Oatmeal. Chicken breasts. Eggs. Sweet potatoes. Cottage cheese. These fab five foods represent a small but important cross-section of the food you need to build a rock-hard physique. Their benefits range from mass-building to metabolism boosting and chances are that you have each of these things in your fridge right now.
But as we're sure you're aware, the routine of eating to look better can often become tedious and repetitive. We're here to help. By using a few new twists, you can still reap all of their nutritional value without getting bored out of your mind.
These breakfast faves - oatmeal and eggs - are an easy fix. For the remaining three, pick up the November issue of Muscle & Fitness, on newsstands now.
OATMEAL
The Recipe
It's no surprise that we're huge fans of oatmeal for both its health and physique benefits. But if garden-variety rolled oats are good, steel-cut (sometimes called Irish) oats are even better. They're less processed than rolled oats, so they contain more of the natural antioxidants and fiber and are therefore slower-digesting.
Cinnamon Steel-Cut Oats
Serves 1
¼ cup fat-free milk
½ cup water
¼ cup dry steel-cut oats
1 tsp. cinnamon
Combine milk and water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Add oats and cook over medium heat until mixture begins to thicken, about five minutes. Reduce heat to a simmer and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until oats are tender - about 30 minutes. Add cinnamon and stir well.
Nutrition Facts: 150 calories, 5 g protein, 27 g carbs, 3 g fat
EGGS
The Recipe
Keep eggs a part of your morning routine, but make them better by adding fast-digesting carbs, which will bring your overnight catabolism to a crashing halt and also refill your muscle glycogen levels.
Breakfast Pizza
Serves 1
2 slices Jennie-O extra-lean turkey bacon, chopped into 1-inch pieces
3 whole eggs
¼ Boboli 12" thin pizza crust
½ cup fat-free mozzarella cheese
Hot sauce (optional)
Nonstick cooking spray
Place bacon between two paper towels on a plate and microwave for one minute. With bacon still inside, flip the paper towels, remove the top one and replace it with a fresh one, and microwave for another minute.
Meanwhile, beat eggs in a bowl and scramble in a skillet coated with nonstick cooking spray. Heat pizza crust in a toaster oven for a few minutes, then top with eggs, bacon, cheese and, if desired, hot sauce.
Nutrition Facts: 575 calories, 40 g protein, 49.5 g carbs, 22 g fat
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