Canyon Ranch (Arizona)
It seems your teachers - and Mom - were right. Breakfast really is the most important meal of the day. Ask any nutritionist.
Studies have shown that when children miss breakfast, they can't concentrate. It's the same for adults. Without breakfast, your mood, memory, food cravings, concentration and energy are all affected, not just for the morning, but throughout the day.
And here's the really bad news about skipping breakfast: It makes you fat. While this may seem counterintuitive - aren't dieters supposed to be hungry? - it's borne out by research. By eating when you wake up, you tell your body that you aren't starving, and this sets your metabolism at a higher level for the rest of the day.
A good breakfast also helps you head off temptation later: Eating is a biological drive, and if we deny it early, the urge to eat will be stronger later in the day. This effect is so strong that some nutritionists call breakfast "preventive eating."
But not just any breakfast will make you thinner and smarter: Grabbing the nearest bagel on the way out the door is better than nothing, but it's far from ideal. The best breakfast is the balanced, hearty breakfast your teachers and mother pestered you about. And you should not put it off: You benefit most when you eat within one hour of waking.
Getting to the hearty breakfast Nutritionists emphasize the importance of consuming a balance of proteins, carbohydrates and fats, all from healthy sources, and twenty-five percent of your daily calories at breakfast.
Of course, your daily schedule will affect your needs. Perhaps you're more active on the weekends, spending more time on your feet than at a desk. Maybe you've scheduled a hike or bike ride that you can't squeeze into your workweek. You'd do well to anticipate increased activity and augment your breakfast calories slightly or take an extra morning snack to keep your energy at its peak.
But what if you exercise first thing? Eat a light snack before you go for your run or yoga class, then eat your full breakfast afterward.
A hearty breakfast need not be difficult to assemble. To strike the balance among proteins, carbohydrates and healthy fats, choose from tempting items such as:
natural peanut or almond butter
yogurt
low-fat cottage cheese
eggs or egg whites
milk or soy milk
smoked salmon
multigrain bread
blueberries, raspberries and other fruit
granola
oatmeal (steel-cut or thick rolled oats)
multigrain hot cereal
Here are some tips for creating an Olympic-champion quality breakfast:
- If you're looking for a way to sweeten your hot cereal and get a good dose of anti-inflammatory omega-3 oils at the same time, make a combination of walnuts, dried cherries or a little bit of chopped apple and some cinnamon. This will also make your cereal sweeter without adding sugar.
- If you're up and out the door early, plan ahead to have some grab-and-go breakfast items ready, such as apples and oranges, low-fat whole grain muffins, peeled hard-boiled eggs and single-serving containers of yogurt or skim or low-fat milk. You can manage a great breakfast on the go.
- Do you find that you're hungry two to three hours after breakfast? If so, perhaps you haven't consumed enough calories. Or maybe you ate a breakfast too high in refined carbohydrates, without a balance of protein and healthy fats. Make a point of noticing your hunger and energy levels with various breakfast strategies - a journal comes in handy - and keep trying different combinations of foods until you find those that you most enjoy and that keep you on an even keel through the morning.
- Vary your breakfast choices to provide an array of nutrients. This will also help you avoid over-exposure to foods that may contain trace amounts of toxins.
Finally, eat breakfast for the sheer enjoyment of it, knowing that you're doing something very good for yourself.
http://www.canyonranch.com/
(800) 742-9000
