The Femme Files

How to Start off with a Bang!

Breakfast can sometimes be hard to squeeze in…. especially when you sleep in, haven’t worked out what you are wearing for the day, can’t find your socks for the evening gym session and are finding it hard to locate your mascara (and if you can at least get something right in the morning it will be leaving the house looking vaguely presentable)

We are all well aware that skipping breakfast ignites your metabolism and skipping meals in general raises your stress hormone, breaks down muscle and encourages your body to store fat rather than burn it. Furthermore, you might be eating healthy foods but your body doesn’t think they are healthy for you. When you eat foods that your body is allergic to your body has an inflammatory reaction making it easy for you to hold onto weight. Common inflammatory items are soy, eggs and dairy. Try cutting these out for a month and see how your body fares. You might be surprised.

For those rushing to find the perfect breakfast bite, this is where I find breakfast smoothies an excellent option for the time poor superwoman. Don’t worry about investing in a whizz bang blender, a little hand held stab mixer should suffice and is so much easier to clean up after!

So what would a smoothie that delivers more than the average Up and Go include?

1. Protein: A high quality, clean protein powder is an excellent supplement of choice for our hectic work schedules. Protein powders should not be relegated to the likes of body builders and gym bunnies as they are  a wonderful source of essential amino acids and definitely an economically sound option for the frugal and money savvy in us all. There are so many choices to choose from ranging from Pea, Rice and Whey Protein to name but a few. My choice would be one WITHOUT artificial sweeteners and less than 5g of sugar per 100g serve. There should be at least 20g of protein in each serving too. I tend to rotate these protein powders each time to give my body variety and ensure my body doesn’t become overly sensitive to one if I go O.T.T
2. High Fibre, Low G.I Carbohydrates: This is as simple as chucking in a handful of berries. Your best bet for these would be to buy the berries when they are in season and prices are low then chuck them in the freezer. The berries then double as ice which thickens your shake and delivers a nice cold hit of goodness in the morning! Nutritionally the berries provide a slow and sustained release of energy and stabilise blood sugar levels so you aren’t reaching for the ‘low fat muffin’ come 10AM.
3. FIBRE: Pile the stuff in please! I like to whizz up some flax or chia seeds and grind it to a meal first before adding it into my smoothie. I hesitate to buy pre-ground Flax seeds as the oils in the seeds are so delicate, they invariably go rancid after one hour. Now of you think of how long that bag of ‘Organic Flax Meal’ has been standing on your stores shelf you know that’s a recipe for gut disaster. And just imagine what rancid oils do for your skin. Fibre is wonderful for maintaining our satiety levels and should keep you fuller for longer.
4. Healthy Fat: For me this comes in the form of coconut milk mixed with water. Coconut Milk is wonderfully rich in lauric acid, which is known for its wonderful antiviral properties and therefore excellent for good gut health! Plus the excellent fat source does wonders for glowing skin from face to derriere. As an aside, I am often asked about Almond Milk. While I LOVE the stuff, I consider it to be a carb source with one cup having 10 grams of carbohydrates. For me, coconut is a far superior option and cheaper too!
5. Spice: That’s right; make your morning glass of nutrients aromatic by adding cloves or cinnamon to the mix. Interestingly both these herbs top the ORAC scale in antioxidant level, far surpassing the mass marketed Amazonian berries. My conclusion, stop looking for that elixir found in a dehydrated, freeze dried ‘superfoods’ and haunt the spice aisle. More often than not they are drenched in antioxidant goodness and as we know deliver much more bang for your buck!

So that’s it….add all ingredients to a tall glass, grab your stab mixture and blend away. You will have breakfast in a flash without all the hidden nasties that cereal killers continually offend.