Sleep or Breakfast: Which Is More Important and Why?


Sleep or Breakfast

There may be some situations when you need to decide if you will sleep a bit longer in the morning or if you will eat breakfast. Most often, the question may arise when you haven’t slept well during the night. Then, you may feel that in the morning you still need more sleep, and it is tough to get up.

So, which one is the better option to choose: to have more sleep or to eat breakfast? Sleeping is so important, that it may be a better choice when you need to decide between these two options. It is especially true if you haven’t slept well during the night. However, eating at least something in the morning may help you to get good sleep the following night. So, making efforts to achieve both goals is essential.

There is a traditional saying that you should start your day with a good breakfast. It is undoubtedly good to have a pleasant breakfast every morning before starting other activities.

However, if you have slept poorly during the night, you may consider again if you should eat breakfast at all.

Why is it so?

There should always be a right balance between sleeping and eating, but often sleeping may need more attention, especially if you have suffered from lack of sleep lately.

Should You Sleep Instead of Eating Breakfast If You Have Sleep Deprivation?

It depends. There are multiple situations when this question may arise. For instance, if you have a habit of delaying waking up by using the snooze feature of your alarm clock and you have limited time after waking up, you may want to skip breakfast because of lack of time.

On the other hand, if you have slept for only a few hours during the night, you may want to sleep as long as possible before you get up. In such a case, you may not have time to eat breakfast too.

But if you have had a good sleep overnight and you feel refreshed in the morning, you don’t likely have any reason to skip breakfast.

However, there may be some other options too.

If you feel that you don’t have time to eat breakfast at home after waking up, you may be able to eat breakfast on the go. It means that you can take some food with you from home, or you could pick up some food from a café or another place near you.

Why May It Be More Critical to Sleep Instead of Eating Breakfast?

Any time when you suffer from lack of sleep, it would be a good idea to prioritize sleeping, and make sure you sleep as much as possible.

“The research suggests that even small amounts of sleep deprivation take a significant toll on our health, our mood, our cognitive capacity and our productivity.”

Source: hbr.org

It is a well-known fact that many of us suffer from sleep deprivation. It causes many problems, mainly related to lack of productivity and poor memory. Also, it can cause other issues associated with health and safety.

On the other hand, eating breakfast has also some benefits related to sleeping. Eating breakfast regularly in the morning, as well as having a regular eating rhythm during the day, can help you fall asleep at night.

Therefore, the ideal situation would be:

Eat a Good Breakfast and Sleep Well

It is evident that most of us are hungry in the morning and need something to eat, in order to have the energy required to accomplish our daily tasks.

You should really try to make efforts so that you would have time to have a good breakfast every morning and thus have better chances to get a good night’s sleep the following night.

Furthermore, a regular daytime schedule helps you to keep your sleep schedule regular, too.

Sleep or Breakfast: Sleep and Breakfast

What Helps You to Maintain a Good Sleep Schedule, so That You Can Eat Breakfast Every Morning?

Multiple tips can help you to maintain a good sleep schedule, but because we are all different, some tips might work better for you than others.

1. Go to Bed Earlier

It may feel obvious to you that going to bed early is a good goal to reach, but applying it in practice might be more difficult.

It is true that especially nowadays, in the time of the “Netflix generation”, it may be even harder to get motivated to go to bed early.

However, thinking of the benefits might give you the needed willpower. Remember that going to bed earlier will help you stay healthier and feel more refreshed.

So, take strict action to keep up your sleep schedule, and you will more likely have time to eat your breakfast peacefully.

If you often notice that you tend to spend a lot of time with electronic devices, so that it is already very late when you go to sleep, you can try a couple of things:

  1. Set your alarm clock to notify you that it is time to go bed.Yes, it may be good to use your alarm clock in this way, if you really want to go to bed earlier.
  2. Stop using electronic devices around an hour before bed.Studies show that all electronic devices, such as smartphones, laptops and TV’s, might interrupt your sleep. Therefore, you might actually want to set your alarm clock to “wake you up” an hour before bedtime, so that you can stop using your electronic devices earlier.

However, falling asleep may be hard even if you go to bed early, often because anxious thoughts and worries might keep you awake. What might help?

2. Write Down the Worries in Your Mind

Many of us tend to ruminate on our worries when it’s time to go to sleep. The problem is that it may be very hard to stop thinking about those negative things, and that may interfere with your ability to fall asleep, even if you go to bed early.

Therefore, you should try to turn your mind away from those worries in some way.

One option is to write down all the worries that are on your mind before going to bed.

It has been suggested that you should not write your worries related to things that have already happened. Instead, writing about the things that you need to do the next day or the following days will probably be much more effective. In this way, you don’t have to keep these things in your mind, but you can go to bed trusting that you will remember everything you need to do tomorrow.

When you write down the things you need to do, it can clear your thoughts and lessen your anxiety.
Also, when you have listed all those things on paper, you have already made a “to do” list that you can use the next day.

3. Eat Lightly in the Evening

It is undoubtedly essential to have a good night’s sleep, so that you can wake up refreshed in the morning and have time to eat breakfast.

Eating lightly at night may help you fall asleep easier.

When thinking about the eating schedule, you should put more importance on breakfast and lunch. Starting the day with a more substantial breakfast and eating a larger meal during lunchtime should keep you full during the day. Then, you most likely won’t need to eat so much before bed.

Furthermore, considering what you should eat in the evening is essential. Eating lightly and avoiding “high-calorie foods (like chips, cookies, candy)” can help you fall asleep faster and sleep well during the night.

So, what kinds of snacks would be ideal to eat in the evening?

Here are some suggestions that you might consider:

  • Bananas
  • Yogurt
  • Kiwis

So, you can notice that many fruits are good choices for a late night snack. In addition, drinking something relaxing, such as chamomile tea, may be useful.

4. Take a Naps in the Afternoon

If you believe that you won’t get enough sleep at night, you might want to take a nap in the afternoon. However, it is better to limit the time of napping. If you sleep for over a quarter or half an hour, it might affect the following night’s sleep negatively.

That is why it may be a good idea to set an alarm clock to wake you up after 15 minutes.

If you feel that you are exhausted in the afternoon, you should take a nap if possible. If you need to drive a car in the afternoon and you feel exhausted, it would be better to take a nap before driving. Similarly, whenever you are going to drive a car, you should be well rested before even starting the engine.

What to Eat for a Breakfast to Recover After a Short Night?
Sleep or Breakfast

Anything that you eat can’t fully fix the damage caused by the poorly slept night. However, eating a good breakfast can make your day a little easier and maybe even affect the following night’s sleep.

Here’s one recommendation:

It’s eggs and toast. (And a cup of coffee, of course.)

Or maybe a vastly different recommendation might work for you:

eight almonds and two dates

Of course, there are many other options too, and you can look for the best option for you.

Read more: onehowto.com

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