semi OT: healthy on-the-go breakfasts

[AngryScientist]

i'll admit i've been eating like crap lately. pretty unhealthy. we cyclists need good clean fuel for optimal performance. given that i cant logically drink beer for breakfast, i need other solutions. i havent been eating breakfast much, and when i do, its a doughnut with my coffee.

anyone have any good suggestions for something i can eat in the car (hour commute...) or at my desk in the office thats filling and not horrible for me?

ideally, i'd like to get into getting my wife to make something homemade once a week or so that i could eat in the mornings, home brew energy bars or whatever that are actually good food, healthy, no processed crap.

any thoughts? :beer:

[SEABREEZE]

Suggest you go to WestonAPrice.org, and learn about nutrient dense foods.

http://www.westonaprice.org/

[MattTuck]

AS,

Since you're a man of the labcoat, let me lay some science on you.

http://video.competitor.com/2010/07/triathlon/racing-weight-eat-a-big-breakfast/


edit: Just needed to add this video from the same series, where the author is talking about gaining weight in the off season and uses the phrase, "don't be a jan ullrich" priceless. http://video.competitor.com/2010/07/videos-marquee/racing-weight-the-8-percent-rule/

[Scott Shire]

I do the following...


OPTION 1
Scramble 12 eggs
Fry up some taters, peppers and onions
Add eggs to pan
Add cheese, hot sauce & salsa
Roll into burritos (makes about 7 healthy sized burritos)
Freeze
Heat & eat as needed

OPTION 2
http://www.mccanns.ie/images/QandE_Drum.jpg
Takes 5 minutes, not useless sugar like Quaker Instant
I add a little kosher salt and some frozen fruit halfway through cooking. You need a big ol bowl, though, or you have to watch it in the microwave to prevent boiling over

OPTION 3
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_v-e2-rbLs20/S65-0EBa3HI/AAAAAAAABRA/bKzHosg1050/s200/P1080300.JPG
TJ's nonfat Greek Yogurt
mixed with
http://www.attunefoods.com/uploads/l4d910c9b5a9ad.png
Uncle Sam's Cereal

Tons of protein, tons of fiber, low sugar, tasty, and way filling.

[Ozz]

I usually eat non-fat yogurt, mixed berries, and some granola at my desk at work. I get the big bag of frozen berries at Costco, and they thaw / keep the yogurt cold during my commute. I keep a box / bag of granola in my desk. The granola has some fat in it, but it is still yummy....


...i'd like to get into getting my wife to make something homemade once a week or so...

Ouch....I'd get the "Do it yourself!!!" response if I ever said that out loud... :beer:

[AngryScientist]

Ouch....I'd get the "Do it yourself!!!" response if I ever said that out loud... :beer:

believe it or not, she's home with the little one for a few months and bored out of her mind, i dont think she'd mind the cooking, she loves to cook. but yea - otherwise, i'd get laughed out of the kitchen. :D

[veloduffer]

+1 on McCann's oatmeal. Tastes good and much better than Quaker Oats and it is super easy to make. Just add water and cook for 2 minutes in the microwave.

[biker72]

McDonalds oatmeal... :)
http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/promotions/oatmeal.html

[coylifut]

Get the real non fast cooking Irish oats. On Sunday evening, boil 3 cups water, add 1 cup of steel cut oats, bring back to a boil, turn the burner off, cover, let sit over night. Monday morning you'll have 4 days worth of oatmeal. Add some raisins, nuts, agave syrup...put in the micro for 2 minutes each morning, add soy, hemp, almond or any prefered non dairy milk.

[torquer]

Further on the oatmeal front:
Starbucks has it, if they're on your route. Pretty good, the one time I tried it. (I'm not a regular.)
Silver Palate makes a good oatmeal ("Thick and Rough"?) for home cookin', in about 7 or 8 minutes, once the water is boiling. I make several servings at a time, pack the extras in the fridge for microwaving later in the week. Add fruit and maple syrup, it's ready before the coffee has finished brewing.

