Although I hate being in a hurry, there are days when I simply don’t have a choice. You have to get to different places, meet lots of people, and most often, you end up skipping your wake-up routine and your morning workout, getting dehydrated, and eating junk food in a hurry. These days can be much easier on your body and mind if you learn to put your health first and organize things. And, a nourishing and energizing smoothie is definitely part of the picture.
For me, the perfect morning routine has specific steps that make me feel great and get me ready for anything that might come up during the day:
- Two glasses of warm water with lemon.
- Morning yoga routine that includes inversions (sirsana/headstand and sarvangasana /shoulderstand postures) to reinvigorate the neuroendocrine system.
- Fresh beet and grapefruit juice.
- A nourishing breakfast.
When I have a hurried day ahead, the routine tightens a bit, but the essentials stay the same. I drink the warm water with lemon, I reduce my yoga routine to a 10-minute stretching, and I merge the fresh juice with the breakfast and have a nourishing protein smoothie to help my body cope with the challenges of the day. If you want to prepare your body for an intense workout, then you should also consider having a protein smoothie at breakfast.
Protein is essential for maintaining the good health of our body’s tissues and the recommended daily intake (RDI) is one gram of protein for each kilogram of our weight. You don’t need to stick to dairy and soy to obtain the protein RDI – if you have variety in your diet, you will be just fine. There are many vegan foods that provide important quantities of protein, and the most important are:
- Legumes.
- Oats.
- Nuts and seeds.
- Dark leafy greens.
A quality smoothie that really nourishes your body should be packed with valuable greens, antioxidant fruits, potassium, and vegan proteins. By reducing the animal protein to a minimum, we accelerate the natural detoxification process of our body and we don’t burden it with excess protein.
The berry protein smoothie contains everything our body needs to kickstart the day:
- Gorgeous-colored berries, loaded with antioxidants.
- Dark leafy greens (you can choose any from spinach, kale, or chard) for calcium and proteins.
- Chia, flax, and hemp seeds for fiber and an extra protein load when you’re facing a busy day.
- Banana for its potassium content, which helps the detoxification process, but also for the sugars that keep you energized.
- Coconut milk for a healthy fat addition and delicious taste.
- Mint leaves for a nice, fresh flavor
Berry Protein Power Smoothie
Ingredients
- 1 cup mixed berries strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, cranberries
- 1 cup mixed greens chard, kale, spinach or any other available
- 1 banana
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1 tbsp hemp hearts
- 1 tsp ground flax seed
- 1/2 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup filtered water
- 5-6 mint leaves
Instructions
- Blend all ingredients until smooth and drink right away.
Notes
January 24, 2015
How could anything that gorgeous NOT be incredibly healthy??
January 24, 2015
🙂 Indeed, healthy ingredients are so photogenic!
January 24, 2015
Gorgeous! <3
January 24, 2015
<3 Thank you!
January 25, 2015
such beautiful colours! i would love to have this smoothie now and the glass looks great too!
x
laura & nora
January 26, 2015
Thank you, dear Laura & Nora! I love that glass too 🙂 x ana
January 20, 2016
Question – do you use full fat coconut milk (i.e. the kind that comes in a can) or watered down coconut milk (like Silk, So Delicious, etc.?)
Thanks!
January 21, 2016
I actually use homemade coconut milk (I blend fresh coconut or unsweetened desiccated with water, then filter), but you can use watered down coconut milk. I only use full fat milk for cooking, it’s much too heavy for adding it to smoothies.
February 15, 2017
What a beautiful color! Can’t wait to try it out, it looks so delicious! Thanks for sharing.
February 15, 2017
Thank you, I love that pink color too 🙂