{"id":36676,"date":"2020-08-07T16:51:25","date_gmt":"2020-08-07T23:51:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/?p=36676"},"modified":"2020-09-01T09:16:05","modified_gmt":"2020-09-01T16:16:05","slug":"i-dont-like-smoothies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/articles\/nutrition\/i-dont-like-smoothies\/","title":{"rendered":"I Don\u2019t Like Smoothies"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_fullwidth_image src=”https:\/\/womensvoice.com\/en-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/4\/2020\/08\/article-V12-i-do-not-like-smoothies-2-optim.jpg” title_text=”article-V12-i-do-not-like-smoothies-2-optim” _builder_version=”4.5.3″ z_index_tablet=”500″ box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_vertical_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_blur_tablet=”40px” box_shadow_spread_tablet=”0px”][\/et_pb_fullwidth_image][et_pb_fullwidth_code admin_label=”Text – Fullwidth Leader Text” module_id=”fullwidth-leader-text” _builder_version=”4.5.3″ z_index_tablet=”500″]how lockdown permanently changed the way my family eats for the better<\/pee>[\/et_pb_fullwidth_code][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”3.22″][et_pb_row _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.0.47″ custom_padding=”|||” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text – Body Content” _builder_version=”4.5.3″ header_font=”|700|||||||” header_text_color=”#509aa6″ header_font_size=”40px” header_line_height=”40px” hover_enabled=”0″ header_font_size_tablet=”” header_font_size_phone=”30px” header_font_size_last_edited=”on|phone” header_letter_spacing_last_edited=”off|phone” header_line_height_tablet=”” header_line_height_phone=”30px” header_line_height_last_edited=”on|phone” z_index_tablet=”500″ text_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” text_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” text_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” link_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” link_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” link_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” ul_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” ul_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” ul_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” ol_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” ol_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” ol_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” quote_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” quote_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” quote_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_2_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_2_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_2_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_3_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_3_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_3_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_4_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_4_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_4_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_5_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_5_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_5_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” header_6_text_shadow_horizontal_length_tablet=”0px” header_6_text_shadow_vertical_length_tablet=”0px” header_6_text_shadow_blur_strength_tablet=”1px” box_shadow_horizontal_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_vertical_tablet=”0px” box_shadow_blur_tablet=”40px” box_shadow_spread_tablet=”0px”]<\/p>\n

I need to get something off my chest. The truth is I\u2019m not a smoothie person. There, I said it.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I do feel guilty about this since I often extoll the virtues of blended breakfasts. There are lots of good reasons to love homemade shakes at any time of the day. You can\u2019t beat them for a speedy, nutritious morning meal, lunch, or post-workout refuel. You can pack protein, fat, fibre, fruit, vegetables, and nutrient-dense extras all in one tasty meal with minimal cleanup. Portions adapt easily from one serving to many. High-speed mixing accomplishes much of mechanical digestion, with improved absorption, and you can sneak vegetables in for picky eaters.<\/p>\n

Despite all these fantastic upsides, I generally avoid smoothies due to a simple quirk of my physiology \u2013 I don\u2019t love icy cold food or drinks. Especially for breakfast. If there was such a thing as a hot smoothie, I\u2019d be all over it. Oh, wait. I guess that\u2019s called soup.<\/p>\n

Anyway, my kids love smoothies, as most kids do. My teenage son makes one with mixed berries and peanut butter that tastes like PB&J in a glass. For this reason, I have always kept protein powders in the house for the kids\u2019 sakes. However, as the pandemic lockdown descended in March of this year and I endeavoured to make no trips to the grocery store, I started to look at those tubs differently.<\/p>\n

I quickly realized that having high-quality, non-perishable protein in the house would help us buy groceries less often. If we ran low on meat or eggs, we could always find a way to make a satisfying, balanced meal with ingredients on hand. Since protein supplements boost many recipes\u2019 nutrition content, I felt a lot better about the snacking situation. When the self-isolation blues called for comfort food, I gave a favourite brownie recipe a protein tune-up and the results were outstanding (see recipe below).<\/p>\n

Homeschooling highlighted the need for optimal concentration. Protein in the morning helps stabilize blood sugar, which is a key to maintaining focus. Protein powder got mixed into muffin recipes, baked it into \u201cbreakfast\u201d cookies and stirred into pancake mix. Extra protein pancakes got frozen for quick reheating in the toaster oven.<\/p>\n

Protein Powder Primer<\/h5>\n

There are many options when it comes to protein supplement sources. The two most common are whey based or plant based.<\/p>\n