[jaykosta]

Regular Oatmeal - not instant ...
Get a large pyrex measuring cup (1 quart size)
a 1/4 cup measuring scoop
3/4 cup dry oatmeal
1 1/2 cup water
3 minutes in microwave - watch so it doesn't boil over
mix in some peanut butter if you'd like
eat
wash

The quart size measuring cup is also good for ramen....

Jay Kosta
Endwell NY USA

[BobbyJones]

four to six minutes extra in the am is all you need to make yourself a healthy omelette via the microwave and stick it in between two slices of sprouted grain bread.

At one point I would do a variation of this and do two weeks worth of the same except in burrito form and freeze 'em. - but for the same amount of time involved i prefer "fresh daily"

Let me know if you need more details, but please don't eat and drive lest we have another story to tell here on the forum about an inattentive driver. :)

[FL_MarkD]

McCann's oatmeal is a great breakfast, especially on ride mornings, but cooking and eating in the car might be a bit of a challenge :) There are always plenty of snack/fruit bars. One that I have been using lately is Lara bars. Packed with fruit, gluten free, not too much sugar.

Mark

[Karin Kirk]

I have the same problem in the winter, when breakfast needs to fit in a ski jacket pocket. This winter I did what you would like your wife to do. I baked quick breads twice a week, sliced them and kept them in the freezer. I alternated between a bread with apples, raisins and walnuts and a yummy banana bread. I changed the recipes to include whole wheat flour and canola oil instead of butter. It worked great and was easy to get into the baking routine (a nice set of new loaf pans helped).

But quick breads are not the healthiest breakfast. I'll second all the recommendations for oatmeal - so healthy and easy to concoct in many variants. Best plan is oatmeal for main breakfast and home made breads for snacks.

Oh and plus one for the Starbucks oatmeal - an absolute savior when traveling with limited options.

[93legendti]

i'll admit i've been eating like crap lately. pretty unhealthy. we cyclists need good clean fuel for optimal performance. given that i cant logically drink beer for breakfast, i need other solutions. i havent been eating breakfast much, and when i do, its a doughnut with my coffee.

anyone have any good suggestions for something i can eat in the car (hour commute...) or at my desk in the office thats filling and not horrible for me?

ideally, i'd like to get into getting my wife to make something homemade once a week or so that i could eat in the mornings, home brew energy bars or whatever that are actually good food, healthy, no processed crap.

any thoughts? :beer:
You could make home made waffles/muffins with brown rice flour, honey, fruit and walnuts/pecans. The flour will have recipes on the package. The waffle iron will do all the cooking, so they are pretty easy to make-and carry.

Lately, my breakfast has consisted of a peach or 1/2 grapefruit and Greek Yogurt (Fage-comes in single servings), with a handful of walnuts, 1 tbsp of olive oil and 1 tsp of honey. Tastes great and filling.

[Bob Loblaw]

Most offices have those water coolers with hot water which is perfect for instant oatmeal. Keep a box at your desk...I used to buy it at Costco and eat three at a time.

Instant gets a bad rap, but it works for me.

BL

[Steve in SLO]

My wife recently bought a scone pan from Amazon and began making scones for the kids...everything from peach to double chocolate to cranberry orange. Easy healthy recipes abound and scones from the pan tend to be dense and less crumbly than free-formed ones. Great driving food.

[scoobydrew]

I know it's been mentioned, but steel cut oatmeal would be a great choice. Once you try it, you may not want to go back to regular oatmeal. I know that I'm not going back to instant oatmeal in a long time. In my opinion, it doesn't taste as great and it's loaded with sugars.

Someone mentioned cooking a big batch on Sunday night. This would be great since you can probably put it into a container and eat it when you get to work?

[Sheldon4209]

I am on a special diet following surgery to repair the valve between my esophagus and stomach. Ensure has been a big part of my diet and it is not too bad. I also like yogurt and oatmeal but Ensure is quicker and easier.

