Easy Fruit Smoothies Recipes

All the recipes serve one. You can double or triple the recipes to serve more people.

Apricot~Pineapple~Strawberry Shake

1/4 cup crushed pineapple, canned or fresh
1 fresh apricot, diced, seed removed
6 strawberries, frozen
1/2 banana, cut in chunks, frozen
1 1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. skimmed milk powder
1 heaping tbsp. high-quality protein powder (optional)

In a blender, process fruit with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until thoroughly mixed and serve.

Banana~Strawberry Shake

1 banana cut in chunks, frozen
6 strawberries, frozen
1 1/4 cup water
1 tbsp. skimmed milk powder
1 heaping tbsp. high-quality protein powder (optional)
In a blender, process all the ingredients until thoroughly mixed and serve.

Tropical Shake

1/2 mango, peeled, seed removed
2 tbsp. frozen pina coloda mix (or 1/8 tsp. natural coconut extract)
1/2 banana, cut in chunks, frozen
4 strawberries, frozen
6 ice cubes
1 1/4 cup water
1 heaping tbsp. high-quality protein powder (optional)

In a blender, process all the ingredients until thoroughly mixed and serve.

Banana~Berry Shake

1/2 banana, cut in chunks, frozen
1/2 pear, cored and sliced
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
1 1/4 cup water
1 tbsp. skimmed milk powder
1/8 tsp. cinnamon
1 heaping tbsp. high-quality protein powder (optional)
In a blender, process all the ingredients until thoroughly mixed and serve.

Banana~Orange~Strawberry Shake

1/2 banana, cut in chunks, frozen
6 strawberries, frozen
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water
1 tbsp. skimmed milk powder
1 heaping tbsp. high-quality protein powder (optional)

In a blender, process all the ingredients until thoroughly blended and serve.

Related Articles:


Smoothie and shake tips


5 steps to making the perfect smoothie



Fruit juice recipes

Smoothie and shake tips

A smoothie is basically a blended fruit drink. The best-tasting smoothies are made from fruit that is fresh or frozen, and not canned.

All smoothies begin with a liquid base. This can be orange juice, milk or another liquid.

You can make a frostier drink by freezing fresh fruit before making a smoothie.

Smoothies are best when they're fresh out of the blender, but they can be frozen the night before, as well – just remove the smoothie from the freezer about an hour before drinking.

You can replace a meal with a smoothie or shake by adding a scoop of high-quality protein powder and a tbsp. of high-quality olive or flax oil.

5 steps to making the perfect smoothie

1. Put the fruit in the blender first. Make sure that the items are smaller than a golf ball so they will blend completely. Add the liquid ingredients next.

2. Fasten the lid and press the start button. Use high speed for about 20-30 seconds.

3. Stop the blender and check to see if the ingredients are well blended. Sometimes the frozen fruit will jam under the blade. If there is jammed fruit, use a spatula to unjam the fruit, and blend again.

4. Once the mixture is evenly blended, slowly add two ice cubes through the opening of the blender lid. Keep adding one or two ice cubes at a time until the blender sounds smooth instead of gravelly. If your blender is not strong enough to blend ice cubes, omit the ice and substitute just enough ice cold water so that the shake will have a milkshake consistency.

5. If the shake/smoothie is too thin, add more fruit or ice. If it’s too thick, add more liquid.

Fruit juice recipes

All the fruit juice recipes serve one. You can double triple the recipes to serve more people


Lemon-Lime Ginger Ale

1 apple, cored and sliced

½ inch fresh ginger (less if you find the taste too strong) handful of grapes

1/4 lemon

1/2 lime

sparkling mineral water

Remove the grapes from the stem. Juice the apple and ginger together, then juice the rest of the fruit. Pour the juice in a large glass and fill to the top with sparkling water and serve with ice.



Fruit Punch

1 apple, cored and sliced

6 strawberries, fresh or thawed from frozen

1/2 orange, peeled and sectioned

Process the fruit in a juicer and serve.


Sparkling Tropical Juice

1/2 mango, peeled and sliced

1 orange, peeled and sectioned

Process the fruit in a juicer and serve.


Peach-Pear-Apple Juice

2 peaches, remove seed

1 pear, sliced

1 apple, cored and sliced

Process through a juicer and serve.


Gingered Apple Cidar

3 apples, cored and sliced

1 inch piece ginger

Process through a juicer and serve.

