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How to Build a Nutritious Smoothie and Why It's One of the Easiest Health Habits · Stacked Intent: Your Guide to Authentic, Intentional Living

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_02: Hi guys, welcome to Staffed Intent.
• 0:02
  SPEAKER_02: I am Becca Stackhouse Morrison, and I look forward to having you join us as we go along with Relationships, Finance, Nutrition.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_02: We're going to look at the DNA of how you can take those life and dreams that may be stuck, scattered, and help you give resources for mapping out a plans.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_02: My background is in social sciences, and I have a certification for family life education.
• 0:29
  SPEAKER_02: So I look forward to sharing those with you throughout the podcast.
• 0:33
  SPEAKER_02: We're going to have great fun as you tune in each week to become authentically you.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_02: We're going to look at the ways that you can be your authentic self and be intentional with yourself.
• 0:45
  SPEAKER_02: You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you're going to finish each episode being motivated to live your life more authentically.
• 0:51
  SPEAKER_02: But with these specific episodes, we're going to have a special co-host and we're going to let them introduce themselves.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_00: Hey, my name is Ashley Chowd, and I am the University of Georgia Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agent for both Candler and Evans counties in the southeastern part of the state of Georgia.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm excited to be here today.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: I've got a background in nutrition from an education standpoint and then also from a community standpoint.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: And this is something I'm super passionate about and excited to work with Becca to talk about being more intentional in the food that you choose and the things that you put into your body.
• 1:43
  SPEAKER_02: So I am Becca Stackhouse Morrison, the owner of Stacked Intent, and our co-host with us for our nutrition topic is Ashley Childs, the fax agent over in Georgia.
• 1:54
  SPEAKER_02: So welcome, Ashley.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_02: Thanks, Becca.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_02: Happy to be here with you today.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_02: So some of the objectives that we hope that you kind of walk away with from listening to today's episode is what are some pros and cons of smoothies?
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_02: What do you want to put in a smoothie?
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_02: And how do you maybe build that perfect smoothie?
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_02: So let's get started.
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_02: Ashley, where are we starting?
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_01: So we're going to talk about first off pros and cons of smoothies because it's probably really easy to be inundated with so many different smoothie recipes on Pinterest or on TikTok.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: And we can really get ourselves in a little bit of trouble when we think about a smoothie because if we're not intentional about what we put in it, it can be more calorie laden and more sugar laden than we expected.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_01: So we're going to talk about some good things and maybe some not so good things about smoothies.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_01: So first of all, our bodies need a variety of fruits and vegetables to be healthy, right?
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_01: So fruits and vegetables have been proven to lower our blood pressure, reduce risk of heart disease and stroke, prevent some types of cancer, lower risks of eye and digestive problems, and they can also have a positive effect on blood sugar.
• 3:13
  SPEAKER_01: So it would make sense that we should eat lots of fruits and vegetables.
• 3:18
  SPEAKER_01: However, I will admit too, sometimes it's a little harder to get those fruits and veggies in.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_01: And so smoothie is a great way to be able to meet the recommendations in a quick and convenient way.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: So about one in 10 Americans are currently not consuming the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_01: So any way that we can help with those numbers, we're going to try to do so.
• 3:41
  SPEAKER_01: So today we're going to talk about how you can increase your fruit and vegetable consumption with a little bit of planning through a delicious and convenient smoothie.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_01: So Becca, do you like smoothies?
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_02: I do.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_02: I do.
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_02: I haven't had them much in the last year because I couldn't drink things through a straw because of what I was using root canals, which makes the smoothie harder to drink.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_02: But I love smoothies.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_02: And when I can't necessarily get myself to eat the food that I would like to eat, putting it in a smoothie I have found to be real helpful, especially when I feel like my Crohn's has flared.
• 4:20
  SPEAKER_02: It's a way that I found my body can absorb that food better.
• 4:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_01: And you can do it for breakfast, you can do it as a snack, you can do it as a meal replacement.
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_01: So we'll talk through some of that today, too.
• 4:31
  SPEAKER_01: But when you think about what to put in a smoothie, first of all, fruit is a great source of vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants that are good for your brain, your immune system, and your heart.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_01: They're naturally sweet, they offer a variety of flavors and textures.
