Weight Watchers; Consider Green Smoothies
A green smoothie/ green juice is possibly the best gift nature has to offer in a glass. I know a green smoothie doesn’t exactly sound appetizing. But, it is basically about getting used to drinking something green. To a certain degree, it’s also an acquired taste. But so is alcohol. And you didn’t let it’s bad taste stop you, did you now? What’s more, unlike alcohol, green cocktail has some seriously awesome health benefits.
Green smoothies taste a lot better than they look. With the right recipe, (which means you get the ratios of vegetables to fruit just right) you’ll barely taste the vegetables in your juice at all. Generally the fruit taste dominates the flavor of the drink, while the greens balance out the fruit’s sweetness, adding nice bit of zest. For example, if you’ve added apples and lemons, that’ll be the overriding taste of your green drink. And for those of you who have tried a shot of wheatgrass juice, don’t use it as an indicator! Green smoothies and green juices taste absolutely nothing like it.
Green smoothies are jampacked with vitamins and minerals. A green smoothie is low in calories, while providing your body with living enzymes, vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.
Vegetables are better and more easily digested. Because the greens have been blended or juiced, the cells in the greens and fruits are broken open, making the valuable nutrients easy for the body to absorb. The greens are to all intents and purposes “pre-digested”, which means that the vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other goodies are easily assimilated and utilized by the body, such that you’ll get maximum benefit and faster absorption. With absorption literally starting in your mouth.
Green smoothies and green juices mean your body doesn’t have to work hard to break down greens (which can be difficult to digest), as they are already pre-digested, allowing your body to focus on repair, healing and detoxification.
Green smoothies allow you to get a greater dose of vegetable nutrition than you could ever manage to eat in a day. Unlike green smoothies, green juice gets rid of fiber (but keeps all the vegetables nutrients). Because it’s just the good stuff, this means you can eat several pounds of greens in one sitting, plus it rests your stomach.
We eat much of our vegetables cooked. Unfortunately, the delicate micronutrients in the cooking process are negatively altered by the cooking process or are completely lost.
However, green smoothies are made of raw vegetables and lose none of their nutritional value. For similar reasons, vegetable juice in jars or cans are inferior to freshly made green juice that’s replete with nutrients and enzymes.
Green smoothies/ green juice helps your body restore itself to a state of healthy alkalinity. Since the typical Western diet is made up of far too many acidic foods, e.g. coffee, meat and cheese, the neutralizing effects of green smoothies are particularly pertinent.
A molecule of human blood closely resembles a molecule of chlorophyll. Dr. Ann Wigmore, believes that consuming chlorophyll is akin to a blood transfusion.
Green smoothies/ green juices make a great pre- or post-workout drink
Green drinks are thought to help curb cravings for junk food, sugary foods, and processed foods as they are packed with nutrients, which means your body stops searching for something else to fill it and it is no longer hungry.
Reduced cravings will help weight loss efforts, as you’re not constantly battling against your better judgement. Basically, green drinks will help make sticking to your diet considerably easier. Green smoothies are low calorie, but full of fiber, which means they’re filling and can easily replace a meal such a breakfast. Also, fiber is important for our elimination system.
Green smoothies are very nutritious. The ratio in them is optimal for human consumption; about 60% ripe organic fruit mixed with about 40% organic greens.
Green Smoothies Are Convenient
Green smoothies make a highly nutritious and convenient meal. You can drink it on your way to work, at work, while on the run or as your post-workout drink. A green smoothie is essentially an incredibly healthy meal in a cup.
Green smoothies also make for great breakfast for busy families. Since smoothies are full of fiber, it means that they are filling, helping you to cut down on snacking between meals. The great thing about green smoothies is that no special equipment is necessary. A regular blender will do. If you’re making green juice, you’ll need a juicer. Both green smoothies and green juices are easy to make and only take a few minutes to make.
Making a Green Smoothie/Juice
If you’re new to green smoothies/ juices, start with more fruit than usual, until you get used to the taste. Choose a sweet fruit that you enjoy. For example, if you’re juicing add a few more apples, if you’re making a smoothie add more pineapple. Once you have acquired the taste – though there really isn’t that much to acquire – you can start to add more vegetables and less fruit.
