5 Healthy Breakfast Tips That’ll Help You Lose Weight

As a personal trainer, the number one question I get asked is “how can I lose weight?” or “how can I lose weight fast?” Today I want to talk about one of the most important meals of the day - breakfast. I know that by now you might think breakfast was invented by the cereal industry.  Maybe so, but that doesn’t take away the fact that breakfast has a very important job and has great benefits particularly if your goal is to lose body fat.

 

You need to do two things to lose weight: eat well and move more.  A lot of people like to skip breakfast because intermittent fasting works for them. But not everyone can benefit from intermittent fasting, so if you are one of those people, keep reading.

 

It's not enough to just grab a breakfast taco or energy bar on the way out the door in the morning. If you plan ahead, you can make sure you don't pick the wrong foods for breakfast.   Even if you work out every day, you could be hurting your efforts to lose weight if you skip breakfast or eat the wrong foods.

Never Skip Breakfast

This healthy breakfast idea is at the top of the list for a good reason. If you skip breakfast, you might think you're saving calories for the rest of the day, but it just makes you more likely to snack on sugary, fatty, or salty foods during the day. Also, breakfast gets your metabolism going.

 

Stay Away From Added Sugar:

Many of us think that ALL breakfast foods are healthy, but this is not true. This is not true at all. Many of them have too much sugar. This can cause you to gain weight and have energy peaks that make you tired by lunchtime.

 

Don't drink too much juice: 

Although fruit juice is delicious this doesn't mean that it's free from calories. The sugar in fruit juice can cause an energy spike, so stick to a small glass and drink water to hydrate you for the day. Drinking more water has the added benefit of helping you to feel fuller and avoid snacking.

 

Start as you mean to go on: 

Think of breakfast as the first meal of the day, and eat healthy things that will give your body the energy it needs. This means you should stay away from fast food and fried meals, which will make you feel tired at work.

 

Include a Few Superfoods: 

Superfoods are foods that are known to greatly decrease your risk of developing a range of diseases. Many of these are good for breakfast, which is good news. Here are some good things to start with: oats, tea, low-fat yogurt, veggies, nuts, and seeds. Even if you only have a few of these items, this is a good way to make sure you eat something healthy every day.

Here are some things you can do to plan ahead and help you make better breakfast eating choices

If you're usually swamped in the mornings and struggle to keep up with these healthy breakfast tips, just plan ahead!  If you have to, make your food the night before to make it easier to stick to a healthy, balanced diet plan.

 

1. Choose your breakfast options the night before to avoid decision fatigue in the morning.
2. Pre-pack ingredients for smoothies or overnight oats so they're ready to blend or eat.
3. Make a big batch of breakfast foods (like muffins or frittatas) on the weekends to grab throughout the week.
4. Prep fresh fruit or vegetables (like cutting up berries or washing and chopping spinach) so they're easy to add to meals.
5. Use a slow cooker to make breakfast dishes (like oatmeal or egg casseroles) that can be ready when you wake up.

I hope these quick tips help! Let me know if you have any questions or want a personalized nutrition coaching session.  Check out this sample breakfast that one of my clients used before.

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