Is it ok to skip breakfast?

The word breakfast comes from the saying to break the fast, following sleep. So, it is the end of an overnight fast from sleeping.

If you are trying to improve your eating habits and become more healthy we recommend a good start point as being to have 3 meals per day, possibly with snacks between if you can and to stay within your total macro target calculated from the Ultra Nutrition macro calculator.

It is okay to miss breakfast sometimes if that doesn’t lead to you snacking on junk. We hear from a lot of people who try intermittent fasting which involved missing meals, but they then end up snacking on junk because they are hungry mid-morning.

In different countries a traditional breakfast can be different,

USA Bacon,  Pancakes
Japan Grilled fish, rice, eggs.
Spain Churros.
France Baguette or Croissants
UK  English breakfast, cereal, toast.

Its important that breakfast is an opportunity to eat, so you don’t have to eat what you pre-conceive as ‘breakfast’.

Breakfast should always contain the following:

Protein
The building block of muscles and promotes feeling of fullness.
Examples: meat, eggs, fish, dairy, alternative milks, tofu, beans lentils, protein powder, nuts.

Fat
Required for all your process for your body to work well and blunts the release of insulin following carbohydrate consumption improving feeling of fullness.
Examples: nuts, seeds, oils, fish, eggs

Carbohydrate
Used as energy, converted to glycogen, and stored in liver and muscles for future energy.
Examples: vegetables, fruit, nuts, legumes, grains, breads.

Fibre
Slows digestion and is full of goodness.
Examples: wholegrains, fruit, vegetables, peas, nuts, potatoes with skin.

What you have for breakfast will very much depend on if you want to make your breakfast, sit down and eat it, or have in the car on the way to work/dropping the kids off or eat it at your office desk.

So, if your follow the above principles you can put your own breakfast together, here are some suggestions:

Time to prepare and eat

• Poached eggs and avocado on wholemeal toast.
• Yoghurt with protein powder, seeds & fruit.
• Porridge with seeds or nut butter.

In a rush – this is fast to prepare.

• Overnight oats – prepare the night before and store in fridge.
• Ultra Complete – 2 scoops, water, and drink.
• Fruit and protein shake and nuts/seeds.

It’s important to remember that nutrition is simple & that people over complicate it. Ensure your meals have protein, fat, carbohydrate and fibre, consume as much natural whole food as possible and avoid processed foods and you won’t go far wrong.