How to avoid the smoothie calorie shock

03 Jul How to avoid the smoothie calorie shock

Grabbing a Smoothie for a healthy fast pick me up?

NOT SO FAST- You might be in for a calorie shock- A smoothie calorie shock!

Does this sound familiar?

You’re in a hurry…late for a meeting…no time to prep your usual healthy yummy snack. But it’s OK, you think, “I’ll dash into the healthy aisle at the grocery store and grab a smoothie.” You Check the ingredients (you always do) – no gluten check- no dairy check- no added processed sugar or artificial sweeteners check- hurry gotta get going OMG dozens of choices!!

You find one that’s mostly veggies- kale, cucumber, celery, lemon juice, ginger, fruit – sounds yummers. You can grab n go.  Calories- 80 – ok not bad. WAIT A MINUTE- On second look, it says 80 cals PER SERVING, not per bottle. Oh and that small bottle 12-16 oz says 2.5 SERVINGS PER BOTTLE.

Ugh- the math I learned in grade school says that’s 200 calories PER BOTTLE. I don’t know about you, but when I buy a drink- I don’t just have ONE THIRD of the bottle and space it out over 2.5 days!?!

So you move on and start checking out the other choices- maybe this one was a bad choice. Plus, you still need some protein- now you’re REALLY  in  hurry but gotta get something – it’s gonna be a long day.

OK here’s a protein shake- quick glance at label- check- 130 calories- ok more than you wanted but ok. WHAT? ‘Serving size’ – 2 per bottle. So now your getting 260 calories!! In other words, you are facing a serious smoothie calorie shock!

How does this stack up against my usual snack or smoothies I make at home?

Fruit – (lge tangerine)  60 cals, 15g carbs handful nuts (about 12 almonds) 60 cals, 2g carbs, 3 g pro pro- 1 lge hb egg – 80 cals, 0.6g carbs, 6g pro

total snack: 200 calories, 17 carbs, 9g protein

*Store bought                                                                  cals/bottle:    carbs      grams sugar    protein g

“Super Greens”                                                                        260           56g             54g                   6g

Famous smoothie store: (small)                                         285            72g             59g                  0 g

Famous smoothie store(sm-’lean, protein shake)       1,035 (!)    145g            125g                25g

Can you say CARB CRASH?!

* Source- company websites

What can be learned from this?

We are all so busy…We can’t always take time to eat beautiful, delish and healthy meals- especially in the middle of the day.

Here are some stay on track tips

• READ ALL LABELS ! Very carefully!
• A few minutes of planning ahead can prevent potential sabotage to my meal plan and my well being. All those carbs can make me feel sluggish or set up cravings
• Things I can do:
  • make hard boiled eggs on the weekend (or buy them cooked- many stores now carry them)
  • once a week, pack up servings of nuts in baggies to grab n go
  • cook extra protein at dinner for quick snack the next day
  • put together some smoothie ingredients in a baggie in the fridge when I’ve got a few minutes. Then I can throw it in the blender and be good to go!
  • Grocery stores are catching on as we become healthier. Some stores, like Whole Foods now carry pre-packaged smoothie ingredients in the produce cooler. Throw in some nuts, maybe some protein powder, and in less than 5 minutes you are good to go!(Yes it may cost a little more)…….

“Be Happy…Be Healthy…Be Fit!”

– Natalie Jill

Want more? Here’s 45 super easy, amazing and delicious NUTRITION PACKED, Gluten Free, all natural SMOOTHIE recipes that I love HERE.

Give me 7 days to teach you the habits that will change your life forever! Get your 7 Day Jump Start HERE.

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