Vegan Vanilla Coconut Overnight Oats (with plant protein!)

Healthy overnight oats are an easy breakfast to start your day with.

I like to work out first thing in the morning partly because it’s when I have the least amount of distractions, but mostly because I think it’s important to start each day by doing something good for yourself. If you are able to commit to, and follow through with an early morning workout, it can help set you up to be the best version of yourself for others to interact with throughout the day. That is, unless hunger zaps you of all the post workout goodness.

I face a couple of challenges with early morning workouts. The first is that I’m not hungry at 5 am, and even if I was, I can’t eat before working out without feeling queasy. The second one is that although I feel that amazing “exercise high” immediately following my workout, it generally turns to sheer exhaustion paired with ravenous hunger within an hour.

Vegan Vanilla Coconut Overnight Oats (with plant protein!)

I’ve learned that all it takes is a small, properly balanced snack post workout to help keep that super energized, clear-headed feeling going all day long. My go-to food is overnight oats mainly because you can make them the night before so there’s no stumbling around during the bleary-eyed pre-workout hours, and there’s no prep to do when you drag your tired body home after the workout. It’s already there waiting for you to eat!

After a workout your body needs protein and carbohydrates to replace the energy lost during the workout and give your hungry muscles something to eat other than themselves. ®Silk Soymilk has 8 grams of heart-healthy, plant-powered protein, and oatmeal is complex carbohydrate. They’re a match made in heaven!

Before bed I combine 1/3 cup of old fashioned oats, 3/4 cup Silk Vanilla Soymilk, 1 Tablespoon of cacao nibs, 1 Tablespoon chia seeds (full of omega-3’s), and 2 Tablespoons of unsweetened coconut flakes in a small container. Store in the fridge. Heat for 1-2 minutes when you get home from working out and enjoy that post workout high all day long!