Daily Green Shake (10)
A great way to get lots of veggies
into your body EVERY DAY is to start the day off with a green shake! You might be the type, like my dad, that can enjoy ANYTHING and this will actually appeal to you, but if you are like most of us and this does not sound appetizing, you should still do it...here's how.
Put your veggies in a blender, add water (preferably alkaline, or at least pure - maybe distilled) and blend. When I had a $20 blender it used to take 10 minutes to blend our shakes and I needed to add ice in order to keep it from getting warm.
A great base to start with is a huge handful of organic spinach (about 2 cups) 1/2 English cucumber, and 1/2 -1 avocado, 2 teaspoons of sea salt and a clove of garlic with about 24 oz. of water. Make sure your green/spinach is organic. A few years ago after an outbreak (I believe it was e.coli) linked to spinach, the FDA approved irradiation of spinach and lettuce. Organic standards prohibit irradiation, so greens is one area we always make sure we buy organic. As for you cucumbers, make sure they are not GMO crops. The way to tell is with the 4 or 5-digit code on the produce or label above the produce in the store. A 4 digit code starting with 4 is standard farming, not organic or GMO. A 5 digit code starting with a 9 it is organic, you can see this in the organic section, all of the organic fruits and veggies will have their code start with a 9. If it is a 5-digid code starting with an 8, it is GMO. Always double check, we have found GMO produce at Costco, and even one of our local health food stores, Sprouts - had all 3: GMO, non-GMO, and organic, but only the organic is labeled as such. We have also found GMO grapes, and celery. GMO zucchini, papaya, and bell peppers are also very common. Don't skip the avocado, it adds great fats and helps to emulsify the shake for a much smoother drink! The sea salt is important, too for adding mineral salts to the body and keeping our tissues alkaline!
You can add other veggies on hand: parsley is a great to strengthen the urinary system, garlic is a great blood cleaner, tomatoes are very alkalizing, lemon is great for alkalizing and adds a nice tang, jalapeño pepper adds a nice kick and also helps boost circulation, celery is great, bell pepper, zucchini, and/or broccoli are all great to add if you have them on hand!
If you are nothing like my dad, and more like my husband, who actually gags - literally - with a green shake, you should still do it. He has his own system of holding his nose, guzzling the drink in seconds, followed by a chaser, and then needs to smell something as soon as he lets go of his nose. But, he has proven to himself that his health - energy, vitality, joint pain, heartburn, sleep trouble all are improved when he has his daily green shakes. In fact, I am so proud him - he averages 2 a day, breakfast and lunch everyday he insists on a green shake!
CHEERS!
into your body EVERY DAY is to start the day off with a green shake! You might be the type, like my dad, that can enjoy ANYTHING and this will actually appeal to you, but if you are like most of us and this does not sound appetizing, you should still do it...here's how.
Put your veggies in a blender, add water (preferably alkaline, or at least pure - maybe distilled) and blend. When I had a $20 blender it used to take 10 minutes to blend our shakes and I needed to add ice in order to keep it from getting warm.
A great base to start with is a huge handful of organic spinach (about 2 cups) 1/2 English cucumber, and 1/2 -1 avocado, 2 teaspoons of sea salt and a clove of garlic with about 24 oz. of water. Make sure your green/spinach is organic. A few years ago after an outbreak (I believe it was e.coli) linked to spinach, the FDA approved irradiation of spinach and lettuce. Organic standards prohibit irradiation, so greens is one area we always make sure we buy organic. As for you cucumbers, make sure they are not GMO crops. The way to tell is with the 4 or 5-digit code on the produce or label above the produce in the store. A 4 digit code starting with 4 is standard farming, not organic or GMO. A 5 digit code starting with a 9 it is organic, you can see this in the organic section, all of the organic fruits and veggies will have their code start with a 9. If it is a 5-digid code starting with an 8, it is GMO. Always double check, we have found GMO produce at Costco, and even one of our local health food stores, Sprouts - had all 3: GMO, non-GMO, and organic, but only the organic is labeled as such. We have also found GMO grapes, and celery. GMO zucchini, papaya, and bell peppers are also very common. Don't skip the avocado, it adds great fats and helps to emulsify the shake for a much smoother drink! The sea salt is important, too for adding mineral salts to the body and keeping our tissues alkaline!
You can add other veggies on hand: parsley is a great to strengthen the urinary system, garlic is a great blood cleaner, tomatoes are very alkalizing, lemon is great for alkalizing and adds a nice tang, jalapeño pepper adds a nice kick and also helps boost circulation, celery is great, bell pepper, zucchini, and/or broccoli are all great to add if you have them on hand!
If you are nothing like my dad, and more like my husband, who actually gags - literally - with a green shake, you should still do it. He has his own system of holding his nose, guzzling the drink in seconds, followed by a chaser, and then needs to smell something as soon as he lets go of his nose. But, he has proven to himself that his health - energy, vitality, joint pain, heartburn, sleep trouble all are improved when he has his daily green shakes. In fact, I am so proud him - he averages 2 a day, breakfast and lunch everyday he insists on a green shake!
CHEERS!