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smoothie challenge

6 Great Smoothie Recipes That You Should Try

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5 smoothie recipesHere are six of my favorite smoothie recipes to give you some new ideas for smoothies during our 14 Day Smoothie Detox Challenge.  These smoothies are tasty and full of great recipes to help your body detox and release the pounds along with our plan.  Feel free to add things like protein powder, cinnamon and chia seeds as you see fit in terms of taste or added nutrition.

Mango Orange Detox Green Smoothie

  • 1/4 cup mango cubes
  • 1/4 cup avocado
  • 1/2 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 1 handful of kale
  • 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice

Cilantro Berry Spicy Green Smoothie (2 servings)

  • 1 cup water
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/2 cup cilantro
  • 1 cup spinach
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen strawberries
  • Juice of 1 lemon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
  • 1/2 tablespoon raw honey

 Pineapple Apricot Cooler Smoothie

  • 1 cup crushed pineapple
  • 1 fresh apricot, diced
  • 6 fresh strawberries
  • 1/2 banana, frozen
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 cup soy milk or almond milk
  • 2 tbsp of flax seed or chia seed

Dandelion Citrus Green Smoothie

  • 1/2 medium lemon, peeled and seeds removed
  • 1/2 medium lime, peeled and seeds removed
  • 1 large frozen ripe bananas (peel before freezing)
  • 1 cup of freshly squeezed orange juice
  • 2 cups chopped dandelion greens or kale

Kiwi Pineapple Berry Smoothie (2 servings)

  • 3 peeled kiwis
  • 1 cup frozen banana slices
  • 3/4 cup pineapple juice
  • 1/2 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1 cup of water
  • 2 handfuls of spinach (optional)

Mango Banana Mint Smoothie

  • 1 1/2 cups of frozen mango
  • 1 medium ripe banana
  • 4-5 sprigs of mint
  • 1 scoop of your favorite protein powder
  • 1/2 cup of water

Malika lost 49 pounds

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Featured weight loss success story: Malika lost 49 pounds.  She tried a number of exercise and eating challenges to help her find what works for her in terms of changing her lifestyle.  Here is her story:

“Hi, my name is Malika, I just celebrated my 33rd birthday on 9/25. I am not really sure what my highest weight was but two years ago at a routine doctors visit I weighed at 248 pounds. The Monday before my birthday I weighed in at 199 pounds.  I went from a size 22 to 14. The dress on the left was actually a size 12, taken the day after my birthday.
How did I do it? I learned the hard way that there is no easy solution, no one thing that works for everyone. So in the past two years, I tried many different things to keep me motivated and on track.

I have a FitBit to track my daily activity and steps, I also use MyFitness Pal to track my food intake. I have done several walk/jog challenges like the “30 runs in 30 days” novice challenge where you have to log a minimum of 2 minutes of running a day for 30 days straight. I try to workout 4-5 days a week; I’ve done Zumba, Kickboxing, and Bootcamp. I like the variation in the workouts. The most important thing was having the support and accountability from my sister and close friends. I am not where I wasn’t to be yet, but I will never be where I was before.

My eating habits have changed drastically, instead of eating three big meals a day, I started off my journey with eating 6 small meals for my body type. My carbs were limited to once daily, but like my exercise routine, I also liked to have variation. I have participated in juicing and smoothie challenges, the 100 sugar calorie challenge and a Special K challenge. I did all of this to find what will work best for me and what could be sustainable. I found that preparation is key and I have taken something away from all of the challenges.  However, I found that a low carb and small meals work best for me.”

Malika weight loss photos

Shellie lost 68 pounds

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Today’s featured weight loss before and after story:  Shellie lost 68 pounds and went from a size 20 to a size 12.  She did our smoothie challenge, used MyFitnessPal and changed her eating and exercise habits to lose the weight.  Here is what she shared with us:

I’ve always been a pretty active person. I’ve been playing golf since I was 8 and played soccer, ran track and stayed outside all summer throughout my childhood. In college, I played golf for Michigan State University, so we were always walking and training year round. I have never been traditionally “small” – in high school, I wore a size 10. However, I was never considered “fat” either. I can remember not feeling particularly self-conscious in a bathing suit well into my 20’s. So I think when I started noticing that I was getting “fat” was around 2007 when I was 26. I started trying different methods – Weight Watchers, Nutri System and when those didn’t work, I tried to exercise it off through bootcamp classes, playing tennis and walking the dogs. The problem is, I was never consistent with any of it – dieting or exercising. I would do really well for a week or two with my diet and then decide I had it all figured out and start back slowly eating large portions of spaghetti, fries, burgers and sweets.  I would go to bootcamp twice a week and then do nothing else until the next week when classes started again.