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_01: And buying fruit when it's in season and then you can freeze it to use it in your smoothies can be a cost-efficient and convenient way to also reduce food waste and get all the benefits of fresh fruits.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_01: So same with vegetables, um, spinach and other leafy greens are some good go-tos for smoothies.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_01: And they also contain lots of good vitamins and minerals like folate and vitamin K.
• 5:11
  SPEAKER_01: So before you break out the blender, there's just a few things to note about the pros and cons of drinking your food.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_01: So, first of all, it can be really easy to underestimate how many calories and how much sugar you're consuming when you're not having to chew your food to get it to your stomach.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_01: So the actual act of chewing your food has been correlated with decreased self-reported hunger and food intake, possibly through alterations in gut hormone gut and hormone responses related to satiety.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: So that's the experience of fullness.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: So basically, what they found out is that when you chew your food, it connects with your brain and also connects with your stomach to let you know, hey, we are consuming food, we're consuming nutrients.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: So eventually at some point we're going to get full.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: That's what they consider to be motor feedback.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_01: So the mechanical effort with food texture and food particles and the detection of flavor, taste, and smell, all of those factors when you chew is something called it goes through what's called oral metering.
• 6:19
  SPEAKER_01: So it essentially results in a potential delayed feeling of satiety if you drink your food rather than actually chewing it, because there's no mastication or chewing.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: So there's no way to signal to the brain that you're consuming food.
• 6:34
  SPEAKER_01: So when you drink your food, there's that caveat that you're not actually having to chew it, which is great if you have, you know, dental concerns and you are not able to chew your food and you can drink it, right?
• 6:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and it does make it a little easier sometimes to absorb nutrients and food, like you said, if you have specific situations.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: But um have you found I know you said that with your with your tooth surgeries and your your dental stuff, and you've had to to drink smoothies, uh, do you feel like there's a difference in when you drink your food versus when you eat like heat your food?
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_02: I do for sure.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_02: And I sometimes to me it just is easier to drink a smoothie and make sure I'm getting more dense because even though I'm not eating all of it, I can put a lot in my body through a smoothie.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_02: So it's one way I found after working out has been beneficial to me.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_02: Or on my drive to my commute to work, I found it beneficial to drink a smoothie.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I would there's definitely a difference.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_02: And sometimes there is that I drink a smoothie, but I still feel hungry kind of piece because I didn't chew anything.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_02: But I think it's knowing what you're putting in your smoothie is what really helps.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: That's a great point.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_01: So we'll talk, we'll dive into some of the ingredients of a smoothie too, and how you can make it kind of more fulfilling.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but we do know that when we're making a smoothie, it can be easy to add a greater amount of food than we would normally eat in one sitting.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_01: So we've talked about this before, Becca, that if you had all the ingredients in whole form, like in fruits or vegetables on a plate, and there was no way that you could possibly eat all of that in one sitting, chances are you're probably overconsuming if you blend it all up.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_01: So if you could not manage to eat all of the fruits, vegetables, nut butters, yogurt, milk, whatever you're you're putting into your smoothie, if you couldn't eat it in its whole form, all in one sitting, you probably shouldn't be putting it in a smoothie.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: So it's an easy way to overconsume calories, fat, or sugar when you blend it all up, um, because again, you don't have it in that whole form.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: So on that note, too, thinking about added sugar, lots of fruit juices, um, berry blends, or if you get like frozen fruit from the grocery store, some of those things have added sugar in them.
• 9:09
  SPEAKER_01: If you use flavored yogurt or flavored milk in your smoothie, those can contain added sugar too.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_01: And those added sugars can add up, especially if you're using multiple forms of fruit juices or frozen fruits or flavored yogurts or anything like that.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_01: So just be be cautious about not overdoing it.
