Good breakfast to get the Metabolism going

keithf1138
keithf1138 Posts: 63
in Food and Nutrition
Hear so much about getting the Metabolism going early in the AM is a key to fat loss.

Yet none of the articles I read seem to give suggestions for the breakfast.

So I eat breakfast everyday, but it is spread out a bit.

5:45AM - Wakeup - Shower and get dressed. I shower first because my wife needs coffee to get going.
6:00AM - Help with kids breakfast and get the kids lunches made and packed (while fighting off our Weimaraners..They have no manners). I serve the kids and my wife takes off to get herself ready for work. I grab a banana while doing this to get something in the system.
6:45AM - Leave for work. Drop youngest son at Bus stop on the way. Have water bottle in hand and will drink a couple glasses on the way to work. Along the way I stop at Starbucks and pick up my vice. Venti Nonfat Caramel Macchiato. Dont start drinking it until I get to office.
7:25AM - Arrive at office. Walk 5 flights of stairs to office.
7:30AM - Eat Instant Oatmeal and enjoy my Starbucks while starting to work.

About 11AM is when I eat next. Just a little fruit or veggies so that I dont eat lunch until about 12-12:30.


Am I slowing down my metabolism? Do I need to get more food in me (suggest what) earlier?
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Replies

  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    There is no such thing as a metabolic thermic effect from multiple meals a day. Breakfast is not necessary unless it helps you function mentally and is your own choosing.

    There is no metabolic furnace from morning meals.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    btw that fat free caramel machiatto still has 317 calories in it.

    I am not saying dont drink it because of the calories, but the fact it is a drink that has a macronutrient composition of 53 carbs, 10 protein, and 4g of fat.

    You might as well take a protein shake and take a caffeine pill.
  • daybreak0723
    daybreak0723 Posts: 22 Member
    Following this thread because I have heard the opposite of ^...I'm interested in what others say. Thanks for bringing up such a great topic!
  • LolBroScience
    LolBroScience Posts: 4,537 Member
    There is no such thing as a metabolic thermic effect from multiple meals a day. Breakfast is not necessary unless it helps you function mentally and is your own choosing.

    There is no metabolic furnace from morning meals.

    Yep, spot on. Your meal timing won't impact your metabolism.
  • thefewsteps
    thefewsteps Posts: 201 Member
    I think you're fine, but maybe you'd want to choose a low fat cheese stick or something right when you get up, then opt for steel cut or quick oats rather than instant packets. They tend to be high in processed sugar. Maybe even make your own coffee. You can do coffee, unsweetened almond milk, maybe some baking cocoa and stevia or sugarfree carmel syrup if you like flavoring. Just some suggestions.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    DatMurse is 100% right. Meal timing is pretty much completely irrelevant to anything related to fat loss.

    Eat whenever works best for you. And if your goal is to lose weight you might have trouble fitting in enough food if you're drinking hundreds of calories of sugar+cream+coffee slurries.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    I also want to add I am sure there is a line drawn as far as for meal timing and the negative effects on your body.

    But we know, even in the regards of protein timing.... IN TODAYS WORLD it is irrelevant. There is no study on the effects of not eating for multiple days but we know within a day and for the normal person it is irrelevant.
  • Cr01502
    Cr01502 Posts: 3,614 Member
    DatMurse is 100% right. Meal timing is pretty much completely irrelevant to anything related to fat loss.

    Eat whenever works best for you. And if your goal is to lose weight you might have trouble fitting in enough food if you're drinking hundreds of calories of sugar+cream+coffee slurries.

    Yep.

    Also I'm confused about the showering and coffee bit.

    Why did we need to know your showering schedule?
  • BarackMeLikeAHurricane
    BarackMeLikeAHurricane Posts: 3,400 Member
    Meal timing and number of meals doesn't matter

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11319656

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1905998

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9155494

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15085170

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8399092

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8383639

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21123467

    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19943985
  • TylerJ76
    TylerJ76 Posts: 4,375 Member
    Sex
  • theCarlton
    theCarlton Posts: 1,344 Member
    I don't eat breakfast. My metabolism is going just fine. :)
  • keithf1138
    keithf1138 Posts: 63
    btw that fat free caramel machiatto still has 317 calories in it.

    I am not saying dont drink it because of the calories, but the fact it is a drink that has a macronutrient composition of 53 carbs, 10 protein, and 4g of fat.

    You might as well take a protein shake and take a caffeine pill.

    It is my one vice...And far better than any protein shake :) Also from everything I find it is 240 or 270 calories depending on hot iced.
  • bpotts44
    bpotts44 Posts: 1,066 Member
    Breakfast having some sort of metabolic boost is a complete and total myth. I have found that my hunger stays more in control when I skip breakfast and eat a little larger lunch. I basically limit my eating from lunch to dinner and cut it off before and after.
  • Crankstr
    Crankstr Posts: 3,958 Member
    COFFEE baby!
  • keithf1138
    keithf1138 Posts: 63
    DatMurse is 100% right. Meal timing is pretty much completely irrelevant to anything related to fat loss.

    Eat whenever works best for you. And if your goal is to lose weight you might have trouble fitting in enough food if you're drinking hundreds of calories of sugar+cream+coffee slurries.

