To eat breakfast or not to eat breakfast

ckopeny1

I wouldnt skip breakfast, alot happens overnight with glucose levels ect that need restored for energy. Try just a small piece if fruit or a quick yoplait smootie drink. Good luck in your weight loss

engrdad

I, like you, am never hungry in the morning and use to always skip breakfast. However, my company always does a "safety topic" before every meeting and they gave one on eating breakfast. It basically stated that there have been several studies done to try and figure out why the frequency of heart attack, sudden death, and stroke peaks between 6am to noon with the highest incident between 8am - 10am. They found that platelets in the blood clump together (become most active) in the early morning hours. However, eating even a very light breakfast prevents the morning platelet activation that is associated with heart attacks and stroke. So now I have a 6oz fat free yogurt each morning. They do make some good ones. See some web references below:

http://www.knowledgebase-script.com/demo/article-314.html
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Breakfast+may+reduce+morning+heart+risk.-a010688090
http://ezinearticles.com/?Importance-of-Breakfast---Why-It-Is-the-Most-Important-Meal-of-the-Day&id=6117525

rjmudlax13

I am not going to claim I am an expert and I am not going to post a link to some random website that says "this is the way it REALLY is...blah, blah." I'm just going to tell you what works for me.

I eat a fairly large breakfast which includes a lot of carbs and protein. I find it helps me feel less hungry at dinner time. Although, I usually feel very hungry at lunch. Therefore, lunch is my largest meal and most balanced (Fat / Carbs / Protein). I workout in the afternoon. So, all I really need around dinner time is a protein shake (or just some good old fashioned lean meat), a small amound of carbs like brown rice and some veges. I've lost about 12 lbs and 2% body fat in 1 month since I stared this routine. So, it works for me.

If I don't eat breakfast OR I eat a fattening breakfast (i.e. bacon, eggs and home fries) I will be hosed for basically the whole day.

Again, just my experience.

twelfty

I, like you, am never hungry in the morning and use to always skip breakfast. However, my company always does a "safety topic" before every meeting and they gave one on eating breakfast. It basically stated that there have been several studies done to try and figure out why the frequency of heart attack, sudden death, and stroke peaks between 6am to noon with the highest incident between 8am - 10am. They found that platelets in the blood clump together (become most active) in the early morning hours. However, eating even a very light breakfast prevents the morning platelet activation that is associated with heart attacks and stroke. So now I have a 6oz fat free yogurt each morning. They do make some good ones. See some web references below:

http://www.knowledgebase-script.com/demo/article-314.html
http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Breakfast+may+reduce+morning+heart+risk.-a010688090
http://ezinearticles.com/?Importance-of-Breakfast---Why-It-Is-the-Most-Important-Meal-of-the-Day&id=6117525

pretty sure hydration would play a big part in blood clumping together given it's the longest time a person goes without a drink

missliss4763

I love having breakfast in the morning...I am up at 530-545ish and get to work by 730am...I have my coffee and ususally am not hungry til about 845-9am...I have a desk job now, so I have oatmeal with fruit...works for me...Eat when you're hungry timing doesn't matter.

ckopeny1

I think we are on the same schedule I love my coffee first, then oatmeal or grits by 8:30 and a piece of fruit around 10 Good luck in all you want to accomplish

bcassill2013

I try not to eat after 7:00pm, at the latest, so, by the time breakfast rolls around it's been 10+ hours since I've eaten anything, so, yeah, gotta get some nourishment in me. Don't know that it's healthy to go much longer than that between meals??

DaniH826

I think most of the beliefs we've adopted about how, when and what to eat were jammed into our brains by somebody trying to sell us a product.

Nourishing yourself isn't a rigid thing. It's an individual thing where as long as the basic boundaries are covered, there actually is a ton of room to move, and at the end of the day most of what people bicker about boils down to personal preference and isn't going to bring on grave consequences one way or the other. Our bodies are amazing machines that are highly adaptable, obviously, and can run just fine on pizza, soda and Cheetos for a long time until they start breaking down.