• 9:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, just because your ingredients may have their specific benefits too much, can defeat the purpose of your healthy snack or your meal replacement.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: So there's definitely an art to making a tasteful and nutritious smoothie that is worth the effort.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_02: I think that's very true.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_02: And I think it's look at where you want your added sugars or your sugars to come from.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_02: Because if you're only getting it from the juice that you're adding, but maybe leave it to the plain yogurt and add your whole fruits a good way.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_02: It's just being mindful of how you're putting it in.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, it's all about balance too, because sometimes we're tempted to add things like honey, or even though it's a natural sweetener, it's still a source of sugar.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're adding like a flavored juice, a flavored yogurt, honey, and then also doing like a fruit puree that may have had added sugar already, plus like you know, peanut butter or almond butter or something that may have sugar added to it too.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: You just have to kind of find your balance.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_01: So just like what you said, you're using a fruit juice, maybe use an unflavored yogurt.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if you're using a flavored yogurt, make sure that you don't add extra honey or something like that.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_02: And of the two teaspoons in your yogurt, two teaspoons in your milk, two teaspoons in your juice, two teaspoons, that adds up to being you might end up with 15 teaspoons of sugar in your smoothie and not even realize it.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, exactly.
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_01: And and again, if you ate something, if you actually chewed something like a brownie or a cookie that had that much added sugar in it, you would feel much more satiated or much more full, and you'd have a different experience than if you were to just drink it because it goes down a little easier when you're not having to chew it.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_01: So those are some of the cons, but of course, we've we've kind of talked through some of the pros as well.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: Is it's it's convenient, um, especially if you are on the go and you are you know leaving the gym and you can make a smoothie to have after after your workout, or you can use it for breakfast, or you can use it as a midday snack, um, or when you just need a little pick-me-up.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_01: So they are convenient, you can drink them on the go.
• 11:40
  SPEAKER_01: There's some specific types of equipment that make it easy to have like a single serving versus having to bust out, you know, a whole blender, um, which takes a little more effort to clean.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: So a single serving one is great because you can just take it with you on the go.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_02: So I love my single serving.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_01: We definitely just got the the one that is um the ninja one, like you have.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: We got that for a wedding minute.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: So I have was supposed to wait until the wedding to open it, but I could not.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_02: So it's see, she just showed us how important she needed the single serving cup.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_02: Exactly.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_02: Now we bought my mom and dad have a big blender that's a paper check blender, but it has the attachment for the single serve, and we she got the single serve so that she can just make a serving or make the whole.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_02: So if you're making for your family, use a big blender.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_02: But that single serving, I found it does two things.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_02: I don't end up with wasted food, wasted smoothie because I made too much.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_02: And then two, it helps you really, really understand what you what one serving for you looks like.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, I totally agree.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: And everybody in your family may not like the same ingredients in their smoothie.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_02: Well, and like when me and my husband do ones that have protein, his protein has whey and milk dry in it, whereas mine's a vegan friendly with no whey, no dairy products.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_02: So we have to do them separate so that he gets what he needs in nutrition and then I get what I need.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_02: Yep.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yep, I'm I'm here for the single-serving ones.
• 13:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_02: So what are some what's some of the other equipment we might need to use when we're making our smoothies?
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so if you are planning to, there's a way that you can you can prep little pre-made smoothie bags.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um like if you have some time on a Saturday or a Sunday or whatever your week looks like where you have a few extra minutes, you can go ahead and prep some pre-made smoothie bags with your fruit, um, especially if you're using frozen fruit.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, if you've got like frozen vegetables, go ahead and throw those into like a ziploc bag.
• 14:06
  SPEAKER_01: Portion them out, put them in a ziploc bag, so then that way when you get ready to make your smoothie, all you have to do is just dump that bag into your blender.
• 14:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then with whatever liquid you're planning to use.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: So, some some ziploc style bags would be great if you're planning to do that.
• 14:21
  SPEAKER_01: Like I said, a blender doesn't have to be anything fancy.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_01: Um, again, I prefer using the single-serving blender so I can make my smoothie and then take it on the run because it also comes with a sip-top lid.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so easy for convenience.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: But then having some measuring cups and measuring spoons so that way you can appropriately portion out your ingredients that are using.
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_01: So keeping an eye on how much honey you may be putting in there, or are using an actual serving of peanut butter or almond butter, whatever it may be, so you're not overdoing it there, too.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_01: Having a liquid measuring cup so you can measure the amount of milk or juice or water you're putting in there.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, a cutting board would be helpful if you're if you're prepping your produce fresh to go in there.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um having a knife, and then of course, following good food safety principles.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're using fresh produce, make sure that you wash it appropriately before you put it into your smoothie, too.