How to make homemade fruit and vegetable juices

1. You'll need an inexpensive juice machine.

2. All fruits and vegetables should be juiced raw.

3. Small seeded fruit, such as watermelon and pears, may be juiced with their seeds with the exception of papaya and apple seeds. Orange and grapefruit seeds might impart a bitter taste to your juice. Remove the large pits from fruits like peaches and nectarines, etc.

4. Peel all fruits and vegetables that are not organically grown because the peel is where most of the chemical residues can be found. While most skins of organically grown fruits and vegetables may be left on, with the exception of waxed produce, the skins of pineapples, kiwis, oranges, grapefruits and papaya should be removed.

5. Choose fresh ripe produce. Rubbery vegetables, bruised fruit, wilted greens and over or under-ripe fruits will produce juices that are neither tasty nor healthful.

6. Cut the fruits or vegetables into pieces that will fit into the mouth of your juice machine. Turn the juice machine on and push the pieces through the mouth of the juicer. As you juice, pulp will collect in a large receptacle. If you don't clean the pulp out right away, it will develop a sour odor and tiny gnats and fruit flies may appear after 8 to 10 hours.

7. It is best to drink freshly made juices within one day.

Drink Fresh Fruit Juice to Boost Your Weight Loss Efforts

All About fruit juices and smoothies!

A Fun and Easy way to get more vitamins & minerals into your diet is by drinking freshly made fruit juices, vegetable juices, and by blending thick and frothy smoothies and shakes from frozen fruit.

A nice quote regarding drinking freshly made fruit juices is like this:

"If you have never taken a mouthful of cantaloupe juice or strawberry juice mixed with apple, you simply have not lived. Blueberry juice is a taste of liquid heaven."

Freshly made juices are a tremendous source of bio-available vitamins and minerals which are the partners of enzymes and co-enzymes. Vitamins activate enzymes and without vitamins, enzymes could not carry out their work, and we could not live.

Enzymes act as catalysts in hundreds of thousands of chemical reactions that take place throughout your body, and are essential for digesting, absorbing and converting food into body tissue. Enzymes produce energy at the cellular level and are critical for most of the metabolic activities taking place in your body every second of every day.

Another benefit of drinking fresh juices and smoothies is that your body can absorb more of the vitamins and minerals than if you were to eat the fruits and vegetables whole! Many of the nutrients are TRAPPED in the fiber and by blending fruits and vegetables; you break down the fiber and release the vital nutrients.

Example:

When you eat a raw carrot, you are only able to assimilate a small percentage of the available beta carotene. When a carrot is juiced, removing the fiber, a Large percentage of the beta carotene can be assimilated by your body.

Of course, you still need to eat whole produce because fiber is also an important part of your daily diet.

Meeting you or your children's need for energy and nutrients is essential for good health. Children who do not meet their needs for energy may stop growing and gaining weight. In severe situations, they can develop a condition which is life threatening called protein energy malnutrition. Vitamins and minerals are only required in very small amounts, but a diet insufficient in these can cause SEVERE deficiency diseases.

You may be showing signs of malnutrition if you...

• feel tired and weak.
• feel like you never have the energy to clean your home, make meals or even do the dishes.
• have difficulty losing or gaining weight.
• can't easily get to sleep.
• feel stressed and/or nervous.
• feel drowsy during the day.
• sometimes can't concentrate, you're mind feels numb, or you get confused easily.
• have problems with your digestion.
• have constipation and/or hard dry stools.
• have mood swings, or get easily upset.
• don't have patience for anything.
• sometimes feel depressed.
• have overly dry or oily skin.
• sometimes have nausea and/or abdominal pain.
• have annoying eye twitches.
• bruise easily.
• have muscle cramps and/or low back pain.
• sometimes get cracks and sores in the corners of your mouth.
• notice that your nails have become thin and/or brittle.
• are losing your hair.
• have water retention.
• have uncontrollable temper outbursts.
• don't eat a well-balanced nutritious diet Everyday
  

Natural vitamins are found only in living things, that is, plants and animals. Your body, with a few exceptions, can't manufacture vitamins. They must be supplied in your food or in dietary supplements but supplements can't replace food, especially fruits and vegetables which provide thousands of substances, some of which have well-known functions, and some whose roles in the human body are not yet understood or recognized.

Vitamins and minerals ...

• reduce your risk of getting a stroke or heart attack!
• strengthen your nails!
• improve your hair condition, strength and growth by providing certain essential nutrients to the hair follicle!
• beautify your skin by keeping it smooth, soft and disease-free!
• provide essential compounds that are necessary for growth, health,
• normal metabolism and physical well-being! Without them, you would die!
• promote normal growth and development!
• maintain bone density and strength!
• regulate blood clotting!
• help in the function of nerves and muscles, including regulating a normal heart beat!

