Need Advice on Smoothies

TXGator98

I've been making a morning smoothie every day for quite a while now. Just started back with MFP a week or so ago and began logging my smoothies - they're over 350 (sometimes close to 400) calories and WAY high in sugar from all the fruit! What do you put in your smoothies to make them tasty, filling and good in nutrients?

My smoothies tend to be:
1/2 cup nonfat / lowfat plain greek yogurt
1/2 cup coconut water
1/2 tbsp. chia seeds
1/2 tbsp. flax seeds
2 cups greens (kale, spinach, etc.)
1/2 cucumber
1 banana
1 clementine
1/2 apple
1/2 lemon
3-4 frozen strawberries


Today I tried changing it up - 1/2 banana, 1/2 clementine, took out the apple, added in 1/2 cup red cabbage, protein powder and raw honey. It's lower in sugar, but not very good in taste.

Any advice on getting it healthy, nutrient rich and tasty would be greatly appreciated! Or, if my regular smoothie sounds okay, let me know that too! I know fruit sugars are better than processed sugars, but I'm concerned about keeping things in moderation.

Thanks!

CarlydogsMom

Well, I do something pretty similar, but I don't add as much fruit. I usually use only a frozen berry blend (raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries), about 3/4 cup, and then add:

Almond or coconut milk (unsweetened vanilla)
Protein powder (vanilla but low-carb/unsweetened)
Chia seeds
Powdered chlorella (basically powdered greens)
Some of that invisible Benefiber

And then, since I'm in my 50's and want to watch out for my joints and calcium intake, I add some liquid glucosamine/chondroitin and some liquid calcium, which is this thick, white, chalky stuff.

I top it all off with coconut water.

And that's pretty much it, and for me, the sweetness of the berries and the coconut water is enough for me. All in all, it's pretty good. I can't taste the odd stuff (G-C liquid, liquid calcium) at all, just the berries with a hint of coconut. And most of the sugar is only from those berries, which isn't much.

spoiledpuppies

That seems like it would make an enormous smoothie. I normally do some protein powder, Tbsp of peanut butter, Tbsp of flax, soy/almond milk, and about a 1/4 banana. It's still 300+ calories but probably not as much sugar and maybe more filling due to the protein and fat. On the other hand, the volume of yours must give you a full feeling, though I'm not sure how long it would last.

If you want to stick with your general recipe, the main thing I would do is simply cut the quantities of pretty much everything - or limit yourself to a single fruit a day - and use a lot of ice! And maybe use yogurt (+ water) OR the coconut milk.

kathicooks

As a diabetic, I can't do fruit smoothies - they are just too heavy a glycemic load, but I do shakes every morning. here's this morning's shake:

1 cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk
1 cup of coffee (brewed yesterday, in the fridge overnight)
1 big handful of kale
2 T pumpkin puree (canned)
1/2 t pumpkin pie spice, or any mix of cinnamon, nutmeg, and anything else that works for this - mace? allspice? cloves?
2 T plain greek yogurt - you might need to substitute vanilla yogurt if this is too tart
1.5 scoops vanilla protein powder (I use Tera's whey)

Other favorites are chocolate, coffee, mint and chocolate peanut butter.

kriskris92

I use about a cup of frozen berries, 3/4 cup plain greek yogurt (preferably full fat, but sometimes hard to find), and about 3 tbsp of hemp hearts and fill the rest with water. That makes 340 cals, 26 g carbs, 13 g fat and 29 g protein and keeps me full for a couple hours. Sometimes I'll use less fruit if I want lower carbs, because you really don't need too many to keep the flavour strong.

jensan37

My daily smoothie is 2 cups bagged spinach (I keep it frozen so it blends better), 2 cups 30-calorie vanilla almond milk, a small banana and one cup frozen fruit (my favorites are strawberries, peaches or blueberries). Plus a packet or 2 of stevia. This is a very big serving for around 200 calories. I pair this with an egg or one tablespoon peanut butter on light wheat toast for a yummy breakfast.

hmjohnson25

I use unsweetened almond milk, a bit of aloe juice, protein powder, chia seeds, half a banana, 1/2 cup of cucumber, a cup of kale or spinach, 1/2 cup of blueberries, and lots of ice. If I want it sweeter, I'll use mango or cherries instead of blueberries. Ice helps bulk it up and feel like you're getting more without adding calories or sugar.

Sarge516

Your recipe isn't bad, but I'd swap out one fruit for something with more fibre (like bran buds or bran flakes), and ensure you're using unsweetened liquids (like almond milk or the coconut milk).

Fibre is important, and it keeps you feeling full longer.