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_01: So having a blender, having some ziploc bags are great if you're planning on prepping them ahead of time.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, having the correct measuring spoons and measuring cups are great too.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_02: That's awesome.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_02: So, how do we build our perfect smoothie?
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_01: So, if you're gonna build the perfect smoothie, and the idea of perfect is really gonna be the it's gonna vary depending on on who's consuming it.
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_01: So what you want to think about is your ingredients.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_01: So we've already talked a little bit about fruits and vegetables and their specific benefits, but both fruits and vegetables are great sources of vitamins, um, minerals, antioxidants, and also fiber, too.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_01: So if you are wanting to add fruit, my personal favorite type of smoothie is if I add berries and any type of berries, blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, strawberries, any type of berry has extra fiber and extra antioxidants too.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um so you're really getting more banker buck if we use berries.
• 16:32
  SPEAKER_01: But you can use anything fruit-wise.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_01: So pineapples, you can use grapes if you wanted to, pears, bananas, apples.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um I think I already said apples, obviously.
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_01: But apples, I'm thinking of a specific smoothie I had one time that had apples and it was delicious.
• 16:49
  SPEAKER_01: But kiwis and mangoes, really, the the possibilities are endless with fruits.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: So you can also add a little variety with your fruit, too.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and and fruits are naturally sweet, so that's really gonna take out having to use an added added sweetener to it too.
• 17:07
  SPEAKER_01: Add some vegetables in there.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: Um, the great thing about making a smoothie with vegetables is especially for people that are not a huge fan of veggies, because you really can't taste them when you blend them all up, especially when you put it in there with fruit.
• 17:22
  SPEAKER_01: So, my favorite vegetables to add to a smoothie are either it's either frozen kale or frozen spinach.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_01: So that's a great way to get some dark leafy greens which are high in folate, they've got lots of phytonutrients in them.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, vitamin K.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: It does make your smoothie a beautiful green color, which is fine with me, but that kind of freaks some people out.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're not okay with green, you can use things like red beets or you can use carrots to change the color profile a little bit, and it'll also change the flavor, too.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: So if you were going to put do you ever put vegetables in your smoothie?
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_01: I have.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_01: What do you use?
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_02: I'm trying to think.
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_02: Most of the time, my smoothies are more fruit.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_02: Vegetables, spinach, and kale are probably two of the more vegetables that I've put in my smoothies.
• 18:18
  SPEAKER_02: I have put avocado before.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_02: Oh yeah.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_02: Which gives you your healthy fat, and it really doesn't have a taste, it adds it's kind of creamy.
• 18:27
  SPEAKER_02: Most of the time, mono more of a protein and peanut butter and bananas.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_02: Those are the bigger smoothies I drink.
• 18:38
  SPEAKER_02: And peanut butter, I use peanut butter powder.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know if it's like actually that way.
• 18:44
  SPEAKER_02: It really, really just is the peanuts ground up.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 18:49
  SPEAKER_01: No, that's great.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I'll talk a little bit more about your your protein sources and kind of where that comes in.
• 18:55
  SPEAKER_01: But with vegetables too, I mean, it you can you can get crazy with with how many vegetables or what what different types of vegetables and combinations that you want to put in your smoothie.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, some people do shredded cabbage, some people do zucchini and cucumber.
• 19:12
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, they all have their different benefits.
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_01: So if it's not something you feel like is going to be very appealing, you know, give give it a try because sometimes when you you pair a vegetable with a certain fruit, it can really add a totally different flavor profile than you were expecting.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so while we expect our our smoothies to be kind of sweet, adding vegetables to it does give it a more bold um taste.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_01: So just be aware of that too.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, and then when you were talking about protein, so anytime that you add like a protein powder or Greek yogurt or nut butter or even hemp or chia seeds or ground flaxseed or tofu, if you add more protein to it, then it's when we kind of consider that, and there's not really a definition, but that's where it kind of becomes more of a a shake.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it smoothie versus shake doesn't really matter, they're both blended ingredients.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_01: But in my mind, I think of a shake as being more protein-based.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_01: So just like you said, add in protein powder is a great way to get some added protein in there, brief yogurt.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: Again, just being considerate of how much sugar is added and trying to go with the unflavored ones, and then like your nut butters too.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_01: So using using the powdered form.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I've I've never actually used the powder, but I've heard that people like the powder better because that when you use like a an actual peanut butter or something, the consistency is a little off and it's it's hard to blend it well.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_01: And yeah, and what has your been your experience with the powder versus using like an actual nut butter?
