Practical Tips For Re-Thinking Breakfast {and why you might want to!}

Let me help you make the switch from breakfast cereal to nourishing real food that will keep the family focused and full of energy for the morning!

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The topic of breakfast can be a really touchy subject.

Some people are big breakfast eaters others are not. Some like it sweet, other savory. Some have really (really!) early mornings in their schedule, and others get to have a slower start.

So I’m going to start off by just saying…I get that.

I get that everyone is different, comes from different households, budgets, family sizes, work schedules – I get it!
When it comes to breakfast I think it is important to understand what kind of meal is going to work against you, avoid that, and do what works for your family. No one real food way is the right way.

So now that we go that out of the way…let’s talk cereal.

I looooove cereal. It is super nostalgic for me. I grew up eating cereal every. day.

Every. Day.

But cereal is one of those meals working against you. The process to make those little flakes, O’s, or squares, changes that grain into a toxic, extrusion not only providing zero nutrition, but also wearing on the gut over time causing big digestive problems.

You may not even notice that your morning cereal is working against you, but one week of trying real food breakfasts is sure to show you just how much energy and focus you could have for your morning.

One week of real food breakfasts might be the difference in your child noticing how much better they can focus in school or that they aren’t starving by lunchtime.

Cereal was so hard for me to break up with. But it was one of the best things I did for my energy and health. When someone is feeling overwhelmed with making the switch to real food, my typical first encouragement is…start with breakfast.

Just breakfast! You can worry about all the other meals of the day if you just get breakfast figured out first. One meal.

Before you spring this (brilliant!) idea on your family…make a plan first.

1. Make a simple menu. You can plan a little breakfast rotation around your week so you don’t overwhelm yourself with starting something new on a day you have to be out the door by 7am. If you have older kids I would definitely make them a part of this planning or you can be sure there will be a fight. Give them a list of choices to pick from to add to the rotation. And tell them the “why” of this whole deal. If we are going to raise up a generation of kids that is more aware of where their food comes from and how it effects their bodies it starts with us sitting around the table talking about it.
2. Have the kids organize their things the night before to make for a quick morning. Utilize the last 10 minutes of the kids’ day before they hop into bed to do a little prep. And I’m not just talking about the food for breakfast. Have the kids get their backpacks ready (themselves!). Set the clothes out, make sure shoes aren’t missing etc. I have found this few minutes of planning before the kids go to bed is absolutely vital in me having 15 minutes to make a real food breakfast for them on an early morning.
3. Do a quick breakfast prep before bed. While the kids are getting their school gear ready before bed, you can do a few minutes of breakfast prep. Get some oats in a pot soaking for oatmeal, take out freezer items to thaw, get the chopping done so all you have to do is throw it into the pan in the morning – there are even evenings where I take 10 minutes to get muffins or breakfast cookies into the oven that bake off while I’m getting kids down for bed. All of this is just a change in thought process – it doesn’t take more than 10 to 15 minutes but it makes all the difference in a smooth morning.
4. And finally…before you make that first real food breakfast, clear the house out of the cereal. If it isn’t there, then there isn’t a choice to have it!

Looking for some real food breakfast inspiration to get you started??

I collaborated with some other great real food bloggers to create “Brainy Breakfasts” – a cookbook of great brain fueling breakfasts for families!

Grab your digital copy of Brainy Breakfasts for 30% off! That’s just $7 for 44 real food, brain focusing recipes to rotate around to keep things fresh and new. That includes printable recipe cards too! If you prefer, you can get the paperback version on Amazon here!