First thing out of bed – an 8 oz glass of water. This seems to wake up the digestive tract a bit and hydrate after sleep.

My morning exercise routine burns over 1100 calories. I have to consider what the body and muscles need to perform while not eating too much or things that will hinder the exercise.

I’ve tried variousĀ fruits, drinks, and snack bars, but what I’ve settled on a regular basis is homemade no-bake energy-bites. You can find various recipes online, ours includes the following:

After my initial in-home exercises (I’ll talk about these in another post) and before my run, I consume another 8 oz glass of water and an energy-bite. I have found this is enough for about 6 miles without getting hunger pangs. Often the hunger pangs are noticeable around the 7-mile mark which I temper with water. When I get over 10 miles, the water is not enough to satisfy, but we can talk about that later as well.

Post-run I need to rehydrate with 12-16 ounces of water. The last few years I’ve included a super-food powder (currently this) in the water to help replenish the bodies needs. I’ll do a post about supplementals later.

I start my breakfast with a Smoothie. The content has varied, so I’ll share the basic ingredients I’m currently using.

I mix this all up in my Ninja-mixer, and it’s like going to Dairy Queen every morning, without the mysterious junk, sugars, and fat.

Finally, I have a bowl of cereal. I have a few go-to combinations like plain shredded wheat mixed with Life (Kroger brand) cereal. The other regular mix is a little Kroger’s Musili with Multi-grain Cheerios. I use unsweetened almond milk in my cereal.

If I have time, I add a cup of hot tea to start the day.

With all the above, I’m usually around the 700 calorie restoration point.