So first of all what did you have for breakfast today....?
A lot of you will answer one of the following:-
(a)cereal
(b)toast
(c)nothing!
As you can see theres not a bit of protein in sight and this is typical of most of the population, everyone is in a rush these days but if I told you that you could lose weight from eating breakfast would that make you get up 5 minutes earlier to get some breakie down you? - it works for me!
Everyone knows that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and its true! (There's science to back this up.) If you don't eat a breakfast or you eat one of the examples above (mainly carbohydrates) you are setting yourself up for a mid-morning crash and some serious hunger pangs by mid-day. This is when you will again reach for something carbohydrate based or something high in sugar and the effect this has on the body is not good. It releases way too much sugar into the bloodstream and so the body reacts by producing the hormone insulin to counteract the sudden rush of blood sugar. Insulin is a fat storing hormone and if we are trying to slim down this is not what we want a lot of! This is called the Insulin Spike.
OK, So Why Eat Protein At Breakfast?
A high protein breakfast can give you all the perfect start to your day. Eating it at breakfast is great for fueling up after a long nights sleep. Protein will make you feel full and satisfied for longer and it does this in two ways (1) by reducing the rise in blood sugar - which means you don't get that Insulin Spike which I talked about above and (2) it stays in your stomach for longer simply because it takes the body longer to digest it which means you feel fuller for longer and are less likely to snack on high sugary foods or carbohydrate based foods...leading to the aid of weight loss!
Also if we think about this logically when do we require the most energy...at the start of the day, right? as we have the WHOLE DAY to get through!!! So doesn't it make sense to start your day by fueling your bodies with something thats going to get you feeling energized and feeling good! I guarantee you will end up being more productive with your day if you give it ago. We all eat the wrong way round, is this you...
Breakfast - toast/cereal/nothing
Mid Morning Snack - biscuit
Lunch - Sandwich, apple, crisps
Afternoon Snack - chocolate bar (I'm feeling tired and need some energy now)
Tea - Spaghetti Bolognese/Chicken,Veg, New Potatoes etc
Yes? I guarantee you feel tired and lethargic around 3pm in the afternoon and you are just waiting to finish work for the day. But look at that food diary which is the biggest meal? The evening meal when we require the least amount of energy, I'm hoping that you are seeing my trail of thought now. See my diagram below:
My friend here wasn't very happy when he ate a small breakfast and a large evening meal and he found he stored a lot of fat around his mid section. When he changed the way he ate i.e. eating a bigger protein based breakfast and reducing his portion sizes throughout the day he was a lot happier and found he became a lot more lean and had soooo much more energy!
Adding a source of protein to each main meal will help you dramatically, keep carbohydrates to good sources i.e. veggies, salads, switch white potato for sweet potato and try to cut out all processed white food products i.e. bread, pasta rice...if you want to keep pasta in your diet try and cut down the amount you eat and opt for brown gluten free the the same with rice or stick to basmati rice another substitute for rice is Quinoa. Good fats are essential in your diets you can get these in by adding in things like avocado, nuts and seeds and olives.
Good Sources of Protein For Breakfast:-
1. Eggs!
So simple and versatile i have eggs practically every single morning examples:-
Omelet (3 eggs) with mixed veg and ham/chicken etc
Scrambled eggs (2 eggs) and spinach/peppers/tomatoes/mushrooms
Poached Eggs (2 eggs) with spinach
2 poached/scrambled eggs with avocado
Boiled eggs - perfect for on the go!
2. Meat!
Examples are:-
2 bacon with spinach and tomato
2 sausages with spinach and tomato
Slices of Ham/Chicken with scrambled eggs
2 bacon with poached eggs and spinach
2 Sausages with scrambled/poached egg, tomato and mushrooms (great on the weekend!)
3. Yoghurt!
Non-Fat Greek Yoghurt with mixed berries - you could also add a scoop of protein (I recommend vanilla flavor)
4. Happy Cakes!
Recipe is already on my blog but why not add a scoop of protein to the mixture to up that protein intake :)
5. Leftovers!
Yep thats what i said leftovers! On a monday morning when your in a rush pick at some of that leftover meat from the roast the day before...perfect source of protein :)
Here's a picture of what I ate for my breakfast today it was delicious...
Scrambled eggs, mixed peppers and tomatoes - I seasoned my veg with a little salt and pepper and some chili flakes! and had a green tea on the side.
Another good reason to up your protein intake in your diet is it is necessary for healthy skin, nails, hair, muscles, cartilage and blood! It helps build and repair bodily tissues and is used to produce hormones and enzymes...its pretty good really!
Well I hope I have given you something to think about and hopefully you won't be skipping breakfast again and will be getting some protein in there.
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