    Yep.

    Also I'm confused about the showering and coffee bit.

    Why did we need to know your showering schedule?

    Just being chatty. It is the way I am.
  • Carnivor0us
    Carnivor0us Posts: 1,752 Member
    Bacon and eggs get me going for the rest of the day, but you may not have time for that, considering your morning schedule.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    btw that fat free caramel machiatto still has 317 calories in it.

    I am not saying dont drink it because of the calories, but the fact it is a drink that has a macronutrient composition of 53 carbs, 10 protein, and 4g of fat.

    You might as well take a protein shake and take a caffeine pill.

    It is my one vice...And far better than any protein shake :) Also from everything I find it is 240 or 270 calories depending on hot iced.

    Even then it being 240 calories. The macro-nutrient composition of it is crap. I know that caloric intake in the end is what really matters, but I am against drinking 240 worth of calories, at least from carbs for an inexperienced dieter.

    There are alot of things better than a meal I would consume. If I had no negative effect I would consume a 16 oz ribeye steak 3x a day with mashed potatoes and a coke. that isnt the case.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    Bacon and eggs get me going for the rest of the day, but you may not have time for that, considering your morning schedule.

    he gets breakfast ready for his kids...
    He can prepare his own at the same time. especially since boiling eggs takes about 25 minutes
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    Breakfast having some sort of metabolic boost is a complete and total myth. I have found that my hunger stays more in control when I skip breakfast and eat a little larger lunch. I basically limit my eating from lunch to dinner and cut it off before and after.

    This is me as well. If I eat breakfast it just sets me up to be ravenous the whole day, usually putting me over my goal. I wait till lunch and I'm good to go. Also metabolism doesn't even begin to slow down till around 72 hours of NO food, before someone comes in and says "You'll go into starvation mode." The only reason to keep a precise eating schedule is to keep yourself in check, nothing else. Honestly when I tried keeping one, eating every 2-3 hours, I was miserable. All I did was obsess about food.
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    COFFEE baby!

    ^ This. While I agree there's no stoking the metabolism, coffee stokes my desire to move.
  • RunHardBeStrong
    RunHardBeStrong Posts: 33,069 Member
    Bacon and eggs get me going for the rest of the day, but you may not have time for that, considering your morning schedule.

    he gets breakfast ready for his kids...
    He can prepare his own at the same time. especially since boiling eggs takes about 25 minutes

    Or, I boil a pot of eggs on Sunday and grab a few as I need them.
  • BigGuy47
    BigGuy47 Posts: 1,768 Member
    Spend the 15 minutes you waste at Starbucks exercising at home. Drink black coffee at the office. Depending on the intensity of the exercise you would net 400-500 calories off your daily total.
  • DatMurse
    DatMurse Posts: 1,501 Member
    COFFEE baby!

    ^ This. While I agree there's no stoking the metabolism, coffee stokes my desire to move.
    caffeine gives a minor metabolic boost. nothing to add to your exercies diary, but it is also known as an appetite supressant
  • BeachIron
    BeachIron Posts: 6,490 Member
    COFFEE baby!

    ^ This. While I agree there's no stoking the metabolism, coffee stokes my desire to move.
    caffeine gives a minor metabolic boost. nothing to add to your exercies diary, but it is also known as an appetite supressant

    Yep. It also suppresses my desire for morning violence.
  • keithf1138
    keithf1138 Posts: 63
    I could make breakfast food for myself as well. The spacing makes it easier to get from breakfast to lunch without getting munchies.

    Sorry the Caramel Macchiato is staying. As I stated it is my 1 vice (even when I am dieting) that I have been able to keep over the 3 years I have lost 90 lbs and gone from pretty sedentary to someone who runs, hikes, ski's, etc.

    I am on a push for the final 25-30 pounds and just fine tuning the process as I get closer to goal.
  • jonnythan
    jonnythan Posts: 10,161 Member
    COFFEE baby!

    ^ This. While I agree there's no stoking the metabolism, coffee stokes my desire to move.

    Coffee stokes my desire not to veer into oncoming traffic or bludgeon my boss with my keyboard.
  • akp4Him
    akp4Him Posts: 227
    bump
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
    COFFEE baby!

    ^ This. While I agree there's no stoking the metabolism, coffee stokes my desire to move.
    caffeine gives a minor metabolic boost. nothing to add to your exercies diary, but it is also known as an appetite supressant

    COFFEE, who cares what it does, I JUST NEED IT!!!!
  • keithf1138
    keithf1138 Posts: 63
    Spend the 15 minutes you waste at Starbucks exercising at home. Drink black coffee at the office. Depending on the intensity of the exercise you would net 400-500 calories off your daily total.

    Yuck. I cant drink Black Coffee. I have 1 coffee drink a day and thats it. I do 50 flights of stairs at the office each day. Its also a bit of social thing. I see people and chat a bit at the Starbucks.
  • teamstanish
    teamstanish Posts: 274 Member
    I eat something so that I don't over-eat later in the day. I usually have egg whites with veggies, fruit, steel cut oatmeal, greek yogurt...stuff like that! If I skip breakfast I'm starving by lunch.

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