The Fat Loss Breakfast

Creating a healthy breakfast is up there with one of the biggest challenges we have seen as personal trainers / fitness coaches when dealing with someone who wants to lose weight, or more accurately lose body fat.

Healthy lunches and dinner come easier to Irish culture, but the breakfast routines we have developed are not advantageous to fat loss. And its not just the surf culture of Tramore, Co. Waterford that this is prominent, but all over Ireland we have been indoctrinated into the “tea & toast” or even worse; “bowl of cereal” society. While no such diet is the “silver bullet” to long lasting weight loss, there is a principle we use at Raise The Bar Tramore with our group and semi-private groups that has been remarkably successful; the high protein and high fat breakfast.

Check out the body transformations that some of our members have been achieving of late from following this principle.

I was first exposed to a new way of eating through connections I had made through Adrian O’Brien and Keegan Smith and then later by Lucas Aaron. All leading examples of health and performance who opened my eyes to food quality and looking further than just macros. These men have been in the health and fitness game for some time and their results speak for themselves. The below approach is a combination of these ideas.

High Protein – High Fat

1)    Protein. This is the key point here. If you want to lose body fat having a breakfast that is high in protein can be really beneficial. Protein has a high thermic effect meaning that it requires more calories to expend. It also helps recovery and growth of lean muscle tissue, which is really important for toning up and losing that unwanted body fat. Lastly, protein-based foods are more satiating, which means we stay fuller for longer. If you are ok with it, aim for animal protein

2)    Swap fats for carbs. This might go against the traditional weight loss advice but bear with me. Good sources of fat can be great for cognition, inflammation and concentration. As most people work in the morning, we feel it’s important to have good fats present for these reasons. On top of this they will help stabilise blood sugar levels. Carbs are not the devil, just the timing of them. The issue we come across with high carb breakfasts is that too many processed carbs in the morning can lead to a big spike in blood sugar levels and continuous craving follows for the rest of the day. If you want to have carbs, leave them until later in the day.

When it comes to weight loss, fat loss and healthy living in general, keeping it simple works wonders. Start by reducing the number of meals you have and following on from this, reduce the number of decisions you must make at this meal.

When following the high protein – high fat breakfast approach, the decisions are reduced to two.

What is my protein source?

What is my fat source?

Practicality:

Sample breakfast meals (portion size is dependent on body size, age, etc)

·      Eggs & smoked salmon

·      Greek yoghurt & nuts, seeds

·      Turkey rashers & avocado

·      Bacon medallions & organic cheese