Health & Wellness: Ten healthy breakfast ideas to boost energy

Choosing the right foods for breakfast can help to boost energy and curb hunger.

Eating a healthy breakfast really can set the stage for healthier eating all day long. The right foods in the morning can provide you with the energy you need to power through until lunch. And, with a healthy breakfast in your system, you’re less likely to experience mid-morning cravings for unhealthy foods – eating the right foods can help keep you satisfied and energized until your next meal or snack.

What Is A Good Breakfast?

The foods you eat for breakfast can really affect how you feel and perform throughout your morning, and there are several things that a good breakfast can do for you.

A healthy breakfast is a meal that can….

– Keep you fueled up until your next meal or snack. A well-balanced breakfast should provide you with staying power. Foods with protein help to satisfy hunger, and high fiber foods help to fill you up.– Supply your body and brain with energy. In the morning, your body’s gas tank is running close to empty. When you eat the right foods for breakfast, you’re providing your muscles and brain with the fuel they need for optimal performance.– Help avoid blood sugar swings and reduce cravings. A balanced meal that contains both protein and healthy carbohydrates can provide a steady and sustained release of energy into your system, and help ward off wild swings in your blood sugar that can trigger cravings for sweets or other unhealthy foods.

(This applies as long as you don’t have any medical issues that might affect your body’s ability to regulate your blood sugar).– Help you make better food choices throughout the day. Breakfast skippers often experience food cravings for sweets and fats that can persist throughout the day. But a recent study 1 found that when breakfast is eaten, the cravings for sweets drop dramatically.

And, if the breakfast is high in protein, it tends to also reduce cravings for salty, fatty foods, too. So, the right foods in the morning could help reduce cravings for unhealthy foods later in the day, and could steer you towards healthier choices.– Provide enough protein to help support muscle health. Eating enough protein in the morning not only helps satisfy hunger, it can also help maintain muscle health, too. For many people, typical daily meals tend to provide little protein at breakfast, a bit more at lunch, and a much larger amount at dinner – a pattern that may not provide the best conditions for the building and repairing of muscle tissue.

In a study published last year 2, muscle protein synthesis was shown to be 25% greater in subjects whose protein intake was more evenly distributed throughout the day, compared to those who ate most of their protein at the evening meal.

10 Healthy Breakfast Ideas

A balanced breakfast should provide you with a decent amount of protein (20-30 grams would be a good target) to help satisfy hunger and to support muscle health, along with some healthy carbohydrates which can provide sustained energy and fiber. Carbohydrates should include – at the very least – some fruits or vegetables; if calories allow, add some whole grains as well.

With these simple guidelines, it’s easy to put together a healthy, well-balanced breakfast. Here are 10 healthy breakfast suggestions:

Cook some fresh or frozen spinach in the microwave, top with scrambled eggs/egg whites and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar; fresh fruit on the side
Protein shake made with protein powder, low fat milk or soy milk and fruit
Plain nonfat/low fat yogurt or cottage cheese topped with either fresh fruit and cinnamon or chopped raw vegetables and some fresh black pepper
Rolled oats prepared with milk or soy milk; stir in protein powder and fruit after cooking
Corn tortillas, heated and spread with black beans; top with grated low fat cheese and salsa; fresh fruit
Whole grain toast spread with avocado and topped with slices of turkey breast; fresh fruit
Extra-firm tofu, drained, crumbled and scrambled in a little olive oil with fresh vegetables and herbs; fresh fruit
Whole grain crackers spread with nonfat ricotta cheese and topped with sliced berries
Salmon patty on a toasted whole-grain English muffin; fresh fruit
Leftovers: whole grains, protein and veggies make a great breakfast!