12 Tips of Christmas: #7 Breakfast

Looks like a lovely place to have some breakfast!

This is the most important thing that I tell my patients and clients.  And I tell them often.  You MUST eat breakfast!  Everyday!  And make it a good, substantial breakfast.  And if you can't make it good and substantial at least make it SOMETHING.  Anything.  Some things are better than other things, but all somethings are better than nothing.

Breakfast is your metabolism's call to war after hiding out for the past 8-12 hours.  It provides your brain with the always important carbohydrates that it needs to operate.  This first meal will set the tone for your meal habits for the rest of the day, and it will help to control your appetite!  Skipping breakfast may cause increased hunger at your future meals of the day, possibly causing poor choices and extreme portions.

High fiber meals with some protein and healthy fats make great choices for breakfast!  This will fill you up, stick with you until lunch, and slowly digest to release energy throughout your morning.  I LOVE oatmeal or other whole grain cereals.  My fallback? Plain organic yogurt with Kashi and berries.  Experiment and find YOUR staple breakfast, something that satisfies you and meets your nutritional needs, then make variations every now and then to prevent boredom.

Breakfast is a lovely meal.  Enjoy it!  Your body and your brain will thank you.