5 reasons you skip breakfast – and why they’re not good enough

According to a study out this month, two-thirds of us Brits openly admit we start the day on an empty stomach, so here are the top 5 reasons you skip breakfast – and why they’re not good enough! From complaining about a lack of time to believing that missing out on our morning meal can aid weight loss, we’re still using the same old tired excuses for skipping the most important meal of the day. Here are our solutions…

1 ‘I haven’t got time’

Not having time is the most common reason cited for skipping the first meal of the day. With our increasingly busy lives we have enough to think about when that morning alarm goes off. Whether we’re getting the kids ready for school, finalising that essential boardroom presentation or simply rushing to beat the morning traffic, it’s easy to see why breakfast gets put to the back of the queue. This argument is actually a false economy. Eating a wholesome, nutritious morning meal will actually save us time in the long run. By recharging the brain and body, we become more efficient in just about everything we do.

Planning is key. The easier we make things for ourselves the more likely we are to eat a nutritious breakfast before rushing out of the door. Whether it’s preparing a delicious jar of overnight oats or keeping a little box of fruit and veg at the ready to nutri-blitz into a super green smoothie within seconds, there are plenty of simple options to ensure we start the day well nourished.

2 ‘I’m trying to lose weight’

Skipping breakfast actually does exactly the opposite. Research suggests that when we regularly eat a healthy meal each morning we can in fact lose excess weight and successfully maintain weight loss. Eating a nutritious breakfast first thing reduces hunger throughout the day, which stops us over-eating. If you skip breakfast chances are you’ll be starving by mid morning and tempted to reach for a quick fix from the biscuit tin or vending machine.

3 ‘I’m just not hungry’

Many of us wake up with no appetite because we’ve eaten too much the night before. Come morning, we’re struggling with a food hangover! If we’re in the habit of skipping breakfast we will often overeat in the evening so this is what our system becomes accustomed to. Changing routine here is key. Once we begin to enjoy a meal each morning our eating habits throughout the day begin to level out, preventing us from craving and over-eating junk late in the evening.

4 ‘I don’t feel like preparing food in the morning’

Apart from struggling for time, many of us simply don’t feel like preparing food first thing in the morning. Aside from an aversion to the smell of greasy bacon, frying, chopping, toasting or blending can feel like a real chore at 6am. Opting for a simple breakfast can save on preparation time and more importantly washing up! Why not go for a blended muesli, berry and yoghurt combo? Simply throw everything in the blender and whizz for thirty seconds. Breakfast made in under a minute and just one cup to wash up afterwards.

5 ‘I’m running late for work’

It’s 7am, we probably should not have hit snooze three times, but now we find ourselves running late for the train and breakfast is the last thing on our mind. Grabbing a skinny latte at the station has become a standard meal replacement, but missing out on vital nutrition doesn’t just harm our overall health, it can actually make the morning more challenging. Skipping breakfast not only affects our mood, focus, energy levels and memory, it can also have serious long-term consequences such as increasing the risk of diabetes.

If you constantly find yourself running late and absolutely can’t spare 10 minutes to sit down to a morning meal, why not prepare a breakfast you can take with you to work? A nutrient packed smoothie is the ideal way to start the day, with lots of blended, alkaline nourishment. And making it the night before saves stressing when you’re pushed for time.