Give Every Day a Fair Start

I was very motivated to eat a healthy breakfast. I was excited to give my day a great start!

Reasons why you should eat breakfast:

• Your body has fasted since your last meal (if you are not a late-night snacker, that can be up to 12 hours of fasting!). In a fasted state, your metabolism slows. Our bodies are extremely efficient machines. Much like a Prius, if you’re sitting at a red light idling, it’s going to conserve fuel. Eating breakfast within an hour of waking boosts your metabolism. Thermic Effect of Food corresponds to a 10% increase in metabolism for an hour or two. 
• Eating a balanced breakfast will help to stave off hunger pangs later in the morning/day.
  • Oh, you’re one of those who get hungrier when they eat breakfast!
    • That’s because your breakfast is high in sugar. Sugar causes an insulin response. Insulin grabs the sugar from your blood stream and stores it as FAT. And then your blood sugar drops and you get cravings and hunger. Cycle continues.
      • You get frustrated because you can’t seem to lose weight.
        • Believe me, I get it. It’s simple.
          • Eat more protein at breakfast, less sugar.

Reasons why my breakfast this morning rocked!

My breakfast was well-balanced. My breakfast kept me feeling satiated until past lunchtime! My breakfast made me feel good about myself! My breakfast contained fruit, nuts, healthy grains, dairy, probiotics, protein, electrolytes and TASTE!

• Ezekiel bread (toasted) - Sprouted Ezekiel breads, also called sprouted grain breads or Essene breads, have a nutty flavor and a moist, spongy texture. This traditional bread dates back 2,000 years, to loaves sun-baked on large stones. The main ingredient in Ezekiel breads is sprouted grain, typically hard red winter wheat. Sprouted grain is combined with water, yeast and other ingredients, then baked to form slightly flattened, heavy loaves. To Read more at Livestrong.com: http://www.livestrong.com/article/480892-what-are-the-benefits-of-sprouted-ezekiel-breads/#ixzz2LbMMrVnD
  
• Almond butter (roasted, unsalted) – My chiropractor (Dr. Tom Swick of Cazenovia, New York) got me hooked on almonds in 2009. During that time I learned that almonds have a way of controlling blood sugar, which will stave off the hunger during the day. They help reduce blood pressure and, despite their relatively high fat content, they actually aid in fat metabolism. I gave up peanut butter (willingly) years ago.. I simply lost interest. After you fall in love with almonds, and especially when you find a food store that provides an almond grinder, you’ll never go back. Peanuts aren’t nuts anyway. They’re legumes. But that’s beside the point. I can’t help but feel healthy when I’m eating almond butter!
• Banana (organic) – I don’t think it’s important to buy organic bananas because the skin is so thick.. but the others were green so I paid an extra $0.10/banana for the organics. I’d like to understand why bananas get a bad rap in online diet ads that read “Five foods to avoid” – always with a picture of a banana. Bananas are filling. They’re loaded with potassium. And they pair well with many foods. And I love bananas.
• Blueberries (organic) – Blueberries. Yumtious. A new University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study suggests that blueberries may help reduce belly fat and risk factors for cardiovascular disease and metabolic syndrome. Blueberries are loaded with antioxidants! Oxidative stress is a topic for a different day, but antioxidants are lifesavers! Blueberries are worth the extra cost!
• Kefir (probiotics) – I don’t know much about Kefir but that it’s a fermented milk and it’s loaded with probiotics. My body needs more probiotics than the average person because of an imbalance that was caused from antibiotics and steroids (serious poison ivy reaction).
• Coconut water (electrolytes) – Coconut water is naturally packed with electrolytes that need to be replaced post-exercise. Gatorade comes with a truckload of sugar. Coconut water does not. I prefer VitaCoco but Zico was on sale at Trader Joe’s so that’s what I went with.
• Whey protein powder – I’ll never be one of those kids who walks around the gym between sets wearing a beanie and a wife beater, drinking supplements from a shaker bottle. But. protein powder is a great way to increase your protein without increasing fat or calories in addition. Adding protein powder to a smoothie increases its health benefits tremendously. Mainly because the protein is going to help build stronger muscles but also because it will help control hunger.
• Breakfast tea – I stopped drinking coffee for some odd reason this week. I slept in late over the weekend and didn’t finish my coffee either morning. After splurging on Wendy’s with a friend this week, I went to the grocery store and started on a new health food kick. Two boxes of tea ended up in my shopping basket.. and it has been an amazing week. I have nothing against coffee.. I just think it was time for a change!
• half & half (organic) – I do love to have cream in my coffee or tea.. No fat-free for this girl (anymore) – once I realized how packed full of high fructose corn syrup the fat-free varieties are. No flavors. No added sugar. Just the creamy goodness of organic half & half. Mmm.
• No added sugar or salt – No need! Food has an amazing taste all by itself! Give it a try!

Don’t skip your breakfast! It’s the most important meal! (Unless your breakfast is a donut .. then you’re probably better off without).

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