Most people I talk to about my weight loss journey can usually identify a breaking point where they say to themselves “Enough is enough”. Mine was on a plane ride to New Orleans last July. I usually ride Delta Airlines but this time, tickets were cheaper on United so we flew with them. As I sat down and went to buckle the seat belt, it almost couldn’t close! I mean I was in that seat TIGHT. That had never happened to me before or even been a concern. So I ate super well (translation: all the fried food and sweets I wanted) knowing that when I came back, things would have to change.  On the next day, after I got home, I started my journey for good this time. I read several books, recorded my food in myfitnesspal (a food diary app) and pledged to work out at least 4 times a week. Month after month, I would adjust my food and workout goals: one month I wanted to eat veggies three times a day, another one I did the BWLW smoothie challenge and had 2 smoothies a day, another month I vowed to work out for an hour 5 days a week. By the end of the year, I had lost 50 pounds. Currently, I have lost 68 pounds and would like to get to that magic number “100” before the end of the summer.  I was a size 20 when I started my journey last July and now I’m a 12.  I am so proud of myself and how I stayed committed this time to make a change. My friends and family have been an AMAZING support system and I definitely could not have accomplished this without them! So I say to all of us BWLW members – keep working hard and making better choices each day for a better tomorrow!

If you want to visit my blog, you can find it at urbanphoenix115.blogspot.com.

Shellie before and after weight loss

Day 18 – Three of My Favorite Green Smoothie Recipes

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NEW E-BOOK! “Drink Green Smoothies” – I’m so excited to release my new smoothie book for BWLW’s January Challenge. A detailed guide to green smoothies and 80 great recipes you will love. Check out the details and download yours today! Just $7.99!

It’s day 18 of our January Green Smoothie Challenge!!  I want to share 3 of my favorite green smoothie recipes from my ebook “Drink Green Smoothies”.  Check these out and try them this month.

Coco Tropic Islander

2 banana
2 cups chopped kale leaves
1 tablespoon coconut oil
1/4 cup unsweetened soymilk
1/2 cup fresh orange juice

Benefits: “One cup of kale contains 36 calories, 5 grams of fiber, and 15% of the daily requirement of calcium and vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), 40% of magnesium, 180% of vitamin A, 200% of vitamin C, and 1,020% of vitamin K. It is also a good source of minerals copper, potassium, iron, manganese, and phosphorus. Kale is an excellent source of antioxidant vitamins A, C, and K — and sulphur-containing phytonutrients.” – WebMD

“Coconut oil can also positively affect our hormones for thyroid and blood sugar control. People who take coconut oil also tend to have improvements in how they handle blood sugar, for coconut can help improve insulin use within the body. Coconut oil can boost thyroid function helping to increase metabolism, energy and endurance. It increases digestion and helps to absorb fat-soluble vitamins.” – www.doctoroz.com

Very Green

1 banana
1 cup sweet green grapes
1/2 Granny Smith apple (cored and skinned) 2 cups fresh spinach
1 tablespoons agave nectar
1/4 cup water

Benefits: Spinach has tons of dietary fiber, which aids digestion, helps constipation and helps us to maintain low blood sugar.  Fiber keeps us full and helps us not to eat randomly.

“The carbohydrate in agave nectar has a low glycemic index, which provides sweetness without the unpleasant “sugar rush” and unhealthful blood sugar spike caused by many other sugars. Agave nectar is a delicious natural sweetener that can be used moderately – by dieters, some diabetics, and health conscious cooks – to replace high-glycemic and refined sugars.” – Allaboutagave.com

Bananas and Peanut Butter

2 ripe bananas
1 tablespoon creamy, no sugar added peanut butter
1 cup fresh or frozen raspberries
1 cup baby spinach leaves
1 cup crushed ice
1/2 cup water

Benefits:  Peanut butter has 2 g of fiber per serving and 8 g of protein per serving.  It helps you to feel full and has healthy fats.

