Breakfast of Champions

Kim Abbott is Tri NZ’s Lead Performance Nutritionist and works as a Performance Nutritionist at HPSNZ. She is a NZ Registered Dietitian and Accredited Sports Dietitian the colour of your pee in the morning – if it is darker than a pale straw colour, drink additional fluid prior to training.

If you are prone to stomach upsets when you eat before a morning training session, try choosing foods that are lower in fat and fibre, e.g. white bread instead of wholegrain bread, which are more easily digested. Liquid options like a smoothie or sports drink can be an good alternative to solid foods, especially if breakfast is eaten less than an hour before training and you are susceptible to digestive issues.

Pre-training breakfast ideas:

» Toast with jam or honey and a glass of juice

» Chocolate spread and banana on toast

» Bowl of cereal with tinned or fresh fruit and milk

» Porridge with tinned fruit and brown sugar or honey

» Bagel with lite cream cheese and jam

» Fruit toast with a glass of milk

» Smoothie

Breakfast for recovery

A breakfast containing a combination of carbohydrate and protein is essential for recovery, to ensure you perform well at your next training session. Protein is a vital nutrient for repair and adaptation after training. Carbohydrate is used to refuel the muscles that have been depleted during training. Include a drink with this meal to help replace the fluid lost during training. Timing is important too – aim to eat your recovery breakfast within an hour of completing your training session. If there is only a short recovery period between training sessions, a recovery breakfast in a liquid form is ideal. Milk and milk product-based options (e.g. flavoured milk, smoothie) are excellent as they provide fluid and the lactose (carbohydrate) and protein in milk are easily absorbed by the muscles.

Post-training breakfast ideas:

» Eggs (cooked how you prefer) on toast. Try adding extra foods like avocado, feta cheese, spinach, tomato, pesto to provide additional variety, flavour and nutrients.

» Pancakes topped with fruit and high protein yoghurt

» Bowl of cereal with milk, yoghurt and tinned or fresh fruit

» Baked beans on toast

Try this recipe for a different recovery breakfast:

Omelette Burger

Ingredients

✓ 3 eggs

✓ 2 Tablespoons of water

✓ 1 Tablespoon butter or margarine

✓ 1-2 burger buns (toasted if you like)

✓ ½ cup fillings of your choice (e.g. cheese, tomato, ham, mushroom)

✓ Mayonnaise or sauce of your choice

✓ Salad greens

Method

1. Whisk eggs and water together in a bowl until blended, adding salt

Overnight oats or smoothies are great options for a quick, ‘on-the-go’ recovery breakfast. There are so many different flavour and ingredient choices to try. Here is a couple of recipes to give a go:

Pineapple Overnight Oats

(makes 3-4 serves)

Ingredients

✓ 1 ½ cups Harraways Rolled Oats

✓ 2 Tablespoon of chia seeds

✓ 3 Tablespoons of cacao powder

✓ 2 cups of milk

✓ 1 teaspoon of vanilla

✓ 3 Tablespoons of maple syrup

✓ ⅓ cup coconut flakes

✓ ⅔ cup pineapple (tinned or fresh)

Method

The night before

1. Place oats, chia seeds and cacao powder into a large container

2. Cut pineapple into small pieces and add to the container, along with milk, vanilla, maple syrup and coconut flakes

3. Mix together well. Put a lid on the container and store in the fridge overnight

The next morning

4. Serve into a smaller container/bowl/jar and top with ¼ cup of your favourite yoghurt and your choice of toasted coconut flakes, cacao nibs and pineapple pieces

Recipe sourced from Harraways.co.nz

Oat & Berry Smoothie

Ingredients

✓ ½ cup Harraways Rolled Oats or Raspberry Coconut Oats

✓ 1 cup milk

✓ ½ cup plain Greek-style yoghurt

✓ 1 ripe banana, peeled

✓ ½ cup blueberries fresh or frozen, or other berries of your choice

✓ 1 teaspoon of runny honey

✓ 1 handful of ice

Method

1. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend to combine.

2. Serve topped with fresh berries, if you wish.

Recipe sourced from Harraways.co.nz and pepper to taste

2. In a small non-stick pan, heat butter or margarine until it sizzles, then pour in egg mixture

3. Using a spatula, push the cooked egg to the centre of the pan, then tilt the pan to cover the pan with wet egg. Do this until the egg is set and will not flow, but remains wet on top (should take about 20 seconds). Don’t cook until it is dry! The moist egg will finish cooking when the omelette is folded over

4. Place the filling on half of the omelette. Use the spatula to fold the unfilled side of the omelette entirely over the filled side. Fold the omelette again, so it will fit in the bun(s)

5. Place the omelette on burger bun bottom(s). Top with salad greens, sauce of your choice and burger bun top(s)

Recipe sourced from eggs.co.nz