If you’re a Rise & Shine Bright friend, I think I got you pegged. You’re an ambitious person who wants to accomplish great things in life. You look at your 24 hours a day as hours of opportunity to achieve your goals for your career, family, health, faith—not in that particular order. I applaud your go-getter, game-changer mindset. Keep on going! Well as we know, we need the energy, vibrance and good health to achieve these goals. So where do we get it? Through various aspects of self-care such as spiritual practices, relaxation and sleep, nurturing relationships, and of course, nourishing FOOD!
In the area of food in particular, it’s recommended that we eat 2 servings of fruit and 3 servings of vegetables a day. So let’s look at where we are. Look back at the last few days to evaluate if you’ve hit the mark on those two daily food goals. If you have, do a virtual backflip because that’s amazing. That’s a victory totally worth rejoicing over! If you haven’t hit that goal lately, you totally can! A great way to start is incorporating smoothies into your food regimen using an amazing blueprint to the perfect smoothie.
To make sure you’re maximizing your “smoothie opportunity”—getting in not only the nutrients from fruits and veggies, but also adding in other nourishing ingredients as well, I’m going to show us how to put some strategy behind making smoothies. This approach is what I like to call, The Ultimate Smoothie Formula. After all, when you’re buying fruits and veggies, you’re totally investing in your health. Why not make the most out of the opportunity where you can combine those fruits and veggies with other nutrient-packed goodies all in one drink! Here’s how!
THE ULTIMATE SMOOTHIE FORMULA
[LIQUID + GREENS + FRUIT + PROTEIN + GOOD FAT + SPICES & SUPERFOODS = MAXIMIZED OPPORTUNITIES FOR GOOD HEALTH]
LIQUID BASE – 2 CUPS
But of course, what’s a smoothie without a liquid? A heap of fruity veggie mush, that’s what. So pick a good liquid base, preferably one that’s dairy free. Although milk-pushers claim various benefits to drinking cow’s milk, there are also factors that cancel them out. Animal fat, mucus, and there are even controversies about blood seeping into the milk as well. We’ve heard all the amazing benefits researchers have shared about milk over several decades, ever since we were babies. To keep things fair, on an even playing field, here’s some insight on the adverse effects of cow’s milk to our health. https://nutritionstudies.org/12-frightening-facts-milk/. Do consider dairy-free milk as a cleaner, healthier alternative.
There are several dairy-free options you can choose from for your ultimate smoothie!
Some Options:
Almond milk / Coconut milk / Coconut water / Rice milk / Green tea / Cashew milk / Pecan milk / Walnut milk / Water
LEAFY GREENS – 2 CUPS
This is one of your major vitamin intake opportunities! Note that if you’re deficient in something, select the greens that have the highest content of that particular nutrient you’re low in. For example, if you’re low in iron, choose Spinach.
Some Leafy Green Options:
Kale / Arugula / Collard Greens / Cabbage / Bok Choy / Spinach / Beet Greens / Chard / Dandelion Greens / Cilantro / Green Carrot Tops
RIPE FRUIT – 1 CUP
This is another important vitamin in-take opportunity, plus antioxidants which you’ll get mostly from dark berries. Antioxidants fight off toxins and free radicals in the body, which wards off disease and elevates your immune system health.
Some Fruit Options:
Strawberry / Blueberry / Raspberry / Blackberry / Tomato / Mango / Orange / Banana / Apples / Kiwi / Pomegranate
PROTEIN – 2 TABLESPOONS
Protein is considered a macronutrient, which means we need a lot of it for the functions it covers in our bodies. The most notable function in my opinion is tissue repair on a cellular level–and protein serves as the building blocks of our skin, hair, nails, bones, muscles, cartilage, and blood. Long and short, protein does amazing work! So which one will you pick for your next Ultimate Smoothie?
Some Protein Options:
Hempseed / Sesame seeds / Pumpkin seeds / Chia seeds (soaked for maximum nutrition absorption) / Flax Seeds / Almonds (and almond butter) / Peanuts (+peanut butter) / Walnuts (+walnut butter) / Pecans (+pecan butter) / Oats
GOOD FAT – 2 TABLESPOONS
There are bad fats – trans fats and saturated fats, and there are good fats – mono and poly unsaturated fats. Trans fats are liquid oils processed through hydrogenation into a solid. They’re linked to autoimmune diseases, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and other chronic illnesses. Saturated fats are fat solids like bacon grease, cheese, as well as red meat, heavily buttered baked goods, and whole milk, etc. Those fats can cause artery blockages, heart attacks, heart disease, and more. However, the good fats, mono and poly unsaturated fats that are mostly plant-based but also come from fish, are kind to the heart, cholesterol levels, and overall health. This is one of the reasons why the Mediterranean Diet gets so much love. It’s been rumored that eating foods that are common to the Mediterranean region, which includes lots of olive oil, avocado, fish and other good fats, improves your health big time!
So knowing all the facts, obviously we want to go for good fats as much as possible. This is your chance and the choice is yours!
Some Good Fat Options:
Avocado (½ to 1 qty) / Nut butters / Coconut oil / Extra Virgin Olive Oil / Flax seeds (+oil) / Chia seeds / Hemp seeds
VEGETABLES (bonus – optional)
You can totally pack more veggie nutrients in your smoothie if you choose to. This is your Ultimate Smoothie! I advise if you’re going to incorporate more veggies other than the greens, have fun with colors. The more diverse in color, the more diverse nutrients you’ll be taking in!
Some Vegetable Options:
Beets / Carrots / Squash / Zucchini / Sweet Potato / Celery / Pumpkin
SUPERFOODS + SPICES (bonus – optional)
Recommended: 1 Teaspoon – 1 Tablespoon / 3-4 qty. at maximum
Here is where you can pack a powerful punch to your smoothie with super foods and spices! Super foods and spices are most known for being high in nutrient content like vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants. They neutralize free radicals in the body that can cause disease, and fight against cancer and autoimmune diseases as well. This is a step you won’t want to skip!
Some Superfood + Spice Options:
Cinnamon / Cardamom / Cayenne Pepper / Ginger / Raw cacao / Goji berries / Dates / Coconut oil / Bee pollen / Coconut / Spirulina / Acai powder / Maca powder
Sweetener (bonus optional)
Recommended: 1 Teaspoon – 1 Tablespoon
Depending on the combination of ingredients that you choose, the final product may not be at the sweetness level that you desire. If that’s the case, simply add a sweetener, but choose an alternative to sugar–a natural more healthful sweetener.
Some Natural Sweetener Options:
Dates (potassium) / Honey (good bacteria) / Maple syrup (iron) / Molasses (iron) / Bananas (potassium)
This is the combo I chose for today’s post.
Arugula – Strawberry – Blueberry – Raspberry – Blackberry – Mango – Almonds – Sesame Seeds – Coconut Oil – Cardamom – Cayenne Pepper – Ginger – Coconut – Banana
What combo will you be trying when you create your Ultimate Smoothie opportunity? I’d love to know, so leave it down below.
Here’s to powerful workweeks and good morning eats!
Love,
Yardley
Sources:
MedicalNewsToday.com
NutritionStudies.org
Health.Harvard.edu
WebMD.com