What to Eat for Breakfast: A Muscle-Building Guide

How to have a proper breakfast

We all know it in theory — breakfast should set the tone for the day. But do you actually follow through on that? A solid breakfast should kick off your day whether you're trying to drop a few pounds or add some muscle. Here are a few basic ground rules.

Breakfast should lean toward carbohydrates, with comparatively less protein. This applies especially to women; men can afford a somewhat higher protein share.
About 20 minutes before you actually sit down to eat, drink a glass of water or tea. It helps your body "wake up" after the night and prepares it for the protein that's coming. This is also a good time for a carb drink (a gainer), especially if you're a hardgainer — just never coffee.
Eat according to when you'll next be able to eat again. There's no point stuffing yourself if you know you'll be eating again in two hours. The same applies in reverse — if your next meal is four hours out, don't eat so little that you're hungry again within the hour.
Skip vegetables at breakfast. Vegetables are good for you, but first thing in the morning they'd just place unnecessary strain on your digestive system.
Don't mix too many different foods together. Flip through a bodybuilding magazine and you'll often find a smiling pro showing off a breakfast loaded with several eggs, a pile of egg whites, some lean meat, and multiple kinds of bread. Don't take that as a model to follow — you'll turn your stomach into a mess.

One good breakfast option is a gainer mixed with water, with a bit of your favorite muesli stirred in and some fresh fruit on the side — banana, apple, whatever you like.

Another solid option is taking amino acids (BCAAs, for instance) alongside that glass of water before breakfast. Taken first thing on an empty stomach, amino acids absorb very quickly and help kick your body into an anabolic state. It's one of the most efficient ways to use amino acids, right up there with taking them around your training session.