Bikini Body Breakfast- Overnight Oats

Shake all ingredients (except the banana slices) in a covered mason jar until well mixed.  Stir in the banana and refrigerate overnight ( up to 2 days).  Enjoy cold.  Add a tablespoon of dark chocolate chips and it doubles as dessert!

We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  Well, not so fast.  If breakfast means a bagel with cream cheese, a muffin, Nutragrain Bar or even super sweet instant oatmeal, that breakfast may be doing more harm than good.

Time to rethink breakfast.

Breakfast is important, but it is the food we chose to eat for breakfast that is most important.  Breakfast sets the tone for the day, and a proper breakfast fuels us with fantastic nutrition for whatever lies ahead.

Trying to lose weight or lean out?  A protein-rich breakfast can be you greatest ally.  Studies show that a breakfast high in protein, not only keeps us full longer, but it positively affects our hunger and satiety hormones, so we naturally eat less all day.  That’s incredible!

If poor planning leaves you at the mercy of the office pastry table, you are better off skipping breakfast altogether.  You read that correctly:)  That whole  weight-loss adage that we need to eat breakfast as soon as we climb out of bed  is outdated.  In fact, there is some strong evidence to suggest that stretching out that window before we eat has some valuable metabolic effects (but that’s a topic for another time).

Build a a better breakfast:

• Eggs- anyway you enjoy them.  Hard, boiled, poached or scrambled all work well.  For a perfect bikini-body breakfast pair eggs with veggies.  Lara loves one hard boiled egg and one half a baked sweet potato to start her day.  Scramble some eggs with chopped asparagus and mushrooms or build a tasty spinach, tomato, avocado omelet.
• Smoothies-  Pinched for time?  Blend berries, baby spinach, unsweetened almond milk and some high quality protein powder (like Sun Warrior) and you are out the door.
• Left overs-  (I am not talking pizza) This is a little unorthodox, but last night’s salad, stir-fry or baked chicken make a quick and delicious option.
• Plain Greek Yogurt-  Jazz it up with berries, walnuts and flax meal
• Sprouted Grain toast-  If you are a toast-aholic (that is a clinical term), try Ezekiel sprouted-grain bread.  It is less processed than other breads and boasts a more absorbable/complete protein source than most grain-based products.  Spread it with nut butter and some sliced strawberries.  It’s a lean-body PB+J 

Have you tried Overnight Oats?

This summertime classic has been made even healthier with chia seeds.  Prep 3 jars on Sunday night and you have breakfast through Wednesday.