Is it better to make a smoothie from fruit or just eat them as they are?

Doesn't really matter from a nutrition or weight perspective. If you need to chew or just to have solid foods to feel satisfied, then that's your answer.

I eat a lot of smoothies this time of year. Frozen raspberries, protein powder, peanut butter, milk, maybe other goodies sometimes too. It's HOT. These are like sorbet so it's really nice.

In the summer it is the fresh fruit, in the winter it is smoothies as I am using frozen.

I prefer smoothies, as they take me longer to consume. I like to sip.

I make mine with fruit, Icelandic style yogurt, and a bit of water to loosen it up.

Fruit is usually quick digesting so it's normal to feel hungry soon after eating it.

I make a 1,000 cal green smoothie every morning... it takes me about an hour to finish it and I feel hungry soon thereafter.

Try adding greens, protein powder, or some flax/chia seeds to your smoothies.

I make smoothies and also enjoy the fruits the way they are as well. I don't follow smoothie recipes to the letter though. I basically take fruits on special and try them as smoothies. For example this week cantaloupe, blueberries and grapes were on a real good sale. So I bought some. I took 250g of cantaloupe, 200g of blueberries, and 200g of grapes and blended them together. I then divided that into three portions of about 8oz each. So one portion was 113 calories, 28g of carbs, 57% vA, 72% vC, 3g fiber, and 399mg potassium. I can't recall if I verified the accuracy of the entries in the database used to log these. The nice thing about fruit smoothies is you can add flax seed, spinach, carrot, and various other non-fruit things for a variety of nutrient benefits to form a pleasing sweet tasty healthy snack.

Any quick recipes? I used my nutribullet and added orange, strawberries, blueberries, (don't remember what other fruit) and almond milk but I really disliked the taste, I like it better just eating them.

OP, it is fine to blend fruits and drink them, just don't juice them

I normally think that eating makes me more satisfied than drinking a smoothie, even if the ingredients are exactly the same, and if that's your experience, eat the fruit. Lately I find (with summer and all) that I'm craving smoothies and they have been really filling breakfasts. I do add vegetables (mostly greens, sometimes cucumber) and some protein powder (the vega + greens is my current thing) plus some coconut water and ice, and try not to go overboard with the fruit.

If it's just fruit, I'd suggest eating it rather than turning it into a smoothie just because eating it takes longer and tends to result in feeling fuller sooner so you eat less, or at least you can snack on it over a longer period of time so there's less opportunity to snack on the higher calorie foods.

But if it contains some veggies as well, sometimes turning it into a smoothie is a good way of adding those extra greens you might not want to eat raw or with your meal.

You should do whatever fits in your calorie goal and you enjoy, HOWEVER, this is my personal opinion.

I'm going to copy and paste a reply i made previously to someone who wanted to juice or drink smoothies for every meal because she wanted to give her digestion a break.


i don't agree with "you must eat all whole foods" in this video, but she provides some really good information on not only why eating blended/smoothies/etc. is not better than whole foods, but also the reason why it's NOT recommended.

I suggest you watch it, it's pretty eye opening. She is addressing the RawTil4 lifestyle, but her points address the way you're eating.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDLNstgQcBk&t=5m44s

And if you don't want to watch it let me go ahead and sum it up for you.

Essentially when you are eating whole foods in their natural form they are combined with fiber and micronutrients. When you are masticating your food it releases enzymes to break down the food you are eating. This food is meant to be broken down over a long period of time in your stomach and the fiber is meant to slow the absorption of carbohydrates into your blood stream. In addition, the more you chew, the slower you are eating, and the sooner you will feel "full".

Our hunger is triggered by a hormone called "ghrelin" which is produced stomache/duodenum. This hormone says "I'M HUNGRY FEED ME!" when the stomach is empty. When the stomach is stretched it reduces the hormone to say "okay, i'm full, i don't need to eat anymore".

When you are drinking juices or smoothies with a high water content they pass through the digestive system in a very short amount of time. This means that you will feel hungry again in a short period of time because the stomach is not being stretched (which triggers that hormone to stop producing). Whereas with the slow digestion of whole foods they would take up more space in your stomach causing you to feel fuller longer.

In addition, because eating foods in their whole form takes a longer time and requires a lot of chewing you will feel full sooner. For example, if you tried to sit down and eat all of these veggies/fruits you would find it a struggle, whereas you can drink them in a smoothie/shake/juice in 5 minutes no big deal. Where's the problem with this? If you were to eat them in whole form you may get a few hundred calories in before you're full... you can drink a 1,200 calories date-o-rade and be hungry an hour later.

Also, something that needs to be addressed is the idea that our digestion "needs a break". This could not be farther from the truth. In our body we have both voluntary and involuntary muscles and actions within the body. Our body has evolved to work this way.

For example, when you want to move your arm, your leg, blink your eyes, etc. These are all voluntary muscle contractions.

HOWEVER, involuntary muscle contractions happen without us even having to think about it. For example, your body is breathing and respirating right now. Your body is using energy right now. Your heart is pumping blood right now. And guess what... Smooth muscles found in the internal walls of the stomach, intestines, uterus, and blood vessels are working all the time whether you like it or not. In other words, even if you consumed nothing but water, or heck, nothing at all they are working ALL THE TIME.


So, consuming food this way is not only bad for regulating calories, digestion, and hormonal regulation....there's just no scientific backing to eating in this manner. There's no "giving your body a break". If there were... you might very well be dead.

cwolfman13 wrote: »

Fruit in either case isn't really particularly satiating IMO...fruit is just something I usually have as a quick snack or for desert, I really don't expect it to fill me up or keep me full. Personally, I don't really understand the "smoothie craze"...the only time I really ever have one is for recovery from a long ride or something...and it's a calorie bomb at about 900 calories.

900 colories? How many ounces/grams serving or what the heck is in it to make it that much calories? I mean my typical 8 ounce serving smoothie runs at most 200 calories. And that's if I put something like yogurt in it.