The Most Important Meal of the Day

January 28, 2019

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day -- it breaks the 8-12 hour fast you've just had while you were sleeping, and sets your blood sugar for the day. We'd better make it count.

Sadly, what we've come to accept as a healthy breakfast (cereal, bagels, muffins, etc.) does nothing but cause a blood sugar spike -- and subsequent crash -- and fill you with empty calories (and not even for very long). It's time we re-think breakfast foods in the U.S. -- after all, we are one of the few countries that even HAS certain foods that are classified as breakfast foods. Many other cultures eat the same types of foods, regardless of the time of day. A bowl of soup with rice, for example, is a common Japanese breakfast...and in Mexico, you might find people eating corn tortillas with pulled chicken, salsa and beans for their first meal of the day. If we can get over the mental aspect of it, grabbing a helping of last night's dinner is certainly a quick and easy way to get out the door in the morning (my husband does this every day).

I typically prefer something with a lighter protein for breakfast but I still subscribe to the philosophy of eating FOOD for the most important meal of the day -- not processed grains drowned in added sugar. Here's a photo of what I had both days this weekend (a salad made with arugula, 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1 small avocado, leftover roasted cauliflower (cold), and pistachios, topped with balsamic vinaigrette):

It filled me up for hours! If that is too weird for you, here are some more "breakfasty" options that are still healthy.

What's YOUR favorite healthy breakfast?