I’m a 40-year-old male and would like to lose weight and keep it off. I hate yogurt, and dairy products are a problem. What can I eat for breakfast that’s easy and will carry me through to lunch at work?
It’s astute of you to know that a good strategy for managing your weight is to make sure that you dine first thing in the morning. Many breakfast skippers end up with donut crumbs on their desk by late morning, making up for the calories, plus some that they bypassed at breakfast.
In fact, a study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, (Schlundt, DG., et.al., The role of breakfast in the treatment of obesity: a randomized clinical trial.), which looked at the eating habits of moderately obese adult women, suggested that eating breakfast could not only help decrease the amount of fat in your diet, but it also could minimize impulsive snacking.
If you are having a problem with dairy because of lactose intolerance, check with your doctor. For the majority of my busy clients who are hunting for a morning meal, I recommend a breakfast consisting of complex carbohydrates (whole grain cereal, bagels, English muffins, toast), protein (low-fat cheese, peanut butter, eggs, lean ham), fruit, and a smidgen of fat (light cream cheese, light margarine).
Here are some easy breakfast starters:
- On the weekend, buy a week’s worth of bagels and individually wrap each one. Stack them in your freezer and defrost one in the refrigerator overnight. In the morning, slice in half and schmear on a whisper of peanut butter. Add a piece of fruit or a glass of juice to complete the meal. You can buy the juice in small bottles or convenient juice boxes if you plan to eat breakfast en route to work.
- If you’re a weekend baker, muffins or fruit breads are a sweet start. Top a couple of slices with a schmear of light margarine and grab a piece of fruit.
- When you are packing a sandwich for lunch, fix one for breakfast. Any lean sandwich filler between whole wheat bread or a roll will do. A breakfast favorite of mine is egg salad. To cut back on the cholesterol in the eggs, use cooked, chopped egg whites or one hard boiled egg and plenty of cooked whites. Add light mayonnaise, celery, and mustard for a kick.
- Try a waffle sandwich. I make whole-grain waffles on the weekend before I attack the Sunday newspaper. Leftovers are frozen for a quick toast during the week. Add fruit preserves and sliced banana for a tasty waffle sandwich.