Low (or no carb) breakfast I can take to work

SuzMcH
SuzMcH Posts: 343 Member
edited September 22 in Food and Nutrition
I've been reviewing my food and exercise diary and have decided I need to change things up a wee bit. I've been on a plateau for a few weeks, partly my own doing of not being as focussed as I should be.

Also I noticed I eat a lot of carbs and would like to reduce these and incorporate more low GI (sweet potato etc).

But I'm struggling to think of some ideas for breakfast. I normally have oats, granola or a bagel which I take to work.

Any ideas for low/no carb breakfasts that I can pack up and take to work. I guess eggs but not so easy for taking to work ? Thanks x

Replies

  • mum23
    mum23 Posts: 248 Member
    fruit?
    youghurt?
  • fitbot
    fitbot Posts: 406
    I love morning smoothies. You can put pretty much anything in there and they are always delicious and filling.
    I usually sub regular milk for soy. then add berries, mango, pineapple, whatever. they travel well in a sealed container.
    Additionally you can put in protein powder but i rarely do that.
    natural yogurt will give you yummy probiotics.
    With the fruit you are still getting carbs but they are not carbs from flower so they are more weight friendly. yet you get a lot of vitamins.
  • pamp1emousse
    pamp1emousse Posts: 282 Member
    I second the yoghurt idea - you can get a little tupperware box and put in low fat/fat free greek yoghurt with blueberries and raspberries. really nice and has a fair bit of protein
  • rundgrenfan
    rundgrenfan Posts: 211
    Nuts-- I brought some to a place the other day where I knew there would be all sorts of muffins, etc, just munched on my nuts, and I was good!
  • Lyadeia
    Lyadeia Posts: 4,603 Member
    I like yogurt and fruit as well...however, these are both high carbs items. :flowerforyou: Instead of yogurt, you might want to try some low fat cottage cheese or fat free ricotta cheese instead. If you have some strawberries (low GI carbs) and some nuts on top, it's really good. I don't think a lot of people realize how many carbs are in yogurt, even the plain unsweetened no sugar added kinds. It's really good for you, but since you are looking for lower or no carbs................
  • Voncreepy2
    Voncreepy2 Posts: 1,450 Member
    You could always do boiled eggs. I used to do that. They are a little stinky though and all my immature coworkers would go EWWWW like someone farted or something.
  • LauraAkaTigger
    LauraAkaTigger Posts: 145 Member
    Hard boiled eggs (maybe just one yolk) and if you have time a few mushrooms & tomato lightly fried in 1 cal spray is lovely!! Or an omlette could be done the night before, and reheated at work?
  • pamp1emousse
    pamp1emousse Posts: 282 Member
    I like yogurt and fruit as well...however, these are both high carbs items. :flowerforyou: Instead of yogurt, you might want to try some low fat cottage cheese or fat free ricotta cheese instead. If you have some strawberries (low GI carbs) and some nuts on top, it's really good. I don't think a lot of people realize how many carbs are in yogurt, even the plain unsweetened no sugar added kinds. It's really good for you, but since you are looking for lower or no carbs................

    :O I cant believe I never knew that yoghurt is high carb! oops :embarassed:
    good idea with the nuts!
  • pamp1emousse
    pamp1emousse Posts: 282 Member
    I like yogurt and fruit as well...however, these are both high carbs items. :flowerforyou: Instead of yogurt, you might want to try some low fat cottage cheese or fat free ricotta cheese instead. If you have some strawberries (low GI carbs) and some nuts on top, it's really good. I don't think a lot of people realize how many carbs are in yogurt, even the plain unsweetened no sugar added kinds. It's really good for you, but since you are looking for lower or no carbs................

