Lynda: What does one eat to break the night time fast? This question instills much angst in many people. Fast paced morning routines of exercise, family antics, meditation or early work starts often see us short of time. This leads to many people eating the same things every day, grabbing poor quality, processed convenience meals or going without breakfast altogether and hitting 11am, ravenous and ready to sink the gnashes into a muffin and sugar infused coffee or energy drink.
Setting the day up well with a balanced, wholesome breakfast is imperative for many reasons. My KEY principles to live by when selecting your breakfast meal are;
- Keep it super simple
- Use leftovers
- Prepare in advance
- Have at least three breakfast meals in mind that you can rotate
- Use a basic formula for making better choices when eating out
Below are the quick and healthy recipes I enjoy that ensure I make better decisions, feel energetic and stay on top of my game throughout the day.
1. Leftovers
Make double the amount for dinner and consume the leftovers for breakfast. Here are a few of my favourites; Curried lamb casserole, meat loaf or left over roast chicken thrown together with salad, avocado and olive or macadamia oil.
Stu – Try to break the mindset/imagery of conventional breakfasts as they are usually devoid of nutrients and sugar heavy. It’s quite acceptable to eat a ‘dinner’ for breakfast, it will offer much more nourishment that a refined cereal ever could.
2. Prepare in advance
Make your breakfast meals a day or two before. Good examples of these are breakfast puddings, mousses, home-made protein bars. My personal faves are Dateless Protein Balls and Creamy Brekky Mousse.
3. Eating Out
I have the following, well rounded formula in my head when eating out. Aim for a palm portion of protein (your palm), vegetables, 1-2 tbsp of healthier natural fats. For example your protein may be poached eggs, bacon or a fillet of fish with vegetable(s) such as spinach, asparagus, sautéed cabbage, kale and healthier natural fats such as avocado, seeds, nuts and olive oil.
Stu – Check out the ‘sides’ column on your local cafe menu. I use this to build my own breakfast avoiding the items that I really don’t want in the first place.
4. Smoothies
Smoothies make an easy job of accessing lots of nutrients very quickly first thing in the morning. While I love food in its whole form I do recognise the need for less processed protein blends. Especially for those busy days where fast and nutritious is what the body and mind is calling for. Below I share with you my favourite 3 smoothie recipes. They are super tasty, nourishing and simple to make. All one needs is a blender or shaker (hand held or stationary).
- Nourish Me Breakfast Smoothie
- Green Travelling Smoothie
- Quick & Nutritious Smoothie For the Time Poor
I guarantee if you commit two short weeks to thinking ahead and preparing well you will find yourself starting most days with vigour and enthusiasm.
Enticing isn’t it? Well I believe you are worth this small commitment to yourself don’t you?
