Who would have ever thought drinking your food would be one of the easiest, and fastest ways to speed up your metabolism?
If you’re on the “smoothie train” I have some very important news to share with you.
Smoothies aren’t very healthy.
Well that is, if you’re making them like most uninformed women are.
I don’t want to scare you into never drinking another smoothie. It took me 4 years after becoming a nutritionist to realize that smoothies were doing more harm good.
I’ve put together these well-researched and specifically-designed smoothie recipes to help shine some light on why most smoothies are preventing you from getting healthy.
Here are the 7 smoothie recipes for a fast metabolism:
The Green Machine
Ingredients:
- 1 heaping cup spinach
- 1 heaping cup kale
- 1 apple (cored and seeded)
- ½ cup cucumber
- ½ cup ice
- ½ cup coconut water
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Spinach – Spinach is an excellent source of antioxidant nutrients — including vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin A, and manganese —as well as a very good source of the antioxidant zinc and a good source of the antioxidant selenium—it’s no wonder that spinach helps lower risk of numerous health problems related to oxidative stress and inflammation.
2.) Kale – Kale is high in vitamins K, A and C. Vitamin A helps support skin health and vision. Vitamin C is important for immune health and joint health, helps to keep the body hydrated and also increases your metabolism.
3.) Cucumber – Cucumbers contain multiple B vitamins, including vitamin B1, vitamin B5, and vitamin B7 (biotin). B vitamins are known to help ease feelings of anxiety and buffer some of the damaging effects of stress.
Banana Blueberry Coconut Almond
Ingredients:
- ½ cup blueberries
- 1 banana
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp. almond butter
- ½ cup ice
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Blueberries – Blueberries protect our bodies from damage by free radicals, unstable molecules that can damage cellular structures and contribute to aging and diseases like cancer
2.) Coconut Milk – Studies find that medium-chain triglycerides (MCT) fatty acids found in coconut milk increase energy expenditure and help enhance physical performance. Following exercise, muscles also need plenty of nutrients — including electrolytes like magnesium and potassium that are found in coconut milk — to repair broken down tissue and grow back even stronger.
Mango Avocado
Ingredients:
- ½ cup mango
- 1 avocado
- ½ cup coconut water
- Juice from 1 lemon
- ½ cup ice
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Mango – Mangoes contain impressive amounts of vitamin C, vitamin A, and flavonoids like betacarotene, alphacarotene and beta-cryptoxanthin in mangos help provide benefits, such as healthy immune function, normal blood pressure, good vision and strong bones
2.) Avocado – Avocados improve nutrient absorption in a meal which can help reduce hunger. The fat in the avocado is largely monounsaturated. It helps lower your blood cholesterol levels and burn fat.
3.) Lemon – The health benefits of lemons are due to its many nourishing elements like vitamin C, vitamin B6, vitamin A, vitamin E, folate, niacin thiamin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, copper, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, zinc, phosphorus
Post-Workout Smoothie
Ingredients:
- ½ cup strawberries
- ½ cup blueberries
- 1 banana
- ¼ cup coconut water
- 1 Tbsp. honey
- 1 tsp. lemon juice
- ½ cup ice
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Strawberries – Strawberries can increase the body’s production of a hormone that stimulates your metabolism and suppresses your appetite. And one cup of strawberries contains only 49 calories.
2.) Coconut water – Coconut water contains magnesium, which is necessary for activating muscles and nerves, creating energy in your body by activating adenosine triphosphate (ATP), helping digest proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, and is necessary for cellular health (i.e. an optimal metabolic rate)
3.) Honey – Raw honey contains natural minerals and vitamins which help the metabolizing of undesirable cholesterol and fatty acid on the organs and tissues into the system, hence preventing obesity and promoting better health for us.
The Anti-Inflammatory Smoothie
Ingredients:
- ½ cup strawberries
- 1 cup spinach
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 1 Tbsp. raw honey
- ½ cup blueberries
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup ice cubes
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Coconut Oil – The healthy fat in coconut oil plays an essential role in regulating blood sugar: it slows the digestive process to ensure a steady, even stream of energy from your food by lowering the overall glycemic index of your meal.
2.) Blueberries – Blueberries have a high level of naturally phytochemicals, occurring antioxidants, that can help you lose belly fat. Blueberries are a good source of dietary fiber, Vitamin C and potassium.
The Antiaging Smoothie
Ingredients:
- ¼ cup blackberries
- ¼ cup raspberries
- ½ cup blueberries
- ½ cup strawberries
- ½ cup coconut water
- 2 tsp. chia seeds
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Raspberries – By increasing enzyme activity, oxygen consumption, and heat production in certain types of fat cells, raspberry phytonutrients like rheosmin may be able to decrease risk of obesity as well as risk of fatty liver.
2.) Chia seeds – Studies show that the addition of chia seeds to your diet also reduces visceral adipose tissue, a “belly fat” tissue that effects the metabolism of the body and is a component of obesity!
3.) Protein Powder – Protein is the most thermogenic of all macro-nutrients, meaning it helps burn calories as you digest your food. Unfortunately, this doesn’t occur because most women don’t add enough or any protein to their smoothie. Add protein to burn calories and stabilize your insulin levels.
The Metabolic Smoothie
Ingredients:
- ½ cup blueberries
- ½ cup mango
- 1 heaping cup spinach
- Juice from ½ lemon
- ½ cup coconut water
- 1 Tbsp. coconut oil, melted
- 2 Tbsp. protein powder
- ½ cup ice (optional)
Why this smoothie speeds up your metabolism?
1.) Macro-Balancing – The fastest way to start speeding up your metabolism is to regulate your insulin and leptin levels. If you’re not properly balancing your macro-nutrients (fats, carbs, proteins) you are slowly killing your metabolism and developing insulin and/or leptin resistance.
If you have over 15 pounds to lose, you likely have both.
Learning to balance your macro-nutrients should be priority #1 when you’re starting any program.
To learn more about the health of your metabolism and how macro-balancing can restore your metabolism, click the image below to take my 10-Minute Metabolism Audit:
Most women who end up taking the audit, discover exactly why they’ve been struggling to get healthy and get in shape for so long.
Click the image above to download your audit!
Did you know that ALL of these smoothie factors above also dramatically affect your metabolism and hormonal health, either in a bad way or a good way, depending on which factor I’m talking about…
- Your liver and thyroid health
- Eating the RIGHT amounts of carbs and fats (and enough saturated fat/cholesterol too since it’s the building blocks for progesterone)
- Doing the RIGHT types of exercises that boost HGH, and avoiding the WRONG types of exercises that increase cortisol
- Utilizing adaptogenic herbs and metabolism-enhancing spices
- Your stress levels and your sleep quality
The next page will talk about these and show you how to turbocharge your metabolic rate, maximize your energy, and feel like you’re 27 again:
