I recently joined a gym, and they have a smoothie bar in the front. Each of their freshly-made smoothies costs about $5. They are delicious! They do list all the ingredients on the menu, for health-conscious people and they were perfectly willing to answer calorie questions. Their "meal replacement" smoothies are meant to keep you full and give you energy, build lean muscle, provide essential nutrients, etc. I noticed they certainly DO keep me full for quite a while! I like to order one right before I work out, as my "lunch". I studied their menu and watched them being made, etc. And I came up with home-made versions of each of their smoothies, based on the ingredients lists and the amounts I saw them using. Great just to cool off for summer, or to lose weight!
Fruit-Based Smoothies And Their Ingredients:
(simply place ingredients in a blender, and blend until smooth-- then serve! Frozen fruit works great, fresh also. Most are about 250 calories, remember they are a meal replacement):
1. Strawberry Slam—½ cup water, 1 cup strawberries (frozen or
fresh), ½ cup sliced banana, ½ cup yogurt, 1 to 2 scoops vanilla whey protein
powder, 4 regular-sized ice cubes.
2. Berry, Berry Good—½ cup water, 1 cup mixed berries (strawberries
blueberries, blackberries, raspberries-- frozen or fresh), ½ cup sliced banana,
½ cup yogurt, 1 to 2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder, 4 regular-sized ice
cubes.
3. Hawaiian Harvest—½ cup water, 1 cup total mix of crushed
pineapple and coconut (fresh, sliced or shredded, sugar-free), ½ cup sliced
banana, ½ cup yogurt, 1 to 2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder, 4
regular-sized ice cubes.
4. Mango Crusher—½ cup water, 1 cup total mix of mango and
strawberries (fresh or frozen), ½ cup sliced banana, ½ cup yogurt, 1 to 2
scoops vanilla whey protein powder, 4 regular-sized ice cubes.
5. I Love Veggies—½ cup water, 1 cup total mix of crushed
pineapple, coconut (fresh, flaked or sliced, no sugar) fresh spinach, fresh
kale, and avocado. Add ½ tsp lemon
juice. Then add ½ cup sliced banana, ½ cup
yogurt, 1 to 2 scoops vanilla whey protein powder, 4 regular-sized ice cubes.
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Milk-Based Smoothies And Their Ingredients:
(again, simply add all ingredients to a blender and blend until smooth-- then serve. Most are about 450 to 500 calories, remember they are a meal replacement).
1. Peanut Butter Cup—1 cup any milk you prefer, 2 tsp cocoa
powder, 1 tbsp tsp natural powdered peanut butter, 40g worth of vanilla whey
protein, 4 regular-sized cubes of ice.
2. Banana Nut Blast—1 cup any milk you prefer, 1 tbsp tsp natural
powdered peanut butter, ½ cup sliced banana blended with 40g worth of vanilla whey
protein, 4 regular-sized cubes of ice.
3. Java Jolt—1 cup any milk you prefer, 1 tsp Columbian coffee
crystals, 2 tsp cocoa powder, blended with 40g worth of vanilla whey protein, 4
regular-sized cubes of ice.
4. Body Builder—1 cup any milk you prefer, ½ cup sliced banana,
5g creatine and 40g worth of vanilla or chocolate whey protein, 4 regular-sized
cubes of ice.
5. Chocolate Thinny Mint—1 cup any milk you like, 1 tablespoon
cocoa powder, mint leaves or mint extract to taste, 30g worth of chocolate whey
protein, 4 regular-sized cubes of ice.
TIPS:
Go to a local gym and buy their protein powders, if they sell any. Or look for a good quality whey protein powder in a local store. Its good to have chocolate and vanilla on hand, for more variety in the kind of smoothies you can make. Generally, the fruit-based smoothies use vanilla, and the milk-based smoothies use chocolate. But you can mix and match.
