Have you ever heard of a Vitamix blender? It’s a big fancy blender that companies like Starbucks, Jamba Juice, and Booster Juice (and people, in their homes) use all over the world.
I was finishing up a coaching call with one of my clients recently (who happens to be a super-handsome, kind-hearted, 50-something-year-old triathlete) and we somehow got onto the topic of nutrition.
One thing led to another and I started talking about how much I loved my Vitamix and, specifically, how much it had changed my life. Apparently I was so lit up about it that he told me “You have to write an article about this. You’re so knowledgable and enthusiastic about this… you have to tell the world about your love for your Vitamix and what it’s done for you.”
The kicker for me (to write this article) was that I also sent out a recent survey to my email followers and over 40% of survey responders said that they wanted to hear my thoughts on health, nutrition, and overall lifestyle setup more frequently.
So here I am… delivering just that.
The Benefits Of Blending
Ever since purchasing my Vitamix blender last year, I have easily tripled my consumption of vegetables, fruit, dark leafy greens, and healthy fats.
Because the Vitamix blends everything into a super-smooth smoothie, you end up consuming a lot more vegetables than you normally would. The idea being that you’re much more likely to drink down four large handfuls of kale/spinach/swiss chard than you would be to take the time to cook them up and chew your way through them.
This fact alone has made my Vitamix purchase more than worth it. The amount of veggies and nutrients that I get into my body on a daily basis now compared to my pre-Vitamix days isn’t even comparable. It’s easily a 3-5x shift in my diet.
So if you/your significant other/your children need more healthy goodness flowing through your/their bodies, I would recommend by starting out your morning routine with a delicious and nutritious smoothie.
Also, if you’re looking for some bullet-point style benefits I’ve experienced since I started a daily practice of drinking green smoothies, you’re in luck!
– More clean-burning energy throughout the day
– Certain foods aren’t as readily absorbed by simply chewing them because chewing often only breaks down the cellular walls of our foods by 40%… whereas blending your veggies/fruit/nuts/seeds breaks down the cellular wall to 95%, which then helps you with increased nutrient absorption
– Drinking a blended smoothie in the morning deploys the ‘commitment and consistency’ principle in your mind that makes you think “Well, I already ate a super healthy breakfast, so I might as well continue on the health train for the rest of the day.”
– It also makes you more self-compassionate when you have foods that you know aren’t as good for you. Sure, you had a triple patty beef burger for lunch, but your breakfast smoothie contained more nutrients in it than you used to eat over an entire long weekend… so, food-wise, it’s an overall net positive day
– An amazing poop in the morning, and better poops throughout the day
Why Choose Vitamix?
In my opinion, Vitamix blenders are superior because they have been the industry leader for high-end blenders for years. The runner up is Blendtec, but I’ve been consistently more impressed with the output and simple design/functionality of the Vitamix blenders.
If you’re serious about stepping up your smoothie game, you’ll want something better than the $50 store bought brand. If you’re an occasional smoothie drinker and you’ll only be having one or two per month, then feel free to stick with the $50 model. But there is such a massive difference between a non-motored, small blender, and a professional model Vitamix. The smoothness and consistency of the smoothie output from a pro model ensures that you’ll never have to chew your way through a smoothie again (which comes in handy when you start putting certain greens/supplements into it).
If you can’t tell, I adore my Vitamix like crazy. I use it every single day that I’m home for my morning smoothie and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. It is far and beyond the most used (and loved) appliance in my home.
Which Vitamix Model Is The Best One?
You’ll want a different blender depending on what your needs are and how much counter space you have.
I think that the best of both worlds (in terms of the most powerful AND taking up the least counter space) is the Vitamix Professional Series 750 with a 64 oz. container (aka two litres).
The old professional series model was also 64 oz./two litres but it was twice as tall and didn’t fit under most cupboards. The new model holds the same capacity but it’s wider and shorter so that it fits under cupboards with much more ease.
Seriously, this machine is a beast. If you’re taking the leap into the world of smoothies, I would highly recommend picking up this blender. I can already say that this is the only appliance that I hope to have for the rest of my life (and with a decade-long guarantee on them, that should be fairly easy to accomplish).
What Should You Put In Your Smoothies?
Ultimately, what you put in your smoothies will depend entirely on your pallet, your goals, and how much you prioritize the healthiness of your smoothie versus the taste of it (because, let’s face it, those two things can often be antithetical to each other).