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_02: Using an actual nut butter makes it a little more messy, is what I think.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_02: Okay.
• 21:12
  SPEAKER_02: That's just what I think.
• 21:14
  SPEAKER_02: My mom prefers to use the actual butter, like butters themselves.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_02: But for me, I've just found that I can a little goes a long way with the powders because the powders are a whole lot more concentrated.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_02: So, like your almond powder in the little tablespoon of the serving, it's like 20 almonds.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_02: And so instead of having to put that many almonds in your one serving or make a mess in the peanut butter, maybe not get blended through.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_02: Well, I have found, and I use it in my baking too, of the powdered peanut butter.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_02: It's just so much easier to not make a mess and know exactly what you're measuring.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: And it honestly could be something that you pre-measure.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_02: And I would imagine even in your Ziploc bags with your fruit, you could go ahead and put your powder peanut butter in there.
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_02: And it's all measured out and ready to dump.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_01: I did not even think about that.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_01: But yeah, convenience is definitely cute.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: So anytime you have a few extra minutes that you can go ahead and prep your smoothie bags for the week.
• 22:29
  SPEAKER_01: But adding adding sources of protein to your smooth your smoothie or your shake really does help to promote that satiety.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_01: So it's going to help you when you add protein to it, it's going to be more of a closer to like a meal replacement shake.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_01: So it's going to help to provide some some sources of energy too.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_01: So it just really depends on kind of what you're going for.
• 23:14
  SPEAKER_01: But again, adding protein to it is also going to change the flavor and also kind of the consistency of your smoothie or your shake.
• 23:24
  SPEAKER_01: So if you do add like your nut butters or seeds, but both of those nut butters and seeds have protein, but they also are healthy sources of unsaturated fat.
• 23:35
  SPEAKER_01: So if you're using like a nut butter, you can kind of get more bang for your buck that way.
• 23:41
  SPEAKER_01: Same thing with cheese seeds.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_01: So you get fiber in that, you're getting healthy sources of fat, but you're also getting protein.
• 23:49
  SPEAKER_01: But just be cautious and in moderation and make sure that you are still staying within those appropriate portion sizes because fat can also lead to added calories.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_01: So you know, stick with stick with your portion sizes and make sure that you're following those and using your measuring spoons.
• 24:09
  SPEAKER_01: So as far as liquids go, what type of liquids do you typically use?
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_01: I think almond milk, maybe.
• 24:17
  SPEAKER_02: Typically almond milk, and I use almond milks that have very minimal in them.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_02: Most of the almond milks I use just have the one I've got right now, has water almonds, and I think it has a little bit of salt, but that's really all that it has.
• 24:33
  SPEAKER_02: So it doesn't add much extra into it.
• 24:38
  SPEAKER_02: Occasionally I'll use water.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_02: Sometimes I use fruit juices, but fruit juices to me just it makes it so much sweeter, and I have trouble drinking them.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and and like you said too, with the fruit juices, you've got added sugar there for the most part, and sometimes you can find fruit juices that have no added sugar.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but if you're already using fruit in your smoothie, it's already got that natural sweetness to it.
• 25:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so you can really kind of use that opportunity to add some different types of nutrition rather than just the fruit.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: So if this is if you find that you you can't drink milk, or if you find that that's something that you are lacking in your diet, add that to your smoothie.
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_01: So whether it's cow's milk or if it's um unsweetened almond milk or whatever your dairy alternative is, same thing.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_01: Be cautious about the sugar content.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then try to use a lower fat milk if possible.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: And again, like fruit juice is not bad, it's just the nutritional magic of consuming fruit comes with or comes from fiber.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_01: So if you are not consuming fruit in its whole form, you are not getting the added benefits of fiber.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so fruit juice does not contain the fiber that's in like the peel of the fruit or the flesh of the fruit in its whole form.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_01: So again, it's all about balance, trying to find opportunities to add more in different nutrients, um, which you can do by switching up your liquids and and using water.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_01: Some people have even used green tea, um, or then, of course, your your milks or your dairy alternatives.
