Is Your Smoothie Sabotaging Your Results?

Smoothies are refreshing and delicious, especially during the heat of summer. However, smoothies can be made to be ultra-fattening, and could be slowing down or even reversing your fitness results.

What should you look out for?

Does It Have Fruit Juice?
If your smoothie relies on fruit juices to give it some added punch, it may not be as healthy as you think. Since fruit juice is often jam-packed with flavor-enhancing sugars, you’d be smart to keep fruit juice well away from your morning pick-me-up. Have a killer recipe that can’t do without fruit juice of some sort? No problem. Just be sure to pick all-natural homemade squeezed fruit juice or coconut water. The best way to make sure your fruit juice is nothing but fruit juice is to squeeze it yourself. Almond milk or plain water are two additional alternatives.

Do You Have to Add Sugar?
For the same reason you don’t want a smoothie with store-bought sugar-laden fruit juice, you want to sidestep any smoothie that requires you to toss extra teaspoons of sugar in. Any fruit you add to your smoothie should have plenty of sugar to give it the sweetness you desire. Anything else is excessive and will serve to slow you down and encourage fat storage.

Do You Toss in Yogurt?
Smoothies that include yogurt can come out on the healthy or unhealthy side of things. It all depends on what kind of yogurt you use. If your favorite type of yogurt is stuffed with added sugars and flavors, it’s not going to be a good way to power yourself up for the day. Check the label. The best kind of yogurt to use is homemade, organic, or the Greek varieties.

Is It Super-Sized?
No matter what healthy ingredients you add to your smoothie, it can still sabotage your weight and health goals if you can’t stop eating it. Before you serve yourself a 48-ounce smoothie, consider your weight goals and split your morning smoothie into appropriate portions. Drink down one portion in the morning and save the rest for a small afternoon snack, or freeze it and finish it off the next morning. Either way, avoiding an oversized smoothie will keep your smoothie from ruining your diet.

Do You Ever Color It Green?
While fruit smoothies are incredibly delicious, it’s a great idea to switch it up by making a veggie smoothie on occasion. You may even want to go green the majority of the time. The deep green color is sure to give you some vitamins and minerals that your body is likely missing, and skipping the fruit on occasion will remind your taste buds that good things don’t always have to be sweet. Spinach and kale are excellent and tasty choices.