Should you eat breakfast?
In a nutshell, yes.
But there are a host of reasons you might skip breakfast. Maybe you’re rushing to get out the door, maybe you don’t feel hungry in the mornings, maybe you’re fasting, or trying to save calories for later on in the day.
What you might not realize is that skipping meals can be counter-intuitive to your health.
Your body prefers a steady source of fuel throughout the day to stabilize your blood sugar. When it doesn’t get the nourishment it needs, your body is stressed, wondering when the next meal is coming.
What Happens When Your Body is Stressed?
- It holds onto fat stores as a protective mechanism.
- It stops allowing you to build muscle.
- It doesn’t absorb and assimilate nutrients properly.
- It shunts digestion.
- And, of course, your body keeps searching for that food source, so later in the day, it can create cravings and cause you to do what feels like overeating.
So, do your body a favor and stop skipping breakfast or lunch, or dinner.
And remember, when you eat a big dinner late in the evening no wonder you’re not hungry in the morning. Set yourself up to feel hunger in the morning. Try and have an earlier and lighter dinner.
Your Body Prefers Rhythm
A steady fuel source throughout the day initiates the parasympathetic response (relaxation). On the other hand, erratic eating initiates the sympathetic response (stress).
When you wake up in the morning, your body has just finished repairing and rebuilding. It’s worked hard! It needs some nutrition to keep you going throughout the day. And remember that what you eat at breakfast matters too: focus on a protein, fat and fiber breakfast in place of the typical sugar and refined carbohydrate dense breakfast.
Start the day off by keeping your body calm because the optimal state for your health and digestion is under relaxation. Have a question? Post below!
- Tanya