    :O I cant believe I never knew that yoghurt is high carb! oops :embarassed:
    good idea with the nuts!
  • rileygsd
    rileygsd Posts: 5
    (I am not a nutrisonist but I have been studing nutrition as a hobby for the past three weeks and it is amazing the misconceptions that are widely accepted as proven fact!) It is not a good idea to skip carbs entirely in the morning. Your body needs carbs and fat from food (not just what you are hoping to loose) to keep you going. If your body must resort to burning proteins for fuel because you skip the carbs, you will go into "starvation mode" and start storing every spare calorie as fat. You can also end up feeling tired and burn fewer calories because you dont have the energy to be active. Remember that fruits and veg are full of good healthy carbs so an apple for breakfast is a great choice. 50% of everything you eat should be carbs! Fruit and veg are the best source of complex carbs that will keep your metabolism up for hours and you will loose more weight.
  • sara_xo
    sara_xo Posts: 195 Member
    I second the greek yogurt.. it's better than regular yogurt and if you're not one to have enough protein with breakfast it's a great alternative.

    Opt for the natural/plain flavours thought, the ones that have fruit on the bottom on loaded with sugars and carbs.. (20g's) and if you're trying to stay away from the carbs then the "tastier" ones are not a good option.

    If you can't do that then 1% Cottage Cheese :) Yum yum! :) these two things are part of my first 6 hours of being awake.
  • fitbot
    fitbot Posts: 406
    agree w rileygsd. Carbs are your friends. Just stop mashing sugar and muffins into your face and choose the right energy fuelling carbs!!!!

    re eating no fat versions of things. STOP . fat free stuff is evil.
  • sara_xo
    sara_xo Posts: 195 Member
    agree w rileygsd. Carbs are your friends. Just stop mashing sugar and muffins into your face and choose the right energy fuelling carbs!!!!

    re eating no fat versions of things. STOP . fat free stuff is evil.

    I AGREE!! haha.. like the media trick they say to everyone about candy! the fancy packaging now has this bright yellow stamp! "FAT FREE" haha candy has always been fat free.. it's loaded with sugar.

    Fat is not evil :) TOO much is evil, and TOO much of anything is bad. a serving size of anything should be the size of your and layed flat.. no more. :)
  • mckval
    mckval Posts: 64 Member
    I agree that carbs can be your friend if done moderately. Sara Lee 45 calorie per slice delightful bread (both whole grain and wheat) are pretty reasonable. Only 18 carbs for those two slices. Slap an egg on that, and you're doing OK, I say.
  • fitbot
    fitbot Posts: 406
    see, if i was trying to lower my carbs, i would cut out bread and pasta and anything w flour / sugar it in, and would get my carbs from veggies, yogurt etc.
  • Charlie001
    Charlie001 Posts: 354
    I eat every 3 hours. I skip carbs for firt meal. Have shake with coconut oil and omega oils. Sometimes if I am too hungry still I throw in a bowl of frosted flakes. But smoothies with a scoop of protein is best. Just be sure to have a leak proof container.
  • vcatmb44
    vcatmb44 Posts: 129 Member
    Do you have a microwave at work? if so you could get the pre-cooked jimmy dean turkey sausages aand just heat them in microwave they are low in fat as wel.
  • DawnOf1969
    DawnOf1969 Posts: 726 Member
    I make a smoothie every morning with skim milk, carnation instant breakfast, frozen banana, scoop of milled flaxseed, ice and WW vanilla yogurt. It keeps me full until lunch. I bought a personal size blender (you can drink directly from the cup you blend it in) and I make it at work. This morning, I added a T. of peanut butter. Yesterday, I added a scoop of pumpkin. You can really change it up. Somedays I just do yogurt, skim milk and frozen fruit.

    It's the quality of the carbs you choose. You want low GI (glycemic index) carbs. The faster it turns into sugar in your blood the higher the GI.

    Whole grain are lower GI foods, not white bread. Eat wild Rice, not white rice. Fruits and Veggies, not juice. Not soda, not cookies, not pastries, not pasta.

    Never eat carbs alone, always incorporate protein with it because it will slow down the process and help stabilize your blood sugar.
  • dothompson
    dothompson Posts: 1,184 Member
    I bought a microwave omlette maker at Walmart (it was by the microwaves). I put about a cup of frozen veggies in there and zap it for 2 minutes. Then I put in some egg beaters and zap for another 40 seconds or so, add a slice of low fat pepper jack cheeze and zap it for another 20 seconds. Top it with a little hot sauce.

