I love the taste of tart, fresh strawberries mixed with deep, rich dark chocolate. I love them even more when I can drink the two in a delicious and healthy vegan green smoothie. This is the perfect healthy dessert that will hit your sweet spot without sending you into sugar toxicity. Go ahead and have seconds, they’re just that good.

• 1 cup fresh strawberries
• 1 cup Navitas Naturals Organic Raw Chocolate Nibs
• 1 large handful baby spinach leaves
• 1/2 cup ice cubes

Blend together and serve in your favorite margarita glass or serve it with a scoop of raw vegan ice cream.

photo credit: stu_spivack

One thing that many people miss with vegan smoothies is the yogurt. Yogurt smoothies are rich and creamy, and have a flavor that many people love. Unfortunately, they are definitely not vegan.

So what is a green smoothie lover to do?

There are many alternatives to the yogurt smoothie recipe that vegans can do. Avocado is a creamy and rich is a great addition to any smoothie recipe. Using a sharp knife, cut lengthwise around the avocado, giving it a sharp twist to release the two halves. Then scoop out the meat inside and add to your smoothie. Try this simple recipe:

• 1 avocado
• 2 bananas
• 1 mango
• 1 handful turnip greens

Of course, for those who do not like avocado there are still great yogurt alternatives. Nogurt is a delicious vegan yogurt that has the same taste and texture as its milk counterpart. Add a scoop of Nogurt to any yogurt smoothie recipe for a great vegan alternative. Mix this recipe up for a healthy treat:

• 1 cup Pomegranate Nogurt
• 1/2 cup blueberries
• 1/2 cup strawberries
• 1 banana
• 1 cup carrot juice

photo credit: love♡janine

Some days I want a smoothie that is creamy and milky. Vegans have the options of using many different milk options: soy milk, rice milk, and almond milk to name a few. Soy milk is a very popular choice, but with concerns about soy and estrogen, I like to use fortified rice milk with my smoothies.

Here’s a delicious creamy smoothie that I love on a hot summer afternoon.

• 1 cup frozen strawberries
• 1 cup spinach leaves
• 1 banana
• 1 cup rice milk

Blend this altogether and pour into a fun, summer glass. Then go relax in the shade and drink to your health!

photo credit: Rafael Kage

These are one of my favorite smoothies to drink first thing in the morning. The blueberry and banana flavor is a real comfort taste, a bit like mom’s blueberry pancakes. But this smoothie is so packed with healthy nutrients it gives me a boost.

• 2 bananas
• 1 cup frozen blueberries
• 1 handful kale leaves
• 1 teaspoon raw chocolate powder (I like Navitas Naturals – Certified Organic Kosher Raw Vegan Chocolate Powder)
• 2 cups water

Put all the dry ingredients in first, then pour the water in over it. I like enough water to cover everything in the blender, but you can add more or less to make it thinner or thicker as you like.

photo credit: the trial

With a short detox diet, you can get a quick boost to your overall health. Though the point of this detox is not really to lose weight, it is certainly possible to drop around 5 pounds while doing this.

A smoothie detox diet is a simple way for anyone to flush out toxins, and amp up their body’s health. This is perfect for those who have tried diet after diet after diet, all of which left them feeling flat or burned out quickly. Instead, this short detox will give them a boost that they can use to continue on to a health eating lifestyle.

How To Do The 5 Day Smoothie Detox Diet

This detox is absolutely simple to do. There is no counting or measuring your food, no mixing weird concoctions, and no eating weird foods. Simple stick to 5 basic rules each day for the five day period.

1. Drink green smoothies for each meal. Drink as much as you want to feel full and satisfied, but only green smoothies. You can find many recipes to try under the Smoothie Recipes category!
2. Snack on fresh fruits and vegetables between meals. No dips, dressings, or oils. Just pure, whole, fresh fruits and vegetables.
3. Drink water. Lots of water. No soda, coffee, tea, juice, nothing. Just big, tall glasses of the water your body needs.
4. Rest up. During a detox period, most people feel worse then they did before. This is because your body is both ridding itself of toxins and fighting against additions to negative foods (like sugars). Get plenty of rest to combat these cruddy feelings.
5. Take it one day at a time. Five days seems short now, but often by the second or third day of a detox people begin to feel it will never end. Instead of thinking about how much time you have left, focus on the right now. This will make it easier to get though.

Of course, for every detox there are going to be exceptions to the rules. Athletes and those with extremely active lifestyles may need to add protein powder, wheat germ or flax seeds to their smoothies to keep up with their higher caloric needs. Those with already weakened bodies sometimes add vitamins or supplements to the mix also. To be safe, it is probably best to talk with your doctor first before beginning any detox to make sure it can fit with your unique health needs.

A 5 day smoothie detox diet can be the perfect thing for flushing out toxins, for giving your health a boost, and sometimes for losing weight in a short period of time.

photo credit: leoncillo sabino

Alex Ortner, from Raw For 30 Days, has posted two videos to the blog sharing his morning routine. These are great for people who are interested in changing their eating habits, but not really sure where to begin. Watching someone who is living the life lay out exactly what they do can be a huge help in see where you can get started yourself.

So head over, watch the videos, and see if you can incorporate some of his ideas into your own morning routine. You may find that is is incredibly simple and delicious to do!

photo credit: klynslis

For most people, the idea of going vegan is scary. It is one thing to add some delicious vegan smoothies to your every day diet, but to take the plunge into life as a full vegan is frightening.

What do you eat?

What if you miss foods you used to eat?

Do you have to give up taste?

Can I really do it?

This might surprise you, but you can become a vegan and enjoy a wide variety of delicious foods, many similar to your old favorites, and be happy. Yes, you can!

