A week goes by, you’ve been proudly making smoothies instead of downing enormous bowls of cereal or bagels for breakfast. Expecting a couple of pounds to just have been shed off, you step on a scale with high hopes. Hmmm …. Nothing; you haven’t dropped a pound. Well okay – you think, it’s been only a week. Then few weeks more go by and what, instead of losing weight you have gained a few pounds! Hey man, where you have gone wrong. We will tell you in this article all about the smoothie making most common mistakes that people usually make while making a healthy weight loss smoothie.
As in case of many other weight loss tricks, smoothies are trickier to use than you might think. Anyone can make or buy a smoothie, but if you want a smoothie that really makes you lose weight, you have to be familiar with how smoothies truly help you shed weight and avoid some of the common mistakes.
7 Smoothie Mistakes That Make You Gain Weight
Here are 7 most common mistakes, which you must watch out while making your smoothies because some of these could really mess up your weight loss efforts.
1. Not Enough Fiber: If you want to lose weight, fiber is your BEST friend. Why? It’s what fills you up your tummy to prevent hunger pangs so you end up eating less later on in the day. Moreover, it keeps you regular so that your metabolism keeps burning strong, and it flushes toxins out of your body.
Fruits and vegetables contain fiber – some more, others – less. So, trick is to choose the right ones. And everyone smoothie junkie’s favorite – banana contains only 1.4 grams of fiber (at least 10 grams are recommended for an ideal weight loss smoothie). Aim to include at least 10 grams of fiber in your smoothie to lose weight by adding fiber-rich foods such as any kind of berries, kale (it has twice as much spinach), avocado, kiwi, pear, beans, flax meal, chia seeds. Plant protein powders rich in fiber added to your smoothie will also help you obtain enough fiber. Use less of apples and bananas, as they are not so rich in fiber.
2. Not Including Enough Protein: OK, so you packed your smoothie full of kale, cucumber, and enough fiber-full veggies. Your body will appreciate the nutrients and fiber found in these greens, Awesome. Except you forgot one thing: protein. Protein is super important to sustain your energy levels during the day to prevent unnecessary snacking on high-calorie pick-me-ups. It becomes even more important, if you have propensity to energy crashes followed by reckless snacking. To avoid this make sure to load up your smoothie with some protein to put off that bad snacking – at least 10 grams. Go for milk or soy milk (avoid almond milk as one cup only offers one gram), Greek yogurt over regular, cottage cheese, soft tofu, nuts, nut butter and pumpkin seeds. Another simple way of adding protein is through protein powders.
3. You Are Making A Calorie Bomb: Do you measure out your smoothie ingredients or count their calories. Don’t just fill up your blender or NutriBullet with every healthy ingredient you can think of, and before you know it, you’ve created the tastiest caloric bomb of 600 calories or more of smoothie. So instead of losing pounds, you could gain some. You better start measuring or calculating the approximate calorie count of the ingredients you use if you want to keep the calories down. It’s easy with packed and boxed ingredients like milk and yogurt, protein powders and so on, as the calories are written on the box.
Aim to keep the calories count within 300 calories per smoothie serving.
4. Using Too Much Fruit: Even though fruits make a creamy smoothie tasting delicious and offer good amount of fiber and nutrients, but remember they are not void of calories. Using too much fruit means that you are really eating very high amounts of sugar, and although it’s natural sugar (which is the better kind), it can still lead to weight gain if you intake too much. For example, filling your blender with five different fruits, thinking you’re making a healthy 5 fruit smoothie, but actually it could mean 500 or more calories. Ouch! Moreover, not only you are packing in more calories, but you’re also giving your body quick-burning fuel, and this means you’ll need to eat again soon.
But fruits are great, so please don’t read this as that you need to cut out fruits, because that’s not what we are saying. You can avoid too much calorie issue by using a diverse blend of whole foods, including vegetables, a protein source such as milk, soymilk, yogurt, protein powder, soft tofu, beans, nuts, or nut butter.
Total Fitness Tip: Don’t mistake by thinking that just because a food is nutritious doesn’t mean it’s low in calories. Some foods such as avocados, dates, nuts, nut butters, whole milk yogurt, sweetened milks, fresh-pressed juices, oats, and even fruits like apples, pears, mangoes, cherries, and bananas can pack on a hundred calories each. Don’t keep away from these good-for-you ingredients — simply use small amounts.
5. Using Sweeteners: it’s another common mistake. You might be tempted to add just a tablespoon of maple syrup or honey to your smoothie, taking excuse – man, it’s fine they are delicious! But, do you know just One tablespoon of honey or maple syrup will also pack in 60 unneeded calories into your smoothie, turning it from healthy to ‘ehhhh’ – which is unnecessary if you’re using naturally sweet fruit in your smoothie. Don’t forget added sweeteners can also be in the form of flavored yogurt, fruit juice, sweetened milks, and canned fruits in syrup. Always watch out for the extra sweetness you’re adding.
If you want your smoothie to be really a weight loss and healthy one, use plain yogurt or unsweetened soy or almond milk instead. It won’t be as sweet, but your taste buds will soon prefer the subtly sweet.
Tip: If you actually cannot tolerate taste of your smoothie, use options like adding in cinnamon, salt, or lemon juice, which can make your smoothie more palatable.
6. Taking Smoothies As A Snack: Don’t drink smoothie as a snack. Take it as a mini meal. Smoothies tend to be around 300 calories or more and as snacks should be around 150 calories, that puts you way over the calorie line. So, if you are just adding smoothies to your existing diet, then the possibility of your losing weight is very less as you are actually consuming more calories than you were before.
Tip: If you want to drink smoothie as a snack, solution is to cut your favorite smoothie recipe in half.
7. Making Your Smoothie Too Large: Don’t get carried away when adding the ingredients to the blender and fill it up to the full – as that will make your smoothie thick instead of thin and runny. As smoothies are a liquid, it can be easy to drink way too much and end up gaining weight instead of losing. A good smoothie should be no more than 300 calories, and you should try to make it less if you can. Make a habit of measuring out your ingredients instead of simply adding all your favorites to the blender as you go along. This is a good way to be more inclined to think about portion control, rather than seeing how many pretty colors you can pack into the blender.
Family Fitness Tip: Green smoothies are the ideal weight loss smoothies. Green smoothies basically contain leafy green vegetables, such as kale or spinach, and although they obviously don’t taste as sweet as an all-fruit smoothie, but they are the best choice for those who want to lose weight.
