What’s wrong with a cereal and yogurt breakfast?

Breakfast of Champions

I know what you’re thinking.  You’ve accepted the now-common wisdom that it’s a good thing to eat breakfast, and that it’s probably important to eat something ‘healthy’.  But if your idea of a healthy breakfast is a bowl of a Raisin Bran with skim milk and a glass or orange juice, or some museli with non-fat yogurt – you’re probably not optimizing your body for fat-loss and muscle gains.  The reason?  As these foods are little other than grain and dairy-based carbohydrates, your stomach can’t really treat them as anything but sugar.

Take most packaged cereals.  They are grain-based carbohydrates (not protein or fat) and even those marked “whole grain” have been processed and re-fortified with synthetic vitamins.  Beware of healthy sounding choices.  Raisin Bran, for example, contains more sugar than Froot Loops!

Feeling better about your oatmeal?  If you do eat oats, try and stick with the least processed variety such as steel cut oats.  Personally, I leave all grains off the breakfast table, unless I’ve just competed an intense workout.  Restricting grains is a good idea in general, as many people cannot tolerate them well, and if you are trying to lose weight and burn fat, it’s even more important.

Non-fat yogurt?  Ummm, that’s sugar.  The sugar may not be added, it’s just natural milk sugar – but yogurt is primarily a carbohydrate food.  Non-fat varieties are the worst, because there is no fat to slow down the absorption of the sugar into the bloodstream – you’re just getting the sugar.  Don’t get me wrong — I think yogurt can be a great food, but the yogurt I want to eat must be from an organic source, have no additives, thickeners or flavorings, and must contain its natural milk fat.

So what’s left for the breakfast table?

It’s not complicated.  I follow a few simple rules and ask myself the following questions:

i) Am I getting vegetables?  I don’t mean fruits, I mean vegetables.  I want to get 8-10 servings a day, and that means I need to eat a serving or two with every meal or snack.  So whether it’s tomato slices or some steamed broccoli – I make sure I get something in this category, even if it means munching on a few celery sticks while I prepare the rest of my breakfast. 

ii) Where is my protein source?  For me, that’s usually eggs – both whole eggs and egg whites (cage-free).  But it can also be leftover fish, canned fish (tuna, sardines, herring, etc) or a combination of eggs and fish (kippers and eggs anyone?).  Then there’s the obvious chicken and beef choices.  Sometimes breakfast can be just leftover dinner from the night before.

iii) Where is the fat?  Olive oil, avocados, nuts and seeds, fatty fish – these are all important components in a healthy diet.  I make sure to incorporate good sources of fat in all my meals.

It sometimes takes a bit of preparation, but I’m trying to be more creative in my breakfast choices.  But it’s one meal I will not skimp on, as it’s my absolute favourite.  In fact, I’m thinking about tomorrow’s now.  Think I’ll be making a huge spinach omelet, with a bit of oregano and red pepper…

Tags: breakfast