Speaker A [00:00:02]:
Welcome to the Paralysis Nutrition Podcast, where changing your eating habits is the key to losing weight, improving bowel health, and feeling your best. I’m your host, Fatima Fakouri. I’m a registered dietitian who’s married to a quadriplegic and specializes in nutrition for paralysis.
Speaker B [00:00:18]:
Get ready to be inspired, educated and.
Speaker C [00:00:20]:
Motivated so you can take control of your health using the power of food. Let’s get started.
Speaker A [00:00:26]:
This is the Paralysis Nutrition podcast.
Speaker C [00:00:29]:
Hi, everyone. Welcome to today, today’s episode where I’m going to be talking about breakfast. So is breakfast really the most important meal of the day? I say yes. Why is it the most important? Because it’s the most overlooked and skipped meal. That’s why it is the most important. So today I want to talk about breakfast, why it’s important, some ideas and just talk about this subject, which is really, I think, so important for weight loss and for maintaining a regular healthy bowel routine. So breakfast really sets the tone for your day. I’m a big believer in the sacredness of those morning hours.
Speaker C [00:01:18]:
Now, if the 20 something year old me heard that, you know, she would be appalled because I used to sleep late. But now we’re adults, right? And I really think that before the hubbub of the day starts, you know, for us it’s the kids and getting them to school and whatever’s on deck for the day, you know, things around the house, things for my husband, whatever it is, before the activity really begins, I think it’s important to have some quiet time, have some peaceful, you know, start to your day. And I really think that breakfast is a good thing to start with. So it really does set the tone for your day. If you choose to eat something colorful, healthy, tasty, that’s a good way to start any day, right? And I think that breakfast gets sort of disregarded because we don’t make time for it because so many of us grew up, we were raised, you know, to not eat breakfast. I almost never ate breakfast as a kid. You know, mom and dad were busy and it just wasn’t a thing that we did. So if breakfast is not something that you grew up with, that’s okay, you can start doing it now.
Speaker C [00:02:40]:
And I can almost guarantee that once you start eating breakfast, you’re going to love it and be like, why haven’t I been doing this? You know, it’s not that big of a deal. And I think that most of us are pretty much just ignoring it and not spending any. We’re not setting any sort of standard for how we’re supposed to be starting our day. Most of us wake up and we’re just kind of like, all right, let’s get ready. Got to start the day. That’s not a good place, I think, mentally for us to be. I really don’t. Also, coffee is not breakfast.
Speaker C [00:03:19]:
Yeah, coffee is not breakfast. Coffee is a stimulant. It’s fine to drink, but it does spike your cortisol. Cortisol is a stress hormone. It also can raise your blood pressure, which may not be a bad thing for wheelchair users because most do have low blood pressure. So coffee is not a bad thing, but it’s also not breakfast. Okay, I could do a whole episode on coffee and coffee drinks. Maybe I will.
Speaker C [00:03:52]:
But for now, let’s just say coffee in any shape or form is not breakfast. Coffee should be consumed with some food. So when it comes to the early morning, I think we really just need to set some intentions and expectations for ourselves. So for me, my expectation is that there’s going to be some quiet time. Maybe my husband’s awake, maybe he’s not. Depending on how early it is, usually he is. But there’s not going to be a lot of talking for me in the morning. It’s going to be a quiet time.
Speaker C [00:04:28]:
There’s not going to be any to dos. I’m not checking email. I’m not on social media. I want to sit down, I want to eat something, change my clothes, get my day started. Most of my clients, and my husband as well have a bowel routine in the morning. And breakfast should be eaten before your bowel program. It’s really going to make it so much easier for your gut to move when you have something in it to stimulate the bowels to move. So skipping breakfast is not good for your bowels.
Speaker C [00:05:05]:
Once you start eating breakfast, you’re going to realize that you spend less time in the bathroom. I know some people wake up very early to do their bowel program. You don’t need to be eating a veggie omelet and toast and a million different things. You could eat something small. You could have a chia, a chia pudding, chia seed pudding. You could have a yogurt bowl. You could have anything you want as long as you have something before you try to poop. Okay.
