Great Starts

A healthy breakfast is an essential part of losing weight!

"People skip breakfast thinking they're cutting calories, but by mid-morning and lunch, that person is starved," says Milton Stokes, RD, MPH, chief dietitian for St. Barnabas Hospital in New York City. "Breakfast skippers replace calories during the day with mindless nibbling, bingeing at lunch and dinner. They set themselves up for failure."


It makes sense: Eating early in the day keeps us from "starvation eating" later on. But it also jump-starts your metabolism, says Elisabetta Politi, RD, MPH, nutrition manager for the Duke Diet & Fitness Center at Duke University Medical School. "When you don't eat breakfast, you're actually fasting for 15 to 20 hours, so you're not producing the enzymes needed to metabolize fat to lose weight."


Read the article here.
Another good article.

Having never been a "breakfast person", I wasn't sure how I'd feel about filling my stomach first thing in the morning, but it has quickly become my favorite meal of the day. Here are some examples of food that I regularly eat for breakfast:

SCRAMBLED EGG WHITES AND SPINACH
2 Egg whites
1 Handful of spinach
Splash of unsweetened almond milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Mix and cook in a non-stick skillet so no oil is needed. If I'm feeling carb-weak, I'll pair it with a whole wheat and corn blend tortilla with salsa on the side. Feel free to add other veggies, too!

QUICK OATMEAL
1/2 c Rolled Oats
Enough water to just cover the oats in a microwave-safe bowl.
1/4 c Unsweetened almond milk
Honey or cinnamon or fruit
Zap oats and water for 60-90 seconds, add other ingredients and stir. So quick and so satisfying!

WHEY SMOOTHIE
1/2 c Unsweetened almond milk
1 Scoop chocolate whey protein
1/2 banana
1 c Ice
Blend until smooth and thoroughly enjoy. Tastes so amazing. As you can imagine, you can mix things up with vanilla whey and other fruit.