Breakfast of Champions

Growing up in the 1980s, I remember two slogans for Wheaties cereal – “Better eat your Wheaties” and “Breakfast of Champions”. Through the years, we have all said these phrases.

What does it mean when you say “Better eat your Wheaties”? If you had something big coming up that you needed extra strength for, something big like a move, then, you might say, “better eat your Wheaties”.

Another phrase born from this General Mills cereal was “Breakfast of Champions”. The cereal box would feature different athletes, especially Olympians. This phrase is used a couple of different ways. It can describe a large, healthy breakfast. Or, it is often used sarcastically to describe what someone is eating that is far from being healthy. Sometimes, I will describe my morning dose of medicine as my “breakfast of champions”.

Fourteen pills every morning, plus, two shots every two weeks. Most mornings, I wake up with a headache or nausea. I have other pills for that. I have been known to eat almost anything for breakfast or nothing at all. Breakfast literally means to break your fast. We fast or don’t eat overnight. How we choose to break our fast is important. It sets the tone for our day. When your mom told you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, she was right. My breakfast of pills and capsules can change the course of my day if I miss any of them.

I try to eat within an hour or two of waking. I start with something small, usually a protein bar. I have to eat something before I take my medicine. I definitely feel better if I eat before taking my medicine. Routine is important, too. If I get out of my routine, I have to be very careful not to skip my meds.

Are you a creature of habit? Are you driven by routine? We learn as infants that life goes smoothly when we follow a routine. And, like infants, when our routine is disrupted, the rest of the day is off.

So, remember to “eat your Wheaties”. You have important work to do.

Reflection: What is your “breakfast of champions”? Whatever it is, make the most of each day.