[martinrjensen]

Note on McCann's Oatmeal.
It's good but absolutely no difference in taste from the bulk steel cut oats sold in most grocery stores for 1/10th the price. (I started using McCann's)
I don't know anything about the 5 minute type though. My experience with the quick cooking oats is that they simply cut the grain to a finer grade. I fine it more mushy and choose to get up earlier to cook the regular stuff. Mine takes about 20 minutes to cook on the stove top.
Oh, that and Yogurt.

[buldogge]

I like either Greek or European style yogurt (TJ's is good) mixed with granola, sliced almonds, craisans, and a drizzle of honey.

Alternatively, I make a powershake with: ice, almond milk, banana, mixed berries, and whey powder (generally chocolate).

-Mark in St. Louis

[Peter B]

Lots of good options posted here. For very quick, easy, dense, balanced calories I'll second Ensure. The Plus version is ~350 calories in 6oz. Two of these midway through a double century always sees me to the finish strong.

[billythekid]

My morning commute is fuled by yogurt and granola. Switching from coffee to green tea will help too

[CNY rider]

Look in the dairy case for Stonyfield Farms drinkable yogurt shakes.
Tastes great, it's in an easy to use single serving plastic bottle that would be easy to sip from while you are in the car.

[AngryScientist]

gots of good suggestions folks, thanks. it sounds like at a minimum i should be taking a close look at oatmeal.

unfortunately, it's national doughnut day, which you can bet on what i'm eating this morning...

[Ozz]

Note on McCann's Oatmeal.
It's good but absolutely no difference in taste from the bulk steel cut oats sold in most grocery stores for 1/10th the price. ....
+ 1/2 :beer:

I found that McCann's was slightly higher quality...more grains uniformly cut, and less "oat dust" in the mix.

That said, I bought a can of McCann's years ago and now refill it with oats from the bulk section of my local grocery!

[flydhest]

given that i cant logically drink beer for breakfast, i need other solutions.


I reject your premise.

[Crazy Chris]

If you go with steel cut oats, soak them in water overnight, drain, add fluid, cook, and eat. Works also with arborio and brown rice, immersing them in water a few hours before cooking. Enjoy.

CJV

[Ozz]

If you go with steel cut oats, soak them in water overnight, drain, add fluid, cook, and eat. Works also with arborio and brown rice, immersing them in water a few hours before cooking. Enjoy.

CJV
why? what does that do for me? I am guessing faster cooking?

genuinely curious....

[Fixed]

workout first then eat
b.fast
pros secret
cheers

[martinrjensen]

That's me! I've even gotten pretty good abouty scooping up an exact full container (and not more) into the plastic bag. When I hit it right on, I feel pretty good.+ 1/2 :beer:

I found that McCann's was slightly higher quality...more grains uniformly cut, and less "oat dust" in the mix.

That said, I bought a can of McCann's years ago and now refill it with oats from the bulk section of my local grocery!

[DRB]

Thoroughly mix up dry goods once a week in a container:
4 1/2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/4 cup flax seed meal
1/2 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup oat bran
1/2 cup chopped or sliced almonds
1 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cherries or cranberries

1/2 cup in AM nuked for 1 1/2 minutes. Add a little yogurt or maple syrup?

Good stuff; way better and way more economical than boxed cereal or fancy fufu stuff.

DRB

[gasman]

I am on a special diet following surgery to repair the valve between my esophagus and stomach. Ensure has been a big part of my diet and it is not too bad. I also like yogurt and oatmeal but Ensure is quicker and easier.

I had a lap Nissan fundoplication also about 2 years ago. If i see another can of Ensure I think I might puke. 2 weeks of an all liquid made me grouchy and I lost 14 pounds which I haven't gained back.

Oatmeal, yogurt, keifer, fresh fruit, whole wheat toast all work for me for a quick breakfast.

[rphetteplace]

Spam and white bread! Delicious cold or hot!