Weight: 189
Today, I’d like to respond to a question posted yesterday in response to Week 1, Day 4.
mpagliarini asks:
When I read this part of your blog, it made a lot of sense to me (about your body going into starvation mode)! Do you have any suggestions for someone who never eats breakfast? I find it very hard to find time in the morning to eat breakfast, and then I am not hungry at lunch time, so I tend to skip it. But on the days that I do eat breakfast, I am hungry at lunch and will eat. I also notice on those days that I feel better, have more energy and snack less at night. But it seems to be nearly impossible for me to take the time in the morning to eat! Any suggestion? The whole “put yourself first” thing just doesn’t seem to work for me, I am too busy to put my needs first!!! I was wondering what you know about protein shakes or something quick and easy in the AM. Any suggestions would be awesome!
I love breakfast. It’s my favorite meal of the day, when I have the time for it.
That said, I admit to sometimes skipping breakfast, whether for lack of time, or the absence of a quick, grab-it-and-go type of meal. On mornings when I’ve been too hungry to skip breakfast, if I didn’t have the time (or I just didn’t take the time) to prepare a nutritious meal, I’d tend to grab whatever was convenient. If the convenient item was a poor choice nutritionally, so be it. I was too hungry to care.
Many times in the past, I’d get out of bed and sit right down at the computer to begin my work day. (I’m working at home these days.) On days when that happened, hours flew by before I’d realize that I hadn’t had a thing to eat since the night before. By then, I’d be too famished to think about making good choices, or taking the time to cook up some eggs or protein-fortified oatmeal. (I’ll give you the recipe in another post — it’s delicious!) I’d just grab whatever was easy and quick, and most often what I grabbed was something high-carb and low protein — the worst choice I could have made, aside from starving.
At any rate, I’ve learned that in order to make good choices in any situation, I need to have good choices available to me at a moment’s notice. I’ve long been a fan of protein bars. They’re quick to prepare (just remove the wrapper), neat to eat (even in the car on the way to work), and the good ones are full of good nutrition. I wouldn’t recommend them on a daily basis because of the preservatives and other additives, but even on a daily basis, they’re a better choice than skipping breakfast.
Some people skip breakfast because they just can’t stomach the idea of food that early in the morning. (This has never been my problem, but I know people who feel this way.) According to the Gabriel Method, once your body understands that it will be getting the nutrition it needs on a regular basis, you won’t need to worry about eating at any specific time of day. Just eat when you’re hungry. However, until you start feeding your body what it needs, you’d do well to have something soon after rising. That “something” should include a good portion of protein.
The Silhouette Solution product line includes protein shakes and meal bars. I haven’t tried the shakes yet, but the bars are excellent. Each bar contains 15 grams of protein along with balanced nutrition, and they taste great and satisfy my hunger. There’s no prep time, and no mess, so you can eat a bar while doing your normal routine. Look into it. This might be the perfect solution for you!
Try this, too: In the evening, while you’re preparing your evening meal, hard boil some eggs, and put them in a bowl in your fridge, in an easily accessible spot. (For instance, if the door of your fridge has an egg tray, consider keeping the uncooked eggs in the carton they came in, and using the egg tray to store the hard-boiled eggs.)
In the morning, take one or two of the cooked eggs out of the fridge and peel them. Sprinkle with a little salt and/or pepper if you like, and eat them while you’re doing your morning routine. Since the eggs are already cooked, eating them will take no time at all, and you’ll be giving your body the protein it needs to thrive. Do that most days of the week, and I’ll bet you’ll start to notice some positive changes taking place in your life.
As far as your not taking care of your own needs first, that’s all part of the “starving body” syndrome. Start giving your body what it needs to maintain itself, and your entire life will change for the better. I promise you that!