When it comes to choosing a healthy diet for their children, many parents don't realize the important role that beverages play. For example, fruit flavored drinks and soft drinks are not a substitute for real fruit. Many of these drinks only contain 10% real fruit juice. The very best drinks are made from whole fruit and you can make great fruity healthy drinks at home.

10 Tips For a Better Workout: Easy Weight Loss

There are several types of people working out in the gym. Some come for hard core body building, some for looking good, some come for fat loss/ weight gain and some come just for maintaining their body.

In all these categories of people, truly speaking, the meaning of fitness looks lost somewhere. Fitness can't be defined as a lean body or muscular body, but truly speaking fitness is a wider concept than just achieving fat loss or a lean body. Fitness comes from within and is the healthy state of mind & body which can carry on day to day life functions smoothly & can do them in better way than a sedentary person. Now a days fitness is just limited to the physical aspect of it. People think how much ever lean they become, that much closer they get to fitness. And then the plan to get “Fit” starts. Crash dieting, overtraining, minimal recovery period & so on.

Here are some points hamper goal achievement


The all or nothing approach

Today all who go to the gym, are mostly working people. Life has become so fast that there are too many things to be done and too little time; family, friends, socializing or working hours starting from 9am. Some work till late evening & some till midnight. With this kind of hectic routine, we hardly get time for ourselves & maintaining our health. Not having a full hour to exercise is no reason to skip your workout for that entire day. Research shows that even 10 minutes of exercise can provide important health benefits. So those who give excuses like they don’t get time, can do shortened workouts at regular intervals.


Unbalanced strength training programs

We all have health objectives. Some come with medical reasons; some come to take precautionary measures or some just for looking and feeling great. Mainly today in this competitive world its necessary to look good & presentable. We know the one who attracts the sight of the opposite one is always the winner, is always preferred. Because of this reason, most people tend to focus on areas like abdominals or arms more than required, maybe because they have a greater impact on the appearance or it is where they feel strongest. But to achieve a great, strong & perfectly balanced body we need to work upon all the muscles equally. Otherwise the body gets disproportionate, which is worst when it comes to functional day to day life activities. An imbalanced muscular structure can lead to risks of injuries or postural imperfections or even some severe medical problems. The best way is to target all the muscles one by one evenly throughout the week.

Bad form

This is one of the greats barrier when it comes to gettting results. The worst thing to do is to sacrifice your form in any exercise, just for lifting some extra poundage. All the exercises are designed in such a way that they should give optimal results. Also, we know that lifting the maximum capable poundage in last set of any exercise gives you maximum benefits. The workout is said not done without the so called 'Muscle Fatigue' not achieved at the end of a workout session. This muscular fatigue, which can only be achieved with proper intensity in workout session, giving you an after burn (burning calories even after finishing the workout). But does working out intensely means working out with bad form? Does hitting maximum poundage means compromising on the form? The answer is “NO”. The form can never be compromised for anything. Without the correct form the workload you lift is unproductive. People who swing the weights to lift, people who bend their back while doing bicep curls are at higher risk of injuries rather than that of optimal results after such weight training sessions. “The FORM can not be compromised for anything.”

Not progressing wisely

Our body is based on a three legged stool DAMAGE, RECOVERY, REST. Damage means the amount of muscle break-down you put your body through in any workout session. Recovery means the amount of nutrition and rest you give for recovering after an intense workout session & finally rest which means the amount of time you give for that muscle for preparing itself for another workout. Workout itself is a catabolic (i.e. breaking down muscle) activity in nature. It is the recovery phase which makes it anabolic (i.e. building up muscle) in nature & work positively on our body accompanying with rest. So those who exercise too frequently, for longer duration or too hard are in a risk of '’Overtraining' the muscle. Fitness enthusiasts, who make these common mistakes, are more vulnerable to get injuries. Proper workout regimes, not exceeding 45min a session along with a best working nutrition plan is desirable in achieving one’s fitness goal & enough amount of rest between two workout sessions is the key for perfectly safe & effective exercise program favoring optimal results.

Not enough variety

Our workout regime is always defined in a session wise plan, which gives us detailed idea of the exercises to be done with the reps & sets. Some people who find a program working on their body too soon love to repeat the same plan for more than the suggested period. Quick results can be the outcome of quick changes in your lifestyle or that of beginning response by your body towards your exercises, which varies with person to person. Mistakenly people take this as their exercise plan which after so long worked on their body perfectly because it suited their body type.

