DayintheLife: Breakfast

[One of the occasional series of posts about my typical day.]

I’ve debated whether to include the typical sort of food I eat or not. As it happens, I am. But you don’t have to read it if you don’t want to :)

Breakfast is one of those things that I know is important, but I keep running out of time to make and eat it – especially since I’m organizing lunch at the same time. I tend to end up in a rut. Past ruts have included:

Bagel with peanut butter
No breakfast
Get a croissant at the deli to dunk in coffee
Starbucks drive-thru on the way to work
Jack-in-the-Box drive-thru
Luna bar
Hot pockets

The common thread is that I can eat on the run or at work, if I wish, because I am a Pampered Princess of Convenience. I will note that while these all have different calorie counts, my weight stayed stable regardless of which rut I was in. Oh, and cereal is a total no-go for me – an hour later I’m hungry, plus it’s not portable.

Readers may have noticed I recently read a book called Health at Every Size by Linda Bacon. One chapter includes information on nutrition and how the overall American diet has changed in the past few decades. So far it’s inspired me to make two changes:

I plan & pack an afternoon snack.
I’ve added more fiber.

Why? Well, #1 is because I would crash around 3 or 4 and end up having a snack anyway, usually from snacks I have stashed at work (luna bars, popcorn, beef jerky, chocolate) or from the vending machine. Now I just plan it better.

#2 is because one of Bacon’s measures for eating enough fiber is that your blood sugar doesn’t see-saw; fiber helps slow your digestion of carbs, which helps stabilize your blood sugar. I was regularly “crashing” every 2-3 hours, so, why not try adding more fiber?

One easy thing I did was to spend some time reading bread labels, ending up with an organic whole wheat loaf with 3 grams of fiber per slice. My new “standard” breakfast is a slice of toast with crunchy peanut butter and, if I’m feeling extra peckish, a piece of fruit. I don’t get hungry as quickly as I used to, and my blood sugar stays stable longer. :)

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Posted

October 2, 2008

Books, DayInTheLife, HAES

Living 400lbs

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6 responses to “DayintheLife: Breakfast”

vesta44

October 2, 2008

DH is diabetic, and while we have lowered the amount of carbs he eats (about 80 grams of carbs a day, between 3 meals and 2 snacks), we have upped the fiber content in those carbs that he does have (whole wheat, high fiber pastas and breads). We’ve also found that using butter instead of margarine helps with keeping his blood sugar more stable. It’s something about fats added to carbs that slows the digestion of them, thus helping with stable blood sugar.

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Noel

October 2, 2008

I’m fond of porridge with dried fruit, nuts and seeds, sometimes with a splash of half-n-half.

This has enough carbs, protein and fat to carry me to lunch comfortably. Believe it or not, if you have a habit of prepping the night before, it’s also quick. You boil a cup of water, add 1/4 c. of steel cut oats and then turn off the heat and let it sit all night.

In the morning, you heat it up, add your fruits ‘n nuts and chow down. The one thing is that this is not portable.

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living400lbs

October 2, 2008

@Vesta – I’m glad you have a mix that works for you. I agree that all nutrients are good, it’s about finding a mix that you like. I’m adding fiber but not cutting out fats (and yeah, toast with peanut butter – there’s fat there ;)

@Noel – The funny thing? The neighbor eats steel-cut oats with dried fruit for breakfast, and the man of the house made a batch last night. Neighbor’s technique is to make a big batch of in a crock pot two / three times a month and stores it in the fridge. Each morning he spoons a serving into a bowl and microwaves it. So I may be trying it, given that there’s a bunch in my fridge now. ;)

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sarawr

October 2, 2008

That fiber tip may have saved my life. I crash every couple of hours too — I thought it was just part of my fibro/arthritis/insomnia issues — so I’m going to try adding more fiber and see how it goes. If it works, I’ll have a happier kid and a higher income, so you’ll officially be A Life Saver. :D

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living400lbs

October 2, 2008

@Sara – I hope it works for you! You may also want to carry snacks with you, if you don’t already.

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intravenoustherapy

January 31, 2011

I’m in Australia and I’m amazed and somewhat excited that you have drive-through starbucks!

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