Experiment and fine-tune the mix and ratio of ingredients in the smoothie/juice to your own liking until you’ve found your own particular green smoothie recipe that matches your unique tastes. Maybe you like apples or cucumbers or celery, you know what you like, so adjust where needed.
Another tip before you start blending or juicing, is not to mix fruit with protein because it can lead to bloating. Protein takes a couple of hours to digest, fruit is digested much more quickly, such that the fruit will start to ferment and cause bloating. It’s uncomfortable and a waste of digestive energy.
If you’re making a smoothie, you should chew it a little to aid digestion. The albedo or pith (white part of citrus fruits) is part of the peel and high in Vitamin C and bioflavonoids (an antioxidant). Therefore, try to leave on as much as possible when peeling citrus fruits.
Remove hard seeds or pith from fruit such as cherries, peaches and plums. Smaller seeds from fruit such as watermelon can be left, and they do provide valuable nutrients.
Green smoothies and green juices are best consumed immediately upon making. However, if you must blend or juice some time ahead of when you’ll be drinking it, store your smoothie or juice in a narrow, airtight glass container and fill it to the rim to minimize oxidation.
Important Tip
Add a teaspoon of oil, such as extra virgin olive oil, fish oil, cod liver oil, coconut oil and evening primrose oil. Many of the nutrients are fat soluble, such as Vitamin K, which means some fat is needed by the body for proper assimilation.
Common Ingredients in Green Drinks
There are lots of different greens out there, allowing you to experimen to find a combination that best suits your tastes and needs:
Those of you new to green smoothies/juices should start off with greens with a mild taste, such as collard greens and spring greens. Mustard greens and dandelion greens have stronger taste, as do herbs such as mint and parsley. You can add these to your green drink once you are accustomed to the taste.
Other ingredients:
Some extras:
Green smoothies taste a lot better than they look. With the right recipe, (which means you get the ratios of vegetables to fruit just right) you’ll barely taste the vegetables in your juice at all. Generally the fruit taste dominates the flavor of the drink, while the greens balance out the fruit’s sweetness, adding nice bit of zest. For example, if you’ve added apples and lemons, that’ll be the overriding taste of your green drink. And for those of you who have tried a shot of wheatgrass juice, don’t use it as an indicator! Green smoothies and green juices taste absolutely nothing like it.
Green smoothies are jampacked with vitamins and minerals. A green smoothie is low in calories, while providing your body with living enzymes, vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients.
Vegetables are better and more easily digested. Because the greens have been blended or juiced, the cells in the greens and fruits are broken open, making the valuable nutrients easy for the body to absorb. The greens are to all intents and purposes “pre-digested”, which means that the vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other goodies are easily assimilated and utilized by the body, such that you’ll get maximum benefit and faster absorption. With absorption literally starting in your mouth.
Green smoothies and green juices mean your body doesn’t have to work hard to break down greens (which can be difficult to digest), as they are already pre-digested, allowing your body to focus on repair, healing and detoxification.
Green smoothies allow you to get a greater dose of vegetable nutrition than you could ever manage to eat in a day. Unlike green smoothies, green juice gets rid of fiber (but keeps all the vegetables nutrients). Because it’s just the good stuff, this means you can eat several pounds of greens in one sitting, plus it rests your stomach.
We eat much of our vegetables cooked. Unfortunately, the delicate micronutrients in the cooking process are negatively altered by the cooking process or are completely lost.
However, green smoothies are made of raw vegetables and lose none of their nutritional value. For similar reasons, vegetable juice in jars or cans are inferior to freshly made green juice that’s replete with nutrients and enzymes.
Green smoothies/ green juice helps your body restore itself to a state of healthy alkalinity. Since the typical Western diet is made up of far too many acidic foods, e.g. coffee, meat and cheese, the neutralizing effects of green smoothies are particularly pertinent.
A molecule of human blood closely resembles a molecule of chlorophyll. Dr. Ann Wigmore, believes that consuming chlorophyll is akin to a blood transfusion.
