People often ask me: “Aren’t you hungry having just a green smoothie for breakfast?”

And my answer is always: “No, because the green smoothie is usually not the only thing I have for breakfast.”

Some days it is — depending what I ate the night before, or if I just want to give my digestive system a little bit of a break — but most days, I have my regular green smoothie first (after drinking some water of course, sometimes with lemon), then about 30 minutes to an hour later I have part 2 of my breakfast.

Recently this is what I’ve been having after my regular green smoothie when I’m on the go:

My Filling Green Smoothie (with added protein)

I like to make a big batch of green smoothie in the morning and drink one glass of it as is (as more of a detox drink), then I add some extra fillers to the remaining green smoothie in my blender to make a more filling one that I take to go and usually drink after about an hour.

What I usually add is:

• ½ tsp turmeric powder (for its anti-inflammatory effects, since I just started strength training)
• ½ tsp ceylon cinnamon (also high in antioxidants with anti-inflammatory effects, and studies have shown it can lower blood sugar by improving insulin sensitivity) (1,2)
• ½ tsp ginger (this spice ALSO has powerful anti-inflammatory effects, and has been shown to help with exercise induced muscle pain, support digestion, and has loads of other health benefits) (3). Note: I’ve already included a knob of fresh ginger in my regular green smoothie recipe, but I find that adding a little more ginger and cinnamon masks the turmeric and black pepper taste nicely and I get even more health benefit from my green drink.
• Few cranks of black pepper (to help my body absorb more of the turmeric)
• 1 scoop of collagen peptide powder (which gives me 10 grams of protein and can help reduce joint pain, reverse skin aging, help with building muscle, and may also help reduce cellulite and improve digestive health) (4) – I use this one.
• ¼ cup of rolled oats
• 2 brazil nuts (for my daily dose of selenium – brazil nuts are the #1 food source of selenium which is an important mineral that is often hard to get enough of in one’s everyday diet — selenium is also anti-inflammatory, cancer-fighting, a mood lifter, and great for the health of your skin) (5)
• 12 soaked almonds, or some hemp seeds, if I’m feeling more hungry (for some added protein and healthy fats — see my post on the importance of soaking nuts and seeds & how — though, no need to soak the hemp seeds)
• A couple small dates or some date paste, or more banana, if I feel it needs a little added sweetness or I just want to make it more filling – it’s always best to opt for whole food sweeteners and while many recipes these days call for stevia, I personally don’t like the taste but if you do by all means, add some stevia)
• Ice (because a chilled smoothie always tastes way better!)

You can be creative and add many different things to your green smoothie to make it into a complete meal. Other options include:

• avocado,
• protein powder (I like this plant-based protein powder which I actually add to my post-workout smoothie bowl or shake with frozen berries and a little peanut butter or tahini and ground flax),
• Any other nuts or seeds (pre-soaked for better digestion and nutrient assimilation, as well to make them easier to blend)
• 1-2 Tbsp nut or seed butter,
• sweet potato or canned pumpkin.

And if your smoothie becomes very thick, just make it into a smoothie bowl. Pour it into a bowl and eat with a spoon. I like to add some toppings to have something to chew on — such as sprouted ground flax, homemade granola, coconut flake, etc.

Just don’t go overboard with adding too many fillers or topping or you’ll tax your digestive system and end up feeling tired afterwards.

One easy tip to enhance digestion it to consume your smoothie/smoothie bowl SLOWLY and remember to chew so that you mix your smoothie with the digestive enzymes in your saliva which starts the physical process of digestion – not only will this prevent bloating and/or fatigue afterwards, but you’ll assimilate more of the nutrients.

Your breakfast should give you energy, not zap your energy or give you an energy crash an hour later (which is why you need to include some healthy fat and extra protein).

Experiment to find the right combination that leaves you feeling satisfied but not overly full.

What do I eat for breakfast besides green smoothies?

These days I’m trying to avoid bread. So, if I’m not on the go, and it’s not a gym day, I might have a bowl of oatmeal or quinoa porridge about 30 minutes to an hour after my green smoothie.

When I make oatmeal or quinoa porridge I usually add some dates or banana to sweeten, homemade almond “milk”, fresh or dried berries, and either chopped walnuts or some seeds – chia, ground flax, or pumpkin seeds that were soaked overnight if I was planning ahead :D.

References:

1. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/10-proven-benefits-of-cinnamon#section5
2. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22671971/
3. https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/11-proven-benefits-of-ginger#section6
4. https://www.healthline.com/health/collagen-powder-benefits#top-benefits
5. https://draxe.com/brazil-nuts/