Healthy Meals to Start Your Day

My earlier post when I mentioned I had specific meals prepared by myself, well it sparked a few emails correspondence. So why don’t I make it public of my daily meal routine. Well here’s a guideline. All you need is a tupperware to carry it around to work or school and a few minutes preparing it. If you’re shy paiseh to show and carry a tupperware around, well I can’t help you out there

Know your body and need well before planning a complete daily meal routine. I know for myself, I train hard thus I’ll need more calories than your usual average joe. I’m maintaining my weight level as it’s just the right weight for my sport. So I calculated …

I’ll need about 3,000 kcalories per day

And I like to snack a lot here and then. I have this tendency to munch while working or reading. So I decided to break up my meals into six smaller portion meals, which will include my munching in-between. I think it’s working out well as I feel less hungrier when compared previously to the usual three big meals a day of breakfast, lunch and dinner

The thing is, with smaller portion of meals, I feel more fed and the hunger pang lessens. When the hunger lessen, I’ll less likely to binge on something that I’m not supposed to. That’s the underlying focus of smaller portion meals if you get my drift

I’ve break up the contribution to daily calorie intake for my six smaller portion meals based on fats, carbs and protein intake. Below is mine, so yours might differ. The main thing is to ever adapting and tweak the plan. Observe your body craving needs and work on that. I workout a lot, so my carbs is way up there on the charts

• Fats - No more than 25 percent
• Carbohydrates - At least 60 percent
• Protein - Roughly 15 percent

Here’s a sample daily meal for me

Meal #1 in the Morning – I usually start off the day with Wheet sugarless oatmeal, 2 egg whites, a glass of milk and fibre. Nothing too heavy if you noticed. Fibre is very important for me especially. You’ll notice I keep on mentioning fibre most of the time later on. My family has a history of bowel problems, so to offset such complications in the future, I started early to combat my family medical history

Meal #2 for Brunch – I usually grab and munch on 2 slices of oatmeal bread, add a yogurt and fresh fruit to that. This keep me alert up till lunch

Meal #3 for Lunch – This is major carb intake time for me. I’ll have some pasta and more fiber into my system. The thing I like about pasta is that it’s fast and easy meal to prepare. In less than 10 minutes everything is done. I uses olive oil in preparation for the meal as its healthy high content of monounsaturated fat (mainly oleic acid) and polyphenols. Also I drink some isotonic drink in advance for my training later on. I find that I always cramp up during my workout sessions, so I need the salt. I would also take a short nap before going for my training. Powernap!

Meal #4 after Training – This is a very important period right after training to consume the right type of food intake, so as to aid the recovery process after a strenuous exercise. After endurance, strength or power training, the body is primed for nutrient uptake into the muscle cells. I usually consumed three egg whites, isotonic drink, plenty of water, and again fruits. I would munch on some bread too. Basically you’ll need to cover these areas

• Restoration of Electrolytes and Water
• Replenishment of Skeletal Muscle Glycogen Stores
• Provision of Amino Acids to Aid Muscle Protein Synthesis and Accretion

Meal #5 for Dinner time – I’ll get plenty of protein again in the form of fish or chicken. Some rice, brown rice if you can get it and lots of vegetables. I like to eat leafy veggies around this time after a day of fruits. Add a small bottle of Yakult and I’m done

Meal #6 before Sleep – Bear in mind try not to eat any more carbs after 9pm as it’s unhealthy. I would drink a glass of warm milk and some fiber before bedtime. Get a good night rest of about 6-7 hours of sleep and you’ll awake next morning fresh but famished from yesterday’s workout. So start the meal routine again …

I’m supplement free currently, meaning I’ve not consumed any tablets or powder of any form for months, but if you’re supplementing yourself with it, I would recommend creatine, glutamine, whey protein with amino acid, and multivitamin to complete the meal preparation

It’s actually pretty simple to prepare your meals. There’s no excuse not to make your own meal. We Singaporean do have a hectic lifestyle but its plausible to have such a routine. Maybe start on a smaller portion perhaps and get it going from there. Don’t procrastinate, just try it. Health is something you just can’t buy, you need to earn it

Well the Internet is full of information, it’s a matter of finding the right one. Also bear in mind, I conjured this meal setup to suit my needs, yours will likely differ depending on the food you prefer, calories intake and such. So good luck!

Btw: This doesn’t mean I’m back blogging on a regular basis hur … just a need to blog this entry, that has been on my mind since yesterday