Green smoothies/ green juices make a great pre- or post-workout drink
Green drinks are thought to help curb cravings for junk food, sugary foods, and processed foods as they are packed with nutrients, which means your body stops searching for something else to fill it and it is no longer hungry.
Reduced cravings will help weight loss efforts, as you’re not constantly battling against your better judgement. Basically, green drinks will help make sticking to your diet considerably easier. Green smoothies are low calorie, but full of fiber, which means they’re filling and can easily replace a meal such a breakfast. Also, fiber is important for our elimination system.
Green smoothies are very nutritious. The ratio in them is optimal for human consumption; about 60% ripe organic fruit mixed with about 40% organic greens.
Green Smoothies Are Convenient
Green smoothies make a highly nutritious and convenient meal. You can drink it on your way to work, at work, while on the run or as your post-workout drink. A green smoothie is essentially an incredibly healthy meal in a cup.
Green smoothies also make for great breakfast for busy families. Since smoothies are full of fiber, it means that they are filling, helping you to cut down on snacking between meals. The great thing about green smoothies is that no special equipment is necessary. A regular blender will do. If you’re making green juice, you’ll need a juicer. Both green smoothies and green juices are easy to make and only take a few minutes to make.
Making a Green Smoothie/Juice
If you’re new to green smoothies/ juices, start with more fruit than usual, until you get used to the taste. Choose a sweet fruit that you enjoy. For example, if you’re juicing add a few more apples, if you’re making a smoothie add more pineapple. Once you have acquired the taste – though there really isn’t that much to acquire – you can start to add more vegetables and less fruit.
Experiment and fine-tune the mix and ratio of ingredients in the smoothie/juice to your own liking until you’ve found your own particular green smoothie recipe that matches your unique tastes. Maybe you like apples or cucumbers or celery, you know what you like, so adjust where needed.
Another tip before you start blending or juicing, is not to mix fruit with protein because it can lead to bloating. Protein takes a couple of hours to digest, fruit is digested much more quickly, such that the fruit will start to ferment and cause bloating. It’s uncomfortable and a waste of digestive energy.
If you’re making a smoothie, you should chew it a little to aid digestion. The albedo or pith (white part of citrus fruits) is part of the peel and high in Vitamin C and bioflavonoids (an antioxidant). Therefore, try to leave on as much as possible when peeling citrus fruits.
Remove hard seeds or pith from fruit such as cherries, peaches and plums. Smaller seeds from fruit such as watermelon can be left, and they do provide valuable nutrients.
Green smoothies and green juices are best consumed immediately upon making. However, if you must blend or juice some time ahead of when you’ll be drinking it, store your smoothie or juice in a narrow, airtight glass container and fill it to the rim to minimize oxidation.
Important Tip
Add a teaspoon of oil, such as extra virgin olive oil, fish oil, cod liver oil, coconut oil and evening primrose oil. Many of the nutrients are fat soluble, such as Vitamin K, which means some fat is needed by the body for proper assimilation.
Common Ingredients in Green Drinks
There are lots of different greens out there, allowing you to experimen to find a combination that best suits your tastes and needs:
- Spinach
- Collard greens
- Spring greens
- Kale
- Celery
- Cucumber
- Swiss chard
- Green cabbage
- Arugula
- Barley grass
- Sprouts
- Dandelion greens
- Mustard greens
- Mint (use in smaller quantities)
- Parsley (use in smaller quantities)
- Cilantro (coriander)
Those of you new to green smoothies/juices should start off with greens with a mild taste, such as collard greens and spring greens. Mustard greens and dandelion greens have stronger taste, as do herbs such as mint and parsley. You can add these to your green drink once you are accustomed to the taste.
Other ingredients:
- Apples
- Lemons/ limes
- Pears
- Banana
- Orange
- Kiwi
- Pineapple
- Cantaloupe
- Watermelon
- Mango
- Strawberry (and other berries)
- Cherries
- Grapefruit
- Honeydew
- Grapes
- Ginger
Some extras:
- Garlic (don’t try this before work or a date!)
- Salt to taste
Culled and edited. Images: Google
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