A healthy and inexpensive breakfast is totally doable! And it can be very simple as well. Some people consider breakfast to be the most important meal of the day. There are varying opinions on this, there is no “one best way” to do most things – including the importance of eating breakfast! But a good breakfast can definitely set the tone for the day.
Of course, there is the “standard” American breakfast – coffee, white toast with margarine, bacon, eggs, sausage… Not that there aren’t any healthy aspects at all to such a breakfast – at least the coffee is probably good for you! But somehow, delicious as such a breakfast tastes, it doesn’t quite carry the ring of vibrant health. Occasionally, maybe – but month after month, year after year – not so great for the arteries and other parts of the body.
Good Reasons for Eating a Good Breakfast
Breakfast “refills your tank” after a night’s fast. (Unless you’ve been waking up during the night and “pigging out” on potato chips at 2 am – NOT recommended!)
Your body needs nutrients to start the day. It needs vitamins, minerals, proteins, healthy carbs, and fiber (very important!). You need a breakfast to stabilize your blood sugar, improve your thinking ability (cognitive function), and brighten your mood! Eating the right breakfast can be a help in weight loss, by staving off hunger pangs for longer.
What a Good Breakfast Includes
Officially…your breakfast should include the following:
- Protein. This can be eggs, cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, nuts and seeds. Protein helps keep you feeling full, and helps repair and build tissues.
- Complex carbohydrates. This could be foods like whole grain bread, oats or brown rice. Complex carbohydrates release energy slowly, thus they provide sustained energy throughout the morning and keep you feeling fuller longer.
- Fruits and vegetables. Fruits and vegetables provide vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and dietary fiber.
- Healthy fat. Healthy fat is extremely valuable for brain health. This could include avocados, nuts, seeds, and olive oil. You are probably going to need to think clearly during the hours following breakfast – for school or work or whatever daily tasks you pursue. Your brain will appreciate whatever you can do on the healthy fat front to assist!
- Liquid. The first thing that comes to mind is probably coffee or tea.Be careful with juices – they can be fairly high sources of sugar, which is probably not part of a healthy breakfast! Or just plain ol’ water. Just be sure you have enough liquid to get a well-hydrated start to your day, so all your organs function better.
You will notice there is no mention of bacon or sausage – sadly! These foods contain fat, but since it’s highly saturated fat, probably not so very healthy.
Budget-Friendly Healthy Breakfast Ideas
Here are a few ideas for healthy breakfasts that keep the above guidelines in mind.
- Oatmeal. You will not get much more economical than oatmeal. You can add any number of healthy food items to oatmeal, like nuts and/or seeds, a little honey – or maybe sliced bananas.
- Peanut butter toast. Peanut butter toast is awesome! You can add sliced bananas – or a low-sugar jam. Or use your imagination – just don’t add white sugar or corn syrup or sweeteners of similar ilk, of course.
- Eggs. Eggs are a fantastic protein source! Try scrambled with vegetables – or make an omelet with vegetables. Or they can be hard boiled, sliced and eaten with toast.
- Yogurt parfait. By this we mean Greek yogurt (a higher-protein yogurt) and anything that goes with it. You can layer Greek yogurt with chia seeds, blueberries or granola, for example.
A Truck Driver’s Simple Healthy Breakfast
As a truck driver who has a very small refrigerator and needs to keep things simple on the road, I’ve come up with a very simple breakfast that works well for me. I studiously avoid eating at truck stops or restaurants of any kind out on the road, with very rare exceptions – both for cost and health reasons.
Here’s what’s in my current standard breakfast. The primary part of my breakfast is what I call my “morning elixir.” It includes:
- Two heaping teaspoons of sugar-free orange-flavored psyllium fiber (Metamucil, for example).
- 1/8 cup dry quick-oats oatmeal
- 1/2 cup frozen blueberries
- Couple heaping teaspoons Whole Flax Seeds
- 1 scoop Webber All Greens Superfood (purchased from Costco in Canada and approved by my naturopath!)
- 3/4 cup Ocean Spray Diet Cran-Mango, Cran-Pineapple, Cran-Cherry or Cran-Grape Juice
- couple Stevia packets (sometimes)
- Occasionally I’ll add a couple tablespoons of plain Greek yogurt.
- Mix together well in a bowl and let sit for 10 minutes until the psyllium fiber absorbs the juice and it becomes thick enough to eat comfortably with a spoon.
In addition, I have:
- two slices of whole-grain or sprouted whole-grain bread (ideally) with all-natural peanut butter or nut butter, with low- or no-sugar jam. Sometimes I toast, and sometimes not – it’s great both ways. Or…
- I’ll make salmon salad by mixing salmon and light Miracle Whip, and make a sandwich with that and one of the above breads – instead of nut butter and jam.
I also have a 24-oz cup of coffee, which I either make myself, or buy. That’s “for the road.”
I feel absolutely awesome on this breakfast! It’s super simple, requires no cooking, just mixing together – and to me, anyway, it tastes great. I don’t miss not having bacon and sausage – or cold cereal, for that matter, which I very seldom eat. But that’s just me.
Conclusion
So as you can see, you can keep breakfast simple and healthy and budget-friendly. It doesn’t have to be a “big ordeal” to make, doesn’t have to be full of saturated fat and sugar, and doesn’t have to make a big dent in the wallet!
If you have anything to add about your experience with simple, healthy, and inexpensive breakfasts, or any questions or comments on this post, feel free to share in the space provided below.
