Some of you that know me may have seen that weird green drink I carry around in the mornings. I've been asked more than once at work what the heck I was drinking. It may not look appetizing, but once you hear about the many benefits of green smoothies, I'm sure you will learn to be hooked on them too!
Green smoothies provide a plethora of vitamins and minerals in a yummy, sippable form. Why not just take a multi-vitamin then? Well, for one thing, the bioavailability of the nutrients is not nearly as high as a green smoothie. Then there is the greens factor. Everyone knows greens are good for you, but who is going to sit down and eat 3 cups of straight up greens without adding some calorie laden dressings? Fruit is a great way to dress up greens and add more vitamins and minerals to boot! And third, what about the fiber? Green smoothies make you feel FULL without all the calories of other fiber-rich snacks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tells me that for someone of my age, I should eat about 4 cups of fruits and vegetables a day (1.5 of fruit and 2.5 of vegetables). Well, my basic green smoothie contains the equivalent of 6 cups of fruits and vegetables and the other one has 9! That doesn't even include any salads or other fruits and vegetables I might have throughout the day! WOW! I'll admit at first, you'll want to start with a bit more fruit to get accustomed to the flavors - add in some spinach to a regular fruit smoothie or use a green powder.
I got started with green smoothies the hard way. I used Kimberly Snyder's Glowing Green Smoothie recipe but did not have the awesome blender she does. My blender was a 7-speed Osterizer that was a hand me down when I had first moved out. Needless to say, my smoothies ended up being quite chunky. I have since helped out friends that have asked and I have modified the way I would suggest people start out.
The quickest way to get started on the green smoothie without the initial $400 investment in an amazing blender is by first adding some baby spinach or a green powder to a regular fruit smoothie. The green powder we have on hand is called Green Vibrance by Vibrant Health. You can get it on Amazon.com. It should last about one to two months depending on how often you are using it. This is what got my husband to stop having Strep throat or getting sick in general. There are many others out there including Sun Warrior Ormus Greens, Aloha Greens or Amazing Grass Green Superfood.
Basic Green Smoothie
1 to 1 1/2 cup water
1 banana
1 apple
1 pear
2 stalks celery
2-3 mini cucumbers or 1 regular cucumber
2 handfuls baby spinach
Juice of 1 lemon
Green Smoothie I
1 to 1 1/2 cup water
Green smoothies provide a plethora of vitamins and minerals in a yummy, sippable form. Why not just take a multi-vitamin then? Well, for one thing, the bioavailability of the nutrients is not nearly as high as a green smoothie. Then there is the greens factor. Everyone knows greens are good for you, but who is going to sit down and eat 3 cups of straight up greens without adding some calorie laden dressings? Fruit is a great way to dress up greens and add more vitamins and minerals to boot! And third, what about the fiber? Green smoothies make you feel FULL without all the calories of other fiber-rich snacks.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) tells me that for someone of my age, I should eat about 4 cups of fruits and vegetables a day (1.5 of fruit and 2.5 of vegetables). Well, my basic green smoothie contains the equivalent of 6 cups of fruits and vegetables and the other one has 9! That doesn't even include any salads or other fruits and vegetables I might have throughout the day! WOW! I'll admit at first, you'll want to start with a bit more fruit to get accustomed to the flavors - add in some spinach to a regular fruit smoothie or use a green powder.
I got started with green smoothies the hard way. I used Kimberly Snyder's Glowing Green Smoothie recipe but did not have the awesome blender she does. My blender was a 7-speed Osterizer that was a hand me down when I had first moved out. Needless to say, my smoothies ended up being quite chunky. I have since helped out friends that have asked and I have modified the way I would suggest people start out.
The quickest way to get started on the green smoothie without the initial $400 investment in an amazing blender is by first adding some baby spinach or a green powder to a regular fruit smoothie. The green powder we have on hand is called Green Vibrance by Vibrant Health. You can get it on Amazon.com. It should last about one to two months depending on how often you are using it. This is what got my husband to stop having Strep throat or getting sick in general. There are many others out there including Sun Warrior Ormus Greens, Aloha Greens or Amazing Grass Green Superfood.
If your
blender can handle it, here are some recipes for green smoothies adapted from Kimberly Snyder's recipe that incorporate other fruits and veggies that you can
modify... I chose to get a Blendtec, but Kimberly uses a Vitamix, both amazing blenders worth the investment. I have used mine at least twice a day, sometimes more, since I got it in April 2009.
These recipes are just different version of the basic one that I use every morning. I just add or remove fruits/greens based on what I have on hand. The idea behind a green smoothie is 40% greens with 60% fruit to start. Then slowly change that ratio by increasing the percentage of greens. I'll change up the greens to be kale or romaine lettuce or even beet or dandelion greens... sounds weird but if you have enough fruit, you can't taste it... I'll continue to add more recipes for different types of green smoothies. In the meantime, here are some good ones. Just blend and enjoy!
These recipes are just different version of the basic one that I use every morning. I just add or remove fruits/greens based on what I have on hand. The idea behind a green smoothie is 40% greens with 60% fruit to start. Then slowly change that ratio by increasing the percentage of greens. I'll change up the greens to be kale or romaine lettuce or even beet or dandelion greens... sounds weird but if you have enough fruit, you can't taste it... I'll continue to add more recipes for different types of green smoothies. In the meantime, here are some good ones. Just blend and enjoy!
Basic Green Smoothie
1 to 1 1/2 cup water
1 banana
1 apple
1 pear
2 stalks celery
2-3 mini cucumbers or 1 regular cucumber
2 handfuls baby spinach
Juice of 1 lemon
Green Smoothie I
1 to 1 1/2 cup water
1 banana
1 pear
1/2 cup other fruit (e.g. frozen or fresh mango, berries)
3-4 leaves romaine lettuce
2-3 stalks celery
1-2 cucumbers
2 cups (or more) baby spinach
1/2 lemon with pulp (only remove peel and seeds)
1 tsp chlorella or other green powder
1 tsp turmeric
Green Smoothie II
1 pear
1/2 cup other fruit (e.g. frozen or fresh mango, berries)
3-4 leaves romaine lettuce
2-3 stalks celery
1-2 cucumbers
2 cups (or more) baby spinach
1/2 lemon with pulp (only remove peel and seeds)
1 tsp chlorella or other green powder
1 tsp turmeric
Green Smoothie II
1 to 1 1/2 cup water
1 banana
1 pear
1/2 cup other fruit (e.g. frozen or fresh mango, berries)
3-4 leaves kale
2-3 stalks celery
1-2 cucumbers
2 cups (or more) baby spinach
1/2 bunch cilantro
1/2 lemon with pulp (only remove peel and seeds)
1 banana
1 pear
1/2 cup other fruit (e.g. frozen or fresh mango, berries)
3-4 leaves kale
2-3 stalks celery
1-2 cucumbers
2 cups (or more) baby spinach
1/2 bunch cilantro
1/2 lemon with pulp (only remove peel and seeds)
Just adding greens or green powder will get your health to a completely different plane. My morning breakfast is the green smoothie - I personally can not eat anything else anymore and if I don't have my green smoothie for two days in a row, I start to feel lethargic...
Happy Drinking!
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