• What’s for Breakfast? Some Do’s and Don’t for eating a healthy breakfast on the go.

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  Aug 30
  As you may already know I am an infamous NY commuter. For the past 8 years (most of my career) I have lived in Northern NJ and worked in NYC. It’s an hour and a half commute each way. The trip consist of 15-20min drive to the park and ride, 45min to hour bus ride into the city, a 15-20min  cab or subway ride, and of course a lot of walking in between. I do this everyday 5 days a week rain, sleet, or snow; and along the way deal with all of the traffic, people, and monkey wrenches that you hear about in NYC horror stories.

  With all of this you can imagine my mornings are pretty hectic and with all that I deal with before even getting my day started my biggest question for the last 8 years is still

  WHAT’S FOR BREAKFAST?

  I have mastered the streets of NYC and the Subway map but for some reason I struggle with how to get a healthy breakfast in the AM daily. Eating at home in the morning really isn’t feasible for a number of reason, the biggest being it takes so much to get to work I would be hungry again once I got there. And I forgot to mention I do this whole commute carrying a purse, a work bag, and occasionally a laptop, so brown bagging it really doesn’t work either.  I try to look for healthy options I can grab at a local place, store in the office and easily prepare when I get there, or that are small enough to fit in my bag.

  In addition, to all of this NY like any area is filled with dieting pitfalls and I swear they triple in the morning for the breakfast rush. So I put together this list of the Do’s and Don’ts for eating a healthy Breakfast on the go. And as usual I figured I’d share to help my fans out to.

  Do’s

  • Skim or Soy Latte and a Banana- I got this one from the Wall Street Diet, The: The Surprisingly Simple Weight Loss Plan for Hardworking People Who Don’t Have Time to Diet
    it’s the running through the airport breakfast. The milk in the latte provides a big punch of calcium and protein to help keep you going and the banana is filling and provides other nutrients. You can substitute the banana for other fruits if you’d like.
  • Cereal on the go bowl, Almond Milk, and fruit- I like the cereal on the go bowls because they pre-measured 1 serving this alleviates over eating Special K and Honey Nut Cheerios are some of the lowest in calories. Almond milk has a fraction of the calories of skim and soy so try making the switch Almond Breeze’s unsweetened version has as little as 40 calories. Skip the extra sweeteners as add sliced banana, raisins, or craisins for a little extra flavor.
  • Jamba Juice Banana Steel Cut Oatmeal- The steel cut oatmeal if extra filling, great if you’re having a late lunch and it’s only 290 calories. Avoid the Apple and berry versions both are pre-sweetened fruit in some type of syrup, the banana is just sliced fresh bananas, and ask them to go light on the brown sugar or f you can take it avoid the BS all together
  • Two hard boil egg whites and a low fat yogurt- This meal is small enough to drop in your bag so you can boil the eggs at home the night before and peel them when you get to work. Also many of the local eateries in the city sell hardboiled eggs and yogurt cups so it’s also easy to pick up. The double pack of protein from the egg whites and the yogurt will help keep you going through the day and the entire meal is on average 150 calories (the type of yogurt use choose will vary this number)

  Don’t

  • Go to the bagel cart. Now I love the bagel carts they are quick, the guy is usually nice and knows you order, and you know you’re helping an average Joe make his living. BUT, you waistline hates the bagel cart they have oversized bagels, non descript butter and cream cheese, a variety of oversized unhealthy pastries, it’s just a dieters NO!NO!
  • Only Drink Coffee. I swear I cringe when my co-workers say “I’m just going to grab coffee”. Coffee is water, flavoring and residue from the beans, and a dash of milk if you choice. This is never enough to sustain your body through the morning hours. If you must opt for a beverage only morning, try a latte. A latte is ¾ milk the protein in the milk will at least hold off you body from the starvation mode. See my post Cut the Calories not the Latte for slimmer ways to get your latte
  • Rely on breakfast bars. Breakfast bars are foe breakfast so they should be good right? WRONG breakfast bars are loaded with sugar and other processed ingredients that make them the work thing you should eat for breakfast. David Zinczenko author of the Eat This Not That! Series has even compared some breakfast bars to the nutritional value of a candy bar.
  • Stick to Muffins. Muffins are sneaky little bites they fill them with stuff that’s good for you like bran, oats, blueberries, and bananas so you think they are good for you. But they often hide the fact that the average muffin is 500 calories, even some of the fat free muffins. So be wary of the nondescript muffin. I only stick to muffins that I clearly have the calorie information for VitaMuffins or from chain restaurants like DD or SB
  • Eat nothing. I hope this goes with out saying but my don’ts would be incomplete if I didn’t mention the importance of not skipping breakfast. Even if you’re on open is a bad one it’s better than nothing. If you find yourself surrounded by nothing but bagels and muffins at least eat half. Eating nothing provides no energy so you body and send you in to starvation mode. Just think if you eat dinner at 8pm, Lunch at 12pm and skip breakfast; your poor body has just gone 16 hours

  While there are many other good for you or not so good for you breakfast selections out there I just wanted to share with you my quick on the go list.  So help us out share your do’s and don’t for on the go breakfast.

  

  

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One Response to “What’s for Breakfast? Some Do’s and Don’t for eating a healthy breakfast on the go.”

1. 

   Jennee said on August 30th, 2009 at 2:55 pm

   Great advice. I’m not one of those girls that is always on the go…I’m more of, I hate eating in the morning…but I know it’s better for me to have a light snack verse nothing or a cup of coffee… I try to stick with yougurt.

   Thanks for stoping by Cheap Therapy! Have a great and healthy week!

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