Participating in the Green Smoothie Challenge is simply a commitment to:
Drink at least 16 oz. of green smoothie per day
Do some sort of activity every day
Add a green leafy salad to your lunch or dinner
Stop drinking soda
Cut out all white sugar
(Nathan says I'm cheating because this is barely any different from my usual life, and thus not exactly a "challenge"...)
What is a green smoothie, you're asking? Just make a fruit smoothie as you usually would, and add a few handfuls of greens - kale, spinach, swiss chard, etc. If you're just getting started with green smoothies, I recommend starting with spinach.
I already drink a green smoothie almost daily, following a basic recipe that goes something like this:
1 banana (fresh or frozen)
Fresh or frozen fruit (peaches, berries, pineapple, orange, anything!)
Around 4 cups of fresh spinach
water or almond milk to help it blend all together
1 tsp. of flax oil (for omega 3's)
(I also put in 2 T of psyllium for added fiber)
Sometimes I add a tablespoon of almond butter
Sometimes I add oats I've soaked in the fridge overnight
Sometimes I add brown rice protein powder
There are dozens of delicious smoothies I make regularly, and maybe I'll post some 'recipes' here in the next few weeks, like my "oatmeal cookie" smoothie, my "carob banana" smoothie, and others.
Check out Happy Foody's post for some great testimonials to the benefits of starting your day with the nutrients your body needs instead of your typical American breakfast. Breakfasts of cold cereal or bagels or eggs and bacon just aren't that good for you - too many simple carbs and too much sugar, or too high in saturated fat and cholesterol.
My friends think I'm weird, but I often eat veggies as part of my breakfast, whether in a smoothie or not. And you know what? I think the food I eat is way tastier than all this Standard American Diet stuff.
The part of this Challenge that I'm most excited about is cutting out white sugar for a month. I do try to stay away from refined sugar, but I know it creeps into my diet here and there.
I noticed that Heather is participating in the Green Smoothie Challenge too! Let me know if you decide to participate so I can follow your blog and keep up with your progress.
Do you make smoothies in the winter as well? They sound so good in the summer, but not so much when I crawl out of bed on a chilly morning.
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