But as we stated earlier it's the perfect plan of nutritional requirements, exercises & right amount of rest which keeps boosting optimal results in your body steadily but regularly. Our body is such an intelligent machine which always tries to overcome the stress that we try put it through during a working out, with the help of nutrients we consume & rest. Also 'Adaptability' is one of the unique fundamentals of body, which means body always adapts to the given activity & its intensity after a certain period of time. This is the reason why we need to keep changing & incrementing our exercise routine often. As our body keeps adapting the given exercises, getting accustomed to the same old plan plateaus the response towards it. Additionally overdoing the same every time you step into the gym brings boredom, burnout &/or injury with it. So all you guys as they say “VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE”.

Neglecting adjustments of machines to ones body size

Now-a-days in all the commercial gyms we see the equipments are designed as such to accommodate a wide range of body types & sizes, but require you to adjust it to your body size. Not doing so take away the real impact of the machine on your muscle. The targeted muscle does not get the intense damage that you are looking for & so goes partially trained. This may prevent you from utilizing your muscular energy at its peak level, can lead to sluggish contribution in muscular growth; ultimately leading to poor results & increased risk of injuries. You should always seek the assistance of gym personnel whenever needed rather than neglecting it.


Focusing on anything but your workout

The importance of being 'mindful' of the task at hand can not be overstated. No matter what exercise you do, you should be focusing on it very seriously. Anything in quality matters than that of quantity. This means 30 minutes of quality workout with impressive intensity counts than a lengthy 60 minute dull workout which involves chit chatting, passing time on floor, roaming around machine with phone. Modernization has really affected today's gyms too. There are televisions & audio equipments in cardio zones. They are to be taken as to keep up your interest & not more than that. But climbing on the machines with the reason of watching your favorite program or just to listen your kind of music is not worth truly. This can adversely affect your quality of workout because of the distraction & actually slow you down. “WORKOUT SMART, THAN WORKING OUT LONG”.

Not properly cooling down after your workout

I have had people coming to me who workout in the gym but always with a complaint of have limited time. They always want me pack as much possible in a limited amount time. These are people who are either working or have some or the other reasons. I keep mentioning to them is the importance of cooling down as the workout session itself. Doing a fewer sets lesser or to skip one exercise is a better option according to me rather than that of completely skipping the cool down phase. It depends on person's goal again, what kind of cool down is required but spending the last 5minutes is at least necessary. This may include some medium intense cardiovascular exercise or specific muscle stretches. These will not only help in taking away the lactic acid (a chemical byproduct of reactions happening in muscles for energy expenditure) built up in muscles & dilute it but also help in overcoming the soreness caused by resistance training. Having flexible muscles is always better, than stiff ones from injury point of view & it helps in the workouts too in a kind by allowing to move in full range, optimizing strength & contraction speed by allowing better blood flow & ability to remove toxins in efficient way.

Poor gym etiquettes

This can range from simply being rude lingering on the machine long after you finished doing set or chatting on the phone loudly without having consideration for others working out around you. People get so busy with their personal calls that sometimes they forget that they're working out in public environment and others might want to do a set on that machine. Others who are working out with partners sometimes tend to gather with regular exercise enthusiasts and end up occupying a machine. This shows a sign of bad etiquettes towards our own gym. Always try to be considerable towards others exercising around you. People who sweat a lot should carry a hand towel for hygiene reasons.

Wiping off your sweat from the machine after using it ensures hygienic equipment conditions on the gym floor. Your skin becomes sensitive at times of working out as pores get open because of sweating; this is the time when your skin is more prone for infections. It's not healthy for these reasons to get on a dirty wet machine. One should always observe cleaning equipments after use, it helps in maintaining hygiene in the gym area.


Not setting up realistic goals

Setting up goals is completely upto the client’s capabilities & the target set. Everybody goes to the gym with specific goals as to lose fat, grow muscular, & so on. But without knowing one’s capacity or his/her limitations in achieving the same one can't really proceed ahead. It completely depends upon one’s body frame, medical conditions, family health history, lifestyle, fat %, eating habits, etc. knowing this will make goal setting specific and realistic. Again, when it comes to certain populations it seems very difficult for them to go ahead with their goals, because either they seem far from being achievable. Moreover people’s limitations and/or medical conditions become obstacles in their way. In such situations to keep one’s motivation & interest going, short term goals can be set, and can be reviewed monthly. This will also help in a way to monitor their results frequently & to keep one interested it in a smaller time frame gap.

