Do you start off your day rushing through the mornings without breakfast? Power through with these quick breakfast tips to jumpstart your day right.
BY: JEANNE REILLY, MS, RD
When hunger strikes first thing in the morning, starting your day off with a solid breakfast can make the difference between a great day and a mediocre one. In fact, a nutritious breakfast has been linked to better mental and physical performance throughout the day.
So what exactly is a nutritious breakfast, and how do you make healthful choices that help you power through the day?
It starts by taking a quick look at your normal breakfast choices. Are you a breakfast skipper? A pastry or pancakes kind of person? Oatmeal or toast? Do you make a green smoothie or veggie omelet for yourself most mornings?
What does your normal breakfast routine look like?
Is it hurried or non-existent? Leisurely enough to allow you to cook your breakfast most mornings?
Depending on how you normally approach your first meal of the day, start by choosing just one single way to make it a little better each and every day. Check out these suggestions for a simple upgrade.
1. Make it Balanced
Look to get a balance of carbohydrates, protein, and fats to give you all the nutrients and energy you need to last you all morning. For example, most breakfast staples – oatmeal, toast, cereal, pastries – are rich in carbohydrates, but don’t offer much fat or protein. Not only do protein and healthy fats help keep you satisfied longer after meals, but they also fuel your brain, your muscles, your hormone production, and keep your blood sugar stable so you don’t have an energy crash.
Try adding some eggs, cream cheese and salmon lox, natural deli meats, chicken sausage, avocado, or beans to a flatbread wrap for easy, balanced breakfast options. Bonus points for adding in whatever veggies you have on hand.
2. Make it Fiber-ful
No one likes eating a banana for breakfast in the car on the way to work only to be hungry an hour later in the middle of their morning meeting. However, there may not be enough time in the mornings to sit down with a morning meal. Add some fiber to stay full and make it to lunch before hunger hits by grabbing a whole-grain, high-fiber bread or flatbread that’s spread with nut butter. Slice up that banana or just wrap up the whole thing in the high fiber wrap with peanut butter for a portable, high fiber breakfast you can take on the go.
3. Make it Doable
If you have just 5 minutes every morning to make breakfast and usually grab a bagel on your way out the door, don’t commit to whipping up a homemade veggie omelet. Instead, make it easier on yourself and choose something you’re confident you can do every day.
For example, microwave a couple eggs or egg whites for some quick scrambled eggs, toss in whatever leftover veggies you have on hand, and wrap it up for a quick and delicious breakfast wrap ready in minutes.
With just a few simple changes in the morning, your breakfast can help level up the rest of your day.
Adapted from the original article.
HEADER IMAGE: ELLEN AUER
Jeanne Reilly, MS, RD is a San Diego-based Registered Dietitian empowering parents to help their children develop lifelong healthy relationships with food and their bodies. She is dedicated to helping parents overcome the confusion and challenges of society-imposed rules in family nutrition and body image. Learn more and connect with her at Jeanne Reilly, RD.