Happy National Smoothie Day! Smoothies can be a great addition to a healthy diet. With the right ingredients, they can really help optimize the nutritional value of your day. If you find yourself skipping meals or being too short on time to eat, a meal replacement smoothie might be right for you. To ensure the maximum amount of vitamins, minerals, protein, and fiber, try combining each of the following:
Fruit: Add 1 cup of any fruit or fruit blend that you like. Fruit will give your smoothie sweetness and flavor while also providing vitamins, minerals, and fiber.
Vegetable: Vegetables can be a great addition to your smoothie, too! Try adding ½ to 1 cup of veggies to maximize your smoothie’s fiber content. Baby spinach, kale, carrots, beets, and cucumber are some good ones to try.
Fiber: It’s important to prioritize fiber in your meal replacement smoothie to help with fullness. For an extra boost of fiber, try adding dry rolled oats (¼ cup = 5 grams fiber), raspberries (1 cup = 8 grams fiber), or chia seeds (1 tablespoon = 4 grams fiber).
Protein: Protein is an important part of every meal, so it should also be present in your meal replacement smoothie too! Greek yogurt, cow’s milk, soymilk, chia seeds, nut butter, and hemp hearts are all great sources of protein.
Here’s one of my favorite meal replacement smoothies. Feel free to try it out and let us know what you think!
Protein PB&J Smoothie
1 cup blueberries
1 cup spinach
¼ cup dry rolled oats
2 tbsp. natural peanut butter
1 cup fat free milk
1 handful ice
Nutritional value: 520 calories, 22 grams protein, 11 grams fiber
Until next time,
Emily