iologically, it has been noticed that the body has the tendency to start the process of “excretion”, of wastes, towards a time period between 4 AM to 12 PM, which is basically from early morning towards noon. This is one reason why you have a bad breath, coated tongue, dusty eyes and bowel movement in the morning as you wake-up.
It’s quite a revelation to understand that the process of excreting wastes, or “detoxifying”, actually continues till noon time (till around 12 PM). When the body is not given ample time to relieve the wastes, not just in the intestines but also in the blood stream and cells in general, it starts storing up these wastes in the cells, intestinal linings and also in the fat tissues. The more wastes that are stored up in the body the more unnecessary weight you carry around, plus the toxicity of these wastes leads to a slow down of your body’s functioning leading to health disorders.
Eating Fruits For Breakfast, How It Helps Weight Loss?
Eating fruits for breakfast, and sticking to fruits till noon-time, is one of the best ways to not only supply the body with energy for the detox process but also allow the body the “free time” to give full attention to detoxification instead of being bogged down in the process of digesting foods/beverages that we are in the habit of in consuming in the morning. So instead of consuming that bagel, donut, buttered bread, milk & cereal, omelet or bacon, have a bowl of citrus fruits for breakfast followed by some sweet fruits for mid morning snack. You will be amazed at how brisk you feel in the morning when you eat a fruit breakfast and will notice a definite reduction in your weight within just a couple of weeks of following this eating practice.
Whatever be your diet plan for lunch or dinner, you can certainly lose weight fast by including an all fruit breakfast plan into the mix. A wholesome fruit breakfast has several other health benefits than just losing weight, but it’s a definite catalyst to help quicker weight reduction.
My Personal Experience With Eating Fruit Breakfast
Having lived a highly unhealthy lifestyle of eating processed foods and unwholesome/fattening foods, and touting a sluggish and puffy body as a result, I decided to detox with a fruit breakfast plan based on the insights I got from a book called “Fit For Life” by Harvey Diamond. I decided to focus on eating whole fruits (so that the dietary fibre is not removed) instead of juicing them. I also understood that citrus fruits are like virtual fat burners because of the Vitamin C content present in them that helped the body metabolize fat. So my plan was to eat a bowl of citrus fruits in the morning on empty stomach (around 8 am) and have a snack of sweet fruits, or have a glass of juice, around 11 am.
Some fruits that I included in my breakfast are – Oranges, Kiwi fruit, Grapefruit, Grapes, Tangerines. I also ate an apple, pear or guava, if I felt an appetite for it. Around 11 am I would have a couple of bananas or eat some cut pineapples, mangoes, apple or papaya.
Eating fruits allowed me to have an active morning, with no “sluggishness”. I felt more energized, my brain felt more focused and creative and my body as a whole felt agile. I liked the feeling generated by this simple breakfast of fruits and so it was easy for me to continue this eating pattern without requiring any “will power” or discipline.
I was able to see some very vivid results with respect to weight loss. I easily lost close to 5 pounds in a period of 2 weeks, despite the fact that I was not into any exercises or work outs at that time, neither did I make a marked change in my eating patterns at lunch or dinner (I had stopped over-indulging in processed foods, and was focused on eating more whole foods for quite a while before I started this fruit breakfast plan). So the fruit breakfast plan accentuated the process of weight loss for me and helped improve the overall fitness/health of my body. If you’ve never tried this before you will be amazed at the positive results you will see within just a few weeks of sticking to this plan of eating.
I would like to answer a few common questions that come through from people who are planning on trying the fruit breakfast plan for weight loss.
Are There Any Fruits That I Should Avoid Eating?
Eating fruits has never lead to weight gain in anyone, because it’s a natural food the body can sense when it has a reached “satiation” and thus avoid over-eating, and hence prevent an over dose of non-required calories. You can eat as much citrus fruits, or sweet fruits, as your body allows for until it reaches satiation. There are no fruits that you need to avoid, even avocados (that are the only fruits with high fat content) are healthy fruits because they contain essential fats and anti-oxidants.
Also, some people find that mixing citrus fruits with sweet fruits (like bananas, papaya or guava) causes unpleasantness in their stomach, so you might want to avoid this combination. It’s best to give a one hour break between eating citrus fruit and eating sweet fruits.
How Much Fruit Should I Eat For Breakfast?
As explained above, you can eat fruits till your body reaches satiation. Fruits are rich in water content which allows for a quicker feeling of satiation, and the natural sweetness of the fruits allows the body to judge clearly on how much calories can be obtained from it, thus giving a “stop” signal as soon as its has had its fill of required calories.
Can I Eat Only Fruits Through Out The Day For Quicker Weight Loss?
There are some people who try a radical eating change of only taking fruits through out the day, for a quicker weight loss. It’s okay to follow such a diet for a couple of days or even for five days, but I personally feel that any period longer that this would require some educated supervision and consultation. It’s hard to imagine that the body can get all the required essential fats, proteins and minerals simply by eating fruits through out the day. It’s best to focus on eating wholesome foods for lunch and dinner, and eat fruits for breakfast alone. This plan of eating can be continued as a lifestyle and thus allow for a permanently healthy and fit body.
Should I Follow A Specific Plan For My Lunch And Dinner Also?
Eating fruits for breakfast allows your body the time to “detox” and thus prevents the depositions of wastes in the body even when one is indulging in a slightly unhealthy lunch or dinner based on processed foods, junk foods or fried/fattening foods. But you would be helping yourself lose weight faster if you would stick to a wholesome lunch and dinner, while indulging your “unhealthy” cravings as moderately as possible. Whole foods like vegetables (boiled or stir fried), whole wheat preparations, brown rice (or less polished rice), fish (preferably grilled or baked), chicken (lean cuts without skin, grilled or baked), red meats (moderately), lentils etc not only provide the required calories but also provide dietary fiber and minerals required for a healthy functioning of the body. Here’s a list of some easily available wholesome fat burning and fat reducing foods.
Can I Drink Coffee Or Tea With Fruits?
It’s best to avoid the consumption of coffee, but one can have green tea 30 minutes, or so, after the consumption of fruits or before the consumption of fruits. Coffee, or even milk based tea preparation, may create some unpleasantness in the stomach when taken with citrus fruits.
Can I Undertake Rigorous Workout With This Breakfast Plan?
If you are into aerobics or cardio exercises like running, speed walking, cycling, swimming or skipping, you should have no issues with a fruit breakfast, since fruits can easily compensate for the body’s requirement for calories after these exercises (however, you might have to consume more fruits than a person who is not working out in the morning). If you are into resistance work outs like lifting heavy weights, you might have to consider having a protein shake after the workout and eating fruits later in the morning. You can also a have a fruit based protein shake (by adding protein powder to fruit smoothies).
In Conclusion
Eating fruits for breakfast provides very positive results in your goal towards losing the excess weight in your body. Try it for a couple of weeks to seek the impact it has on your overall health and on weight reduction per se, once you see the results you will no want to change this habit/plan of eating.
Seymour McLean and his sons Theodore (left) and Janhoy wave their Jamaican flags at the Olympic Park, London, yesterday. (Photos: Ingrid Brown)
