| |
| |
|
Weight Loss Information Center |
|
|
|
Why Breakfast is Good for You
Ok... If you are reading this is because you do want to hear the "why breakfast is good for you" sermon. Well, you may have read it in the paper, or maybe you've heard it on the radio on your way to work. It's almost a cliche! Almost everybody knows that "breakfast is the most important meal of the day". If it's so good... how come many people skip breakfast? People do. There are lots of excuses for not having breakfast, including (but not limited to): Lack of time not being a morning person trying to lose weight Not finding anything good for breakfast, and having forgotten to have it A while ago I used to skip breakfast too. Later on I would have "whatever", and then a very heavy lunch (depending on how hungry I would be by lunch time). But when I started paying attention to what I ate (and how and how much), I realised the damage I was causing to my body by skipping the most important meal of the day. What happens to our bodies when we skip breakfast? Understanding this question will help you realise "why breakfast is good for you", and hopefully, you'll reconsider making breakfast a must in your everyday life. For starters, if you skip breakfast you're making it harder for your body to lose weight, and your energy levels will tend to be lower than those of a person who looks after herself. Why? Think about it. By the time breakfast is due, your body has not received any food for about 8 hours (a third of your day). Compare this with your "day" hours, when you have 3 (if not more) meals. It is amazing how, if you are used to skipping breakfast, you condition yourself to feel "ok", but a close examination of your "fasting" mood would reveal that your levels of energy are low. What happens is that your body is rested at the end of a good sleep, but you still need the energy after you wake up. Your body does not stop just because you go to sleep. It goes on breathing, digesting, pumping up blood everywhere in your body, and moving (amongst many other physiological processes). It constantly needs fuel (ie food), and even if you're not hungry early in the morning, your body will still need the extra energy contained in a breakfast meal. It makes sense, doesn't it? But breakfast is more than an energy source. Breakfast is good for you because it: provides glucose to your brain, making you mentally efficient and alert. You get "the edge" by having breakie (Australian for "breakfast"); ;-)reduces your cholesterol levels (depending on what you eat for breakie, of course!); gives you vital nutrients and vitamins; makes you slimmer, by jump-starting your metabolism (how quickly your body burns energy), which is slow after relative inactivity at night.makes you "Mr or Ms Happy". An energized and balanced meal may alter your mode and make you feel better during the day. What to have for breakfast? The opposite of skipping breakfast is having the wrong things for breakfast (and possibly too much of it too!). Every meal is capable of giving you energy. The question is "how long will that energy last for?". This is important to know because that will determine whether you still feel "charged up" till lunch time, or whether you're starving by 10 AM. Avoid things like chocolate chip muffins and other high sugar meals. The energy levels are high (and they taste deliciuos, I know!) but short-lived, and the residual makes you bigger and heavier. So, these foods are a no-no. Fresh fruits and cereals, are a healthier choice, but you have to be mindful of the sugar contained in cereals. Some of them can have enough sugar a whole family in one single serving! But what if you're not "a breakfast person?" There is no such a thing as a "breakfast person". If you need to do something for your health, you do it, and you can condition yourself to make having breakfast part of your life and take pleasure on it. But I've got a couple of tips that can help you in your transition to having breakfast: Know "why" breakfast is important. Reading this article was a good start; ;-) Buy fruits and cereal (but mind the amount of sugar that some cereals contain); Check out my (ahem... )delicious low fat breakfast recipes and try some (you'll like them, I promise); plan your meals. Planning ahead to have interesting and tasty meals for breakfast will help you enjoy it; If you don't have the time to prepare breakie (you don't have 5 minutes for yourself!?), you may choose a good low fat fast food outlet and be good and have a low-fat-low-sugar-meal. But whatever you do... do have breakfast! ... it's good for you! ;-) Have a great day! Jeff Rosales is "The Skinny Chef", the editor of http://www.Delicious-Low-Fat-Recipes.Com: a growing collection of delicious low fat recipes, weight loss and healthy eating articles, interviews and product reviews. Jeff's recipes are so delicious... you won't believe they're good for you!
