Don't skip breakfast! For years, I never felt like eating breakfast. Why? Usually because I had eaten so much junk food the night before that my body was still trying to recover. However, a lot of people don't like to eat breakfast. You must force yourself to eat something in the morning to get your metabolism fired up (get that fire stoked) so that you're burning calories from the moment you wake up. It doesn't have to be a big breakfast, but you should eat something!

Breakfast Cereal

My personal favorite breakfast is short, sweet, and simple.

• 1 cup of Cheerios or Special K (100 cal)
• 1/2 cup of soy milk (50 cal)

I like cereals that are based on oats, rice, or wheat. I don't like corn-based cereals. Again, our American-style diets are too heavily based on corn. We get too much Omega 6 from corn products. Stay away from anything with corn in it.

I like Cheerios and Special K (especially with the berries in them). They only have 100 to 110 calories per cup. Add in the soy milk (or you can use skim milk or 1% milk if you must) and you're looking at a great breakfast with only about 150 to 170 calories in it.

Quaker Instant Oatmeal

Again, another one of my personal favories. Quaker has instant oatmeal packets that come in a variety of flavors. They're made from whole grain oats, which are good for you. Just pop the oatmeal in the microwave with 3/4 cups of water. Nuke it for 2 minutes, and then I like to add a splash of soy milk to the final product to cream it up a bit.

The calories vary... the "regular" flavor only has 100 calories per serving. The flavored ones (which include everything from "Banana Bread" to "Cinnamon and Spice") can have anywhere from 130 to 170 calories. Again, not bad. Just make sure you stick to one bag. I caught my kids eating 2 or 3 bags at a time. Me, I'm just as happy with the regular flavor. Sprinkle on some zero-calorie Splenda for a little extra sweetness.

Eggs, Toast, and Sausage

Who says you can't eat eggs and toast (a "big" breakfast) and still eat healthy.

• One fried egg (90 cal) - fry it with canola oil, or a zero-calorie spray product
• One slice of lite whole wheat toast (45 cal)
• One sausage link (100 cal)
• 1/2 a grapefruit (45 cal)
• 6 oz vegetable juice (35 cal)

This entire breakfast has only 315 calories and covers just about every food group. We have meat, dairy, fruit, vegetable, bread, and a fat. This is a good weekend breakfast. You've behaved yourself all week, now it's time to enjoy a good breakfast. Just keep in mind that you've consumed 400 calories for breakfast, so have a lite lunch and moderate dinner.

Yogurt

Don't overlook yogurt for breakfast. Try this: get some fat-free plain yogurt from the store. They usually come in big tubs. Have 1/2 a cup of yogurt and add 1/2 a cup of low-fat granola to it. Or, you can add 1/2 a cup of fresh or frozen fruit to it. Yummy, and you're right around 100 calories.

Breakfast Burrito

• 1 small whole wheat or spinach tortilla (100 cal)
• Scrambled eggs - 1 whole egg plus 2 egg whites and a dash of milk (140 cal)
• 1/2 oz cheese (40 cal)
• 1 teaspoon flax oil (25 cal)
• Lettuce and tomato (a few cals)

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