• 26:25
  SPEAKER_01: Have you ever used spices in your smoothies?
• 26:29
  SPEAKER_01: Like cinnamon or I've added cinnamon.
• 26:33
  SPEAKER_01: You ever tried ginger?
• 26:36
  SPEAKER_02: I don't know that I I have gotten smoothies out that had ginger.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_02: I haven't actually ever put a ginger.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_02: But I have done cinnamon.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_02: I know, I hadn't done cocoa powder.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I kind of stick with like the I like my smoothies to be on the sweeter side.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_01: So some people that like bold and savory um may use like the nutmegs or may use cayenne pepper, um, or like I said, that grated fresh ginger, which all of those have you know different types of antioxidants in them, and they're they're not contributing to any calorie sources and they're not any um extra sugar, so that's just adding a little pizzazz to it.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: But I I typically stick with cinnamon um and cocoa powder.
• 27:29
  SPEAKER_02: I have used cocoa powder in making some for my brother and my husband, like to give them a little bit of a different or more of a dessert taste to their smoothie.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and it it also depends on kind of what type what the time of the day and kind of what I'm feeling.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_01: So sometimes I may want something a little more fruity, and sometimes I may want something a little more sweet or kind of desserty.
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_01: So if I'm gonna make like a desserty smoothie, I'll probably do um like I use sunflower seed butter in mine, so that gives a little bit of sweetness and kind of some some thicker texture to it.
• 28:10
  SPEAKER_01: Definitely love berries, so I'll get like a mixed berry blend, um frozen mixed berry blend, and I'll use that.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: And I like using I use a plant-based protein powder, just chocolate flavored, and then I'll use an unsweetened oat milk.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_01: And sometimes if I get a little crazy, I may throw in like some chia seeds or um some frozen spinach, but it makes a nice rich chocolatey shake that is delicious.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I think that's when I've used some things a little more, is when I want something that's not just a meal replacement or a meal assistant, but I want in more of a thick smoothie milkshake-like yeah, yeah, and like with smoothies too.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it really again depends on what your personal preference is.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: If you're using a smoothie for something like refreshing or a snack, um, and you're not really looking to use it as something that's going to keep you full, it's more just kind of something to enjoy.
• 29:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you don't, you know, you that's where you don't really add in the extra protein or the extra fat sources.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_01: So it just really depends on what your goal is.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um if you just want something fruity and nutritious, just add some fruit, some water, you know, maybe some unsweetened Greek yogurt, something like that, and just keep it plain and simple.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_01: But there the possibilities are really endless to making smoothies and shakes.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_02: Very endless.
• 29:45
  SPEAKER_02: I think that kind of calves off everything that it takes to enjoy a smoothie and what you might like in a smoothie.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_02: So we hope that you kind of see some pros, which there are great pros to have in a smoothie.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_02: There are some cons that at least we need to be aware of so we're not adding excess into our diet.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_02: Uh thinking about what you put in your smoothie.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_02: And I think the one of the best ways that I've heard it, and Ashley said she had heard it, was the if you lay all of that food out that you'd put into that smoothie and you won't eat it, then maybe you should reconsider what you're putting in your smoothie.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_02: And then how you build that perfect smoothie, it's all in a preference for the most part.
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_02: So our challenge to you this time around is create your perfect smoothie for your daily consumption.
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_02: So find what that balance is, find the good ways to put in protein, pull out sugars, put in um some healthy fats.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_02: So just find what your perfect smoothie consumption is.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_02: So thank you actually for joining us on our nutrition topic today.
• 30:52
  SPEAKER_02: And we hope that you guys found some great uh benefits to listening to your episode of Stacked Intent.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_02: That brings us to the end of this episode of Stacked Integ.
• 31:08
  SPEAKER_02: If you love this episode as much as I did, head on over and rate and subscribe so you will never miss an episode.
• 31:16
  SPEAKER_02: New episodes are going to be dropped on Thursdays.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_02: Until then, this is Beckett.
• 31:21
  SPEAKER_02: And don't forget, enrich your life by being intentional.
• 31:27
  SPEAKER_02: This podcast was created, produced, and recorded and edited by Stacked Integrat.