Green Smoothies

I wrote about going green right here. You can go back and read that rather brilliant post again if you so desire. Today, I'm going to talk about green smoothies.

Health and diet are big interests of mine and once while browsing another site, I came across a link to the Green Smoothie Girl. There's a wealth of good health info on the site and it's an enjoyable one to look through. I signed up for her email newsletter and you should also.

I like smoothies but I've always had fruit smoothies or fruit smoothies with a yogurt or kefir base. I was reluctant to try a green one. It just sounded, well, disgusting. It was several months after I signed up for Robyn's (the Green Smoothie Girl) newsletter before I actually decided to try it. I'm glad I did.

She has instructions on the site on how to make one but you can always alter things to suit your tastes. The basics are a fruit base along with greens, enough water to make a smoothie and maybe some stevia to make it a little sweeter. I've tried adding carrot to it but it doesn't taste as good. My favorite combo is banana, clementine, and strawberries, along with the greens. I've made some that I was able to choke down but just barely so I gave up being adventurous. Mostly, they have been pretty good.

If you've ever spent any time on a raw food web site, you may have come across the term "blended salads." In case you're wondering, that's a green smoothie. Some of those raw fooders use a fruit base and same make a savory green smoothie. I've yet to try that. I'm not sure I want to.

You will want a good blender. I have a Vita Mix. Robyn likes the BlendTec. A 20 dollar blender from Walmart will probably not cut it and it won't last long if you're making green smoothies every day. You can buy one from her site at a price you probably won't be able to beat.

I won't go into the benefits of green smoothies other than that it's easy to get a good nutritious meal on the road and I spend a lot of time driving. They make it easy for me to fill up on something good for you while going down the highway. For other benefits, check out the website.

She has a book coming out called, surprisingly enough, "The Green Smoothie Diet." It's one I will add to my library.

Just so you know, I am in no way associated with her site and I don't get a commission if you go there from here and buy something. I just like green smoothies and I discovered them through her site. It's a fun site to browse and she's got a lot of good stuff there. Even if you don't like smoothies but are interested in overall health, it's a good place to stop by.

After writing this, I'm reminded that I'm hungry. A green smoothie would go well right now. Take the plunge and try it. Yes it does sound gross but they really are quite good and very good for you. Give it a shot.

Jack LaLanne and Change

As I was thumbing through the paper this morning on the way to the comics I spotted a headline that said, "Fitness buff LaLanne still strong at 94."

He still exercises twice a day in his home gym and swims 30 minutes daily. He says that people should exercise a half hour 3 times a week. And don't take a rest. He changes his routine every 30 days to avoid monotony.

I exercise most days from 20-30 minutes a day and I don't rest. So we're on the same page on that part. 

The article said he eats only at 10 a.m and 7 p.m. with no snacking in between. That flies in the face of all the gurus these days that advocate 6 small meals a day. I'm in agreement with Jack on this one. I don't eat at set times like he does but I do generally eat 2-3 meals a day and I don't snack. It's a lot better on your internal parts to allow one meal to fully digest before eating another, something that can't happen on 6 small meals a day.

One thing I found interesting is that it said he ate a daily breakfast of 4 egg whites with 3 pieces of fruit. Several years ago I read an article in which he said he consumed a soy protein shake every morning. It seems he's off the soy and now doing egg whites.

But Jack has a history of changing diet. He was vegan for a long time. Then he added fish back into his diet. In the same article about the soy shake he said that he had a salad with at least 10 different vegetables every night with a 3 ounce piece of broiled fish. He doesn't eat dairy or red meat.

I don't know why he jettisoned soy for egg whites or why he went from vegan to fish but apparently Jack isn't afraid of change and we shouldn't be either. If something's not working for you, instead of doing the same old thing and hoping you get better results, you need to be adaptable. You need to change.

Whether it's you diet or your exercise routine, if it's not producing for you, or not working as well as it once did, try something different. Change your workouts a little. Tweak your diet. Or maybe both need a major overhaul.

Of course if what you're doing is serving you well, by all means keep it up. But if the results start falling behind, you just might need a change.

Jack LaLanne is a MAN and a true fitness icon. I have no idea why he's changed his diet over the years but change he has. And it has worked. There are no doubt many people 50, 60, 70 years his junior that can't keep up with him. What he's doing works for him.

As a side note, I once read that he used to drink a quart of cow's blood every day. Besides being disgusting, I don't know if it's true as I never bothered to try to verify it. I have my doubts.

You Are What You Eat

You are what you eat. Or to put it another way, you reap the results of what you choose to put in your mouth. You give the body good fuel, it rewards you with better health, more energy, less sickness, etc. You feed it junk and it just doesn't run right.

You can read a hundred different "experts" and get a hundred different opinions on what the best food is. I'm not going to argue that but I do have my opinions. What I am going to do for the most part here is tell you what you shouldn't eat.

First and foremost, the bane of modern civilization, is soda. You get absolutely no nutrition, empty calories, and lots of chemicals and harmful acids. Even if you drink diet pop, you're still getting chemicals and acids. It's no good and if you care about your health, you shouldn't drink the stuff. It was hard for me to give up my beloved Mountain Dew but I did and feel much better for it.

Hydrogenated oils are another on the list shouldn't be consumed. It's not natural. It's created by adding hydrogen to vegetable oils. There have been many studies done indicating the harmful consequences of hydrogenated fat products. Do a  search and find some if you're interested. One study I read even linked skin cancer to it's consumption. This particular study said sun exposure doesn't cause skin cancer unless one also consumes hydrogenated oils. People who get lots of sun but don't consume this product have very low rates of skin cancer. Bottom line is that it's no good and should be avoided.

Don't eat white. By this I mean white flour, white sugar, white rice, etc. They provide calories with very little nutrition. Eat whole grain products, brown rice, and use honey or maple syrup or raw sugar as a sweetener if you must. At least the raw sugar does provide some needed minerals which white sugar is lacking. Is a piece of birthday cake on your child's birthday going to kill you? No it won't but few and far between is best if you can't or won't do away with it all together.

High fructose corn syrup is another and it's in most sodas as well as lots of different processed foods from bread to ketchup to salad dressings to snack items. Read labels and avoid if you can. Once again, there are lots of studies done about this which you can find if you care to look.

Regardless of what else you eat, if you stay away from these things you can't help but improve your health. I think almost everyone would benefit by avoiding these and adding lots of fresh vegetables, particularly the green variety. A large salad a day would do wonders. Raw fruits, nuts, and seeds are other items most of us could stand to eat more of.

I don't think there's a one size fits all diet plan. One needs to be flexible regarding one's own individual needs, metabolism, genetics, health problems, etc. Some can eats lots of grains to good effect, others can't. Nevertheless, avoiding the bad and concentrating the bulk of one's calories on the good, you can't help but be better for it.

Remember, you are what you eat. Garbage in, you will get garbage out. It's that simple.