Q: I am a person who absolutely has to eat breakfast daily. I will eat (for example) two slices of multigrain toast with local honey and a non-fat yogurt with fresh berries or oatmeal with raisins and skim milk. I always have a 1/2 cup of orange juice, coffee (usally black, sometimes with a bit of 5% cream) and a tablespoon of Salba seeds in unsweetened applesauce.

I am 5′10″ tall and weigh about 142 lbs. I am currently nursing a 7 month old baby boy. Even though I eat what I think is a good amount of food in the morning (around 7:30 am), I am weak by mid-morning (let’s say by 10 am).

What can I eat to prevent the mid-morning blood-sugar lows (if that is what it is)? Any suggestions?

Thank you!

– Lori L.

A: Your mother was right when she said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day! In North America we have our eating habits backwards having our largest meal at dinner time instead of in the morning when we need the most energy from our food. What you eat for “break – fast” helps to determine your energy levels and food cravings throughout the rest of the day. It is important to consume a balanced breakfast that contains a good amount of protein, complex carbs and fat. A bowl of cereal even if it’s a fibre or a flax cereal with skim milk just doesn’t cut it.

Carbohydrates convert into sugar (energy) which can quickly raise blood sugar levels. Whenever something goes up, like your blood sugar levels, it quickly comes down. This “crash” is experienced by feelings of more carb cravings, fatigue in the early morning or in the afternoon, headache, irritability and light headedness.

In my weight-loss program 10 Weeks to WOW! all my clients do for the first week is change their breakfast. I give them pages of balanced breakfast recipes that they must consume for 7 days. The comments I get at the end of the week are that they have a lot less sugar cravings; they have constant levels of energy and are able to make better food choices throughout the day; most even lose 1-2lbs! This is because their breakfast now contains protein and fat whereas before it was all carbs.

The question I was asked was how to avoid blood sugar dips a couple hours after eating breakfast. It’s a great question.

Let’s break down your breakfast –- REMEMBER a balanced meal means that the meal contains protein, carbs and fat:

2 slices of multi grain toast – approx 30g carbs
Honey (1tsp) – 5g carbs
Non-fat yoghurt (100g serving) – 5 – 10g carbs & 4g – 6g protein
Berries (1/2 cup) 10g carbs
½ Cup Orange Juice – 15g carbs
Total Grams Carbs: approx. 70g

Keep in mind the average daily consumption of carbs should be between 120 – 200g of carbs per day! This breakfast contains half the amount of carbs one should consume in the entire day first thing in the morning. I am not debating that these foods are healthy –- they are, but they are not balanced.

My advice would be to cut the honey and the orange juice and have 1 slice of toast instead of 2. If you want the taste of orange in the morning, have ½ an orange instead of drinking the juice. The orange contains fibre. You can still have the yoghurt and berries. On the slice of toast I would add a raw nut butter like almond or walnut butter (1 tbsp). I would also add in a good source of protein like ½ cup 1% cottage cheese or 2oz low fat (7% M.F.) cheese or ½ cup egg whites.

Remember that a meal should only keep you full for approximately 3 hours. Try having a snack around 10am –- something that also contains protein or fat.

Hope this helps!

Lori

CHECK OUT LORI’S BIO HERE!

Got a nutrition question of your own, Gorgeouses? Ask LORI (click here to ask your question). LOVE!

As I talked at length about at Cheaty Monkey, I’ve finally realized that, after two pregnancies, I’ve let myself go. AND, I’m making the commitment NOW to put myself back together again — kind of like “Humpty Dumpty,” but the soldiers are hott and Humpty’s 1000x skinnier in the end.

Anyway, I’m using this space, at least today, to figure out what I need to do tomorrow, when I start my new diet FOR REALS.

So, NEW binder is open.

Let’s figure this out together….

Breakfast: LORI’S SHAKE TO GO (totally yum….)

Lunch: Ezekiel bread, Wild salmon (canned), Mayo, veggies.

Snack: STARBUCKS CHAI TEA LATTE Raspberries, Cottage Cheese, Walnuts.

Dinner: 1/2 cup quinoa, 2 eggs, veggies….

Snack: Rye crackers, almond butter, lowfat cheese.

Exercise: Yoga, Dusk Walk.

Ugh, ugh, UGH…. NOT FUN. But, I’ll get used to it…. I’m motivated now. Time to get GORJ!

