7 Ways Youre Ruining Your Bowl of Oatmeal

Oatmeal is a breakfast go-to for a reason. Simple and delicious, this morning meal has the added benefit of being diverse enough to fend off breakfast boredom ,thanks to all the potential toppings that make it easy to switch it up. “Oatmeal itself is a whole grain, so it’s not processed like the refined type," says Dawn Jackson Blatner, R.D.N., author of The Flexitarian Diet. "The other great thing about it is that it’s a wet grain, meaning it’s cooked with water. A hearty wet grain is going to be more filling than any sort of dry grain like a cold cereal, and research has proven that.” Oatmeal’s other claim to fame is its four grams of fiber per half-cup of dry oats. “It’s not a ton of fiber, but it’s actually a powerful type that helps regulate your cholesterol,” says Blatner. Even though oatmeal’s got major advantages, there are a few sneaky ways you may be sapping the healthy powers from your morning bowl.

Your Servings Are Too Big
“Because it’s a healthy food, it has this health halo and people eat too much of it," says Blatne. "Instead of having one cup cooked, they’ll double it and start off with one cup dry.” Stick to a half-cup of dry oatmeal, which is one serving size, according to labels. That comes out to 150 calories, leaving about another 150 for your toppings for a filling breakfast that doesn’t turn into a calorie bomb. "The other thing I find is that people don’t have the ratio right," says Blatner. "A good guideline is one part oats to two parts liquid."

MORE: How to Cook Oatmeal Perfectly Every Time

You Add Too Much Sugar
There are so many ways to sweeten up a bowl of oatmeal, from maple syrup to brown sugar to chocolate chips. But by upping the sweetness, you may be slashing the health benefits. “Yes, honey is healthy," says Blatner. "Yes, brown sugar tastes great." But it's easy to overdo it. Instead of relying on straight-up sweeteners, go for alternatives. Blatner recommends options like cinnamon, unsweetened cocoa powder, or vanilla extract. “They taste sweet without actually being sugary,” she says.

You Top it with a Ton of Dried Fruit
It’s fruit, so how bad can it really be? The answer’s pretty surprising. “Dried fruit can have about eight times more calories than fresh fruit,” says Blatner. Skip the dried goods, and add some fresh or frozen fruit. You’ll get more satiety for fewer calories. Just make sure if you’re buying the frozen variety that it’s the unsweetened kind.

You Order It To-Go
There’s been an influx of fast-food places adding oatmeal to their menus because it’s easy to make and gives them healthy cred. That healthy reputation may not be completely deserved, though. While some health food shops will slip in healthy ingredients like protein powder, others jack up the calories and sweetness with unnecessary add-ons. “There are companies that put cream in their oatmeal, for example,” says Blatner. Avoid a heaping helping of additives with some simple research. “Check out the ingredients of the oatmeal at a specific place before you decide to get it,” says Blatner. 

MORE: 5-Minute Breakfasts That Are Actually Healthy

You Overdo it with the Nuts
“What I love about nuts on oatmeal is that they balance it out," says Blatner. "They add that necessary component of protein and healthy fat, but that adds up really fast. Because of their higher fat content, they have more calories per gram—so even if you use a small amount, that’s a lot of calories." While it’s true healthy fats can boost weight loss or maintenance, eating too much of them can take you further away from your goals. Instead of tossing on handfuls, keep it to just one, which equals about an ounce.

You Buy Flavored Instant Oatmeal
The convenience of those little flavor packs comes with a price: Most instant oatmeal is loaded with sugar. “People usually aren’t buying packets of plain oatmeal," says Blatner. "They’re buying the highly-sugared kind." If you’re still all about the instant, look for the plain variety or types that have reduced sugar by 50 percent. Even better? Trying rolled, or old-fashioned, oats. Oats come out of the ground as oat groats, which is their largest, most natural form. Then they got chopped with steel blades and become steel cut, which is a long-cooking grain because it’s basically just out of the ground. After that, they’re steamed and rolled, which is what you have when you get rolled oats. “Instant is great when you’re really in a hurry," says Blatner. "But if you have just a few minutes to spare, you can make rolled oats in the microwave." Plus, they absorb more water than instant, so your bowl will be even more filling. Find them in the cereal aisle; they're usually in a cylindrical canister. Prep them just the same as instant, but microwave them for two and a half to five minutes, until the liquid is absorbed.

You Don’t Add Enough Toppings
On the flip side, sometimes people don’t beef up their oatmeal enough in fear that they’ll make it unhealthy. “Don’t just sit down to a bowl of oatmeal with two raspberries on top,” says Blatner. You won’t feel satisfied and may be more susceptible to overeat later. Instead, think of that bowl as a chance to get a well-rounded start to your day. Add a cup of fresh fruit for about 100 calories and some healthy fats and protein in the form of nuts or nut butters. You could also add some milk if you'd like. The entire bowl should come out to around 300 to 400 calories, which is enough for a satiating breakfast. Or you can try Blatner’s recipe: “In the fall, I love to chop up a green apple with walnuts and pecans over a bowl of oatmeal," she says. "Then I add some cinnamon. It ends up being a huge, filling breakfast."

MORE: 5 Oatmeal Smoothies That Beat Your Standard Breakfast

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