When you’re first starting out with creating your smoothies, you’ll most likely want to start with a bit more of a fruit based flavour (since that’s what you’ll most likely be most used to if you’ve predominantly been purchasing your smoothies from stores/restaurants/juice bars).
So while you might start out with an 80% fruit smoothie with 20% vegetables, ideally (if you’re trying to consume healthier smoothies that don’t give you a big insulin spike) you’ll gradually be able to transition your pallet towards an 80% base of vegetables with 20% fruit. This transition will likely take a few weeks/months, so be patient with yourself.
Believe me, if someone went back in time two years and gave me the kind of smoothie I drink on a daily basis now, former Jordan would have likely gagged on it. Back then, I’d put a few leaves of spinach on top of my fruit. Today, my Vitamix is packed to the brim with dark leafy green vegetables (spinach, green kale, black kale, swiss chard, collard greens, etc.).
After personally consulting multiple doctors, naturopaths, and nutritionists, I’ve put together a list of some of the best, healthiest, most nutrient dense vegetables, fats, fruit, seeds, nuts, and supplements that you can start throwing into your blender to mix and match your favourite smoothie recipe. Enjoy!
Vegetables
– Spinach
– Green or black kale
– Swiss chard/rainbow chard
– Avocado
– Collard greens/mustard greens
– Bok choy
– Nori (aka dried seaweed)
– Any cleansing herbs like cilantro, parsley, or thyme
– Celery, red pepper, carrots, sprouts, purple cabbage… and whatever else you feel like!
Healthy fats
– Avocado
– Organic coconut milk (with BPA free lining)
– Pecans, walnuts, almonds, or cashews
Fruit
Again, you can put any fruit you want to in your smoothie, I’m simply listing some of the most nutrient dense ones below.
– Blueberries
– Blackberries
– Raspberries
– Orange
– Grapefruit (pink, red, or white)
– Fresh lemon or lime juice
– Banana
Seeds, Supplements, and Other Stuff
– Ground chia seeds (soak overnight in water in your fridge)
– Cinnamon
– Sea salt
Liquid
After all of the physical goods are in your blender, you’ll need some liquid to help it all blend down into something between a sloshy drink and an eat-it-with-a-spoon paste.
– Water
– Orange juice
– Coconut water
– Full fat organic coconut milk
Three Ready-To-Drink Smoothie Recipes That Are Delicious And Good For You
Don’t feel like free-styling a smoothie recipe from the above lists? No worries!
Here are three nutrient-dense, follow-along smoothies that you can start making today.
The Hawaiian Vacation
This one is by far the sweetest tasting of the three smoothies, so it’s a good choice for smoothie beginners.
The recipe: throw pineapple, mango, spinach, half an avocado, kale, and water and/or coconut water into your blender, and blend to your desired consistency.
350-600 calories, depending on portion size choices.
The Green Goblin
The Green Goblin smoothie is the middle of the road choice on the fruit vs. vegetable scale. So if you’ve been drinking your smoothies with regularity for a few weeks, I’d recommend trying this recipe out.
The recipe: toss spinach, kale, swiss chard, half an avocado, a few strawberries, a full banana, one sheet of nori, a handful of cashews and almonds, chia seeds slurry, and water into your blender. Blend up, then enjoy!
400-600 calories, depending on portion size choices.
The Post-Workout Beast
This is more or less the smoothie that I drink on a daily basis.
I double down on a lot of the following ingredients and routinely end up with a big, thick smoothie somewhere in the 800-1,200 calorie range. But I’m also a relatively young guy with a fast metabolism… so blender beware!
The recipe: combine half a can of organic coconut milk, a full avocado, a few chunks of frozen yam, half a cup of chia seeds (soaked overnight in your fridge, in water), a handful of blueberries, a full scoop of vegan protein powder, a teaspoon of a quality greens powder, a half teaspoon of sea salt, and a tablespoon of peanut butter.
Add or subtract anything you’d like to make the recipe your own. It’s great for a big breakfast that will easily last you until 1pm (no more hunger pangs!) or a post-workout beverage that will properly refuel your glycogen stores and help you to start rebuilding your muscular micro-tears.
Does The Difference In Supplement Quality Really Matter?
Yes!
Whether we’re talking about the quality of your coconut milk, your salt, your protein powder, or anything else you put into your smoothie, you generally get what you pay for.
