end of the day
Last week I shared my thoughts about Robert K. Cooper’s book “High Energy Living”, and promised to give examples of some of his tools and techniques. One of them starts at the beginning…of our day that is.
How do you start your day?
The vast majority of us would describe it with one adjective: rushed. That’s how I did it for most of my working life. After all, I was tired and so I waited as late as I could to get up to get as much sleep as possible. Even after I realized that I didn’t enjoy being in a mad frenzy and set my alarm a little earlier, I still felt rushed because there never seemed to be an end to what needed to be done before heading out the door.
I remember sitting around with colleagues one day and the subject turned to how nice it would be to be retired so that we wouldn’t have to rush around in the morning.
Two things jump out at me about this conversation:
- That we were wishing our lives away, wanting to be older to escape the work pressures.
- And that of all the many benefits of not having to work, a leisurely start to our day topped the list. So we intuitively know how important it is.
Dr. Cooper says that: “Amazingly, researchers can predict how much energy someone will likely have in late afternoon and evening by measuring that person’s behavior patterns in the morning. You essentially make a choice for your entire day by the way you get up in the morning and by what you do - or don’t do - in the first hour or so after rising. ”
Basically, being in a mad rush first thing in the morning sends a warning to your body that it better brace itself for more to come, so we end up in a state of tension that depletes us before the day is done. We also operate in battle-mode which is detrimental to our health, and our productivity (I’ll say more about that at another time).
My experience taught me that just waking up 15 minutes earlier isn’t enough of an answer; it often ends up being just an extra 15 minutes of running around or mental tension. Instead, we need to have a routine that sets the stage for the rest of the day.
Many people balk at that because they assume I’m talking about meditating. That’s too much of a stretch for most people and my routine doesn’t include sitting cross-legged clearing my mind for 15-30 minutes. Dr.Cooper’s suggested morning routine doesn’t either.
Here are a few possibilities you might want to incorporate:
- Select an alarm clock that doesn’t jar you awake. Even if you are a heavy sleeper, there are many models available now that start off with a softer tone and increase it only if you don’t respond.
- Instead of jumping out of bed with an adrenaline rush, take a few deep breaths and consciously stretch and relax your muscles. (If you’re worried about falling back asleep, do this while sitting or standing by your bed).
- Mental relaxation is also highly recommended and I teach a number of quick techniques. Just noticing any mental tension and telling yourself that the problems can wait just a little longer, is a start.
- You may not have the time or inclination to go jogging, but even a few minutes of light movement will help improve your bodies’ functioning for the whole day.
- As much as possible, expose yourself to natural light.
- And have some nutrition (yes, breakfast, and not a donut). It doesn’t have to be a lot, but there is too much scientific evidence that breakfast helps with energy levels and weight control to go against that advice.
Do I hear protests that this will take too much time? How much time do you think it takes: 30 minutes?
That would be ideal, but you can do a decent job with even 15 minutes. And trading 15 minutes of sleep for being a lot less tired during the day seems like a good decision to me.
This is not a blog about nutrition, but since breakfast brings up such a mental roadblock for some people, it might be helpful to list some quick suggestions in the next post.
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