What’s for Breakfast? Three Health Pros Share Their Morning Meal

A nutritionist, a wellness program director, and a fitness instructor open their fridges.

We don’t need to tell you that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. In this series, we’re asking some of Boston’s top doctors, fitness pros, and dietitians for a sneak peek into their kitchens, so they can show us what to eat for breakfast.

Lauren Mayer

Lauren Mayer’s breakfast. All photos provided to bostonmagazine.com

Lauren Mayer

Claim to fame: Mayer is a Boston-based registered dietitian.

What she ate: Sprouted-grain bread with sunflower seed butter, 2 percent Greek yogurt with flaxseed and berries, and green tea.

Why she chose it: “This combination is a filling blend of protein, slow-digesting carbohydrates, fiber, and healthy fat. As a bonus, this breakfast is also loaded with antioxidants thanks to berries, flaxseed, and green tea. One of the biggest breakfast mistakes is falling victim to ‘carb overload’ with plain cereal or muffins. You need to get some fat and protein in there for an actually balanced breakfast.”

Mimi Hall

Mimi Hall’s breakfast.

Mimi Hall

Claim to fame: She program director of the Kitchen at the Boston Public Market, which holds cooking, fitness, and wellness events.

What she ate: Scrambled eggs, mushrooms, and toast.

Why she chose it: “Knowing I’d be taking a Bikram yoga class later, I decided to make one of my favorite combinations: scrambled eggs, mushrooms, and toast. I don’t eat meat, so eggs are an important go-to for protein. I tend to cook super simple meals, with ingredients that are obsessively sourced. Herbs are also a big deal for me—they are apparently full of healthy phytonutrients and moreover they make food taste amazing! All of these ingredients in my breakfast are from local producers who vend at the Boston Public Market, and the parsley is from my own backyard in South Boston.”

Derek Durkin

Derek Durkin’s breakfast.

Derek Durkin

Claim to fame: Durkin is a personal trainer and an instructor at Barry’s Bootcamp and Turnstyle Cycle.

What he ate: A smoothie made from spinach, peanut butter, mixed berries, almond milk, vanilla protein powder, a banana, and brown sugar oatmeal.

Why he chose it: “I have this smoothie every morning because I don’t want to eat a huge meal that leaves me feeling heavy throughout the day, and I also don’t have the appetite for a large meal. This smoothie tastes amazing and it gives me a great combination of protein, carbs, and fats to energize me throughout the day, which is the most important thing to me. The best part is spinach is an all-star when it comes to health and nutrition and I get my spinach everyday and don’t even taste it.”