Slim Down With Green Smoothies

Discover the 10 reasons why Green Smoothies are great for shedding unwanted body fat.

Unless you have been living on Mars you would have noticed the rise in popularity of the ‘Green Smoothie’. Five years ago pretty much no one had heard of a green smoothie, a fruit smoothie yes but a green one… no!

Why would you add vegetables to a smoothie you would have thought?

But now everyone is making green smoothies because supposedly they are great for everything… energy, skin rejuvenation, slowing aging, fertility and of course weight loss.

So given that it’s just turned spring let’s discover why green smoothies are a great way to help you shed unwanted body fat.

10 Ways Green Smoothies Help Make You Slim

1. They are fast.

One of the most common challenges you’ve faced in the past when you’ve tried to lose weight is finding time to prepare the new food you’re meant to eat. A big reason you eat foods you know aren’t the best for you is because they’re quick. There’s nothing quicker than making some toast or pouring cereal and milk into a bowl or having a coffee for breakfast before you rush out the door. The downside is these breakfast options aren’t nutritious or good for your waistline. A Green Smoothie is the perfect healthy alternative to these. With a green smoothie, there’s not much to do. Just stuff all your ingredients into the jug or cup, blend and drink. You don’t even have to chew much. So if you’re a busy person a green smoothie is a fast, easy way to have a highly nutritious, low calorie, low carb breakfast. And as I mentioned a Green Smoothie is pre-chewed. When you use a high-speed blender to make your Green Smoothie it liquefies (not juices) the ingredients. Which basically chews the food for you and given that most people don’t chew their food well enough this is extremely beneficial. It helps you get more nutrients out of the food you just consumed and puts less strain on your digestive system.

2. They are convenient. 

When you’re trying to lose weight the more convenient your food options the better. Probably the number one reason I’ve found for women, especially mums, giving up on their weight loss program is because it’s too much effort after a while. Making something for yourself and something for the family becomes too much work after a while. However Green Smoothies solve this problem. As I mentioned Green Smoothies are fast. But the other brilliant thing about Green Smoothies is you can pre-make them and take them anywhere. You can drink them in the car on the way to work or while dropping off your kids or grandkids. You can drink them on the train or even while you’re walking. They are great if you have a conference, training or a workshop to attend because you can pack one, or a couple, in your bag to drink throughout the day. Then you don’t have to eat the often unhealthy food provided. If you have a job where you don’t get to take long meal breaks like in nursing, hairdressing and beauty therapy, then Green Smoothies are ideal because you can sip them throughout the day whenever you have a short break. If you have a job where you’re on the road then Green Smoothies are perfect because you can pack them in an Esky or cooler bag to eat while you drive. No mess… no fuss… super healthy food on the go.

3. Gets you off breakfast cereal.

This is a big one if you want to shed fat. While breakfast cereal is quick and easy it’s loaded with carbs and is nutritionally poor. They have to add synthetic vitamins and minerals to eat to make it ‘healthy’. Green smoothies on the other hand provide you with a healthy, nutritionally rich, fast to make and fast to consume alternative to breakfast cereal.

4. Reduces your sugar intake.

Even though you eat more fruit and vegetables when you make Green Smoothies your sugar intake goes down. That’s because fruits and vegetables are mostly water and fibre. Green Smoothies gets you off bread, pasta, breakfast cereal, biscuits, crackers, pastries, cakes, muffins, muesli bars, chocolates, lollies and any other junky or high carb food, which all turn into loads of sugar as you digest them. The less sugar you take in, the lower your insulin levels and the easier it is for your body to switch into fat-burning mode.

5. Stops blood sugar spikes and blood sugar lows.

Despite what you might have heard or read Green Smoothies help rebalance your blood sugar levels. That’s because as I’ve already mentioned they are full of nutrients not energy. They make you full but without spiking your blood sugars. Especially if you put some nuts, seeds or avocado in them. When you stop spiking your blood sugars it stops your body from over-secreting insulin which then stops you from suffering significant blood sugar falls. When your blood sugar levels are stable you don’t crave sugary sweet things. You are able to be more controlled with your food choices and how much you eat which then helps you shed fat.

6. You can eat a greater volume of low calorie and low carb food.

Because you blitz everything up in a Green Smoothie it allows you to consume much more leafy greens than you could if you had to eat them. Leafy green contain lots of water and fibre which makes you feel full but even though you might consume a lot you don’t actually consume many calories or carbohydrates. Which are two big ticks for slimming down.

7. Great for gut health.

Much of the latest research into weight gain, weight loss and the metabolic rate has discovered that these are not just dependent on what you eat and how much you exercise but also on do you have a ‘good’ or ‘bad’ balance of microbes in your gut. More and more studies are finding that overweight people have more ‘bad’ microbes in their gut than slim people. One of the easiest and cheapest ways to boost the levels of ‘good’ microbes in your gut is to eat more fibrous whole (green vegetables). And Green Smoothies are the tastiest and easiest way to do that. But besides boosting your ‘good’ gut microbe numbers all the fiber and fluid in Green Smoothies keep your bowels clean and moving regularly. If you have sluggish bowels toxins leach into your system and overload your liver which is no good. That’s because your liver is where you burn a lot of your fat so you need to look after it and treat it well.

8. Boosts your vitamins, mineral & antioxidants intake.

All the plant based ingredients you put in your Green Smoothie like fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds and oils are rich nutrient sources. To burn fat effectively, i.e. make energy, your cells need vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Green Smoothies make it easy to boost your intake and flood your cells with nutrients. Plus because Green Smoothies are liquefied you digest them better which means you get more minerals out of them. And when you’re choosing what to put into your Green Smoothie choose things that have deep vibrant colours. The darker and deeper the colours of the fruits and veggies you use the more vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in them.

9. Quenches inflammation.

You may not be aware of it but inflammation slows down fat burning in your body. Inflammation makes your cells insulin resistant which causes your body to store fat instead of burning it. And inflammation doesn’t always mean arthritis or pain. Often inflammation is silent because it’s not in your joints but throughout your body. Signs that your body is inflamed are fluid retention, puffiness, fatigue, depression, high blood pressure, high cholesterol levels and belly fat. Green Smoothies are an antidote for inflammation because they have loads of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in them. These nutrients stop further cellular damage and help your cells repair themselves. When your cells are healthy they can burn fat.

10. Boosts your hydration.

The more hydrated you are the less hungry you feel. But many people tell me they don’t like drinking plain water. Well, a Green Smoothie is a delicious way to get more fluid into you. And the fluid in it doesn’t have to be water. It could be coconut water, coconut cream or nut milk like almond milk. Plus you get loads of water out of the fruit and veg in your Green Smoothie.

If you would like more ideas and recipes to boost your metabolism, increase your energy levels and slow down the effects of aging when you’re a busy mum or grand mum then subscribe to my email newsletter by clicking this link http://eepurl.com/bYNKr1