So really, stick with a common sense balanced diet, get your butt moving regularly, and don't sweat the details overmuch. Work your diet around your life and you'll be just fine. Eat breakfast, don't eat breakfast ... whatever. Figure out what works best for you and do that.

ndj1979

I try not to eat after 7:00pm, at the latest, so, by the time breakfast rolls around it's been 10+ hours since I've eaten anything, so, yeah, gotta get some nourishment in me. Don't know that it's healthy to go much longer than that between meals??

if you do an IF/lean gains approach your fasting window is 18 with an eating window of 6 (at least that is what I do)...you can also do a 16 hour fast with an 8 hour eating window...www.leangains.com

there is also eat, stop, eat...where you fast for 24 hours and then rest of week eat normal calories (at least I think becuse I do not do this and am not familar w ith it)

you have to starve yourself for 72 hours for it to start to become unhealthy i.e. your body starts turning to muscle for energy...

TR0berts

"I know breakfast jump starts your metabolism"
- Not true, that's a complete myth.
"You should never skip a meal"
- Not true, does you no harm at all. (More likely to do you some good.)

"I find that when I do not eat breakfast I do not consume as much during the day. I am less likely to become ravishingly hungry in the afternoon. "
- Sounds like skipping breakfast works for you.

/thread

MinnieInMaine

You need to listen to what your body needs - I have to eat something by 10am or I feel lightheaded and my brain goes even more gaga - but then I also need to eat regularly so thats not unusual for me. My husband can go til mid afternoon without eating anything and feel fine. Neither is wrong, neither is right - they are just what works for our needs.

I am the exact same way and my Hubs is the same as yours. He usually doesn't eat until noon most days, especially if he's busy doing something and forgets to eat.

And I'm the exact opposite as the OP. For me, it's vital to eat breakfast because if I don't, as soon as I start eating I become ravenous and end up eating far more than I should. Today is a prime example. I woke up starving - like my stomach was grumbling and everything. I ate a protein bar around 7am but that barely touched it so I ate some eggs and a muffin when I got to work and felt ok. It's still catching up to me though...I've eaten my wrap, a yogurt and a square of dark chocoalte and had to go heat up some edamame because I was still hungry. Thankfully I got a good burn in the gym so I can have an extra snack later if need be.

Point is, do what works for you, there are no hard and fast rules...

elephant_in_the_room

I find that when I do not eat breakfast I do not consume as much during the day. I am less likely to become ravishingly hungry in the afternoon. I know breakfast jump starts your metabolism and you should never skip a meal however can this be different for different people?

The idea that breakfast jump starts your metabolism is yet another diet myth.
http://www.leangains.com/2010/10/top-ten-fasting-myths-debunked.html
http://yourdoctorsorders.com/2011/10/breakfast-myths/
I am just not hungry in the mornings. It's the idea of dieting that at the very least you don't eat when you are not hungry. So I quite often don't eat breakfast.
That's taking the traditional definition of breakfast. In my own personal terms, I do eat breakfast because I do break the fast -- sometime during the day, sometimes at 10, sometimes at 12. Usually with something healthy.
Not eating breakfast makes me less hungry in the morning and helps with weight loss because the overall calories I then eat during the day are lower, not higher. In no way does it make me crave food more later or binge more later.
So, find out how your body works, don't listen to popular myths.

^^This

I think it's important to note, though, that even if it may benefit some people's diets, it's not as healthy for brain function, alertness, and productivity. It is much easier to focus if you're fueling your brain with something, regardless of whether you're trying to lose weight or not. Once I started eating a regular breakfast, I became a much more tolerable "morning person" than I once was. I just generally feel more "awake" with a cup of tea and some toast at the very least.

No, simply not for me. My job requires a high level of concentration and I am not in any way less alert or less productive or less able to concentrate when I don't eat breakfast than when I do. In fact, when I have lunch at 12, It can happen that I get sleepy at 2, which doesn't happen if I skip lunch.

I absolutely respect your experience, but mine is different.

