So which do you think is the better breakfast? – Dr. Rob America’s Fitness Doctor®
- Scrambled eggs with diced peppers on a bed of arugula with 10-grain bread sliced avocado and one cup of berries.
- Steel cut oats with added flax, walnuts, and a cup of berries.
- Rolled Oats with a cup of berries and a glass of orange juice.
Picking the right one can make a huge difference as to whether you gain weight or lose weight. Seems pretty straight forward but there is actually an enormous difference in the way your body metabolizes the different foods you choose to eat each and everyday.
You see foods that are digested quickly, enter the bloodstream quickly, which means higher blood sugars, which can mean a slow metabolism and weight gain. Compared to a food that is digested slowly which means more stable blood sugars, which means weight maintenance or loss. In addition some of these foods have anti-inflammatory properties and others inflammatory properties.
You see not all calories are not created equal. Lets take a look at a viewer question. Nikki asks: Which is better for you apple juice or an apple? Seems straight forward enough they are both made of the same food material right? Well, one enters the bloodstream very quickly because of its processing, the apple juice has had one of the important parts, the fiber, removed from it. However the apple in its natural state contains all of the vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, antioxidants, and fiber! Everything your body needs. The rate at which the apple is digested is slower which means your body has time to utilize the energy from the apple. Eating apples promotes weight loss. Drinking juice can promote weight gain or hinder your weight loss efforts.
In our examples of the 3 different breakfasts, they are all healthful foods. However that is where the similarity ends. You see each one of these breakfasts will be digested at different rates resulting in either rapid or slow escalation of blood sugar.
That difference alone can make all the difference in your overall health and in the aging process. By maintaining stable blood sugars through out the day you promote health, wellness, consistent energy, and utilization of digested and stored energy.
So which breakfast is our winner? While breakfast C is certainly healthy its consumption results in consuming roughly 80% more food later in the day than breakfast A. Breakfast B is certainly a healthy way to start the day, but its consumption led to eating 51% more food later in the day than breakfast A. Which makes breakfast A our winner!
The combination of eating eggs, peppers, arugula, avocado, and berries was not only a breakfast with a low sugar content, but one with anti-inflammatory properties as well which means stable blood sugars, fats, insulin, and adrenaline levels. This group of foods sends a hormonal message to speed up your metabolism.
The interesting fact here is that the types of food we eat not only supply our bodies with energy they also send signals to either slow down or speed up our metabolism. Which is great news because we can directly control our metabolism through the foods we choose to eat.
“Fitness is the Footprint of Life. Follow It!”
Dr. Rob Kominiarek, America’s Fitness Doctor®
