Why low carbohydrates for breakfast can be useful
The classic breakfast that most of us know and love to eat usually contains carbohydrates paired with fat and perhaps some protein. If things go well, add vitamins in the form of fruit and the tired start to the day is perfect. In the following blog article, you can find out why this approach doesn’t fit in with your energy levels or your desire to reduce body fat and why low carb for breakfast can make sense.
Common breakfast examples that I often hear from my personal training clients on day one before we start coaching:
- “Bread or rolls with jam or cheese or sausage”
- “Croissant, sweet slice or (butter) pretzel on the go from the bakery when you need to be quick”
- “Natural yogurt with muesli and banana or apple, with a dollop of honey”
- “Two cups of milk coffee”
- “I don’t eat breakfast because I’m not hungry in the morning.
All these examples have one thing in common: they contain more or less complex carbohydrates. Except for “I don’t eat breakfast”, which is definitely the worst option.
But carbohydrates (carbs) are important because they provide us with energy for the day? That’s right, they provide energy, usually for a short time and usually associated with major fluctuations in blood sugar levels as they are nothing other than sugar in various forms (monosaccharides, disaccharides and polysaccharides).
In principle, carbs are not bad. However, the time when you eat them, which ones you eat and, of course, how many you eat in relation to your individual goal play a decisive role.
What happens in your body when you eat carbohydrates?
As already mentioned, carbs are nothing other than sugar in various complex forms. This also includes fruit sugar (fructose). Depending on how complex these are, your body reacts to them with a faster or slower rise in your blood sugar level in order to break them down.
Your body needs the hormone insulin to absorb the carbohydrates you eat. Insulin has the task of transporting the decomposed carbohydrates, also known as glucose, into the cell and serves as a kind of “opener” for the cell. This causes your blood sugar level to drop again more or less quickly. Insulin is the hormone that can lower it. Consistently high insulin levels prevent or hinder the burning of fat and are associated with diseases such as type 2 diabetes.
The counterpart to insulin is the hormone glucagon. Glucagon is released when your blood sugar level drops sharply. It ensures that glucose is released from the liver to stabilize the blood sugar and allow it to rise again.
For example, if you eat a chocolate bar, which is a lot of simple carbohydrates, your blood sugar level rises quite quickly and then drops sharply. These are the situations in which you usually get the munchies afterwards.
Incidentally, the glucose that is not needed or cannot be used immediately is stored in your muscles and liver in the form of glycogen. Once these stores are full, your body has no choice but to convert the excess glucose into fat stores.
The low carb approach in the morning
If you take another look at the breakfast examples in the first section, you will notice that all the variations will lead to an increase in your blood sugar level. Faster or slower, depending on which option you choose. And if you eat too much carbohydrates, they will eventually be converted into body fat.
This is one reason why a “low carb” approach makes sense if your goal is to reduce body fat.
But why for breakfast? Your neurotransmitters (NRT) play a role here. These are messenger substances in our nervous system that transmit information from cell to cell. When we eat carbohydrates, the NTR serotonin is released. This stands for well-being and relaxation and passes this information on to your cells. A classic example would be if you eat a rich breakfast with lots of carbohydrates. If not immediately, but definitely after a delay, you will feel tired and want to take a nap. And again, shortly after getting up!
Another example of how carbs make you tired is the midday slump. The reason for this is, how could it be otherwise, the choice at lunch. Pizza, pasta with bolognese, rice or spaetzle with sauce and possibly meat. A soft drink or juice spritzer to drink and a small piece of cake or ice cream for dessert. Apart from the large amount of calories in the form of CH, which should have a negative effect on your body fat, you will be tired and flat afterwards. Office fatigue is therefore inevitable. So if you want to start the day fit and efficient and want it to stay that way throughout the day, a low carb approach would be the right thing for you for breakfast.what I can and have observed time and again in my work as a personal trainer in Stuttgart: The customer comes to training in the morning and has eaten mainly carbohydrates or nothing at all for breakfast. In both cases, the person is usually less efficient during training and also more likely to suffer from low blood sugar. As a result, it is necessary to pause more often as there is no energy available and it is not possible to increase performance during training. In the worst case, we even had to stop training, but as soon as the breakfast was adjusted, none of the scenarios mentioned above occurred.
You’re probably asking yourself, what can I eat for breakfast?
What you should avoid, as explained above, are blood sugar fluctuations. This constant alternation between high and low blood sugar leads to cravings and fatigue. Breakfast options that contain high-quality protein, healthy fats and vitamins from vegetables and certain types of fruit have been proven to stabilize your blood sugar and keep your body healthier and fitter.
Here are a few examples of how you can get your day off to a good start without tiring yourself out with carbs:
Example 1:
Eggs (2-6 depending on size) prepared as desired (hard-boiled, scrambled, fried, omelette), if baked then with coconut oil or butter (Kerrygold), served with vegetables of your choice. Served with a slice of nut bread if desired.
Example 2:
Quark with at least 20% fat or skyr with berries (fresh or frozen), 1 spoonful of chia seeds or linseed, optional cinnamon
Example 3:
Stremel salmon, smoked salmon (wild salmon) or trout fillet with avocado and/or vegetables optionally topped with a little lemon/lime juice.
Example 4:
Vegan solution: Shake made from rice protein powder, mixed with some almond paste (one spoonful) and plant-based milk (almond, oat, rice) or water, optionally some berries.
A low carb approach to breakfast also optimizes your insulin management, as less insulin needs to be released to stabilize blood sugar and this has a positive effect on reducing body fat.
As with any form of nutrition, individuality should also be taken into account here. Do you even like the food? Can you tolerate the food? How good is your blood sugar management when you eat it? Especially people who have food intolerances, such as dairy products, cereals containing gluten, eggs, nuts or certain types of fruit and vegetables, can also have a negative impact on their blood sugar levels and intestinal health. What usually helps best is to try things out and then eliminate them. Of course, there are also people who tolerate CH for breakfast well and do not have a significantly high blood sugar rise. In my experience as a personal trainer, these are the fewest. At least for the majority of my clients. Unless you are perhaps a 20-year-old competitive athlete who trains five to six times a week, gets enough good sleep and has a low stress level in everyday life :).
I wish you every success in trying out the low carb approach for breakfast!
If you want to know more about how you can reduce body fat and increase your energy levels with a sustainable approach, then contact me for an appointment for a YPSI skin fold measurement.