And, yeah, it’s hard, and PLAIN, and rigorous. But, I have 35 pounds to lose. When those pounds are GONZO, I’ll slowly incorporate more of everything into the diet.

Still thinking about poultry…. I think I need it in my diet — if not because the vegetarian version of this diet is RUTHLESS and because vegetarianism takes mayjah planning to do right. Sigh, will go to ORGANIC butcher for free-range poultry….

So, I’ve been on this new diet lifestyle for 2 days now. It’s definitely agreeing with me and, after only two days, I can see the errors of my eating ways, and how gravely they were affecting me on so many levels — physical, emotional, energetic….

The only change Nutritionist, Lori, wants me to make this first week is breakfast. I’m supposed to eat one of the balanced breakfasts among her long list. So, two days in a row, I’ve had an egg, a piece of Ezekiel bread, an oz of cheese and an apple. Starting off with this balanced meal sets me up for the day. And, it’s quicker and easier to make than I thought it would be!

My friends don’t seem to understand just WHY I need to quit my Starbucks-chai-tea-latte breakfast — because, really, it’s not THAT BAD calorie-wise, and I DO take it with nonfat milk (or soy milk). But, the problem is, that evil drink SPIKES my blood sugar, throwing me out of balance. It’s a drug, A CRUTCH, for me — hence I chug it, am absolutely incapable of calmly sipping it. I IDENTIFY with this silly drink. It’s my ESCAPE. My cup of ADULT in this toddler/baby world I’m ensconced in.

Now that I realize all this, I have to change it. I canNOT depend on a drink to do all that for me. And, besides, BALANCE, I’m learning, and not ESCAPE is the way to go. When I have that chai, I crave sugar for the rest of the day — “pant pant pant sugar sugar gimme sugar where’s my sugar another chai need another chai more MORE MOOOOORE!” I CRAVE that HIGH ALL DAY. With a balanced breakfast, I crave balance all day, and the satisfied feeling that balanced breakfast gives me. Also, the balanced breakfast makes me more apt to recognize when I’m off balance — like right now, as a matter of fact, because I’m so tired from WAY overextending myself lately! MUST GET MORE SLEEP!

So, balance. Yoga off the mat. Don’t get me wrong, Gorgeouses, renouncing The Chai is NOT EASY, no matter how easy I make it sound! Today, Gorgeouses, I had to work HARD to resist her. I was a like a toddler whose favourite toy has been taken away. I WAAAAAAN IT, and I want it BAD. But, I persevered and managed to get through the day chai…FREE.

I always thought that “dieting” meant denying myself the things I love. But, the things I love are CRUTCHES, ADDICTIONS. And, I need to liberate myself from these addictions. Freedom is in the healthy foods, and not the stuff that WEIGHS US DOWN — the donuts, the cookies, the CHAAAAIIIIIs we WISH we could have copious amounts of!

I’m a yoga teacher. Time to get back on track as an example for my students. The goal is liberation. Freedom from the material. Renouncing that chai is an act of freedom. Goodbye CHAI. You suck arse.

So, HUGE NEWS, Kitchen Gorgeouses! Nutritionist LORI is going to motivate us with monthly contributions, to start. When she has more time, i.e., AFTER SHE HAS HER BABY, she’ll do more — perhaps WEEKLY!

Just so you know, Lori is AWESOME. So many of my friends are on her diet, and they SWEAR BY IT. She’s a “holistic nutritionist” — which means she has an eye on OVERALL health and not just on weight loss. You’ll love her.

More on Lori AND the diet later. For now, a recipe for a BALANCED breakfast that will make you feel as good as I do now. As Lori says, the first thing to do when you’re changing your lifestyle is to change your breakfast. Eat a balanced breakfast within one hour of waking up. Check it!

LORI’S SHAKE TO GO

Ingredients:

1/2 c rice milk (substitute 1% Regular Milk or Soy Milk)
1/4 c water
1 scoop protein powder (I use Hemp Protein powder because I’m a nutball….)
1/2 c blueberries
1 c strawberries
2 tsp flaxseed oil

Blend until smooth! Et VOILA! Enjoy.

I haven’t tried this recipe yet. But, I bought all the ingredients, see?!

Healthy healthy! And, low maintenance — I’m not, like, juicing or growing my own vegetables and sprouts. Will try it tomorrow.

NOTE: Not every diet suits everyone. What you’re reading here, of course, are my reflections. Talk to your doctor, of course, and don’t take these words as Truth. There is no truth. THERE IS NO SPOOOON!