Skipping Breakfast Because You Are Busy is a Bad Idea

Time and again, I have focused upon the importance of getting up early and how it is tied to achieving success. I also wrote an entire post giving tips on how to wake up early. One of the main benefits of getting up early that is more focused on your body and health than work is that you get time to eat a proper breakfast.

One of the main issues I see with entrepreneurs – because I have had the same – is that they will eat up whatever you tell them about being more productive but when it comes to their health, they can be least bothered. I was the same. The logic that we run on is that we need to put all in now so that we can have time to ourselves later.

What we miss here is that if we fail to take care of our bodies, it will fail to take care of us. A weak body won’t help you work hard. So the smart thing to do is take care of it while you can. Many people skip breakfast, not realizing that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. I have heard so many reasons that people give for skipping breakfast.

“I am not used to eating in the morning.”
“I don’t have time.”
“Having breakfast means getting late.”
“Not enough time to make a proper breakfast.”
“I will eat later/on the way.”

Most of these excuses can be chalked down to poor time management. If you don’t have time to sit and eat your breakfast then maybe wake up early. If you don’t have time to cook a proper meal, then you can meal prep the night before or on weekends. There are many articles and videos on how to meal prep for the whole week so that even if you are busy, you still are having a healthy diet.

Here are some ways to make sure that you eat a proper breakfast every morning:

1. Wake up early

Waking up early will give you much needed time to eat your breakfast in peace without having to rush out. Taking time to properly eat your food in the morning lets you have a relaxed start to your day.

2. Prepare the night before

If you have a really packed schedule in the morning and while you can make time to sit and eat but you cannot take time out to prepare something, then this is a great option. You have two options here. You can either make all the preparations the night before and then cook it in the morning. Like boiling eggs the night before, making a fruit bowl for the morning, etc.

The other way is just to cook whatever you are planning to eat and refrigerate it. All you have to do in the morning is microwave it.

3. Batch prep your meals

Now, if you can’t find time to prepare your breakfast at night or are too tired to do so. This is one of the best ways to ensure that you eat healthy the whole week. Prepare whole week worth of food on the weekends and refrigerate it. That way, all you have to do every day is either heat up a portion or eat it as it is, depending on what you made.

4. Add it to your to-do list

If you need external motivation to give you a push to eat, then add it as a task to your to-do list. I know many people who work a lot to get everything on their list complete. If that is the case with you, then go ahead and add self-care and meals in it too so that you finally do that too.

5. Download apps to keep track of your meals/Start a food journal

There are plenty of apps that have detailed entries for you to make to keep track of what you consume daily. This helps see what you intake and how much calories it adds up to. It also helps you see if you have a balanced diet or not and how to improve it. There are apps to keep track of how many glasses of water you drink too. I use MyFitnessPal to track what I eat.

You can also keep a food journal and make an entry every night before going to bed. This gives it more of a personal touch. Both of these things help you play your guilt over not taking care of your body, and you start making a conscious effort to eat good food.

6. Hang up a quick meal idea chart in your kitchen

Thinking of quick things to make isn’t exactly something you want to spend your time in the morning when you are rushing out of the door. I have already talked about some quick breakfast ideas that you can cook up in minutes or grab on the go. Having a list easily visible will save you time and energy, and you can quickly whip something up with what you have.

7. Keep your quick breakfast recipes in mind while grocery shopping

Remember to always pick up things like fruits, eggs, yogurt, milk, healthy cereals, and oats. These things are the easiest go-tos you can have when it comes to healthy breakfast and your rushing hours.

Skipping breakfast might seem like a small thing, and you might even get a feeling of you working hard because you don’t even have time to eat. Many people boast about how they don’t have time to eat. It is not something to be proud of.

Remember the good old saying that we learned in school, “Health is Wealth.” This is something that, ironically, we require a constant reminder of.

Most of the times it isn’t because you are too busy, it is because you aren’t managing your time efficiently. If you being too busy is the case, then you need to stop and take a step back. Evaluate what is important in life and cut back on some things so that you can make time for yourself.