THE GREEN SMOOTHIE HEALTH CHALLENGE

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The Green Smoothie Health Challenge



The challenge is to drink a green smoothie each day for one month. It will boost your energy and immune system. It helps level blood sugar, lowers cholesterol, curbs the craving for sugar as well as helps you reach your daily fruit and vegetable requirements in one drink.


The Green Smoothie is really purple. We call it “green” because we try to sneak in as many vitamin packed greens as possible before we sweeten it up with antioxidant berries. This drink is high in fiber and low in calories. Fiber is so very good for us because binds with excess cholesterol (fats) and toxins and helps sweep them out of the body.


The best blender to make your green smoothie in is a Vitamix or Blend-tech, an expensive purchase, but worth every penny of the investment. If you don’t have one then try your food processor or use whatever blender you have available.


Mix your green veggies and liquids first to make a “green sludge” out of them. Make sure no one watches this step until they are hooked. Blend well, if your kid ever bites into a chunk of spinach – well, your busted! It is important to have nothing green visible and for it to taste like fruit especially when you are trying to getting your kids or Hubbie to drink it without drama. Empty glasses and Ahhhs are good, euuuew and eu-yuuuks – leaving you to drink an entire batch - not good.

Purple Passion
Blend into green sludge:


• 2-2 ½ cups water, filtered (or 1 cup coconut milk and 1 cup water)
• 2 large handfuls spinach
• 2 Carrots – organic, peeled
• ¼ Cup Raw Almonds

Add and blend:


• 1 Teaspoon Flax Seed Oil
• 1 Banana, frozen
• 2 Cups Mixed Berries, frozen (or blueberries, frozen)
• 1 Teaspoon Agave or 2-4 frozen dates for sweetness (I don’t care for the after-taste of stevia)


Stir in:


• ½ cup Yogurt or Kefir (don’t blend because blending kills the probiotics)


I pour into glasses for whoever is having one and pour the rest into a mason jar with a plastic screw top lid for later. Sometimes I add vitamin-C crystals to preserve the nutrients if I have to take it to work.


I buy from Costco:

• Big bag of spinach
• Bananas (freeze them)
• Mixed berries (frozen)
• Organic Carrots (baby peeled for convenience)

I buy from Trader Joe’s:

• Raw Almonds
• Raw Cashews
• Raw Pumpkin Seeds
• Raw Sunflower Seeds
• Coconut milk
• Vitamin C crystals

I use distilled water I make with a machine or “Zero Water” from the “Zero Pitcher”. I make my own Kefir with raw milk when I can get it.


Things I have added:


• 2 Kale leaves instead of Spinach
• 1 Apple cored, peel on
• Green Grapes
• Red Grapes
• 2-4 Kiwi (more potassium than a banana, 3 times the vitamin C of an orange)


What I have noticed since I started our daily smoothies:


• Increased Energy
• Haven’t gotten sick during flu season –although I cared for others who had it – and when that happens I usually get it too.
• Sleep better – all night – without body aches
• Wake up alert
• Don’t have “brain fog” in the morning
• Don’t have to have coffee to wake up – only if I want it
• Don’t need as much sleep
• Back doesn’t ache
• Don’t feel hungry until around 2:00 pm
• I don’t crave sweets as much and when I do eat them – they taste too sweet and I eat less

I feel so much more healthy and energetic when I start the day with the “Purple Passion” and I am sure you will too.