You’ve always heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day but do you know why? By recharging the brain and body early in the morning, you will be more productive in just about everything you do throughout the day. Plus, if you skip breakfast you will be more likely to over indulge on snacks and other meals throughout the day. But the key to breakfast is eating what is best for your time and body.
Here are a few breakfast switches that will save you calories and add nutrients to your daily routine that are high in protein and low in sugar- the perfect balance to start your day right:
- 1 bagel with cream cheese vs. 1 English Muffin with a scrambled egg & Cheddar cheese
436 Calories 265 Calories
5g Sugar 0g Sugar
14g Protein 15.6g Protein
- Special K Red Berries vs. Original Cheerios with 1/2 c. fresh strawberries
110 Calories 100 Calories (Cheerios) + 24 Calories (strawberries)
9g Sugar 1g Sugar (Cheerios) + 3g Sugar (strawberries)
2g Protein 3g Protein (Cheerios)
Special K has High Fructose Corn Syrup in it, so switching to a cereal like Cheerios is a good choice. Plus, you get natural sugar from the strawberries!
- Quaker Instant Maple and Brown Sugar Oats vs. Quaker Old Fashioned Oats
157 Calories 150 Calories
12g Sugar 1g Sugar
4g Protein 5g Protein
A simple switch from sugar packets of instant oats to old fashioned oats can save you 11g of sugar and add a gram of protein! Try adding raisins and a handful of frozen blueberries if you want to sweeten it the natural way.
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- 1 Eggo Waffle with 1 Tbsp. syrup vs. 1 Nature’s Path Flax Plus Waffle + 1 Tbsp. Peanut Butter
190 Calories (waffle) + 52 Calories (syrup) 100 Calories (waffle) + 94 Calories (PB)
3g Sugar (waffle) + 12g Sugar (syrup) 3g Sugar (waffle) + 1g (PB)
5g Protein (waffle) + 0g Protein (syrup) 2g Protein (waffle) + 4g (PB)
By switching from white flour pancakes to flax, you will add nutrients to your breakfast. Any nut butter is a good replacement for syrup because of the added protein and less sugar.
- 1 Cup Vanilla yogurt + 1/4 Cup Granola vs. 1 Cup plain Greek yogurt + 1/4 Cup Granola
108 Calories (yogurt) + 113 Calories (granola) 130 Calories (yogurt) + 113 Calories (granola)
34g Sugar (yogurt) + 7g Sugar (granola) 9g Sugar (yogurt) + 7g Sugar (granola)
12g Protein (yogurt) + 2.5g (granola) 23g Protein (yogurt) + 2.5g (granola)
By simply switching from regular yogurt to greek yogurt, you are eliminating 25g of sugar and adding almost twice the protein!
All of these breakfast switches will give you maximum protein to keep you full, while sustaining your blood sugar level throughout the day to give you a healthier start to your day!