Worst Hotel Breakfast Cake
Waffle
7" in diameter, with 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
375 calories
11 g fat (2 g saturated)
68 g carbohydrates
See all those pockets on the waffles’ surface? They’re primed to capture margarine and syrup en masse. That means more carbs, more fat, and more calories. Go for a flat surface like pancakes to save yourself from drowning in syrup. Switch to pancakes and you’ll cut more than half your calories. Another way to cut back on the calories is to switch to agave syrup instead of maple. Its low glycemic index means your blood sugar will have a gentler ride in the wake of your carb heavy breakfast.
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Pancakes (2)
4" in diameter, with 2 Tbsp. maple syrup
276 calories
8 g fat (2 g saturated)
48 g carbohydrates
Worst Hotel Breakfast Drink
Orange Juice
1 cup
110 calories
1 g fat
0 g protein
33 g sugars
When you eat fruit whole, the fiber helps mitigate the effects of the sugar. But with juice, the fiber vanishes and you’re left with a sugar surge. Skip the juice for skim milk. A study in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that people who drank milk at breakfast, instead of juice, consumed 8.5 percent fewer calories at lunch.
Drink This Instead!
Skim Milk
1 cup
86 calories
0 g fat
8 g protein
12 g sugars
Worst Hotel Breakfast Fruit
Melon
3 small wedges
135 calories
30 g sugars
It’s important to get as many different fruits and vegetables into your diet as possible, but when you have a choice, melon is one of the higher-calorie, lower-nutrition fruits available. Instead trade those wedges for a cluster of grapes. Grapes pack the same heart-healthy polyphenols found in red wine. Plus, you can pop a whole bunch in your mouth without much of a caloric impact. Double bonus!
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Grapes
20 pieces
68 calories
16 g sugars
Worst Hotel Breakfast Meal
Single-Serving Box of Corn Flakes with Skim Milk and a Sliced Banana
267 calories
0 g fat
10 g protein
57 g carbohydrates
Not a bad start to the day, but in our book, nothing beats a few eggs for breakfast—so start your day with scrambled eggs. Research shows that people who eat eggs in the morning tend to eat less throughout the day.
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Scrambled Eggs
2 large
204 calories
14 g fat
2 g carbohydrates
Worst Hotel Breakfast Meat
Breakfast Sausage
2 links
250 calories
14 g fat (6 g saturated)
24 g protein
958 mg sodium
Protein-rich though they may be, they’re also weighed down by sodium and fat. Instead grab a few slices of bacon. Both as a side dish and as a garnish for a breakfast sandwich, bacon always beats sausage.
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Bacon
3 slices
123 calories
9 g fat (3 g saturated)
9 g protein
564 mg sodium
Worst Hotel Breakfast Pastry
Cranberry Muffin
1 medium
444 calories
22 g fat (4 g saturated)
56 g carbohydrates
This cupcake in disguise has as much sugar as a Snicker’s bar. Instead indulge in a buttered croissant. Surprised? A buttered croissant is nutritionally superior to the cranberry muffin in nearly every way.
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Buttered Croissant
231 calories
12 g fat (7 g saturated)
26 g carbohydrates
Worst Hotel Breakfast Bread
Toasted Wheat Bread with Jam
2 slices
262 calories
2 g fat (1 g saturated)
50 g carbohydrates
Wheat bread is a good start, but most jams are half fruit, half sugar. You’d be better off with peanut butter. Scrap the jam and bread for a toasted English muffin with a smearing of butter. English muffins win the battle of the breakfast breads every time.
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Toasted Wheat English Muffin with a Pat of Butter
162 calories
5 g fat (3 g saturated)
25 g carbohydrates
Worst Hotel Breakfast Yogurt
Fruit-Flavored Yogurt with Granola
388 calories
10 g fat (3 g saturated)
15 g protein
53 g sugars
Fruit-flavored yogurt is laced with corn syrup, making it sweeter than 3 scoops of ice cream. Instead make your own parfait. Keep the yogurt plain and control the flavor profile yourself with nuts and fruit.
Eat This Instead!
Plain Yogurt with Almonds and Berries
290 calories
13 g fat (5 g saturated)
13 g protein
20 g sugars