An easy smoothie recipe to kick start your healthy eating new year’s resolutions.
A new year has begun and we all want to start on the right foot. It’s our chance to be better people, change our lifestyle, and leave bad habits behind. January is the official month of fresh starts, and we can take this moment to be good to ourselves.
Bye, bye binge eating
Those big Christmas tables filled with delicious traditional holiday dishes and hyper-caloric desserts are now only a memory. Our body is clamoring for a break from all these rich foods: sugar levels in our blood are probably way above the recommended values. We can’t keep eating like we did over the holidays: we need to detox our body, and a smoothie is perfect to help us get rid of all those toxins.
Fortunately, many Latin American countries are blessed with weather conditions that allow them to find a wide variety of fruits and vegetables all year-round. We can combine them in different ways to make a nutritious smoothie.
Purifying shakes
Many people trust in the benefits of these liquid concoctions. They all agree on their purifying power or their ability to help get rid of all that is damaging to our bodies. Plus, a well-made smoothie can be energizing, allowing us to take the tiredness we feel on the aftermath of the holidays and leave it all behind.
Smoothies are very easy to make, don’t take much time to prepare, and we can bring them wherever we go. It’s recommended that we drink them in the morning, and if you take them first thing, before eating or drinking anything else, even better!
You can drink them cold or at room temperature, but what’s more important is to take them right after making them. If you can’t do that, you can freeze them in a stainless steel container.
It’s not a diet, but a part of a healthy lifestyle
An important thing you must know: detox smoothies are not a diet to lose weight! They are drinks that aid in the cleansing of our bodies and in taking care of our health. When we make them, we must not give in to the temptation of adding too many fruits because that ends up making us ingest too much sugar. That’s why green juices right after waking up are the best choice, especially if you want the smoothie to aid in your digestion process.
This creamy avocado smoothie is a perfect example of this kind of beverage. It’s tasty, purifying and very nutritious!
Ingredients
- ½ avocado
- 1 cucumber, peeled
- 2 large bunches of spinach
- ½ cup of water
- A handful of almonds or nuts
- 1 t. honey (optional)
Preparation
- To make this smoothie, place the cucumber, spinach and water in the blender and blend until you get a creamy texture.
- Then, add the avocado, the nuts or almonds, and the honey. Only use the honey if you prefer to make your smoothie a little sweeter.
- Blend again until you get a smooth texture.
- Drink right away so it doesn’t oxidize.
Benefits of each smoothie ingredient
This drink isn’t only easy to make, but you can find the ingredients easily everywhere, especially in Latin America, which is the region of origin of this smoothie’s protagonist: avocado!
Is there someone who doesn’t like this fruit? It has so many beneficial properties! It has a high content of good vegetable oils, it’s rich in antioxidants and minerals like potassium, phosphorus, iron and magnesium and it contains high quality proteins, vitamins and fiber. In fact, many people say that it has all the necessary nutrients to survive. By consuming avocado, we’re getting the healthy fatty acids that we also get from the nuts we added to this smoothie.
On the other hand, cucumber brings a refreshing quality to the juice, it’s very hydrating, and it’s a natural diuretic that helps eliminate toxins.
Spinach, our other ingredient, is rich in vitamins and minerals, and its high potassium content helps drain liquid and eliminate toxins while purifying your blood. It also helps stimulate the detox enzymes in your body, it’s a natural antioxidant and contains omega 3.
With this power combo we’ll get healthier, more radiant and luminous skin, but the biggest advantage of this smoothie is allowing our body to breathe. This shake will alkalinize our whole body, and help us avoid the dreaded water retention issue. This green cocktail is also a powerful concentrate of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and fiber that provides our body with the much needed vitality we search for every January.
Evidently, these juices do next to nothing if the rest of your eating and lifestyle choices are unhealthy; it will be more effective if you have healthy habits. That’s why it’s so important to always eat balanced meals and have an exercise routine: that is the only way we’ll feel better and more active.
Combine fresh and raw vegetables, fruits and nuts! This way you’ll get all the benefits of clean eating in a single glass. What are you waiting for? Have fun mixing different ingredients, cleanse your body and start your day with lots of energy.
