Great Breakfast Tips

Breakfast is definitely the most important meal of the day, along with your snacks throughout the day and other meals. The reason breakfast is so important is this: when we wake up in the morning (depending on how much sleep we had, and the last time we ate before going to bed) our glycogen stores deplete after 8 hours (this may happen a little later or sooner for others, depending on your individual metabolism). This means that all of the carbohydrates that we have stored in our liver and our musculature is depleted. Our brain needs sugar (carbohydrates) to function and keep the rest of our autonomic (parasympathetic) nervous system functioning properly and efficiently. Once our glycogen stores are depleted, our body will first go to muscle tissue to break down for sugar for the brain. We work very hard to build this tissue and maintain it, so why would you want your body to eat it away? This is why it is essential to eat as close to opening you eyes in the morning as possible. This will ensure that your brain and body have fuel to function. Make sure that you eat well-balanced, and this will ensure that your brain and body are functioning optimally!
Secondly, what do you think will happen within your body if you omit breakfast from your life and if you are one of those people who do not eat until mid-morning or lunch? As soon as you do eat, your body will store a lot of it as fat. Why? Because you tricked your body into not knowing when the next time it is that you are going to feed it because you have gone so long without eating, therefore, your body must store some of this fuel as fat, to be used as a reserve of energy if you do not eat for another long, extended period of time. EAT BREAKFAST! If you do not eat breakfast now, however start to, you may even end up seeing yourself lose a few pounds! Remember, eat often throughout the day, the volume of how much you eat depends on your goals: getting leaner, losing weight, or gaining weight.

The following article is something I've found, and has a few good tips in it for you:

Make Time for Breakfast
Start the day with a healthy meal

(HealthDay News) -- Your mother probably urged you to eat a healthy breakfast, noting it was the day's most important meal.

She was right, says the Nemours Foundation, which offers these suggestions on how to refuel your kids to begin their day:

* Keep your kitchen full of healthy, quick and easy breakfast choices.
* If morning time is at a premium, try to prepare for breakfast the night before. Set out dishes, prepare and cut up food, etc.
* Wake your family 10 minutes earlier than usual to allow time for breakfast.
* Encourage your child to help decide what to have for breakfast. The child can even help prepare it.
* Have on-the-go breakfast options ready for mornings when you're running late, including fresh fruit, yogurt, trail mix, and individual boxes of cereal.
* Pack a nutritious snack for your child if he or she isn't hungry first thing in the morning.


-- Diana Kohnle