    This is my normal work breakfast. You'd be amazed how envious all the donut eaters become at my healthy breakfast.
  • DawnOf1969
    DawnOf1969 Posts: 726 Member
    I bought a microwave omlette maker at Walmart (it was by the microwaves). I put about a cup of frozen veggies in there and zap it for 2 minutes. Then I put in some egg beaters and zap for another 40 seconds or so, add a slice of low fat pepper jack cheeze and zap it for another 20 seconds. Top it with a little hot sauce.

    This is my normal work breakfast. You'd be amazed how envious all the donut eaters become at my healthy breakfast.
    I'm going to have to find that omelet maker! That would be awesome! I have a mini fridge in my office I can keep veggies/eggs/cheese in so I could just run to the microwave in the break room!
  • raven5131
    raven5131 Posts: 50
    I just started making crustless mini spinach quiches that I bake in a muffin pan, One or two little quiche muffins and bacon work for me. Here is the recipe I use. I change the ingredients. Sometimes I use ham and even one time used crab meat. Play with it to reduce the monotony. I am going to try it next without spinach. Love em! I was not in the habit of eating breakfast so I pop a couple to these in a container and put them in the fridge when I get to work. I eat the bacon right away and microwave the quiche when I get ready. I also have a protein shake in the morning. I started doing this because I have a hard time getting enough calories in every day. I put the quiche recipe in my recipes and they end up being about 1.5 carbs each.

    Breakfast Quiche Muffins.

    Ingredients
    6 large eggs
    1/2 cup chopped green onions
    1.5 cups chopped fresh spinach
    2 tbsp heavy whipping crean
    1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
    2 sausage patties chopped

    Directions
    Pre heat oven to 350 degrees. Toss all ingredients into a mixing bowl, whip with whisk. Spray a muffin tin with non stick spray (I find that silcone muffin "tin" works best, do not use paper cups), use an ice cream scooper if you have one to dole mix into muffin cups. Bake for 25 minutes.

    Makes 1 dozen large muffins or 2 dozen mini muffins.

    *This is an easy recipe to play with, you can switch out sausage for bacon, shrimp, turkey or no meat at all, use a different type of cheese, or add peppers or salsa. The eggs and whipping cream are the base, the rest is up to your personal taste.

    Number of Servings: 12
  • katerinab
    katerinab Posts: 107
    My favorite breakfast is an egg mug omelette. You take a coffee mug, put some eggs and your prefered addons in there, toss it in the microwave, stir, microwave until set, and voila! All you would need to do is put the ingredients in a small tupperware-type container and pour it into your mug when you get to work.

    My favorite combination is:

    1/2 cup egg beaters (30cal, 0 fat, 1 carb per 1/4 cup serving)
    1/3 cup Jimmy Dean precooked turkey crumbles (find them in the meat dept near the bacon - 80 cal, 4 fat, 2 carbs per 2/3 cup serving)
    1 wedge Laughing Cow Light swiss cheese (35 cal, 2 fat, 1 carb per wedge)

    for a total of 135 carb, 4 carbs, 4 fat, and it's a BIG portion. You could put anything in the mug, though - just be sure to adjust the cooking time to make up for the extra goodies.
  • Grokette
    Grokette Posts: 3,330 Member
    I like yogurt and fruit as well...however, these are both high carbs items. :flowerforyou: Instead of yogurt, you might want to try some low fat cottage cheese or fat free ricotta cheese instead. If you have some strawberries (low GI carbs) and some nuts on top, it's really good. I don't think a lot of people realize how many carbs are in yogurt, even the plain unsweetened no sugar added kinds. It's really good for you, but since you are looking for lower or no carbs................

    :O I cant believe I never knew that yoghurt is high carb! oops :embarassed:
    good idea with the nuts!

    If you purchase plain yogurt (a good organic one) it is higher in protein and much lower in carbs. I eat the Fage Full Fat Plain and 1 cup has 7 grams of carbs. Handful of blueberries, raspberries, blackberries and a splash of vanilla has a creamy, rich, and very filling breakfast for about 12 or 13 grams of carbs.
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