Breakfast Blog

I love breakfast.  It's my favorite meal of the day!  I never miss it, although I used to regularly (hmm, no wonder I had a weight problem).  While it's never been scientifically proven, I do believe that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  And something is better than nothing.  However, exactly what you put in your body for breakfast can set the tone for the rest of your day.

I'm a big believer in PROTEIN.  Not necessarily the easiest thing to work into breakfast without eating eggs every day, but it can be done.  Quick and easy, my personal favorites are either Kashi Go Lean Crunch (love, love, LOVE it... could eat it every day!) or a protien bar (I really like Special K, but the South Beach ones are good too, and about half as expensive).  The Go Lean Crunch is perfect for me because it has 9 g of protein, 8 g of fiber, and only 13 g of sugar.  The bars are good for on the go, but not as good.

Of course, there is the perfect protein: eggs.  Any way you cook them (just don't drown them in bacon grease or anything), eggs are awesome food.  My favorite breakfast to cook is still bacon and eggs.  And because I so rarely have it any more, I still buy REAL center cut bacon, and fry it in a pan.  I tried the turkey bacon; it's ok... it's improved over the years.  But it's not the same.  And if I only have bacon once every 2-3 months, then damn it, I want REAL bacon!

Other great sources of protein in the morning are yogurt, cottage cheese, milk or low-fat cheese.  Those are just my preferences... I can eat breakfast food for dinner, but I can't eat dinner food (such as beans or steak) for breakfast.

Which brings me to the point of this seemingly random and pointless blog... how breakfast can trick you.  Everyone knows the obvious ones: those sugar-laden kid cereals (which they are now adding fiber to, and calling it healthy... what a crock), those cinnamon rolls dripping with icing (which I do love by the way), and of course, the ever popular drive thru breakfast biscuit, steaming hot and slathered in grease.

I tried a new cereal today: Bear Naked Cranberry Raisin.  It's "100% pure & natural cereal".  It sounds really healthy looking at the front, and looking at the ingredient list... heck, the very first ingredient is Wheat bran.  Most of all the other ingredients are organic, there is nothing hydrogenated, preserved, and does not contain any Red Dye #5.  Sounds great, right? 

Then I looked at the Nutrition label: Only 1g of protein and 2g of fiber.  Granted, it is low in sugar (only 8g), low in carbs compared to other cereals and only 110 calories and 2.5g of fat.  So, while it's certainly not the worst cereal out there, it's also not the best.  Which is too bad, because it really tastes good! 

Also, the serving size is pretty small: 3/4 cup.  At least with my Kashi, I get 1 cup, and that's PLENTY!  So, while this new cereal tastes good, and definitely gets points for being minimally processed, I know without the protein and fiber, I'm going to be hungry again in an hour. 

I've been gone a while...

It's been a roller-coaster week.

I made it through week seven of my 5K training, but the day after, when I would usually update, my grandmother took a turn for the worse.  I spend Sunday the 27th waiting for word on how she was, and when it finally came, the news wasn't good.  My mom didn't think she'd make it through that night.  And when I got there, I didn't think so either. 

My sister and I spent that night at Mom's.  Grandmother pulled through that night, but it was clear that there wasn't much time left.  She died on Wednesday morning, around 5:45 am with me, my mom and my sister at her side.  After all the pain she's had to suffer through this past year, she is finally at peace.

I missed my race on Saturday, although not deliberately.  I set my alarm and planned to go, even though I had not finished my training.  However, the week's events and lack of sleep resulted in my sleeping through the alarm, and by the time I woke, it was too late to get downtown in time.

I'm considering registering for a 5K in December, just so I have a goal to work toward.  Right now though, as I'm sitting here watching the cold rain come down, I'm just not interested in running.  I know I will get back to it... I know I need to.  But there is just so much to do now, and I want to be there for my mom as she goes through everything.