MORE RESOURCES:
Weight-Loss - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Scientific Research Shows Why Diets Dont Work, If You Want to Sustain Long Term Weight Loss To say that dieting rarely leads to sustainable weight loss isn't particularly controversial, scientific research shows that 90% of people who try to lose weight by dieting fail. Did you know that dieting is a multi-billion dollar industry, and that there are over 25,000 books on diets, many of which contain advice that clearly contradict each other. Why Does the Weight Come Back? Before many Australians recently, a devastating story unfolded on a popular current affairs program.We watched with compassion as the fattest man in Australia told of his most recent, serious attempt to lose weight. Weight Loss, Exercise, and New Years Resolutions - Why They Dont Work? We have all set them, and we will revisit them again around January 1st. For some reason each year we feel it will be different this time around - only to forget the new gym membership, new clothes and new found inspiration about six weeks into the year. Is the Dr Atkins Diet Safe? The Dr Atkins Diet has been around for ages, but it has gained significant popularity just over the last several years. Despite its popularity, as with many low carb diets, the Dr Atkins Diet has been the subject of a lot of controversy. Why You Must Eat Before Going to Bed? You have probably heard the old myth, that you should not eat before bed, because all the food you eat will be stored as fat. That is simply not true. How to Lose Weight While Gardening Have you ever dreaded the idea of pulling weeds, planting a tree, or pushing a lawn mower around the yard?Does just thinking about it make you sweat? I am sure the majority of are nodding your heads in agreement. What I am about to suggest only takes a slight change in your thinking and a bit of planning and you can learn how to lose weight and get in better shape while gardening this year. Small Changes to Weight Loss As much as many of us who are over-weight do not like to admit, it is our past and current eating habits that have us looking the way we do today. We need to make many small changes to our eating and drinking habits to reach our healthy weight. 3 Secrets Your Diet Book Wont Tell You Are you wondering why you're not losing weight? If you're like me, you've tried every fad diet imaginable, and nothing seems to work - at least not long-term. I've personally tried Weight Watchers (that worked great until my schedule changed and I was no longer able to attend meetings), Atkins (not easy to follow for someone who travels a lot and loves to dine out), and crazy fad diets like the cabbage soup diet, the grapefruit diet, juice fasts, and countless others. Atkins Diet Plan - Whats The Catch The Atkins diet Plan breakfast can usually composed of eggs strips of bacon and coffee. A snack might include coffee with cream, and chunks of cheese. When Losing Weight Seems Hopeless Sometimes it's good to just let the feelings flow. Take out a piece of paper and just start writing your feelings down on paper. Weight Loss Strategies If you want any weight loss program to work you have to perform "Strength Training". It's absolutely imperative during the course of a lifetime not only for weight loss goals but also for general health and well-being. Who Said Low Carb Diets Ever Meant No-Carb? A little information if often a dangerous thing.. Five Tips for Easy Weight Loss! Weight loss is a hot topic among people today, especially considering the fact that more than half of us are overweight. As we get older we often get busier, and before we know it, find ourselves in the prime of our lives and packing a few extra pounds. BMI: Between Meal Intrigue Hits the Highway If you've been pursuing a lighter, healthier version of yourself, it's likely that you've heard of BMI, as in "Body Mass Index." BMI is a guide by which we can measure where we "are" right now and gauge our improvement over time. 5-Step Weight Loss Program for Permanent Weight Loss Every Journey Worth Taking Begins with a Single StepHere are five easy steps to gain control of your weight loss efforts. Start at the beginning, then take small steps, each and every day and you'll climb that mountain. Ancient Secret for Weight Loss "THE SECRET REMEDY OF THE ANCIENT WARRIORS"Since what would seem to be the beginning to most, there has excised an all natural elixir that warrior tribes and armies have used in healing throughout the ages. What's now being called mother nature's perfect food? Apple cider vinegar has proven the test of time. Eating On The Run For Weight Loss "I'm too busy!""I'm always on the run." "I never leave my desk during the day. Carb Crazed Low Carb diets have become as popular as apple pie (although apple pie wouldn't be allowed!). Everywhere you go the message is "low carb, decrease your carbs, or no carbs". Fad Diets, And Why Theyre Bad For Your Weight Loss And Long Term Health If you're serious about losing weight and getting fit, you probably can't go a week without hearing about the latest fad diet, and why you should drop what you're doing to buy the book. Each new diet gives us proof that fad diets aren't all that they're cracked up to be. Glucagon and Aging - Breakfast How Not To Start The Day Part III A question from one of our readers:Dr. Mericle,With respect to burning "fat" energy in the mornings before eating, what if you are not a long distance runner? The average person is not, particularly someone who is overweight.
|
| home | site map | Home Site |
| © 2006 |
