Oh, the dreaded breakfast! Who wants to eat when they have just rolled out of bed? I can't even coordinate myself to get the box of cereal open, let alone eat what's in it. Ugh. Breakfast... gross. Just give me coffee, and nobody come near me until I'm human again!
Like some kind of disgusting monster, I've long avoided breakfast. And I thought, surely, eating less means loosing more weight... right?! That just seems painstakingly obvious. Oh, en contraire. While doing research about metabolism (and how to raise it) I came across something time and time again: Eat breakfast. Eat breakfast. Eat breakfast. But why?! Why is force feeding myself, first thing in the morning, going to make me slimmer? It just seems really bassackwards.
Well, as it turns out, the human body does a lot of hard work while we sleep. We're digesting the food we ate during the day, pumping out all sorts of chemicals and hormones that run our heart and lungs and such, and keep us pleasantly paralysed (so we don't sleep walk while we dream,) so the metabolism is burning fast and furious for the better part of an 8 hour night. When we wake up, it has slowed down, because the brain is sending all sorts of messages and memos to the metabolic machine, telling it that it's "break time." The brain is an anxious and cautious overseer, and it thinks that we are going to burn up too much and then be faced with starvation during the day (little does it realize that my fat bottom alone could sustain me for several months with all the fuel that's stored up in my fat cells.)
Starving the body in the morning only makes the brain more anxious that you aren't going to get food that day, so it sends out red alert warnings to the metabolism to slow down. It's like a blaring internal siren, screaming "conserve! conserve!"
When I, you, anybody eats breakfast shortly after waking, it sends a different sort of alarm to the metabolic machine, making it go back to work, with a passion! Apparently, eating breakfast raises your metabolic rate by 11% (on average) for the better part of the day. That means you'll be burning off breakfast and lunch and possibly part of your dinner with an 11% increase of burning efficiency!
Not only that, but consuming good quality calories (like grains, fruits, and nuts) will increase your energy through the morning and keep you charged up until lunch. You'll find it easier to be physically active, and you won't be nearly as tired throughout a morning or early afternoon workout.
Eating garbage calories like candy and greasy whatnot that's loaded with saturated fats won't do you much good, in the long run, because the sweets make your blood sugar spike up, then it burns off too fast, and you spike down, causing fatigue not long after you've eaten. The greasy, fatty foods will just introduce more harmful fats into your blood/arteries/fat cells, which is counter productive to the ultimate goal of loosing fat from your body.
It was really difficult, the first few days, to make myself eat in the morning. I actually felt a little bit sick on two consecutive mornings after force feeding myself a bowl of muesli (about 50-60 grams) and a glass of juice. But, now that I've been eating breakfast everyday for almost 2 weeks, I actually wake up feeling hungry, and it's not hard at all to put away a small serving of cereal with dried fruits and nuts (usually with soya yogurt, instead of nut milk, to get the benefit of a complete protein combo) and a 100 ml glass of juice, and a cup of coffee or tea. Today I even added a banana.
Amazingly, after having a breakfast, I really do feel more energetic in the morning, I have better stamina during my late morning workout, and I feel less fatigue afterwards. Who knew?!
Eating a higher amount of calories in the earlier part of the day (breakfast and lunch) and a lower amount in the evening also seems to be making an impact in my weight loss. Because I'm active in the day and more sedentary at night, I'm actively burning off more of the total calories that I have consumed in a total day, rather than eating a mega load of calories at night, when I'll be sitting around, using the computer, reading, knitting... which burns off fewer calories than washing, scrubbing, walking, talking, and doing all the busy things I do in a day.
So, the moral of this story is: breakfast isn't really a monster after all!
<3
I have the same aversion to breakfast that you do. Thinking about eating before 11 a.m. makes me nauseous. My usual breakfast is coffee or a Diet Coke (horrible, I know) but it's typically all I can handle. But then, I also feel like a zombie until after lunch.
ReplyDeleteI am glad that breakfast is working out for you. Maybe I'll give it a shot!
Please keep the blog posts coming! I find it really inspiring. Now if I only I could get off my ass and do something, too...
Interesting, I actually love breakfast, one of my favourite meals of the day. I tend to rotate through several different cereals to keep from getting bored. I love porridge (porridge oats, not instant) with raisins a lot because when I have that it keeps me going until lunchtime.
ReplyDeletei also hate breakfast, eating in the morning makes me feel nausious and much like you am not safe to aproach hours after my eyes open. Eating breakfast was the firt rule my dietition gave me. It was and still is the hardest to follow. It was easier to give up chocolate lol.
ReplyDeleteI try and fix the eating of breakfast in small stages. bananananas a girls best breakfast friend. I can drink in the morning just not eat - so banana blender soy and a tablespoon of fiber grain. wizz wizz much better. my other option when my tummy is just to scared is yogurt and banana. I force myself every weekend to have porage. It's easier for me to eat and enjoy than cold cerials.
I'm a recovering belimic so i get the starving than binging thing. I've had to be really careful with the concept of Diet else i fall into really bad habits. I have a life time of bad dieting habits. cal counting is bad for me - good for others just bad for me. I'm given a daily aprox and i just keep an eye on what goes in and not count with obsession (which leads me to binge purge habits) I would only eat every few days but eat alot - and then when i did eat every day it would be just one meal and usualy pasta and lots of it. Now i graze and graze healthy. 5 small meals a day is my daily target but most times im also happy if I have 3 meals. Gr\zing works best for me as I'm always to ill and sore to cook - so i make sore I have quick n nutritionals about. yogarts - fruits - carrots cellry sticks rice boild and frozen in half cup portions which i eat with a no fuss omlete - frozen veg portions etc. If it's quick i'll eat it good or bad so i try to keep good. I can't excersize at all anymore bar a few streches so it's all about food for me. It's been really slow - REALLY SLOW - but in 4 years I dropped from 138kg down to 117kg. there have been walls so i just change the food types a bit and the times I eat around.
Trust me once you conqure breakfast it gets easier. Breakfast for non eatters is the hardest routine to bring in - then it's much easier to get used to eating regular meals etc.
I'm so proud of you Bonnie -I'm in the same place - weight and health issues - health issues that cant be fixed till weight comes off - social anxietys and a home that is a disaster site (that unfortunatly i cant do much about, it would aid my mental health no end if i could)) Your new blog helps remind me it's not a solo thing. It's inspiring to read and I thank you for being brave and sharing -x- big hugs keep up the good work your doing fantastic.
Thanks for sharing, ladies!
ReplyDeleteNic, it's great that you've lost some weight, even if it has come off slowly, it's small steps in a good direction :) Exchanging bad habits for good habits is what makes all the difference. We can do it!