What if you don’t feel like eating a breakfast of champs? You’ve heard it your entire life. Eating breakfast first thing in the morning can lead to a healthier weight and more energy throughout the day. Breakfast may even reduce your risk of diabetes and heart disease. Just because you know you should do something doesn’t mean you feel like doing it.
Not having an appetite in the morning is sometimes viewed as a good thing. Eat fewer calories and you’ll lose weight, right? Not exactly. If a client of mine tells me they don’t feel hungry in the morning it usually signals an imbalance of some sort, somewhere in their day.
Here are some questions to ask yourself if you are not feeling like eating breakfast and some action steps you can take to correct your appetite, leading to a healthy metabolism.
1. Did you eat too late last night? Our bodies do need a fasting period of at least 12 hours. If your last meal was a late-night snack at 10:00 pm, your body might not be ready for food just yet. While snacking is not off limits, you may want to work on your meal timing schedule and start practicing closing up the kitchen a little earlier. No need to obsess about strict rules of the hours of eating, but start paying attention to how long you are going between meals. Then start experimenting with getting on a more regular meal routine. Check out my busy mom's routine if you need a little help getting started, including when to eat your meals.
2. Are you struggling with anxiety or depression? Both anxiety and depression can impact your appetite and the impact is not the same for everyone. More often than not, I will hear my clients struggling with anxiety and depression also report having a reduction in their appetite. Again, this may sound like a positive effect if you are trying to reduce your calorie intake, but a lack of nutrients will backfire, causing more anxiety and depression. Learning to properly fuel your body with complex carbohydrates, nutrient-rich vegetables, and sources of lean protein will not only help you physically but mentally. Start by planning out some colorful fresh foods, such as a berry yogurt parfait. The colors of the foods will stimulate your mind, and that leads to a healthier outlook on the day. Regulating your blood sugar throughout the day with balanced meals is going to keep your body stable and your stress hormones in check. Aside from fueling with healthy foods, you can implement some stress reduction techniques such as taking a 5-minute deep breathing break. One of my favorite methods to recommend to my clients is box breathing. It is also essential you get regular exercise and quality sleep to help you handle the challenges life throws at you. If you are struggling with anxiety or depression be sure to seek out help from your medical provider.
3. Are you battling strong food cravings and poor sleep? These are two signs I see in my clients that have irregular hormones that drive appetite. It is completely normal and healthy for our hormone levels to fluctuate during the night but the fluctuations can negatively impact your appetite. For example, epinephrine tends to be higher in the morning. Epinephrine prepares our body for a time when it needs a lot of energy and it accommodates this by slowing the rate at which our food moves through our digestive system resulting in a suppressed appetite. If you wake up in stress mode, you have more epinephrine. To balance this natural stress response it is a good idea to implement a healthy morning routine. Plug in some time for a quick workout, and some quiet reading time, and before you hit the coffee pot have a nice big bottle of water. Practice this for a few days and see if your appetite improves.
A good appetite is a sign of a healthy metabolism. It is not a negative thing to feel hungry. There are no rules for eating breakfast at a certain time. Experiment with having a later breakfast if your schedule allows it. Just be sure you get all your nutrients in during the day.
Need a little help knowing how much nutrition your body needs? Request a strategy call and we can discuss packages that can get you on the right track.