Monday, December 14, 2009

E2L Breakfast: Apples and Blueberries



This morning I wanted to try an all fruit breakfast to test a couple of things. First I wanted to see how long it would keep my hunger in check. Second I wanted to know if this was enough food to take my vitamins without experiencing any GI discomfort. Also, I like knowing that I have had my minimum number of fruit servings in for the day. This is something I always have trouble with and getting it out of the way early in the day works well for me.

My hubby had his normal oatmeal with apples, cranberries but with ground flaxseeds instead of walnuts this morning for the additional nutrition. For lunch he took leftover whole grain, lentil and veggie casserole from yesterday, an apple with walnut butter and kale chips. I will probably have a big veggie salad for lunch today, but I certainly haven’t planned that far ahead yet. Here are the stats on what I had this morning for breakfast.

E2L Breakfast: Apples and Blueberries
Serves 1

Ingredients:

3 apples, cored and diced
1 cup blueberries

Directions:

Combine and consume immediately before the apples oxidize.

Nutritional Information:

Amount Per Serving
Calories - 299.64
Calories From Fat (3%) - 9.95

Total Fat - 1.19g
Saturated Fat - 0.16g
Cholesterol - 0mg
Sodium - 5.62mg
Potassium - 556.94mg
Total Carbohydrates - 78.62g
Fiber - 13.49g
Sugar - 57.76g
Protein - 2.17g

Comments:

When I finished eating this morning I felt a little unsatisfied. I assume this is because I am accustomed to oatmeal in the morning now. This meal was definitely much lighter than oatmeal. When I post lunch today I will let you know how the bowl of fruit kept me full.

There were no big standouts in terms of nutrition from this meal. However, many of the health protective factors in fruit aren’t shown in traditional vitamins and minerals. Apples, particularly the skin, are known to contain many polyphenols that fight cancer. Blueberries contain substances that have been shown to induce cancer cell suicide in lab experiments. Both apples and blueberries are items I like to add to our diet every chance I get.

Unrelated Note:

For now I am off to clean both refrigerators and make my grocery shopping list for tomorrow. Then I need to do a little cleaning around the house and I also need to exercise. After all of that I will be back with an update of what I made myself for lunch that was E2L friendly. I hope you are all having a good day.

4 comments:

  1. Good morning, Alicia. I love the fact that you gave us a little insight on what your plans are for the day - for some reason I like to hear how others that are stay-at-home spend their time. I have a couple of questions for you about your breakfast. First off, I'm impressed that you ate three apples! I also think I have the hardest time consuming enough fruit - veggies seem easier. So, I make a point to try to munch them throughout the day. Also, when you spoke of the benefits of apples and how you include them as much as possible, are those benefits just for raw apples or cooked as well? Also, I am very interested in hearing if it kept you full. I've been toying with an all-fruit or all fresh juice breakfast, but I've been wondering about the "full" thing. And, what is E2L? Thanks!

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  2. Good Morning Blessedmama,

    I just finished refrigerator one and was taking a green tea break when your comment came in.

    E2L is an abbreviation for "Eat to Live". It is a book written by Joel Fuhrman MD. The premise of the book is to eat for maximum nutrition and the body will find its correct weight, whatever that is. The plan is vegan although he does allow "10%" unhealthy food which some interprete as animal products.

    It seems to me that there are two types of people drawn to the plan. Those that want to lose weight where nothing else has worked or people that are really interested in nutritional excellence. It is a a tough plan for most people to stick with, myself included. I really like carbs (whole grains and starchy veggies) and he wants you to limit those to 1 cup a day. Additionally he is not a fan of using oils. He also recommends 4 fruit servings a day which is why I had the breakfast I did.

    The plan really has many health benefits. My husband's cholesterol hit 280 and after two months on E2L his cholesterol has gone done to 155 and stayed there.

    So far the breakfast has kept me full (2 hours now) but I definitely feel "lighter" than normal. I think this is due to the breakfast I had this morning. I will probably have lunch in an hour. I think the fruit would probably keep me full longer than the juice due to the fiber, but that is just a guess.

    The studies I have seen on apples was testing raw apples. Since many nutritients are destroyed by heat I try to eat my apples raw when possible. However I have not seen anything that indicates cooked apples don't have the same nutrition. If I see something I will definitely pass it along.

    I need to fininish my green tea and tackle the second refrigerator.

    talk to you soon,
    Alicia

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  3. Thanks for all the information. E2L sounds very interesting. I'm glad to hear that your husband's health is improving. The fresh juices that I was referring to would be juiced with the fiber, not by a traditional juicer but by a high-speed blender. If I go down that road, I'll let you know. We have to wait until California furlough days are done first before we buy one though.

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  4. Blessedmama,

    My hubby used to like unhealthy food. We have successfully gotten him off of it now and he has been eating healthy and clean since June of this year.

    The hubby isn't on the 6 week intensive part of the E2L since he doesn't have any weight to drop. So I am giving him more grains, nuts and seeds to keep his calories up.

    I make juice in my Vitamix all the time, is that what you are referring to?

    Sorry to hear about the California furlough days. That doesn't sound like it could be good. I hope it ends soon.

    Alicia

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