Tip #1: Break(the)fast

Okay ladies…here we go! My first tip for being the healthiest you can be this year is to commit to “break(the )fast” of overnight within an hour of waking up. As moms it can be very easy to get caught up in the rush of the morning and before you know it, it’s been hours and you haven’t had more than a coffee (or two). So why does this matter so much? Well, your body relies on stored glucose in the body (glycogen) overnight and when you wake up in the morning, your glycogen stores are depleted and you need energy! Carbs get a lot of bad mouthing these days, but the reality is that your brain and central nervous system NEED carbohydrates (in the form of glucose) to function. So, in the morning this glucose can come from consuming carbs or from the breakdown of muscle in the body which allows for the body to glean glucose from protein and then excrete the unused portion of the protein in our urine. I don’t know about you, but I hate the idea of losing muscle. Why? We work hard for any muscle that we build so losing it when we could prevent that loss is so sad! Also, when we break down muscle in the body for energy, our metabolism goes down, which means that we burn fewer calories and store fat more readily. The body does this as it thinks it will not be fed and will need reserves to survive. So the easy solution to retain your muscle and help support a good metabolism is to eat within one hour of waking up (and keep eating small meals every few hours throughout the day…we will get to that step later tho…let’s start one focus at a time).
So, what are some good breakfast ideas??? Lots of options but here are my top 5 favourites….

1) Whole grain cereal with berries and low fat milk. Here is my breakfast from today. I go back and forth between Coconut milk and lactose free skim milk. For tips on how to get enough protein in if you are not drinking cow’s milk or soy milk, see this post.

2) Whole grain wrap or toast or English muffin with natural peanut butter or almond butter and a banana
3) Eggs (or egg whites) scrambled and served with diced feta, tomato, and avocado and whole grain bread product.
4) Greek yogurt with berries and a low sugar granola
5) Smoothie with greek yogurt, fruit/veggies, and milk of your choice

Okay let’s try this for a few days and then we will add onto it.

Until next time…stay healthy!