I would say that the difference in price that you pay for a low-quality supplement, when comparing the price of each individual serving size, compared to a higher quality supplement, and the health benefits that you get from each… it just isn’t worth skimping out on.
For example, you might find a way to pay $0.40 per scoop of protein, but it’s low grade, your body barely absorbs it, and you feel gassy and bloated all day. On the other hand, maybe you find a quality protein powder that ends up being $1.20 per scoop, but your body finds it digestible, the nutrients get absorbed readily, you don’t feel gassy at all, and it’s vegan and fair trade. Again, if it’s something that you’re planning on putting into your body on a daily basis, you might as well go for the good stuff.
Smoothie Swillers Beware…
Three things to watch out for when you start making smoothies a regular part of your life…
1. Calorie count
While I don’t recommend counting calories and being obsessive about it, ensure that you have a general idea of what you’re putting into your body. Just because a smoothie is small doesn’t mean it’s low calorie… and just because it’s a larger volume doesn’t mean it’s necessarily caloric. When adding in things like avocado, coconut milk, and nuts, make sure that you’re not putting in so much healthy fat that you end up with a 2,000 calorie behemoth on your hands.
2. Too much fruit can give you an insulin spike and mess with your energy
Remember earlier on in the article when I mentioned that you should try to transition your vegetable to fruit ratio in veggie’s favour? This is why.
If your smoothie is almost exclusively fruit and you end up drinking six servings of fruit in one sitting, don’t be surprised if you feel a little out of sorts in terms of your fluctuating energy levels.
To counteract the energy spike and crash, just add in one or two small servings of fruit and stick to the leafy greens and healthy fats listed above. Also, cinnamon helps with stabilizing blood sugar levels… so, if you’re looking to avoid the insulin spike and resulting energy crash, make sure you’re tossing in a teaspoon of that tasty stuff with every smoothie you make.
3. They’re addictive
Once you get on the smoothie train, it’s hard to get off of it.
There’s nothing quite like having nutrient-dense, readily absorbed clean burning fuel in your gut to keep you running for the first half of the day.
Soon enough, your biggest problem in life will be, “Is there enough room in my carry on to pack my Vitamix with me for this trip?”
Other Vitamins And Supplements I Use On A Regular Basis
While I’m on the subject of vitamins and supplements that I use in my smoothies, here are a few that I use regularly that don’t (usually) go in my smoothies.
Nuun tablets – for curing hangovers and replenishing electrolytes after sweaty workouts and/or extended sex sessions. Drink one electrolyte drink before alcohol, after alcohol, and in the morning. Et voila! Zero hangover!
B vitamin complex twice per week – especially important for vegetarians/vegans.
Magnesium before bed – taking magnesium before bedtime curbs stress, anxiety, and lets you get to sleep easier.
Liposomal vitamin C – I take a teaspoon of liposomal vitamin C once per day (usually in the middle of slurping down my giant smoothie). If you haven’t heard of liposomal technology, it’s basically the most effective way for humans to consume high dose vitamin C without getting diarrhea. Liposomes are fat-soluble synthetic vesicles that allow the vitamin C to absorb directly into the bloodstream. The result? Happier immune system, faster muscle repair, and better overall health. I started taking this stuff and I haven’t gotten sick once since (even during especially stressful periods of my life).
Maca powder & pine pollen tablets – Whenever I’m craving a sexual/creative energy boost, I’ll throw a teaspoon of maca powder in my morning smoothie, and swallow two pine pollen tablets. Within a few hours I’m either cranking out thousands of words (writing articles like this one) or my sex drive is through the roof. I take each of these on an as needed basis and they’re just as effective for 25 year olds as they are for 65 year olds.
Mmm nom nom nom… Smoothies
That’s it for today! I hope you enjoyed this extra nerdy deep dive into one of my favourite nutritional self-care habits.
And seriously, if you don’t already have a Vitamix blender, pick up this one. It’s a total game changer. If you blend and drink high quality, nutrient dense ingredients like the ones I’ve mentioned above, you’ll sleep better, poop better, your skin will be clearer, you’ll get sick less often, and you’ll generally feel better day to day.
Dedicated to your success,
Jordan
Ps. If you enjoyed this article, you’ll probably also love checking out:
– 11 Easy Ways To Actually Love Yourself More
– 21 Of The Best Self Care Practices Ever
– 7 Simple Life Skills That Improve Everything
– How To Overhaul Your Entire Life In 5 Easy Steps