Speaker C [00:05:38]:
And I also really think that going back to how breakfast sets the tone for your day, most people are going to have a hard time making healthy choices when they’re hungry. So if it gets to be 10:00 in the morning, 11:00 in the morning and you’re driving or you’re at somewhere, you know, like a workplace or whatever, now you’re really hungry. You’re going to grab the easiest, most accessible thing to eat because you’re starving. So eating breakfast is going to help you make a better choice for lunch and for snack and for dinner. So that’s what I mean when I say it sets the tone for your day. Not just in the kind of woo woo, spiritual sense of like, ha, let’s set an intention for our day. I love that. But it also is going to set the tone in a healthy way for you to make good choices at lunch and dinner.
Speaker C [00:06:40]:
I’ll tell you right now, I’m not going to have a colorful salad with some protein and, you know, some healthy carb in there. I’m not going to eat a nice, balanced, colorful, healthy lunch if I didn’t eat breakfast. If I didn’t eat breakfast, I’m going to eat a giant panini with chips, probably, or something like that, right? Or I’m going to eat two slices of pizza. I’m going to eat something that is higher in calories, higher in fat, you know, because I’m so hungry. So eating breakfast is going to help you make a better choice at lunch. When you make a better choice at lunch, that’s going to set you up for making a healthy choice at dinner, right? And to find balance, you are not going to be able to, for example, if you’re craving cookies, if you ate breakfast, lunch and dinner that day, you are likely to be able to eat two or three cookies and move on with your life. If you skipped breakfast, you didn’t eat enough throughout the day. That’s it.
Speaker C [00:07:41]:
You didn’t eat enough during the day, you didn’t get all that you needed. So you’re more likely to overeat things like dessert, okay. At the end of the day. So when I say it sets the tone, it really does. You know, if you start off with unhealthy breakfast and then you go on to make a good choice for lunch and then you go on to make a good choice for dinner. You can fit in, you know, your, your snack of choice or your small piece of chocolate or whatever it is you want, you’re more likely to make balanced choices, right. And not overdo it when your blood sugar is balanced and you’re eating three meals a day like you’re supposed to. And so, yes, it is harder to make a healthy choice when you’re hungry.
Speaker C [00:08:26]:
And you’re also not just the choice of Food. What about the quantity? Quantity, you are more likely to overeat when you’re really hungry, right? So if you skip breakfast, you might overeat later in the day. You probably will. And then you’re going to feel sluggish and you might kind of get into a bad mindset and say, like, ugh, forget this day and just keep making poor choices. Right? So it’s not good to skip breakfast. It’s not going to help. It’s not going to set you up for a successful day. Also, if you are a person who is trying to lose weight, it is really important to eat breakfast because it’s going to be very hard for you to stay in a calorie deficit unless you have adequate protein and fiber, okay.
Speaker C [00:09:16]:
Throughout your day. For women, the general recommendation is at least 25 grams. For men, it’s over 30, 35 grams. So you’re not going to be able to get enough fiber in your day if you’re only eating two meals. You’re not. And so skipping breakfast is going to make it harder for you to lose weight simply because you have missed an opportunity to get what you need. So that’s probably a really good reframe for people who are. Who are thinking, the less I eat, the more likely I am to lose weight.
Speaker C [00:09:53]:
That is not true, because the more you undereat, the more likely you are to overeat eventually. And then at the end of the week and at the end of the month, you’re not going to be in a calorie deficit for weight loss as a wheelchair user. So think about breakfast as an opportunity to eat. It’s an opportunity to get your nutrition in, to get your fiber, to get your. To get a serving of fruit right. A lot of people like to eat fruit in the morning. My husband loves to have eggs and fruit. The eggs are his protein and fat, and the fruit is his carb and fiber.
