Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Protein and Fiber- It's What's for Breakfast

I was asked by my dear friend Libby today to write about ways I get my protein and fiber. In a sense of being honest, I seem to come up short in protein on the majority of days, and my most of me doesn't care. I usually come up high on sodium, and my most of me doesn't care (though I recognize I should, so no need to lecture. I'll get there when I get there.) I take a multi-vitamin that makes me feel pretty confident that I'm getting nearer to other nutrient goals, but I couldn't tell you what those are or why I need them. (Except, I hear iron deficiency makes you tired...?)
There are basically only 4 categories I really focus on for meeting the daily requirements, and they are:

1. Calories
2. Veggie servings
3. Fruit servings
4. Fiber
(If you haven't figured it out by now, I love fiber. I NEED fiber. I mean, everybody needs fiber, but I am certain I need it more than most;) )

You see, I need these healthy habits to be flung at me gradually. When I started counting, I only looked at calories. Then veggies came in the mix, followed by fruits, and lately it's been fiber. So who knows...maybe protein will be next, and sodium to follow?

Anywho, my breakfast this morning was jam-packed with both fiber AND protein, so what an appropriate day to write this post, eh? Good timing, Libby!

brownie batter cereal is the business
What I had: 
(c= calories, p= protein, f= fiber)
102g potato- 94c, 2g p, 2g f

brownie batter cereal, consisting of:
 100g Pure plain yogurt: 65c, about 5g p
 3/4 scoop Dymatize protein powder:  88c, 18g p
 25g Kashi Go Lean cereal: 70c, 7g p, 5g f

Microwave oatmeal mug muffin, consisting of:
 1/4 scoop quick oats: 75c, 3 p, 2 f
 1 large egg, whole: 74c, 6 p
 70g strawberries: 25c, 1g f
 2T skim milk: 11c, 1 p

As you can see, protein was the all-star of my bfast, coming in at a WHOPPING total of 42g! That's already almost half of my daily allotment! My fiber count comes in at 33% (10g), but I packed on another 16g at lunch *ding*.

My favorite sources of fiber, in addition to veggies, potatoes, and beans (per serving):

Fiber1 bars (they're my equivalent to candy bars. I don't even WANT candy bars anymore. Fiber1 is where it's at.)- 9g
Kashi Go Lean cereal- 10g fiber
Oatmeal- 4g
Quinoa- 3g

My favorite sources of protein, in addition to beans, seafood, and meat (per serving):

Kashi Go Lean cereal- 13g
Dymatize protein powder- 24g
tofu- 20g
egg whites- 14g

What are your favorite sources of fiber and protein, other than the usual suspects? Let me know in the comments!




6 comments:

  1. My new favorite "Candy Bar" is Nature Valley's Protein Chewy Bars!! You know I'm big on protein & need the lower sugar, but I LOVE SWEETS!! I've found that these are just perfect & my blood sugar thanks me!! 190c, 5g f, 6g s, 10g p. These go everywhere with me!!

    I do need to try out some of your recipes, you got any that are lower in sugar but still have great flavor?

    Loving the blog, keep it up!! ~Your big Sister~

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  2. Thank you so much, ellieshilton! Your encouragement means a lot:)

    Sister- I'll have to try the Chewy Bars when I get home!

    I just ate this delicious oatmeal breakfast cookie this morning (http://fitnessista.com/2008/11/something-worth-waking-up-for/) with strawberries. This ended up having 9g of sugars...I wonder if you could swap the milk for water? Taking that out, and the strawberries (which it really didn't need) would save around 6g of sugars right there!

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  3. Hi Jamie! Thanks for stopping by my blog! I've just been reading your posts and congratulations on your success - that is an incredible achievement!

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  4. Hi Jamie - wow you have done great in your weight loss. Congratulations!

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  5. So I can have brownie batter cereal AND a microwave minute muffin for breakfast?! Both of them? I've been eating one or the other and am always hungry like an hour later or I have to add more oats to my muffin. If I can eat both though then I would probably be full until lunch and wouldn't feel like snacking so much (that's my biggest downfall).

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    1. Hecks to the yeah, my Chrissy friend! I eat around 500-600 calories at breakfast time (usually around 600 these days. I'm a breakfast monster.) I like to compartmentalize 3 things: my fiber, my eggs, my fruit. I don't like to snack, so I pack in all the cals at meal times, so that I don't really have wiggle room;) But yeah, big breakfasts are important...since it gets your metabolism, you're likely to get hungrier earlier if you're not getting a lot of sustenance.

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