Most people will be better off with a higher protein, high fat breakfast.
The best fats to add in the morning are coconut oil, butter, and fish oil.
- Coconut oil is rich in MCTs (Medium Chain Triglycerides) which are an energizing fat. The liver converts these fats directly to energy making them a great alternative to carbs for pre-workout energy or for starting your day.
- Butter is rich in healthy saturated fats, CLA, and butyrate. Butyrate is a short chain fatty acid that helps increase the insulin sensitivity of lean tissue while increasing fatty-acid release from fat cells.
- Omega-3s help to increase fat burning enzymes, improve insulin sensitivity, and decrease inflammation. Fish-oil capsules are a great choice.
If you are the rare carb-type person, here’s how to get the most out of your breakfast carbs:
Protein is essential. A low protein breakfast with carbs will only blunt fat loss and decrease energy. Carbs at breakfast are best if they are low glycemic, and high nutrient density.
- Start with organic berries. Berries are rich in antioxidants, minerals, and very low GI. High nutrient berries like blueberries can actually be insulin sensitizing because they are so nutrient dense, despite their carbohydrate content.
- Use other low GI fruits like apples, or complex starches like oats.
- A small amount of healthy fats is still okay for most. Coconut oil would be my choice.
A typical meal may look like 30g protein, 30g carbs, 15g fat.
Some people need a small amount of carbs to optimally burn fat, but if you go overboard, it reverses the effect. People that need carbs for breakfast are generally very lean naturally.
The easiest way to know what breakfast is best for you, is to try each, and train 2 hours afterwards. One should leave you feeling better and more energetic than the other.
*If you normally train right after breakfast, having a small to moderate serving of slower digesting carbs as mentioned above may be the way to go if you’re doing higher volume or more metabolic type of program.
**If you train right after you get up and “breakfast” is your post-workout meal, a larger serving of carbohydrates may be a good option. See the article Timing Your Carbohydrates