This is Why You Need to Eat Breakfast
Now that the cherry blossoms have bloomed and spring is officially here it's time to change how we eat.
Daylight savings can throw us off, and so can this week's full moon. With that in mind we might s well harness the artificial manipulation of time and the gravitational pull of the universe to catapult our culinary habits into eating for future wellness mode.
Let's start with the most important meal of the day, the first one we eat. It's time to debunk all those myths about breakfast created to market "processed foods" to hungry humans. Breakfast is two words, break and fast combined. Breakfast is the meal that breaks the fast that occurs when we sleep.
Not a breakfast person? Think again!
From a productivity standpoint, what you eat for your first meal is the fuel your body and brain will use during the day. It's an opportunity to front-load your day with energy, fuel up a clear mind and avoid plummeting blood sugar at 10 AM.
How we start each day sets the tone for the day, and a few simple tweaks to your morning routine can increase your energy and lead to better food choices throughout the day.
One of the best tips to keep in mind is that including fiber, fat, and protein in the first meal of each day is the trifecta for morning success. Eating a breakfast rich in protein, fat, and fiber - not carbohydrates like cereals, toast, granola bars, and oatmeal - changes lives. Once we ditch the refined carbohydrates, sugar and caffeine cravings disappear, focus increases, and even our sleep improves.
We can get all these benefits by simply stabilizing our blood sugar levels at the start of each day, which additionally helps to balance our hormones!
So, change the way you think about the first meal of each day. With a subtle mind-shift and a few culinary tweaks, you can take control of your days and have the energy and clarity for the things that truly matter. Being a carbohydrate and sugar crusher early in the day not only makes you a hangry human it hijacks the most productive hours of your day.
The first meal of the day really is the most important. It breaks the fast, fuels the body and brain and sets us up for success. How we start each day is key to its success. Fiber, fat and protein help us put the odds in our favor.
Breakfast Action Plan
- Start each morning with 8-10oz warm or room temperature water boosted with the juice of half a lemon or lime. Consider adding electrolyte drops for improved hydration.
- Make sure the first meal of each day includes healthy fat, fiber and protein. Low glycemic fruits like berries, avocados and melon, salad, fermented slaws, nuts, seeds, unsweetened coconut or nut yogurt, eggs, soups and salads , even leftovers all work well.
- Eat breakfast like a king. Consume the bulk of your calories early in the day so your body can burn the calories for fuel instead of storing them as fat.
- Chew! Most of us short change the chewing process. Be sure to chew each bite of food at least 15-22 times. I like to say chew 22 times in 2022.
- Minimize drinking liquids with meals. Too often liquids are used to wash down food that is not fully broken down by chewing.
- Plan healthy snacks of fruit, nuts, seeds and veggies to get you through to lunch.
Everything becomes more manageable when we start each day with healthy habits and a can-do mindset. We make better food choices throughout the day, have more energy, a clear mind, less stress and happier days.
Breakfast, at its best, is a strategic tool we can use to be healthier, happier and more productive.
Kristen Coffield is The Lifestyle Wellness Expert. She is the founder of www.theculinarycure.com, where she teaches purpose-driven women to turn food and habit into superpowers for health and happiness. Her 21-Day Detox & Reset For Busy Women begins May 9th. Kristen is also the co-founder of www.betterthangossip.com with Amy Schmidt of www.fearlesslyfacingfifty.com.
Follow Kristen on Instagram https://instragram.com/kristencoffield/