“Anti-cancer benefits of raspberries have long been attributed to their antioxidant and anti-inflammatory phytonutrients.” – whfoods.com

Day 30 – September Smoothie Challenge – Last Day of our Challenge

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It’s the last day of our September Smoothie Challenge.  I’m down 9 lbs for the month and loving it.  Like many other Black Women Losing Weight members, I’ll be continuing with smoothies as part of the Meatless part of our October Challenge.

Today’s Recipes:

Go Green Shake

  • 1/2 ripe banana
  • 1 kiwi, peeled and chopped
  • ½ cup kale (chopped)
  • ½ granny smith apple
  • ¼ cup white grape juice (unsweetened, natural)
  • ¼ avocado, diced
  • Ice cubes to taste

Green Morning Smoothie

  • 2 cups vanilla almond, coconut or soy milk (I suggest unsweetened)
  • 1/2 cup whole oats (uncooked)
  • 1 1/4 cups fresh, frozen or canned peaches (or mango)
  • 1 cup ice cubes
  • 1 cup baby spinach, loosely packed
  • 1 tablespoon honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 2 ripe bananas

 Green Tea Spice Smoothie

  • 1/2 cup lowfat vanilla frozen yogurt
  • 2 handfuls of organic, washed baby spinach
  • 1/4 cup chilled brewed green tea (organic if you can)
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 tablespoon honey, plus more for garnish
  • 1 cup ice
  • Dash of nutmeg and a dash of cinnamon

Day 29 – September Smoothie Challenge – More Green Smoothies

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Green smoothies have been my favorite during our whole Smoothie Challenge. Here are a few more for you to try.

Today’s Smoothies:

Mean Green Juice Recipe

Veggie Smoothie

Raw Radiant Health Smoothie

Day 28 – September Smoothie Challenge – Clean Eating Smoothies

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As we prepare for our October Challenge, which will likely include clean eating, here are some smoothies with work within clean eating plans.

Today’s Smoothies:

Great smoothie from Wendy, The Clean Eating Coach

Tropical Protein Powder Smoothie

Dairy-Free PB & J Smoothie

Day 27 – September Smoothie Challenge – Get your Vitamins

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Smoothies can be a great multi-vitamin!  You might not even need the pills when you are getting real nutrition and vitamins straight from the source…FOOD.   Did you know that commercial multi-vitamins aren’t regulated by the FDA.  There are no guarantees with regard to using and absorbing them.  Some studies have shown commercial vitamins to be in effective. Many times, they are made out of chemicals, not natural ingredients.  For example, ascorbic acid is not the same as vitamin C from natural food sources.  Get your daily dose of nutrients from smoothies and real foods.

Today’s Smoothies

Mango Lime Smoothie

  • 1 ripe avocado
  • 1 lime, peeled and halved
  • 1/2 cucumber (chopped)
  • 1-2 big handfuls of fresh raw spinach leaves
  • 2 cups frozen mango
  • Ice to taste (if your blender can handle ice)

Papaya Poppin Smoothie

  • 1 papaya
  • 1/2 cup pineapple juice (no sugar added)
  • 1 cup watermelon
  • 1 ripe banana
  • 1 cup frozen pineapple
  • 7 ice cubes

Smooth Avocado Smoothie

  • 1 avocado
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1 fresh mango (skinned and chopped)
  • 1 cup chilled plain soy milk

Day 26 – September Smoothie Challenge – More Recipes

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Today’s Recipes

Island Kale Smoothie

  • 1 young coconut, meat of
  • 1 cup coconut water (or more)
  • 2 mangoes, diced (approx 2 1/2 cups)
  • 4 large leaves of kale, stalks removed

Papaya Green Smoothie

  • 1/2 of a medium papaya, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cup frozen mango
  • 1 tbsp agave nectar
  • 5-7 large Romaine leaves
  • 8 sprigs of fresh cilantro
  • 1 tsp extra virgin organic coconut oil
  • 1 cup

Golden Flax Smoothie

  • 1 cup water
  • 2 ripe bananas
  • 1 large bartlett pear
  • 1/2 cup frozen peaches
  • 3 cups fresh spinach
  • 2 Tbsp golden flax seeds (grind with food processor first)