Speaker C [00:10:32]:
I’m more of like, I need to have a piece of toast or like an English muffin or something. So I’ll do. Oftentimes I’ll do my carb choice will be a whole grain. His will almost always be a fruit. So you can use it as an opportunity to get in some of your favorite foods. At the time that I’m recording this episode, it’s summer here in New York. I picked up some peaches or no nectarines. My kids don’t like the fuzz, so I had to get nectarines.
Speaker C [00:11:02]:
I learned that lesson the hard way last week. Also, plums. I bought these gorgeous plums and you know, it’s tis the season, right, for seasonal, for seasonal fruits. So use it as an opportunity to get your nutrition in. And you do not have to eat traditional breakfast foods. I mean, for the most part, American breakfast foods, you know, that you might get at a diner or whatever. Yeah, sure, there’s some good choices. But you know, waffles and pancakes and cereals and all these things are super high carb and high sugar.
Speaker C [00:11:34]:
You don’t have to eat traditional breakfast foods. I like a savory breakfast myself. So we do eggs with veggies. I’ll do oatmeal. And oatmeal is a great one. High fiber and it keeps you full. I often add a, what is it, collagen powder or nuts? Some sort of protein for sure in the oatmeal, because oatmeal doesn’t have protein. So for breakfast we’re going to focus on getting some protein, some fiber.
Speaker C [00:12:09]:
And reminder fiber comes from carbs. So you, you can eat carbs in the morning. You can have a piece of toast, you can have, you know, half of a bagel. I say half because bagels are very high in carbs. So make sure there’s a protein source, make sure there’s a fiber rich carb. Again, fruit is a great choice and then some healthy fats. So if you like yogurt, if you like avocado on your toast, if you like nuts, whatever it is, make sure all those three macronutrients are there at breakfast. And the last thing I’m going to say is if you do not feel hungry in the morning, that’s okay.
Speaker C [00:12:50]:
That is, that’s a couple things. That’s one, a habit. You’re not used to eating in the morning, so your body is not, you know, your body’s not used to getting food in the morning, so you’re not really thinking about it. The other thing is it’s a sign that you have a slow metabolism. If you’re not hungry after sleeping for eight hours, it’s a sign of a sluggish metabolism. Okay, so how are we going to get that metabolism up and running, as it should? We’re going to eat adequate protein so that we can burn fat. Going to stay in a calorie deficit. A deficit is a mild deficit.
Speaker C [00:13:26]:
We are not starving ourselves. So if you want to lose weight, you’re going to need to focus on breakfast so that you can make good choices throughout the rest of your day and not be hangry, you know, after dinner. So many people tell me they get hungry after dinner. And my number one question is, did you eat breakfast? And the answer is no. Nine times out of ten, no. Like of course you’re hungry. You ate two meals today, right? So it makes sense. So that’s my talk today on breakfast.
Speaker C [00:13:57]:
I am not. Oh, the other. Oh, sorry. There’s one other thing I don’t want to hear. I’m not a breakfast person. There’s no such thing as a breakfast person. You either eat breakfast or you don’t. It is not a part of your personality.
Speaker C [00:14:11]:
It is not something that defines you. Not that deep. It’s not that big of a deal. Wake up. Take some time for yourself before you get on with the hubbub of the day and nourish yourself so that you are energetic and that you are feeling good. Okay? Until next time. Thanks for listening.
Speaker B [00:14:31]:
That’s our episode for today. Thanks for listening. I hope you enjoyed it and that you learned something new. Remember, if you want to lose weight with paralysis, improve your bowel health and feel your best you can.
Speaker C [00:14:42]:
It’s possible.
Speaker B [00:14:43]:
You just have to change your eating habits. If you need inspiration on how to get started, check out The Paralysis Nutrition Cookbook 101 Recipes to Help you lose.
Speaker C [00:14:53]:
Weight and improve bowel health.
Speaker B [00:14:54]:
The cookbook comes with a bonus 30 day meal plan and is the perfect way to start eating healthier. You can find it online@paralysisnutrition.com cookbook.
Speaker C [00:15:05]:
I’ll talk to you again soon.
