Breakfast Ideas to Help You Lose Weight

The importance of breakfast could hardly be overestimated - it's the first meal of the day that energizes our bodies and fastens our metabolism after a good night's sleep. However, not only having breakfast is important; what you have for breakfast is very important, as well. Breakfast should fill you up with energy, not make you sleepy and bored.

Use these tips to prepare healthy breakfast that will boost your metabolism and help you lose weight.

At first, let's take a look at foods to avoid for breakfast - these are foods with high sugar/fat content, low in proteins, mineral and vitamins: breakfast bars, muffins, pancakes, waffles, toast, donuts, pastries, pies, sugary cereals, coffee, fried eggs, sausages, bacon, cream cheese on your bagels, cheesy omelets. Yes, we often chose these foods for breakfast because we don't need to spend time for their preparation. However, if you decide to improve your health and stay fit, make the effort to spend 10-15 minutes on preparing the right breakfast, and you will notice the significant change in your energy level during the day, and even in your weight!

Chose these foods for breakfast to keep you healthy and fit.
Start the day with a breakfast made of starchy foods, such as bread or wholegrain cereal, which will provide time released energy and will not increase your sugar levels, as will do muffins, waffles or donuts. Include porridge or low sugar/low fat cereals in your breakfast and it will keep you full till lunch and also provide important nutrients, especially if you use skimmed milk - a rich source of protein, calcium, and vitamins. Also, consider using a teaspoon of honey or a little dried fruit to sweeten your cereals or porridge, instead of adding sugar.

Drink fruit juice instead of coffee, but pay attention to its sugar content, opt for a 100% fruit juice. A cup of green tea will burst your metabolism and increase your body's capacity to burn calories. Also, green tea is an excellent source of natural antioxidants that will quench free radicals and slow down the aging process. You can always grab a couple of muffins, but only if you use whole-wheat flour, wheat germ and raisins (or blueberries, or dried prunes), which will provide a good fiber intake, and several important vitamins and minerals, such as folic acid, thiamine, vitamin E, magnesium and zinc.

You can choose to prepare a smoothie if there's no time for backing muffins: just blend several fruits into a puree, and semi-skimmed milk or low fat yoghurt, and enjoy! It might be difficult to change the "breakfast habit" suddenly, so you can start by following a schedule, for example, promise yourself to have a healthy breakfast on Saturday, Sunday and Monday, and then add up another day when you feel time has come. Once you notice the difference, you will do it without difficulty!

Sources:
Eat this, not that for breakfast, Holistic Nutrition Bytes
Healthy breakfast: Quick, flexible options to grab at home, by Mayo Clinic Staff