What do you eat for breakfast?

[Ioreth]

I hate breakfast. More to the point, I hate mornings and the last thing I want to do is cook something. Unfortunately, eating little to no breakfast is incompatible with nursing school. Too often, I find myself ravenous or shaky from too low blood sugar with lunch still hours away. This happens most often during 12 hour clinicals that start at 6:30 AM. I've looked into breakfast burritos, but the ones I've made at home don't heat evenly and the ones from the store are too salty. What do you eat for breakfast to keep your energy going until lunchtime?

Edit: Because we're supposed to be critical thinkers, I wanted to add that I've been screened for diabetes mellitus and everything is fine in that department. I just don't eat enough breakfast most of the time.

[student_B, ADN, RN]

My staple has been Sweet Earth frozen burritos, and frequently a falafel (trader joes frozen)-hummus-arugula-tabasco wrap. The frozen burritos are great for when I'm running late (frequently) and this brand is quite healthy in my opinion, and has a variety of choices. I just microwave for 2min, then toast for a couple mins. The burritos are protein-heavy and digest slowly, so I'm full and energetic, but also have to sip water frequently for an hour or two after eating it to prevent upset stomach. For clinicals, I bought a square nalgene water bottle that fits in my scrub pocket.

Going to try to get some oatmeal breakfasts in the rotation this semester.

[Here.I.Stand, BSN, RN]

I love fruit&veggie smoothies -- great for picky children too! They are refreshing and light, BUT they afford satiety at the same time. My basic 3:

"Green" -- kale and/or spinach, shelled edamame, white/yellow carrots (optional, if you happen to have the multicolored kind), banana, green grapes, Granny Smith apple, some peeled citrus (again optional -- I like the tartness. I've done grapefruit, tangerines, lemon, limes -- rind cut off of course) frozen yellow fruit (mango, pineapple, peach chunks), ice cubes and just enough H2O to blend easily.

"Orange": carrots, sweet potato and/or squash chunks, a little frozen sweet corn, banana, orange/tangerine, apple (any red/yellow variety), frozen yellow fruit and frozen red berries

"Purple": beets (I go easy on these, otherwise the beets overpower), purple/white carrot (again if you have the multicolored ones), taro, frozen mixed berries, apple, banana, red/blue grapes.

You could add some whey for added protein too

[CaliforniaPoppy]

I'm a breakfast person, and even I find it tough to eat when I get up at 4:45 am! I find the Trader Joe's instant oatmeal blend (it's organic and has a bunch of different grains & flax etc. in it) super quick & easy & just enough volume to fill me without overfilling. I drop a handful of pumpkin seeds into the bowl before I pour on the boiling water, for some protein; then a more than generous dollop of maple syrup before I eat it (if I have to get up that early, I am NOT counting calories!).

I slip packets of nuts/trail mix into my scrub pockets (also from Trader Joe's - perfect size for a quick munch so you don't end up with pockets full of loose granola by the end of the day), a mozzarella stick, a cookie or anything else that fits and can be eaten quickly without making too much of a mess. I find that having a bite here and there, whenever I can, keeps my blood sugar stable and I don't get mean by lunchtime.

For school days, breakfast is usually leftovers; if you get in the habit of making a bit more food for dinner than you need, you always have a decent breakfast waiting for you the next day with little effort beyond reheating it. If you can't digest well first thing in the morning, have a few bites at home, nibble as you drive to school, and plan on eating more during breaks rather than waiting for lunch. Basically, stretch breakfast from O-disgusting-hundred -hour in the morning to about 11.

The person who suggested keeping food in the car for after clinicals (or classes) was spot-on too! I find I am more likely to cook a decent dinner when I don't arrive home famished; otherwise I end up having something instant or eating PB&Js, and never bothering with a good meal.

With the new semester underway, I am actually having fun coming up with decent lunches to pack for days on campus. My favorite so far has been leftover frittata - with a layer of potato as the base, meat & veggies in the middle and topped with cheese. It can be eaten with my fingers like a sandwich, tastes good at room temp, and is as healthy as I feel like making it. Oh, and I eat more apples if I cut them up ahead of time...I feel like a toddler but I'm eating apples and cheese for my snack rather than processed foods! ;-)

[riverlands]

I have severe, horrible, fight or flight AM nausea. Like crippling level. Makes it so hard to eat breakfast. But I also get hypoglycemic if I don't eat. What has saved me is a product called Almased. It is a soy yogurt honey protein shake powder from Germany. Supposed to be for weight loss...mix it up with some skim milk or ice water, add cocoa or cinnamon and blend if I feel like it, has 27 g protein and a ton of B vitamins. I get it on Amazon. It enabled me to eat breakfast and not throw up at 0530. I cant explain how much i love it. Has no artifical sweeteners either. I have been drinking this stuff for 10 years + !!!!!