What it means to break the fast ?

Whether it features a toast in Australia, a soup in Vietnam, biscotti in Italy, croissant in France, scrambled eggs or pancakes in USA, it´s said that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.

Breakfast literally means "to break the fast", because it comes after a fasting period while we sleep, when we do not eat. As it´s the first meal that breaks this fasting, we call it breakfast.

There are many guides how to eat your breakfast and what to break your fast with. In my opinion, it is more up to your preferences. It is individual. Someone likes to eat early in the morning, someone skips breakfast, but at the end, everyone still eats his first meal of the day, whether it´s ate in 7am or 1pm.

♥ But consider the following:

While we fast, the digestive enzymes in our body decrease. After several hours of not eating, our blood sugar levels are beginning to fall, so it´s recommended to start slowly with foods that are easily digestible to re-establish this digestive enzyme production. When we sleep, it´s the longest period of fasting for most of people and at this time our body naturally detoxes, so the first thing we give our body in the morning is the fastest absorbed. That´s why we want to give it as fresh and natural foods as possible.

Quickly consuming foods that are hard to digest and heavy in the stomach, such as bread, fried foods, full fat dairy products and of course meat, can feel too heavy and make us feel sick. Start with smaller portions and gradually add larger meals every 2 and more hours.

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♥♥ WATER

First thing we want to do, whether it is obvious for you or not, is to re-hydrate our body our fasting period. We want to give our body fresh water, which you can drink on its own or add few natural ingredients. I go both for warm or cold water - it is recommended to have warm water with lemon, which is good for digestion, but cold water is good to awaken our metabolism as well, as our body has to start "working" by breaking down the cold water and make it hot before it can absorb it. This is perfect if you need to speed up your metabolism a little after a cheat meal for example.

I love to add about 1 tbs of apple cider vinegar as well, which is a natural digestive enzyme. The benefits of this "miracle potion" you can find in a separate article I wrote. Sometimes I like to add little bit of cayenne pepper that gives it a little spicy "kick" and has inflammatory benefits, and cinnamon, which is famous for it´s ability to control the blood sugar and is a natural insulin regulator and helps with sugar cravings throughout the day.

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♥♥ FRUITS LIKE WATERMELON / RAW VEGGIES / LETTUCES & SPINACH

Easily digestible fruit with a high water content such as watermelon, grapes and honeydew, should be the first thing you grab. While these foods may not seem the most “filling”, they are the perfect way to break either longer than 16 hour fast, as they don't require a significant amount of energy to digest. They will therefore quickly provide the body with energy and essential nutrients, so that we can get back to feeling “semi-normal”. Opt for fruits that have a high water content, such as watermelon, to help re-hydrate your body as quickly as possible and give it the most natural and clean nutrition.

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♥♥ VEGETABLE SOUP / COOKED VEGGIES

After indulging in a few slices of fresh fruit, it can be a good idea to have some fresh (not store bought) vegetable soup. As most of us know from when we have been sick with the stomach flu, soups are easy on the stomach and easy to digest (not those creamy ones). The vegetables will also load your body up with Vitamins A through E as well as many essential minerals.

Chicken (bone or any other type of) broth is recommended as a perfect first meal to break the longer fast when doing intermittent fasting. It´s perfect for a healthy gut, reduces joint pain and inflammation and works as a homemade replacement for many supplements (collagen..).

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♥♥ EGGS

Eggs are favorite type of breakfast not only for their taste, but also for easy digestibility and easy preparation. They are a perfect and inexpensive source of high quality protein, as one egg contains 6 g of protein, essential amino acids and minerals. You can have it with some lettuce or baby spinach as a small salad bowl.

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Remember, these are small meals easy to digest, just to awaken your digestive tract to start your metabolism, so you can have a larger meal in an hour or two later.

x

Glendulka