Green Smoothies and Healthy Eating
Article to be posted in the next edition of Health Science Magazine
When Clint and I met, I was in the last semester of my undergraduate work earning my B.S. in nutrition. Naturally I emphasized nutrition and “eating right” and Clint loved going to the gym. He bought me a gym pass and I prepared a healthy meal for him every night. Last year we got married and decided to keep improving our overall health by increasing our vegetable and fruit intake to 8-10 veggies and fruits each day. I was running out of new ways to incorporate more veggies and fruits into our diet and needed to get out of the repetitive rut of eating the same-old same-old. We decided to experiment with a couple of new avenues to ensure we were getting 10-a-day. First we started the “veggie venture” where we tried a new vegetable each week and we’d prepare it a couple of ways. By expanding our horizons and testing our taste buds, we found new veggies we love and new ways to prepare them from roasted red pepper hummus served on endive leaves to balsamic asparagus. With a greater variety of veggies on the grocery list, our dinner plates are full of color and flavor.
As the new vegetable options began to narrow at the market, we experimented with a new, greener avenue. Clint was a little hesitant to join me at first but I moved forward and he jumped on the bandwagon shortly thereafter. He hesitated because of color but I kept insisting that he just try it because it tastes great. He is pretty willing to try anything especially if he knows the nutritional benefits. First I had him try one of my personal favorites entitled, “ Green Mango Madness.” I knew he was hooked when a few days later he called me at work asking how to make a green smoothie. Each morning we drink our green smoothies. Even if we are running out the door we pour our green smoothie into our water bottle and enjoy nature’s food fast. Just by drinking our daily blend of fruits and leafy greens we get at least 4 servings of produce, 2 fruits and 2 veggies at breakfast.
Green smoothies are blended beverages that combine fresh or frozen fruit and leafy greens like kale, collard, and spinach to make nutritious eating easy, quick and delicious. Green Smoothies are one of the most nutritious ways to eat a whole-food meal fast. These super-food shakes are the newest blend trend and have become a popular staple among health-conscious people who praise their health benefits ranging from weight loss to increased energy and mental focus. Green smoothies are a great way to detox as they are loaded with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, live enzymes, and amino acids. As we started to consume larger portions of high-nutrient dense foods with green smoothies, our appetite for low-nutrient dense foods decreased and we crave our daily dose of blended greens.
Last year Clint and I flew home for the holidays and decided to pack our blender. My parents were curious to see these green concoctions we had been blending up. One afternoon my mom had been preparing for a family board game night and was making her usual holidays treats, I asked if we could forgo the sweets and drink smoothies with our board game night. With all my siblings and nieces and nephews present, I started blending and everyone was a little hesitant to try at first but by the end of the night everyone was asking for more.
My niece and nephew, both 3 years old, loved helping me peel the banana and count the strawberries going into blender jar. Then the excitement peaked as they watched all this whole food be pureed into a creamy green smoothie. Kids love green smoothies! How else are you going to get your little people to eat raw spinach, chard or dandelion? The more you let your children be a part of making green smoothies - the more they will love drinking them - the more they will ask to have them and the more you will drink too! We gave the smoothies fun names like Shrek Smoothie and Princess Power and then poured them into fun and bright, colored cups with straws.
As we continue with our green smoothies, we never find ourselves in a rut due to the endless varieties of fruit and leafy green combinations. We can learn from the popular adage: “If you always do what you've always done, you'll always get what you always got.” Give some new veggies a try or try blending up some fruit with some lovely leafies and let your friends or family members try too! Happy Blending!
