I really love smoothies. Not only do they taste great, but they are a fabulous way to pack in serious nutrition. I regularly prescribed medical smoothies for my cancer patients while in private practice to minimize side-effects from chemotherapy and radiation and I personally used smoothies before and during both of my pregnancies to get my body ready and to make sure I was providing all the extra nutrients I needed to grow beautiful healthy babies.
My basic smoothie recipe is the following:
- ½ banana
- 1 cup whole fat, plain yogurt
- 1 cup frozen blueberries
- Water to desired consistency
Other things I often add:
- Frozen kale – you can either buy kale this way or cook, puree and drop into ice cube trays to use as you need them
- Chia seeds
- Fair trade honey or agave syrup
- Liquid fish oil – I like Frutol by Pharmax LLC
- Vitamin D drops
- Powdered supplements such as multivitamins or liver support herbs – for both I use a brand called Karuna
If you’re not big on pills, smoothies can be a great way to deliver your medicine as it’s easy to mask the flavor. They are also great to have for breakfast. I’ll often get my ingredients ready the night before and store in the fridge, then blend right before I leave so I can drink it on my way into the office. A smoothie plus a hard-boiled egg or a slice of whole grain toast with nut butter spread is a complete breakfast full of all the things you need to give you energy and brain power!
If you’re vegan or just avoiding dairy, try using ½ an avocado instead of yogurt. Avocados provide a nice creamy texture and are loaded with healthy fat (Please don’t be scared of fat. It’s a good thing!). Also, it’s important that all the ingredients (especially the dairy) be organic certified or sourced from a farm that avoided conventional pesticide practices. Obviously, any fruit/veg is better than none at all, but clean versions are even better.
Starting my day off with a smoothie really makes a big difference in how I feel overall at the end of the day. I know no matter what, I’ve given my body a great boost of fiber, antioxidants, dark green veggies and specific nutrients from my dietary supplements.
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