Boost Your Metabolism in 24 Hours: Morning

sweetdollcakes — Wed, 21 May 2008 04:12:00 -0000

Morning

Eat a 300- to 400-calorie breakfast In the AM, your energy stores are depleted by as much as 80% from the night before. Without food, your body shifts into starvation mode, which means it begins to conserve energy and burn fewer calories. (In other words: Your metabolic rate takes a nosedive.) That may be why, in one study, breakfast skippers were 4 1*2 times more likely to be obese than breakfast eaters. For more long-lasting energy, include whole grain complex carbohydrates like oatmeal.

Throw in a cup of halved strawberries Research suggests that getting enough vitamin C--75 mg a day--may be essential for optimal fat burning. The strawberries provide 90 mg.

Get a dose of sunlight "Exposure to bright light decreases melatonin and increases serotonin, shifting your body from sleep to awake mode and, in turn, revving your metabolic furnace," says health and psychology researcher Robert K. Cooper, PhD, author of the metabolism book Flip the Switch.

Take your multivitamin Antioxidant nutrients help protect mitochondria, tiny structures found in every cell, from damage; they're the microscopic fat-burning furnaces that convert food into fuel.

Move at the office "Moving throughout the day--even if it's just walking to a colleague's office rather than sending an e-mail--keeps your metabolism higher than doing a workout and then remaining sedentary," says James O. Hill, PhD, director of the Center for Human Nutrition at the University of Colorado at Denver.

Sip a cup of coffee or tea Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant that moderately boosts metabolism, helping you burn about 20 extra calories.

Have a midmorning snack Good choices: a reduced-fat cheese stick or a cup of low-fat yogurt and a piece of fruit. Every time you eat, your body burns additional calories to digest the food. Take advantage of this automatic boost by eating something--even if it's very small--every 3 to 4 hours.

Hungry Girl Breakfast Recipes

sweetdollcakes — Fri, 16 May 2008 20:14:37 -0000

Clipped by sweetdollcakes

HG Cinna-Bagels!

(entire recipe: 130 calories, 2g fat, 285mg sodium, 26g carbs, 7g fiber, 0.5g sugars, 6g protein = 2 Points)

We're not sure, but we think Cinnamon Spice Alternative Bagels may have been put on Earth for the sole purpose of becoming HG Cinna-Bagels... Mmmmmm!

Ingredients:

1 Western Bagel The Alternative Bagel, Cinnamon Spice

24 sprays no-calorie butter spray

1/2 tsp. Splenda No Calorie Sweetener, granulated

1/8 tsp. cinnamon

Directions:

Split bagel in half, and then spritz each half evenly with 8 sprays of butter spray. In a small dish, stir to combine Splenda and cinnamon. Sprinkle Splenda-cinnamon mixture over bagel halves. Spray each bagel-half again with 4 sprays of butter spray. Heat in the microwave (for a soft Cinna-Bagel) or in the toaster oven (for a crunchy Cinna-Bagel). Weeee!

Hunka Hunka Breakfast Love

(entire recipe: 225 calories, 4g fat, 615mg sodium, 40g carbs, 3g fiber, 13g sugars, 12g protein = 4 Points)

"The King" used to enjoy sandwiches loaded with peanut butter, banana and bacon. We think Elvis would have loved this HG concoction!

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Barbara’s Bakery Puffins, Peanut Butter

1/2 cup light vanilla soymilk

1/4 cup banana slices

1 ounce extra lean turkey bacon

1 tbsp. sugar-free maple syrup

Directions:

Place cereal in a bowl, and top with banana slices; set aside. Prepare bacon according to package directions (either in the microwave, or in a pan with nonstick spray). Top cereal with soymilk. Plate bacon and drizzle with syrup. Enjoy!

Creamy Crunchy Freeze-Dried Frenzy

(entire recipe: 165 calories, 0.5g fat, 180mg sodium, 40g carbs, 7g fiber, 12g sugars, 11g protein = 3 Points)

Yogurt, meet Fiber One… Granola, watch your back.

Ingredients:

6 ounces fat-free vanilla yogurt

1/4 cup Gerber Mini Fruits (any flavor)

1/4 cup Fiber One bran cereal (original)

Directions:

Place half of the yogurt in a bowl or parfait glass, and top with half of the fruit and then half of the cereal. Repeat, then devour.

sweetdollcakes's clips tagged fat

Boost Your Metabolism in 24 Hours: Morning

Hungry Girl Breakfast Recipes