ARE YOU BREAKFASTING RIGHT?

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but more often than not we are doing it completely wrong!

Breakfast is important because we are literally 'breaking the fast'! The body is especially susceptible to what we put in it when it's in a fasted or un-fed state. Our circadian rhythm is calling for digestion to be at it's strongest from 5-11 am. So if we're not too keen on eating in the early morning it might be smart to begin conditioning ourselves to be.

Like a weak muscle, it may not take much to exhaust it but as we train it over time it becomes stronger and more capable, bringing a better rhythm to the rest of cycle as whole. The repetition of a manageably sized eating-load will adjust our body's natural rhythm. This can even help us to improve our sleep and wake up feeling more rested!

Breakfast is not meant to serve as a heavy meal in terms macros like fats, proteins and ESPECIALLY soluble carbs! So don't! But what exactly has been marketed to us as "the typical western breakfast"? Probably the first things that come to mind are cereals, pancakes, waffles, toast, sausage, bacon, eggs, all covered in syrup. Just like in the photo above. This is not right. Don't do it! These sorts of foods for breakfast will bypass our ability to accomplish what breakfast is essentially for.

Breakfast should be about fluids and micronutrients! 5-7 am is especially for fluids. We want fluid to be well absorbed, and so by using warm water (not juice!) plus a little bit of sour (a squirt of lemon juice will do!) all helps stimulate the tongue in a way that makes the fluids palatable and communicates internally to astringe, draw in, and maximize the absorption of these fluids. This can also be a good time for naturally sourced electrolytes.

Water that is too cold will constrict things creating a higher chance for fluids passing through unabsorbed. Cold fluid can also cause intestinal discomfort on an empty stomach and slow peristalsis. When these fluids properly arrive they support the excretion of waste, both at cellular level and a large intestine level aka a bowel movement.

And so! Our goal is to have a natural bowel movement before we put in new food for the day. It's better if this bowel movement is not motivated/assisted by caffeine. So make it a goal to hold off on the coffee or tea
until after your morning bowel movement.

Along with fluids we want to also provide the fasted body with micronutrients and fiber. This might be the most important part of all! Simply put this means breakfast is all about vegetables and herbs! The digestive system being fasted is ready to effectively take in nutrition!

So give it good naturally-sourced variation. Some plant-based oils and proteins are essential too when it comes to vitamin absorption. We can get this via nuts, seeds, lentils and avocado. Breakfast time can also be a good time to take any nutritional supplement pills. If you haven't pooped already then these plant based foods should do the trick! Just be sure not to introduce any heavy macros just yet in the form of grains, dairy and meats.

If we have weak digestion (particularly low energy and appetite in the morning) we need to be careful not to eat too much raw and cold food. Instead, soups and steamed vegetables are the best way to go! In the morning the digestive system should be at it's strongest due to the fact that it is fasted and unburdened, hopefully we've also warmed it with a couple cups of warm water, but that doesn't mean that we can now go to town on cold, raw foods.

Recognize your unique digestive health and adjust accordingly. If your digestive system is healthy or more hyperactive than there is no need to be so worried consuming raw and cold foods. It's still good to exercise some moderation though.

The next key player when it comes to breakfast is the consumption of herbal medicines! We want to utilize the power of our fasted state to enhance the influence of medicinals on the body. Especially classical Chinese herbal medicine is strategically combined into formulations for the sake of maximizing the desired treatment effect(s) and dampening any harshness that certain herbs may possess. For us all this needs to mean is that these traditional Chinese herbal formulas are designed to sit well on an empty stomach.

Food and herbs are more than just their nutrition. They are also rich in a myriad of complex arrangements of phytocomponents. These phytocomponents provoke functional changes in our physiology and overall expression of qi. Examples include capsaicin in pepper that give it it's spiciness. Capsaicin activates circulation and spreads qi outwards creating superficial tingling, open pores and sweating.

Other phytocomponents includes gingerols, curcuminoids, betaines, and many other alkaloids and essential oils that are often overlooked by our traditional western nutritional understandings that are heavily macro and micronutrient focused. Don't forget about the phytos!



Think of how drugs like caffeine and alcohol affect us in a much stronger way when we're unfed. Consumption of heavy macros like starches, fats and proteins can weaken the effects of these medicinals in the same way!

So feel free to add any pertinent herbs to your breakfast soup each morning, to replenish your body with the nutrition as well as strongly motivate the body in the right direction towards the balancing it needs. Consult your nearest Traditional Chinese Medicine doctor for advice and insight as to what eactly your unique body needs. Herbal medicines are not something to fool around with.

And we'll leave you with a final note! Aim to have your breakfast a minimum of 12 hours following your last meal from the night before. If your lifestyle forces you into eating later that's okay. Just make sure you adjust your breakfast window to support this 12 hour fasting window. Our breakfast can happen in the afternoon. Just because we're eating our first meal in the afternoon doesn't make it not breakfast.

Our digestive systems have evolved from animals and after that, hunter-gatherers who've not had the luxury to eat many meals in a day. Food in the form of heavy meals have never been as easily available as they are today. As animals and hunter-gatherers, at times our one big feed would need to be enough to support us for a week or more. Our inner digestive rhythms produce an addictive need for food that is not truly a necessity. Much of our hunger and cravings stem from an insulin spike that produce a need for carbohydrates. On the other hand we could be greatly nutrient-deficient and yet still not even notice it on a sense of hunger level.

To take things further it can also be efficient to not introduce heavy and filling macros like breads, pasta, and meat until 4 hours after breakfast. Yup, that's 16 hours following our last meal from the night before! If you have a tendency to eat late then this may mean not eating a heavy meal until 1 pm!

Be advised that those with digestive deficiencies may not want to follow these guidelines. Many spread-out smaller meals is another dietary technique that can be used in treating serious digestive deficiencies.

And when we finally do introduce our heavy meal that day - here come the carbs - a nice and simple biohack we can do is quickly fire off a set of 40 push-ups, squats, or our favorite core exercises 5 minutes prior to eating. By activating large muscle groups in an explosive anaerobic way we will minimize the inflammatory insulin spike that comes from ingesting certain carbs. Another way we can lessen this is by introducing fruit-based sugars first prior to the grains-based ones.

The advice provided in this article are broad generalizations. It's always best to consult a professional individually before implementing any of these recommendations in any extremes. Diet is not "one size fits all"! It takes a nuanced and individual approach to truly achieving a best diet.

DISCLAIMER: This article present general dietary advice that is not suitable for everyone. Diet is not a "one size fits all" thing and so we would like to emphasize one more time the importance of seeing a dietary specialist to establish a diet that is suitable for you.