Power Your Body at Any Age With Healthy Smoothies
Tasty, quick combos to help you feel your best.
I’m a late-blooming smoothie lover.
Do you remember Orange Julius drinks? That overly sweet concoction of orange juice concentrate and ice that you’d find at the mall back in the day?
Until about eight years ago, that was the closest thing to a smoothie I’d ever drunk. Now I consume one nearly every day and I’ve never felt better.
My quest for health pushed me to experiment.
One of the coolest things about having adult children is how smart they are and how much they teach me. One of my sons, Ben, is a movement specialist and knowledgeable about many things health and nutrition-related.
He would tempt me with homemade smoothies that I reluctantly sipped. What? This was delicious and when he told me how nutrition-packed a smoothie can be—I became a fan.
Of course, he learned from the best, his wife, Hillary, the author of Craft Vegan: Plant-Based Recipes For Everyone. This book contains several irresistible smoothie recipes I guarantee anyone would love, along with the best lasagna recipe you’ve ever tasted.
Gradually, the idea of drinking fruits, vegetables, and protein became one of my favorite ways to maximize my nutrition.
America’s poor eating habits are killing us.
The more fruits, vegetables, seeds, and nuts we eat every day, the better. Well, I suppose you could eat too much of these healthy super-stars, but it would be unlikely.
Sadly, the average American eats only 1.4 cups of vegetables per day, while the USDA recommendation is 2.5 cups.
Compared with those in the lowest category of fruit and vegetable intake (less than 1.5 servings a day), those who averaged 8 or more servings a day were 30% less likely to have had a heart attack or stroke.(1)
Fruits and vegetables improve your health in many ways. For example, studies link the increased consumption of plants to lower risk of diabetes and decreased incidence of many types of cancer, including lungs, kidneys, and prostate.
I’m a passionate pusher of a plant-based diet.
And smoothies make it easy and delicious to boost the number of servings of fruit, vegetables, and other nutrients. Recently, I wrote about discovering I needed more protein in this article, Are You Eating Enough Protein for Muscle Growth & Body Repair?
I find it’s easy to increase my protein intake with pea protein powder; one scoop contains 15 grams of complete protein. Add it to two cups of soymilk for another 14 grams, plus two tablespoons of ground flax seeds at 3 grams, and I’ve got 32 grams of the 70 grams I want to eat each day. There are many brands of pea protein; I prefer the GN brand without any added sweeteners.
Peas are legumes rich in fiber, protein, and micronutrients with very little fat and sugar. Because of this, they reduce the levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol, lower blood pressure and help manage diabetes. Plant-based proteins have also been shown to reduce inflammation, which can decrease the risk of coronary heart disease over time.
If you suffer from gout, it’s recommended to avoid pea protein as it contains purines that can create uric acid and worsen the condition.
Eight is great. Your feel-good mantra.
That is eight daily servings of fruits & vegetables for optimal health. All you need is a quality blender, and you’re good to go. It can be hard to eat that many servings each day but a smoothie makes it easy.
Experts disagree on what constitutes a serving—generally, it’s four to six ounces. Do the best you can, every additional serving is helpful.
In addition to the common frozen bananas, berries, and peaches, I love to add cooked vegetables. When I roast carrots, sweet potatoes, winter squash, and beets for supper, I’ll cook extra and freeze them. They’re delicious in combination with fruits. Frozen spinach, kale, chopped collards, and even arugula are tasty additions, too.
Start simple. To 1 and 1/2 cups of plant-based milk, add 1/2 cup frozen berries, one banana, one carrot, and 1/2 cup of frozen spinach. I recommend a serving of protein powder and two tablespoons of ground flax or chia seeds for 4 grams of omega 3.
Polish this smoothie off, and you’ve drunk half of your healthy fruits and veggies for the day.
Your imagination and palate are the limits.
As you get used to the delicious flavor of fresh foods, you can experiment and create new smoothie favorites. How about coconut water with chunks of watermelon, cucumbers, frozen pineapple, roasted carrots, and some kale? Lots of ripe tomatoes? Try a blended V-8 concoction.
Some people add nut butter or coconut milk. You can adjust what you put in depending on the level of exercise you’re planning that day.
Older people often find it challenging to chew and digest fruits and vegetables. The blender can solve this problem and help ensure better nutrition.
One last tip. My daughter, a smoothie lover and busy working woman, prepares all the ingredients for five days at one time. She lines up five, pint-size canning jars and adds a variety of fruits and veggies to each one, and freezes them.
Then in the morning, she adds that to her blender with the soy milk and protein powder and she’s got a nutritious breakfast for herself and her husband.
Good nutrition is the cornerstone of health.
Lately, it seems that every person I meet over the age of 35 has a potentially serious health condition. Our body is literally created, maintained, and restored by what we eat and drink.
You wouldn’t want to live in a house made of junk leftover lumber hastily constructed. And you can’t live an active, long, healthy life in a body built carelessly on a prepackaged, nutrient-poor diet.
Most of us know way too little about human nutrition. The time to learn and improve our health is now and smoothies are a great way to get started.
Give it a try and share some favorite recipe combinations with me. Enjoy!
Resources:
Hung HC, Joshipura KJ, Jiang R, Hu FB, Hunter D, Smith-Warner SA, Colditz GA, Rosner B, Spiegelman D, Willett WC. Fruit and vegetable intake and risk of major chronic disease. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. 2004 Nov 3;96(21):1577–84.
He FJ, Nowson CA, Lucas M, MacGregor GA. Increased consumption of fruit and vegetables is related to a reduced risk of coronary heart disease: a meta-analysis of cohort studies. Journal of human hypertension. 2007 Sep;21(9):717.
12 Simple, Healthy Smoothie Ideas