Easy Exercise Tips for Quick Weight Loss

By setting realistic weight loss goals for yourself a healthy expectation is 1-2 pounds per week and sticking to a workout plan, you should begin to see the results.

1. Plan your days for the gym ahead of time and stick to your plan.

2. Start slow. Begin by exercising 2-3 times a week and move up from there.

3. Forget about how much you weigh. If you’re trying to slim down, the number you really want to focus on is your body-fat percentage.

4. Workout with a friend to help keep you motivated.

5. Seek fitness advice from a personal trainer to avoid injury and make the most of your time in the gym.

6. Stay hydrated. By the time your body lets you know you’re thirsty – you’re already dehydrated.

7. Stretch properly before any fitness routine to avoid injury and soreness.

8. Incorporate weight training into your weekly routine to help you build lean muscle mass, increase the amount of calories you burn and increase your metabolism.

9. Switch it up to stay interested and motivated: cardio every Tuesday and Thursday; strength training on Monday and Wednesday.

10. Include cardiovascular training even if you’re trying to increase muscular strength and endurance.

11. Aim to hit your eating and workout goals 80 percent of the time, you don’t always have to give 100 percent.

12. Don’t have time to hit the gym? The following 24-minute exercises burn approximately 100 calories each:

• Stair climbing
• Housework
• Gardening
• Grocery shopping
• Mowing the lawn
• Washing your car or bike

13. Find the time to work out when you’re traveling. Bring along easy to pack products like resistance bands, hit the hotel gym or even enjoy the great outdoors.

14. Cool down after cardiovascular exercise in order to return to a resting heart rate safely.

15. Jump into a group exercise class. Most classes are made for any fitness level.

Don’t Get Tricked By False Promises of Fad Diets

You may be tempted to follow one of those quick-fix diets to help you shed the few extra kilos’ you gained over the cold winter months. If you are one of those people trapped in a cycle of repeatedly losing and regaining weight (yo-yo dieting), crash diets are not the answer! This type of dieting may slow down your metabolic rate, result in feelings of failure or poor self esteem and could even lead to eating disorders.

Watch out for misleading weight-loss diets

There are a number of diets that have been circulated under various names such as the “Heart Institute three-day diet”, the “Heart Foundation diet”, the “Soup Diet”, the “Pre-Op diet” and the “Seven-day fat burning diet”.

What’s wrong with crash diets such as these?

These diets often promise quick results with huge weight losses. Although they may appear to work initially, they cannot sustain the weight loss in the long run. They may even result in subsequent weight gain that is greater than the amount originally lost!

With quick weight loss, it’s not usually fat that is lost, but fluid and muscle mass. This means that at the end of the diet, although you may have lost kilograms - you have actually increased your percentage of body fat. Also, when you revert back to your old eating habits, the lost kilos are quickly put back on. To top it all, if you have not exercised, the regained kilos will mostly be body fat (which burns less energy than muscle). The gradual loss of muscle mass contributes to the slowing down of your metabolism.

They often restrict certain food groups or suggest unusual combinations of foods which encourage poor eating habits or cycles of starvation and bingeing.

They may overemphasize a particular food type (e.g. The Cabbage Soup Diet) or food group. This violates the first principle of good nutrition: eat a balanced diet that includes a variety of foods. Following such a fad diet for more than a few weeks, could lead to nutritional deficiencies, as one type of food cannot provide you with all the nutrients you need for good health. The so-called fat-burning Cabbage Soup Diet includes mostly fruits and vegetables. It supposedly helps heart patients lose 4.5-7.5 kg in seven days before surgery. Remember that there are no super foods, or magic answers to weight loss. The key to successful weight loss and general wellbeing is to eat moderate amounts from all the food groups, not large amounts of a few special foods or a particular food group.

These diets often lack variety, may become monotonous and boring, which in turn make them almost impossible to stay on for long periods.

Sensible Way for losing Weight

The only sensible way to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight permanently is to eat smaller portions and balance your food intake with physical activity (at least 30-60 minutes on most days of the week). It’s best to aim for a well-balanced, low calorie eating plan that includes a variety of nutrient-rich foods such as fresh vegetables and fruit, whole-grains and fat-free or low fat dairy products. Gradual weight loss is the safest and most effective long term way to lose weight. Eating plans that encourage a weight loss of ½-1 kg a week are more likely to be successful and you’re more likely to stick to them in the long term.