Five Supercharged Smoothies to Kick Start your New Year

Five Supercharged Smoothies to Kick Start your New Year

Want to shape up and get healthy in 2016? Nutritionist Christine Bailey suggests you add these delicious supercharged smoothies to your morning regime.

It can be hard to stick to new year resolutions. But if your looking for an easy way to feel great fast Nutritionist Christine Bailey has the answer. Christine is an award winning nutritionist and chef, regularly appearing in the media and known for her effective nutritional programmes for helping clients reach their health goals fast. In Christine’s new book Supercharged Green Juice and Smoothie Diet she offers an array of nourishing recipes and programmes to follow – whether you are looking for a 3 day fast track shape up cleanse or a week long programme for something longer term. There are menu plans to follow to enable you to incorporate them whatever your health goals

Here are her top smoothie recipes to kick start the New Year.

Best For Weight Loss: Matcha Fat Burner Shake

Drink yourself thinner. Adding matcha green tea powder is a fabulous to enhance weight loss. Green tea is rich in polyphenols, notably a catechin called epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG), which is believed to be responsible for most of the tea’s health benefits. It is an effective fat burner and energizing food, and its high antioxidant levels mean it is also helpful in protecting the body from harmful free-radical damage. Studies show that exercising after drinking matcha tea can further boost fat-burning, making this an excellent pre-workout drink.

Using the powder maximises the benefits – one glass of matcha is the equivalent of 10 glasses of green tea in terms of its nutritional value and antioxidant content.. Green tea also contains the amino acid L-theanine, which stimulates the production of alpha brain waves to create a state of calmness and mental alertness.

Serves 1

3 Brazil nuts
1 tbsp HEMP SEEDS
125ml/4fl oz/1⁄2 cup almond milk
125ml/4fl oz/1⁄2 cup coconut water
1⁄4 small pineapple, skin cut off
1 handful of kale leaves, chopped
1⁄4 – ½ tsp MATCHA GREEN TEA powder

Put all the ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. Serve immediately.
Best for Lean Muscle: Spirulina Protein Booster

Spirulina belongs to a class of single-celled, blue-green spiral algae. It is rich in chlorophyll, protein, vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, nucleic acids (RNA and DNA), polysaccharides and a vast spectrum of antioxidants. A great vegan protein option for supporting muscle mass and blood sugar levels. Being rich in antioxidants it can be great for supporting recovery after exercise too. It is also cleansing and will help energise your whole body. This delicious drink includes protein powder and spirulina, to support healthy muscle mass and keep your blood sugar levels stable through the day.

Serves 1

1 handful of basil leaves
1 large handful of spinach leaves
1 cucumber
1 lime, peeled
2 celery sticks
1 green apple
1⁄4 – ½ tsp SPIRULINA
1 tbsp VANILLA PROTEIN powder
4 ice cubes

Put all the ingredients, except the matcha, spirulina, protein and ice, through an electric juicer. Transfer to a blender or food processor and add the remaining ingredients. Blend briefly, then serve immediately.
Best for Stress: Christine’s Stress Buster

A radish-like root, maca is known for its adaptogenic properties and has the ability to help the body adjust to stress, build up resistance to disease and support immunity. It can also be taken as an energy food for combating fatigue. Here Christine combines it with another wonderful stress busting herb known as Ashwagandha – readily available as a powder. A great drink to kick start the new year if you’re feeling wired.
Serves 1
1 large handful of cos or romaine lettuce leaves, chopped
1 tbsp almond nut butter
1⁄4 tsp ASHWAGANDHA powder
1⁄2 tsp MACA powder
1 large handful of frozen mixed berries
1 tsp COCONUT OIL
1 tsp honey or bee pollen
250ml/9fl oz/1 cup coconut milk, almond milk or kefir

Simply blend all the ingredients until smooth and creamy

Best for Immune Health: Chocolate Berry

Struggling with a winter cold or flu? Then try this fabulous immune boosting drink. Chaga is a medicinal mushroom that has anti-viral qualities and strong immune-enhancing properties, as well as high levels of antioxidants. Adding the Brazil nut butter provides plenty of healthy fat and selenium, which is important for a healthy thyroid and immune system. This smoothie is also packed with antioxidants and vitamin C to support immune function. Acai berry is a dark-purple berry packed with antioxidants and a concentrated source of anthocyanins, which are known for their protective, anti-ageing benefits.

Serves 1

1⁄2 tsp CHAGA MUSHROOM powder
1 handful of spinach leaves, chopped
1 tbsp Brazil nut butter
1 tsp COCONUT OIL
1 heaped tbsp RAW CACAO powder
1 tbsp LUCUMA powder
2 tsp MANUKA or RAW HONEY
1 large handful of pitted cherries
1⁄2 tsp vanilla extract
1⁄2 tsp ACAI BERRY powder

Best For Digestion : Probiotic Blast

After the festive indulgences we can often feel heavy and bloated – give your gut some love and attention with this gut loving smoothie. Kefir is a fermented drink that have been used for thousands of years to promote health and vitality. It provides a wide range of beneficial probiotic bacteria, which are essential for supporting overall health, immune function, digestion and detoxification. You can buy milk or coconut kefir or make it yourself. You can also add a scoop of probiotic powder to drinks to boost digestive health too.

Serves 1

1 small banana, chopped and frozen
250ml/9fl oz/1 cup MILK KEFIR or COCONUT KEFIR
1 tbsp GOJI BERRIES
1⁄4 tsp ACAI BERRY powder
1 handful of fresh or frozen mixed berries
1 large handful of spinach leaves,
chopped
1⁄2 tsp PROBIOTIC powder, optional

Place all the ingredients in a blender and process until smooth.

Recipes taken from The Supercharged Green Juice & Smoothie Diet
Over 100 recipes to boost weight loss, detoxification and energy
using green vegetables and super-supplements By Christine Bailey
1 January 2016 – Paperback – £10.99

Images: From Supercharged Green Juice and Smoothie Diet by Christine Bailey © Nourish Books 2016, commissioned photography by Toby Scott.

Extracted from
Supercharged Green Juice and Smoothie Diet by Christine Bailey © Christine Bailey 2016 published by Nourish Books, London
Paperback
£10.99