The subject of health and diet is no exception. There are more ways to obtain food quickly than we can put a number on. Whether its fast food chains, precooked food you can take home from the grocery store, or simply going out to eat to save the time necessary to cook a meal, Americans have a plethora of choices when it comes to food that fits into our busy lifestyle. The problem with living such a busy life is that it denotes we eat food that fits into our timetable instead of food that promotes our well being. Our health becomes the victim, fallen by the wayside. Because of this problem, countless adds pop up on our electronic devices stating "Try this new diet pill that will shed pounds a day," or "Find out the one food to never eat in order to lose belly fat." Having a degree in Nutrition Science taught me the truth beyond the numerous diet fads out there. You can't solve the root of a problem by only treating the outward manifestations.
Eating a healthy diet is a lifestyle choice. I do it because I want my body to perform at its best, the way God intended it to. I want to be able to participate in the activities I love and feel good doing it. I could go on and on about how important it is to eat a healthy, well balanced diet, but instead I would like to focus on the most important meal of the day: breakfast!
I didn't always eat a well balanced breakfast. It usually consisted of coffee and a bowl of cereal, maybe a piece of toast for a little variety. Basically the main food group I was eating from in the morning was grains. By the time mid morning came around, however, I was starving, leading to snacking, usually from that same food group - grains (crackers, more toast, etc). Even though I was aware there was a problem with the meal starting my day, I ignored it. Combine this problem with hereditary digestive issues, inherited from my mom, it turned into a problem that put me in the ER one beautiful Sabbath morning, in extreme amounts of pain, mentally kicking myself (because I sure as heck couldn't physically do it at that point) for being so careless with my diet. I won't go into details about the exact medical condition I had, but if you really want to know, email me and I'll share it with you.
After that I decided my diet needed a change, and it needed to start with the first meal of the day. I began making fruit shakes. It started on a whim, just to see how it was, and it turned into a staple of not only my morning meal but also Adam's. Adam and I are no exception to the typical busy American couple, so it is difficult for me to make the time to eat at least a cup of fruit, yogurt, and orange juice separately, in addition to my beloved coffee and toast. I found the answer to my time and digestive problems in those fruit shakes. I vary the ingredients depending on what I have available, which in the winter is usually more frozen fruits than fresh, but a few things I add no matter what: bananas, yogurt (greek for extra protein, if I can get my hands on it), blueberries and orange juice.
Ingredients:
2 Fresh Bananas (can use frozen)
1/2 cup blueberries (fresh or frozen)
1 apple (I peeled it but you don't have to)
1 peach
1 nectarine
4 strawberries
1 6 oz yogurt (fruit flavored or plain)
3/4 cup fresh baby spinach,
a dab of our very own raw honey (of course!)
and enough orange juice to cover it all almost to the top
It turned out delicious! That one large glass of fruit shakes gets a lot of fruit, protein, and even a little veggie into my morning meal, and its oh so good. :) I have also added flax seed meal for a little extra fiber, but the shake alone does wonders for my digestive system. I have a friend who has also discovered the benefits of shakes for digestive health, so I encourage you to try it. Its worth the effort and expense I assure you.
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