What kind of bread should I eat and how much?

Someone messaged me about this topic so I'll spend some time on that. :) My thoughts on bread? How much to eat? What kind?  Depending on what you are going for. If you are simply trying to lose weight, cutting back on the carbs always helps. If you are trying to become or already are a long distance runner, you'll need a lot of breads, pastas, carbs and of course protein to keep your body fueled for the endurance needed. If you are going for a lean body...from everything I've read online, most pros say to eat hardly any breads or pastas. Of course your body needs some stay healthy, but it doesn't need that much if you are training for 5ks and/or trying to gain muscle. Your body needs mostly protein and calcium for that.

If you are going to eat breads, the best is wheat bread. And the heavier it is, the healthier it is. Seriously, while at the store, pick up a couple of loaves and see which one weighs more. The lightest wheat breads have the least amount of nutrients...enough to call it "wheat" bread. Can't stand to eat wheat bread all the time? I believe in cheat days here and there (like once a week - tops) so if you are going to eat white bread, at least make sure you are going light on the rest of your meal and that it is really healthy with a lot of veggies in it. I personally LOVE my breads and pastas, but it's hard to justify eating them when my belly sticks out like I'm 4 months pregnant after a week of eating it a lot.

I've come to the opinion more and more that bread is most needed for breakfast, and then try to avoid it for the rest of the day. A good breakfast helps your memory and fuels your body for the day (just went to the body museum in Vegas-learned a lot of great stuff!). The rest of your meals should be lite, which is why I've come to the conclusion that a heavy breakfast involves bread...so there's your grain intake for the day.

I love "Great Grains" brand for bread and cereal. It has a great amount of fiber and a lot of protein compared to most breads. Oroweat and Nature's Pride are other great brands. But you do have to check the contents on each of these brands because they have many different kinds of wheat breads. Some have more fiber and protein than others with less sugar which is great and what I look for. 

 I also LOVE LOVE LOVE the brand Fiber One and just discovered Fiber One English Muffins at Costco. DELICIOUS and has an impressive amount of fiber and protein. I love throwing that in the breakfast mix. Maybe my next post will be about healthy breakfast meals. :)