I have always struggled with breakfast.
Growing up, I lived off of cold cereal every morning. In my teen years, I'd skip it all together. As an adult, I'd be content to eat a couple pieces of toast and leave it at that. Eating well, first thing, has never been easy for me.
As I began to learn more regarding nutrition and heath, particularly during my pregnancies, I knew I needed to make breakfast a priority in my day. However, I still struggle with that, as I have never liked the traditional foods served for breakfast. Correction, I only like the unhealthy traditional foods served for breakfast. ;-)
If starting my day with pancakes, waffles, hashbrown potatoes, bacon, sausage gravy & biscuits, muffins, french toast smothered in butter and syrup, coffee cake, or sugary granola were good choices, I'd be very happy. :-D
Alas, those are the foods that have gotten me where I am today. They are also the foods that would send my sugars skyrocketing when I was fighting GD. The solution I've been using is to force myself to eat foods I don't really like. All the good pregnant women eat eggs and oatmeal to start their day. So, I've spent the last several years (and pregnancies) forcing myself to eat eggs and oatmeal. The eggs I hate, they make me sick to my stomach. The oatmeal I tolerate, if I can add brown sugar. In our sugar-free stretch, I tried...really tried to eat it sugar free, but I just could not gag it down. I'm down to 2tsp per 1 cup and working on decreasing it more.
All of that to say, I've never found a way to like breakfast and end up dreading that meal. Not a nice way to start the day. I either eat well and don't like what I'm eating, or eat what I like and then feel poorly (physically and emotionally) throughout the day.
It's time to take on this challenge. The next big change I'm working on regarding my health is to find foods I will enjoy eating for breakfast that are healthy. Honestly, that sounds like polar opposites in my brain, but I know it can happen. What I need to do is think Outside the Box...or BOWL...(haha..)
Right now, my best breakfast is a bowl of oatmeal with a grapefruit. (LOVE grapefruit, btw) However, I need to eat more because I'm finding myself hungry before lunch. I don't mind having a snack, but I do think it would be good to get in some more protein with the sugars I'm taking in. I've racked my brain.(eggs...blech. breakfast meats...too high in sodium and fats) and decided that the best protein option I have to add in to this meal is a spoonful of natural peanut butter (eaten from the spoon, not mixed in my oatmeal. *wretch* at the thought! I have major texture issues. sigh).
I've also decided to replace the eggs on my own plate (for those mornings they make the menu), that the fam enjoys, with beans, that I enjoy. Today I have 3 batches of beans in the crockpots (sweet beans, ranch beans, cinnamon-cocoa chili). Now I'll have an assortment of yummy, low-fat protein to quickly heat and enjoy.
From there, I'm considering making up a large batch of rice to keep in the fridge for fried rice in the mornings. I could definitely get the eggs down that way...and even add in some vegies I like for that meal. That would be great!
Could it be that I may begin to look forward to breakfast? Could it be that as I venture into some untraditional foods, I may just introduce some healthier options for my whole family? My husband still thinks it strange that I would consider taco lentils a good choice for breakfast, but who knows...If we try it, we just may like it!
I love having leftovers from dinner for breakfast but I know some prefer breakfast for breakfast. Here is a great site I have cooked the cabbage hashbrowns from here and I love them.
ReplyDeletemrbreakfast.com
Here is the healthy page http://www.mrbreakfast.com/category.asp?categoryid=4
Tracy - My dh thinks I'm absolutely crazy with some of the things I eat for breatkfast! Brown rice with various things (NEVER fruit which would seem more "breakfast-y") is one of my favorites! Right now, I'm drinking my green smoothie every morning. I add in whey protein powder for a good dose of protein - mine's made with spinach, frozen strawberries & blueberries, greek yogurt, honey and some water and crushed ice. YUM!
ReplyDeleteI am trying to remember Tracy.....What is your *plan*? Are you counting calories? Or just trying to concentrate on health choices? Or?
ReplyDeleteI would suggest that you forget what you are "supposed" to eat for breakfast.:) I eat salads and all other sorts of non breakfast foods for breakfast.....:)Make a list of all the foods you love and choose some of those for breakfast! :)
? about the beans.....aren't beans full of carbs? I know they are protein too but from what I have read they are so high in carbs? I was bummed because I love beans.....NOT that I am against carbs at all,just trying to balance them better.I am prone to eating WAY to many.
I also do green smoothies minus the protein powder.I just eat eggs:) I love them!!!!! Thats a bummer that you don't!
Thanks for your comments, ladies. I'll go over your suggestions. For now, I need something I can eat that doesn't require me to make something completely different than the rest of the fam for my breakfast. I don't want to set aside the extra time for that in the morning. The beans will work fine since they are a heat and serve thing that doesn't require extra time. Until I convince the fam to change their breakfast menu, I'm just working on adjusting mine a bit rather than making a whole different meal for myself.
ReplyDeleteAngie, I am always working towards making the best health choices I can. That's my overall plan, for sure. I am counting calories as a strategy for weight loss for now, but still work on making the best balanced health choices I can, since I know that the *kind* of calories I eat matter a great deal.
Beans do contain carbs, but I don't consider them "high" carb. On a diabetic diet they count as 1 carb and 1 protein together. So, I feel great about choosing a serving of beans in place of eggs and toast. My opinion is that the beans are a healthier choice, particularly when I add so much fat by way of cheese and butter to get the eggs down. Also, I'm avoiding yeast and decreasing grains right now. The beans are low-fat, high fiber and cheap! So, yes, there are carbs there, but they are a good carb choice, imo. :D
I want to get back to my smoothies, Sue. Maybe even get daring and add in some greens. But, I need to wait until my blender gets a tune-up. ;)