Seven healthy breakfasts for effective weight loss

All through our lives, our mothers have told us not to rush through the morning breakfast. While only some of us heard her and ate our breakfasts in peace, most of us just rushed to our school/college or office with just a piece of toast or a glass of juice. Now, with umpteen numbers of health magazines and websites telling us the secret of a healthy weight loss regime is to have a wholesome breakfast; we seem to regret the rushing through. What makes breakfast the most important meal of the day is no science. When the body goes into rest for 7-8 hours without any food or water, it tends to digest all the food, lose all its nutrients and the metabolism slows down.

Once we are up in the morning, our metabolism needs to be up too. This makes our breakfast an eminent part of our daily routine. It needs to be filling, wholesome and healthy so that our metabolism is up and running again, thus giving us the energy for the day ahead. However, with most of us avoiding breakfast just to avoid calories, we are losing on our way to the weight loss journey.

Now that we know that avoiding breakfast means remaining lethargic and on the heavier side, here are seven healthy breakfast recipes for effective weight loss:

Oats and fruits in yogurt

This is fast becoming a healthy breakfast to lose weight for many. Oats has become hugely popular; thanks to its high nutrient content. It is full of high fibre complex carbohydrate that breaks down slowly; this keeping you full for longer. Mixing it with your choice of fruits gives it the much needed minerals and vitamins boost. Yogurt is a healthy source of gut friendly bacteria as well as a good portion of protein for your breakfast. When all three meet, you get a filling breakfast that you can actually have it in a bowl.

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Paranthas

No matter how bad reputation our humble paranthas have gathered over the years, they remain a favourite with mothers, for obvious reasons. Paranthas are often stuffed with vegetables such as fenugreek, spinach, potato and a lot many, sometimes even with pulses. They form a complete breakfast with themselves. While the whole grain wheat provides essential carbohydrates, the fillings provide much-needed minerals, protein and vitamins. Have it with a bowl of homemade curd and you are good to go.

Poha

Forget foreign cereals that are high in corn syrup, thus spiking your sugar level. Consider having an Indian breakfast as simple as poha. It is simply a breakfast of flattened rice sprinkled cooked with chopped onion, vegetables of your choice, some roasted groundnuts, little spices – and you bet you have had the tastiest breakfast before leaving the house. This breakfast is a right combination of carbohydrate from poha or flattened rice, minerals and vitamins from vegetables and essential oil from groundnuts.

Scrambled eggs with peanut butter and toast

If you are a fan of English breakfast and in love with eggs, prepare a simple breakfast of scrambled eggs. Eggs are known to be a good source of fat and protein. Just do not separate the egg whites from the yolks; the yolks give you good fat. Prepare a scramble from two eggs with some herbs and seasoning. Get a brown bread toast and apply a spoon of peanut butter. You have a rich English breakfast ready in 10 minutes. Just remember to make your own nut butter, as the nut butters available in the market may have added sugar.

Chicken/cottage cheese sandwiches

If elaborate breakfasts are not your cup of tea, opt for quick breakfast ideas such as sandwiches. Almost everyone loves sandwiches, from children to adults. They are easy to prepare and you can customize them as per your ingredients availability. A classic sandwich recipe for non-vegetarians is the chicken sandwich.  Boil a few chunks of chicken and shred them into small pieces. Grate a cube of cheese into it; add salt, pepper and herbs. Mix well and spread it on brown bread slices. You can add a little mayo too while it is not bought from the market, since commercial mayo contain a lot of sugar. For vegetarians, switch the chicken with cottage cheese (paneer). Mix it with chopped and boiled vegetables and cheese and spread it on the bread slices.

Cereal and milk

If you love your cereal, stay away from the ones available in the market shelves. Not only they are high in sugar (no matter how much they claim to be sugar-free), thanks to the corn syrup used, they are also low in nutrients. Make your own granola mix at home with a cup of old-fashioned rolled roasted oats, a cup of mixed nuts such as cashews, raisins, apricots, figs, walnuts and almonds. Add in some seeds such as chia seeds, sunflower seeds and roasted flax seeds and Voila! You have the most nutritious cereal ready at your home, sitting happily in a jar to be used on those busy mornings. Homemade cereal is one of the easy breakfasts for weight loss when you are in a rush but will not skip your breakfast at any cost. Just mix 2 tbsp of cereal mix with a cup of cold low fat milk and devour it happily.

Mix fruit and vegetable smoothies

If you are at the epitome of rush, but still need to kick-start your metabolism (which is a wise thing to do), prepare your smoothie mix for a week and freeze it in zip lock bags. Heard of ever-nutritious green weight loss smoothies? You do not need to get a whole lot of ingredients to prepare it. Throw in a diced cucumber, a small bunch of spinach, a small piece of ginger and a green apple into a juicer. Blend it smooth and drink up your breakfast.

Remember, there is nothing as perfect breakfast foods for weight loss. When you choose wisely with an open mind and a healthy heart, every breakfast that is balanced in its nutrients is perfect.

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