Hitch Fit Living Magazine Volume 2 - September/October 2015 | Page 24

Time and time again we hear how breakfast is the most important meal of the day yet, so many adults
and children continue to start their day without this meal. Breakfast is the meal that “breaks the fast”
that your body goes into each and every night when you sleep. When you skip out on breakfast, your
body will continue to fast until you decide to eat. The potential downfalls of doing this may include
and are not limited to: a more sluggish metabolism, a potential to binge on poor food choices later,
cognitive, mood and exercise disadvantages, fatigue, headaches, and to some people’s surprise, weight
gain. While some studies conclude that weight management can be effective without breakfast, there
are far more studies indicating that a healthy breakfast actually helps with weight control. Let’s break
down why this meal is so important, how this meal can have an impact on your fitness goals as well as,
options for a better breakfast.
Why is it so important to eat breakfast?
First and foremost, it is important to eat breakfast because your brain and body need fuel to function.
This fuel comes in the form of glucose obtained from food. When you skip breakfast your body is
forced to work extra hard in breaking down stored carbohydrates or to turn fats and proteins into
usable forms of glucose.
Given this information, you shouldn’t skip out on breakfast as your metabolism could eventually go
into starvation mode. It’s suggested that after three to four hours after eating, your metabolism shuts
down and acts as if it needs to store food. While this is a great internal bodily function to have if a
famine were to break out, it’s likely not the case for those trying to lose weight. Then when your body
starts packing on the pounds in an attempt to protect you from starvation people often wonder why
they aren’t losing weight while cutting out those calories. Eating breakfast sends a message to your
body that you are healthy, well fed and not in need of extra fat storage. Unfortunately, many of these
same people turn to snacking later in the day to ward off their low energy levels.