1. Not Just About Milk and Fruit
When you think of a smoothie, the first image that comes to mind is fruit and milk blended together with a few supplements or protein mix. However, you can use different vegetables like celery and carrots to make sure you get more nutrients naturally. Greens are great because they're rich in phytochemicals like vitamin C, flavonoids and carotenoids that help strengthen your immune system. Try spinach, cucumbers, asparagus or leek with a little bit of peeled ginger, a couple of sticks of celery and apples for a super healthy smoothie. It actually tastes okay, but you may need to adjust the amount of each ingredient to suit your own tastes.
2. Relieve Hemorrhoids With a Smoothie
For those of you who hate bran cereal but need to soften your stool, use a great-tasting smoothie to stop the hemorrhoid-causing straining when using the bathroom. All you have to do is add some anti-constipation ingredients to what you already put in your smoothies. A half a cup of cooked barley or two teaspoons of oat bran or wheat germ or two teaspoons of flax seed works well. Barley, oat bran and wheat germ add fiber, and flax seed lubricates your intestinal tract.
3. Watch Out For the Sugar Shockers
Some of those pre-made smoothies that sound so healthy actually have more sugar than a can of Coca-Cola. However, most of this sugar isn't natural sugar from the fruits themselves. To cut down on the amount of sugar in your smoothies, make them from scratch without using any convenience juices. Try fresh-squeezed juice instead, and make sure your fruits and vegetables are fresh.
4. Smoothies: The New Coffee
Caffeine-rich coffee used to be the picker-upper people reached for when their energy levels got low. Many people still reach for the black brew but there's a better way to re-energize yourself. Glycogen, a form of sugar your body creates from carbohydrates, supplies energy to the central nervous system and gives you that extra oomph to go on. Add carbohydrates to a smoothie in a 3:1 ratio to protein to make it easy to digest and give you the energy you need to continue your day
5. Restock Valuable Nutrients With Smoothies
You don't just lose water in the form of sweat when you exercise. You also lose nutrients, and you only have a 30-minute window of opportunity to replace them. Make yourself a delicious smoothie high in protein and creatine. You can add creatine to your smoothie as a supplement. To get enough creatine in your diet without supplements, you'd have to eat 500 grams of raw meat or fish throughout the day.
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