Keeping healthy is not only about exercise routines and hitting the gym. Keeping healthy is also about what we put into our bodies. Eating healthy is one of the prerequisites in living a healthy lifestyle. Eating vegetables, proteins, and fruits help us in consuming essentials nutrients our bodies need.
Homemade Smoothies
Smoothies are normally what comes to mind when thinking about giving ourselves a treat after a rigorous workout. We’re thinking, “smoothies are great but some places add way too much sugar. We don’t want that!” Although this may be true, our best option is to make smoothies on our own. By doing so, we know exactly what we are putting into our bodies. We head over to the grocery store and pick us up some organic fruits. We pick up a pineapple and some ripe mangos for our homemade smoothie. We head home and start cutting up pieces of fruit and putting it into a blender. We suddenly remember the flavoured syrups we received as birthday gifts a few months ago and decided this would be a great time to try them out. We add a tablespoon of coconut syrup and a teaspoon of banana syrup as well. We mix them up then pour some into a cup. “Delicious, healthy, and homemade, too!” We take a look at the bottles of syrup and read that they are vegan and are gluten-free. “Perfect,” we think to ourselves.
Benefits
Making our own smoothies has limitless benefits. One of the benefits of making our own smoothies is that we can concoct any type of mixture to suit our taste and needs. For instance, perhaps we are looking to make a smoothie that combines fruits and vegetables as part of our breakfast in the morning. We want to make a smoothie that is healthy and jump starts our day. We browse online for a recipe and find one that provides vitamin C, potassium, soy protein, and fiber. We then add other fruits to make it more flavorful. By combining the fruits and vegetables into our smoothie, we benefit from it by consuming necessary nutrients while enjoying the taste of the smoothie. Today, most of us pack a busy schedule and don’t normally have the time think about eating healthy throughout the day. Another benefit of making our own smoothies is that we can prepare them and store them in the fridge. By doing so, we can pour it in a to-go cup and go about our day. It won’t take a chunk of time in our super busy schedule. Drinking smoothies is also a better way to consume nutrients rather than just drinking supplement pills.
Recipes
We’ve briefly discussed how important it is in eating healthy and how making our own smoothies are part of that. Now we’ll discuss a few recipes that can be added to any collection of healthy smoothies. In one recipe we use lemon and turmeric as the main ingredients. The recipe calls for two cups of water, one squeezed lemon, half a teaspoon of ground turmeric, one-fourth teaspoon of ground ginger, one-eighth teaspoon of cinnamon, and one tablespoon of honey. Combine the ingredients in a blender and enjoy. Two people can enjoy this recipe. This smoothie has many beneficial ingredients. Turmeric has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties, which can be used as protection against illness and disease. Lemons, as many of us know, are packed with vitamin C but it also helps in digestion. Cinnamon helps lower blood sugar and ginger aids in lowering cholesterol levels. Another healthy smoothie recipe asks for a cup of pineapple, two cups of spinach, half a cup of grapes, one and a half cup of orange juice, and some ice. Blend the ingredients together and enjoy. Spinach being the key ingredient in this recipe, supplies our bodies with vitamin A, vitamin C, and folate to just name a few. This recipe can be shared amongst four people.
As we can see above, smoothies are the quick and easy way to consume essentials nutrients. By blending varieties of fruits, vegetables, and protein together, we essentially made a power-house snack that is both beneficial and enjoyable to consume. So the next time we are at the grocery store, grab a generous amount of fruits and vegetables and start making healthy smoothies at home.
