Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Breakfast - Why It's The Most Important Meal

Without question, breakfast is the meal that makes champions. Unfortunately, many active people follow a lifestyle that eliminates breakfast or includes foods that are far from champion-builders.

Breakfast for Losing Fat - If you want to lose fat, you should start your plan at dinner, not at breakfast! For example, do not eat a meager bowl of Special K for your "breakfast." You'll get too hungry later in the day and crave sweets.

A bigger breakfast (cereal + toast + peanut butter) can prevent afternoon or evening cookie-binges. An adequate (500 to 700 calorie) breakfast provides enough energy for you to enjoy your exercise, as opposed to dragging yourself through an afternoon workout that feels like punishment. If you are trying to lose fat, you should target at least 500 to 700 calories for breakfast; this should leave you feeling adequately fed. To prove the benefits of eating such a big breakfast, try this experiment:

1. Using food labels to calculate calories, boost your standard breakfast to at least 500 calories. For example, add to your english muffin (150 calories): 1 tablespoon peanut butter (100 cal.), 8 oz. orange juice (100 cal.) and a yogurt (150 cal). Total: 500 calories.

2. Observe what happens to your day's food intake when you eat a full breakfast vs. a skimpy "diet breakfast." The 500+ calorie breakfast allows you to successfully eat less at night and create the calorie deficit needed to lose fat.

Remember: You want to fuel by day and lose fat by night. Successful "dieters" lose fat while they are sleeping; they wake up ready for another nice breakfast that fuels them for another high-energy day.

If you exercise first thing in the morning, you may not want a big pre-exercise breakfast; too much food can feel heavy and uncomfortable. However, you can likely tolerate half a breakfast, such as half a bagel, a slice of toast, or a banana before your workout. Just 100 to 300 calories can put a little carbohydrate into your system, boost your blood sugar so that you are running on fuel, not fumes, and enhance your performance.

You'll likely discover this small pre-exercise meal adds endurance and enthusiasm to your workout. In a research study, athletes who ate breakfast were able to exercise for 137 minutes as compared to only 109 minutes when they skipped this pre-exercise fuel.

Breakfast for the Noon-time, Afternoon and Evening Exerciser

A hearty breakfast is important for people who exercise later in the day. It not only tames hunger but also provides the fuel needed for hard workouts.

Research has shown that athletes who ate breakfast, then four hours later enjoyed an energy bar five minutes before a noontime workout were able to exercise 20% harder at the end of the hourlong exercise test compared to when they ate no breakfast and no pre-exercise snack. (They worked 10 percent harder with only the snack.)

Breakfast works! Breakfast + a pre-exercise snack works even better!

What's for Breakfast?

One of the simplest breakfasts of champions is a wholesome cereal with soy/organic milk, fruit and orange juice. This provides not only carbohydrates to fuel the muscles, but also protein (from the milk) to build strong muscles, and numerous other vitamins and minerals such as calcium, potassium, vitamin C, iron (if you choose enriched breakfast cereals) and fiber (if you choose bran cereals).

The Bottom Line

Breakfast works wonders for improving the quality of your health. That is, eating breakfast results in less "junk food" later in the day. Breakfast also enhances weight control, sports performance, daily energy levels and future health.

Sample Grab-and-go Sports Breakfasts
  • Craver (Almond, Peanut Butter or Spurlina) Bar

  • Small bran muffin plus a sugar free yogurt and a packet of Splenda

  • Peanut butter-banana-honey sandwich (add cottage cheese or some type of protein)

  • Pita with one to two slices of lowfat cheese plus a large apple

  • Baggie of lowfat granola with a handful of raisins (preceded by 8 oz. soy/organic milk before you dash out the door)

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