Smoothie - A Good Idea? It Depends!

Smoothies are a great way to meet your daily micronutrient needs. Especially for those who don't enjoy vegetables or face challenges with consuming fruits, a smoothie can be an easy and tasty way to meet the recommended vitamin intake for a day.

Smoothies for Athletes

For athletes, smoothies are also a great way to fulfill their micronutrient needs. They can also be helpful in boosting calorie intake when energy demands are high. With the right recipe, athletes can consume a significant number of calories in a single smoothie, bringing them closer to their energy balance at the end of the day.

The downside is that if we want the opposite, that is, to restrict our energy intake for weight loss, using the wrong recipe can make it challenging to actually lose weight. Often, we add more than just fruits, vegetables, and water to our smoothies. We incorporate various ingredients that ultimately increase the calorie content.

Sometimes we underestimate it... an example

Let's think for a moment. Imagine we are making the following healthy smoothie. (It is described on the internet as a healthy, perfect choice):

• 1 cup berries
• 1 banana
• 0.5 avocado
• 2 cups milk
• 0.5 tsp chia seeds
• 1 tbsp peanut butter

That adds up to 490 kcal (25 g fat, 50 g carbohydrates, 16 g protein). Many of us would probably consume that as a main meal. Additionally, the recipe is very high in fat.

Recipes for Intensive and Relaxed Days

When making a smoothie, it's important to consider the recipe we use. On some days, it's not a problem to drink a nutrient- and energy-rich smoothie, but on others, we should opt for a simple, low-calorie recipe. Why make a smoothie on days when we're not very active? A piece of fruit is much better. Or would we eat all of that at once - an apple, a banana, 0.5 avocado, and some nuts - if it weren't packaged in a smoothie?

Recipe #1: For Relaxed Days

• 1 cup berries
• 1 medium apple
• 2 carrots
• 1 cup 1% milk
• 1 tsp cocoa powder

248 kcal (4.6 g fat, 37.9 g carbohydrates, 6.5 g fiber, 10 g protein)

Recipe #2: For intense days

• 1 cup berries
• 1 medium banana
• 1.5 tbsp honey
• 1 cup 3.5% milk
• 2-3 walnuts (or 1 tsp nut butter)
• 1 tsp cocoa powder

474 kcal (15 g fat, 69 g carbohydrates, 6.2 g fiber, 12 g protein)

Conclusion

Smoothies are good when we consider the right recipe for the specific purpose (our goal).