I'm also someone for whom endurance training comes natural, I ran half marathons before my doctors forbade me and can perfectly well run for 30 minutes without breakfast. And I love mornings when I manage to drag myself out of bed early. I tend to think maybe both tendencies are linked.

michael7585

I always eat something for breakfast, either oatmeal with blueberries and strawberries. or i have a smoothie in the morning. the smoothie consist of spinach, blueberries, banana, blackberries, a little bit of orange, maybe some pineapple and flax seeds. It always gives me lots of energy

DeanR321

You should always eat breakfast even if its a small breakfast like porridge or weetabix as if you miss breakfast your body is starved and when the next time you eat your body will store most of it as fat as it will be in hunger mode and thinks its not going to get any more you need a consistant flow of good foods going down you throug the day 4 - 5 small meals a day n a veriety of fruit and veg and protiens such as fish, chicken and lean meats but not all at once thougt oviously and with complex carbs

mmapags

You should always eat breakfast even if its a small breakfast like porridge or weetabix as if you miss breakfast your body is starved and when the next time you eat your body will store most of it as fat as it will be in hunger mode and thinks its not going to get any more you need a consistant flow of good foods going down you throug the day 4 - 5 small meals a day n a veriety of fruit and veg and protiens such as fish, chicken and lean meats but not all at once thougt oviously and with complex carbs

Total nonsense and myth. it takes about 72 hours for any level of adaptive thermogenesis and for the frst 48 or so metabolism actually increases. Also, meal frequency is all personal preference and has nothing to do with any metabolic advantage for weight loss. You could take in all your food in one sitting and it would have little to no effect on weight loss. Some who practice IF do just that!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/820577-meal-frequency-rev-up-that-furnace-lol

If one is going to give advice, it's generally a good idea to know the facts and not just repeat myth and misinformation.

alanlmarshall

You should always eat breakfast even if its a small breakfast like porridge or weetabix as if you miss breakfast your body is starved and when the next time you eat your body will store most of it as fat as it will be in hunger mode and thinks its not going to get any more you need a consistant flow of good foods going down you throug the day 4 - 5 small meals a day n a veriety of fruit and veg and protiens such as fish, chicken and lean meats but not all at once thougt oviously and with complex carbs

Total nonsense and myth. it takes about 72 hours for any level of adaptive thermogenesis and for the frst 48 or so metabolism actually increases. Also, meal frequency is all personal preference and has nothing to do with any metabolic advantage for weight loss. You could take in all your food in one sitting and it would have little to no effect on weight loss. Some who practice IF do just that!
http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/820577-meal-frequency-rev-up-that-furnace-lol

If one is going to give advice, it's generally a good idea to know the facts and not just repeat myth and misinformation.

Agreed. People are different and goals vary, but the best evidence suggests that delaying breaking an overnight fast is more likely to help weight loss than hurt it.

crabbok

I eat a handful of cheerios in the morning and it absolutely jump-starts MY metabolism. I can feel my stomach grinding and churning out farts, leading up til lunch. I'm usually very hungry by lunch but I am able to control that hunger and still eat healthy throughout the day. I've been losing 2-3 pounds per week for several months now and firmly recommend eating a healthy breakfast.

TR0berts

I eat a handful of cheerios in the morning and it absolutely jump-starts MY metabolism.

No - what it does is spike your insulin. That is a far different thing.


The fact that it works for you is great, but it absolutely, positively does NOT jump-start your metabolism.

mmapags

I eat a handful of cheerios in the morning and it absolutely jump-starts MY metabolism.

No - what it does is spike your insulin. That is a far different thing.


The fact that it works for you is great, but it absolutely, positively does NOT jump-start your metabolism.

Sounds like some here need to do a little research on the function of metabolism. lol Eating does not effect metabolism beyond TEF or the Thermic Effect of Food. You want to boost your metabolism? Go work out!

ndj1979

I eat a handful of cheerios in the morning and it absolutely jump-starts MY metabolism.

No - what it does is spike your insulin. That is a far different thing.


The fact that it works for you is great, but it absolutely, positively does NOT jump-start your metabolism.

Sounds like some here need to do a little research on the function of metabolism. lol Eating does not effect metabolism beyond TEF or the Thermic Effect of Food. You want to boost your metabolism? Go work out!

a handfull of cherios? You might as well say you drink a glass of water and it "jumpstarts" your metabolism...and stomach sounds have nothing to do with metabolism...