We all have our go to breakfast favorites, but they tend to be dominated by carbohydrate-heavy options such as pancakes lathered with syrup, doughnuts glazed with icing and cereals topped with sugar. Delicious? Yes. Balanced? Maybe not as well as they could be. Unfortunately, most individuals are missing a key macronutrient, protein. Check out four simple ways to add protein to your morning routine!
AMPLIFY YOUR OATS
Oats are a whole-grain source that provides protein, fiber, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals. There are many different types of oats including regular rolled oats, instant rolled oats, steel cut oats and whole oat groats. All types are considered whole grains and they provide similar nutritional value. One of the main things that changes is the texture and time needed to prepare. For example, instant rolled oats take just minutes to make while steel cut oats require much more time to cook. Oatmeal is often prepared with just water, but can be further amplified nutritionally by simply modifying the way it's prepared. If you're looking to amp up the protein, then try preparing oats with a complete protein beverage, such as cow's milk or soy milk. Other plant-based milk beverages such as rice, oat, almond, coconut, hemp provide little to no protein. To add even more nutritional value – try adding nuts, nut butters, seeds, and fruits. If you're in a rush, simply grab a ready-to-eat bowl of
think! Protein & Fiber Oatmeal, which offers 10 grams of protein per serving!
DAIRY - DIG IN OR DRINK UP
Dairy is a common breakfast staple. Dairy is a food group, which offers many diverse breakfast options such as glass of milk, bowl of cereal, yogurt parfait, bagel with cream cheese spread or cheese omelet. The options are endless with dairy products and it's a great way to help bring a complete high-quality protein to the table. The basic composition of milk is predominately water, but contains all three macronutrients with about 3% protein. The dairy product you choose will provide varying amounts of protein. For example, an 8 ounce glass of milk contains about 8 grams of protein whereas a 6 ounce cup of plain Greek yogurt provides double the protein at about 17 grams. Dairy also provides an array of nutrients including Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Calcium, Potassium, and Phosphorous.
POWER UP WITH NUTS AND SEEDS
There are dozens of nuts and seeds available to choose from including almonds, walnuts, peanuts, cashews, pistachios, pecans, chia seeds, flaxseeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds and more. Nuts and seeds can be added to your morning meal in many ways including puddings, smoothies, parfaits, oatmeal and more. You can even spread them by using nut and seed butters. Adding nuts and seeds to your breakfast routine can be a way to add in additional protein. For example, just about 1 ounce of almonds can provide about 6 grams of protein. Nuts and seeds also contain fiber, vitamins, minerals and best of all a mixture of healthy fats including monounsaturated fatty acids and polyunsatured fatty acids.
ELEVATE MORNING WITH EGGS
Eggs are versatile as they can be prepared in many ways including fried, scrambled, coddled, poached, hard cooked, baked or even microwaved. Eggs can be prepared in various ways and a breakfast option where vegetables can easily be incorporated - something we don't see very often in breakfast. For example, try making your next omelet with spinach, mushrooms, onions and tomatoes to add a variety of vitamins, minerals and colors. However you enjoy them – eggs provide vitamins, minerals and protein. Just one egg provides about 6 grams of complete high-quality protein. Often times many individuals will toss the yolk and just use the egg white, but both the white and yolk provide protein. Each part of the egg contributes to the total egg protein. The egg white contains little fat, compared to the egg yolk. Cheers to starting off the day STRONG! :)
