The Beauty of Oatmeal
Since it is quite true that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I decided to start by sharing some of my oatmeal recipes. So stop having breakfasts of coffee and donuts, or coffee and bagels, and start eating healthier.
Oatmeal is an incredible food. Of course I am referring to the whole rolled oats, or steel cut oats, and not the instant, loaded with sugar varieties. Below is a comparison between a typical sugar-laden instant oatmeal, whole rolled oats oatmeal, and steel cut oats oatmeal.
| Oatmeal Type | Instant | Whole Old Fashioned | Steel Cut |
| Serving Size Cooked | 1 Cup | 1 Cup | 1 Cup |
| Fat (grams) | 2.5 g | 3.0 g | 3.0 g |
| Protein (grams) | 5.0 g | 5.0 g | 5.0 g |
| Carb (grams) | 42 g | 27 g | 27 g |
| Fiber (grams) | 3 g | 4 g | 4 g |
| Sugar (grams) | 18 g | 0 g | 0 g |
You can see the biggest difference is the amount of sugar that is added to the instant brand oatmeals. This greatly increases the amount of unhealthy carbohydrates. Also this adds additional empty calories to your total diet, not a wise food choice.
If you are looking to start your day off on the right nutritional foot, then oatmeal is a perfect choice. It is high in fiber, is a decent source of protein, and has low glycemic carbohydrates. Notice how many ways you can change up your morning oatmeal!
Here are more ways you can mix and create your own favorite oatmeal breakfast:
- For more fiber in your breakfast add – oat bran, wheat germ, wheat bran, or all-bran cereal buds
- For more protein in your breakfast add – one scoop of chocolate or vanilla protein powder (of your favorite type)
- For more healthy fats in your breakfast add – one tablespoon of olive oil; one tablespoon of flax seed oil; or nuts such as walnuts, pecans, almond, or any other type (nuts not only add healthy fats, but they also are high in protein)
- Other fruits that you can add– dried fruit such apricots, dried pineapple, prunes, dates, or dried cranberries, fresh fruits such as strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, apples, or bananas
Now go forth, create, eat, and enjoy!