Once you get used to working with fresh, natural ingredients, well you just don't want to go back to the prepackaged stuff!  Take pancakes for example.  You can do amazing things with a basic buttermilk pancake or waffle recipe!  Toaster waffles taste like cardboard in comparison and are pretty much the nutrition equivalent to it too.   Buying breakfast out is costly and not a taste treat I would venture to enjoy very often.  Most of it, hash browns, biscuits, hard cooked eggs offer little or no fiber.  Add up purchasing these sandwich croissants for a week and you could have brought enough raw ingredients for nearly two weeks of homemade breakfasts.

Just as you set your alarm to get up early to run, bike or hit the gym, you can set it 15 minutes earlier to fix yourself a proper breakfast.  All you need is a little organization and you're eating in no time!

Here are some old-fashioned favorites with much quicker prep-serving times:

Zingerman's Presents: MaCrooms Irish Oatmeal - This oatmeal is stone ground in County Cork Ireland and not rolled like the Quaker Oats you're probably used to.   Instant oatmeal packets are often loaded with refined sugar and don't taste very good to boot.  You can cook enough Irish Oatmeal for about 4 servings the night before and store it in a container in the refrigerator.  In the AM, scoop some out into a bowl, pop it into the microwave the add a little brown sugar or blueberries & milk.  Voila!   This really stays with you and is rich in protein, vitamins and fiber.  You couldn't ask for better to start your day!

Gourmet Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes - Purchase a ready made "complete mix" with eggs & milk already added.  I add a jar of Wheat Germ and transfer everything to a large zip lock freezer bag.  Toss in a 1/2 cup scoop so it's ready to go.  All you need do is add water & some blueberries, (frozen work fine), and pour onto the griddle. 

Top with a little Naturel Agave Syrup and serve.  A Sunday style breakfast in under 15 minutes!  You can also make a whole batch and store them in refrigerator in containers and reheat during the week.  Another one of my favorites is Buckwheat Pancakes.  Buckwheat is not really in the wheat family or a grass so those with wheat allergies should look into this nutritious "pseudocereal".

Sunbutter Sunflower Seed Spread

A new twist on the old peanut butter on a slice of bread!  This is a real boon to those with peanut allergies but long for the taste of fresh roasted nuts.  Sunbutter is made from freshly roasted & ground sunflower seeds with no hydrogenated fat or gluten.  The Sunflower is native to North America and the Natives packed them along for extended trips for energy and endurance.

This one is a real quickie!  Grab a slice of bread and a jar of Sunbutter.  Spead on a slice of Arnold's Health Nut Bread and you're out the door!

REMEMBER!  The X-Training BLOG has got The Eat Clean Diet Cookbook GIVE-AWAY PLUS A  FREE Thermal Polar Bottle going on right now!  Click here to enter!  Deadline is Midnight, October 14th, 2010

Polar Bottle, ready for take-off!  Hot new designs are anything but boring on this 24 oz Red Rose Thermal Water Bottle.  BPA & Phthalate-free yet keeps your water cold for up to twice as long as a standard bottle!  Made in the USA

Cold not only tastes better but studies have shown that drinking icy liquids during your workout keeps you going...longer.   As we discussed in our previous article, drinking sun heated water can even induce nausea.  That is something no one needs on the road.

When I did the Woods Hollow Mountain Bike Classic a few years ago, I wish that I had a water bottle like this on board.  Typical water bottles get hot quickly and do nothing to refresh or cool you off.   During a race like that, (I competed at the Advanced Level), it is quite common to secrete growth hormone which makes you feel quite queasy.  The last thing you want to do is drink a mouthful of HOT water!  Ugh.

Polar Bottle is located in Boulder, Colorado and is dedicated to making the best American water bottles on the planet.  They know their stuff.  This company started out with the goal to create a stay cold water bottle for bicycles.  Now people are seeing the wisdom of ditching the disposable plastic water bottles which are not only costly but pollute the environment.

Right away our favorites are the big gulp 24 oz Red Rose & Rave Designs in the thermals.  These also come in 20 oz versions both of which fit easily in most standard bike bottle cages.  In the Half Twist Stainless Steel bottles we adore the Wood Grain & the Silver with blue logo bottles.  These do not leak and while the stainless steel line is non-thermal, they are perfect for tossing in the car when you head out for errands.  In fact I always keep a stainless steel bottle of water in the vehicle but the Half Twist allows me to sip like a lady with having the contents splash me in the face.   Stainless steel also allows you to be more creative with your hydration.  Add some iced green tea or perhaps a protein shake with Rainbow Light's Chocolate Protien Energizer and some Organic Kelp Powder or Blue Green Algae from Klamath Valley Botanicals for a little extra zing.  You can do it all with stainless steel! Another designer green drink I have been able to take along is All Day Energy Greens by IVL.  I simply mix it with the protein powder, a bit of So Delicious Coconut Milk, ice, twist and go.  Delish!  Drinking organic and clean is part of the new eat-clean movement so we're celebrating with this fabulous give-away.  One US resident WINNER will receive:

• A Copy of Tosca Reno's Eat Clean Diet Cookbook with loads of fabulous dishes & drinks, 150 in all!
• A 24 oz  Rave Thermal Water Bottle from Polar Bottle! See both prizes pictured below!
  

Enter by sending us an email to drmiczak@yahoo.com with the subject header: Clean Diet - Polar Bottle Give-Away

ENTRY DEADLINE: Midnight October 24th, 2010.  

Summer's HOTTEST Essentials for X-Training in style & comfort!

Beat the heat with an early morning walk/run with your Mp3 player and Audio-Technica's Quiet Point Headphones.

Pair up the right clothing for the day and you're good to go!

Glasses - Kylix by Rudy Project, Pink Tank Top by Victoria's Secret.

Women's Launch Shorts by Pearl Izumi,

Socks by Smartwool,

Syncroguide III Running Shoes by Pearl Izumi.