The secret is the transition. The time between your old lifestyle and habits, and the new vegan lifestyle you are moving towards. That transition period can be the hardest time to get through. This is why I spent time putting together a simple guide that will lead anyone through the fears and worry of transitioning to becoming a vegan.

My ebook, How to Transition to a Vegan Diet, is packed full of tips and ideas for getting through cravings and getting through dinner. Plus I added 10 super yummy, and super simple vegan dishes at the end. Foods that anyone can make, and everyone will love.

For only $9.95 you can be walked through the common transition problems, and be given links to websites and cookbooks that will offer you even more information. Plus learn how to make blueberry pancakes, chili, fettuccine alfredo, and more all vegan!

Are you ready to make the change?

photo credit: Lollie-Pop

Some days I just love a little tropical drink with a pretty umbrella sticking out of it. With vegan green smoothies I can still have that, and health too. This is my favorite tropical inspired smoothie for warm days by the pool.

• 1 large mango, diced and chilled
• 1 cup sliced pineapple
• 1/2 cup pineapple juice
• 1 banana
• 1/4 cup raw coconut
• 1 handful of kale

Toss it all in a blender and mix. If you like yours to be a little frothier, cut back on the pineapple juice and toss in some ice cubes instead. Pour this smoothie into a pretty cup, add a tropical umbrella, and pretend you’re living it up beachside.

photo credit: ~ Abdulhai A. Al-Abdulhai~

If you only listened to the commercials you would think that you need to buy special pills or drinks to help you lose weight. Prepackaged drinks, bars, and snacks are sold by the thousands each day to people desperate to lose weight.

The reality is that you can lose weight and gain health from the produce section of your local grocery store. When it comes to burning fat, gaining energy, and feeling great there is no replacement for getting a daily load of fresh fruits and vegetables. The easiest way to do this is with the vegan smoothies diet. Vegan smoothies are so easy to make!

Vegan simple means there is no animal products included. No milk, cheese, or honey. Everything you need was growing on a plant somewhere and is now waiting for you to enjoy. Every day there is a new diet plan being marketed, a new “secret” weight loss formula selling books, or another diet guru on TV. The fads come and go like the weather. Many people are drawn in by these fad diets, promising weight loss results if you just buy all the things they are selling.

The vegan smoothie diet requires no guru, no secret formula, and no expensive meal replacements bars. All you need is a fridge full of fruits and vegetables, a good blender, and a desire to be your best. Rather than some new fad diet, this is the way humans were eating for millions of years. Our ancestors ran on fresh fruits and vegetables in their natural form, and how many overweight, sluggish cavemen do you think survived the harsh conditions?

For some, these fad diets may work at first. Water weight loss or burning of excess fat is common. Unfortunately, it all comes back once you stop the fad dieting. And with it health problems from ingesting unhealthy chemicals and mixes. Instead, a vegan smoothie diet gives your body exactly what it needs. Raw fruits and vegetables. Simple fill up your blender with a few fresh berries, a banana, and a handful of leafy greens. Then mix.

The green smoothie you create may not look good, but it tastes wonderful. The natural sugars found in the fresh fruit is better than the artificial sweeteners found in most foods. And veggie-phobes and take care, you will not taste the greens at all. There are many different ways to create a delicious vegan smoothie, but they all end up the same way: a healthy alternative to fad diets and weight loss lies. When you feed your body what it needs it will easily drop pounds, gain energy, and feel better.

And because this is not a diet, there is no worry about gaining every thing back later. You can continue to enjoy a vegan smoothie once a day, or more, for the rest of your life to continue getting your daily needs without taking away from your life.

What an easy way to lose weight!

The vegan smoothie diet is a simple, fast, and easy solution to weight loss problems. Whether you drink one a day, or three, your body will start to feel better. Drink one each day for breakfast, or as an afternoon snack. Some people love it so much they have a smoothie several times a day.

The incredible nutritional value from one smoothie is far better than most people get in an entire day’s worth of meals. Leaving the fruits and vegetables raw means they do not lose precious nutrients from cooking. And blending them up makes it easier for your body to break down and absorb the nutrients there. Unlike with juicing, you are getting the entire thing. Anyone who wants to lose weight without giving up health should try the vegan smoothies diet.

photo credit: Calvert Cafe & Catering

The Proverbial Medical Disclaimer

I’d like to start of by stating that this information is just my opinion based on the information I have read from expert authors and from the 10+ years living and eating the way I have on a daily basis. Couple that with my twice a year blood work that reveals no deficiencies, I feel this information is valid and very valuable. Perhaps it works just for me, my genetic makeup and my body type, I can’t say for sure. However, just like cigarette smoke could probably affect each one of us with varying degrees of health negatives, the green smoothie diet, I feel, can affect each one of us with varying degrees of health positives. Try it for yourself, after you speak with your natural, or other, health practitioner first of course.

Cut Your Finger And It Will Usually Be Healed In A Short Time

The body is designed to heal itself right? Then why is it that so many people are sick? Perhaps it is in inaccurate statement that the body is truly designed to heal itself? No! The problem is that we a) do not give it the sufficient amount of tools, by way of diet for the most part, it needs to heal itself and b) we bombard it with things that hinder the functionality of the limited tools that we do provide it.

Living On Mars

Another possibility that may seem a bit far fetched and from another planet is that perhaps our beliefs truly do control our lives. For example if we truly, without a doubt, 100% believe that smoking and eating anything that we want contributes to good health, then it will. That’s the theory anyway and I have seen that hold true on smaller scales, like placebos for example, but it’s a difficult concept for most people to wrap their minds around so to speak, so let’s come back to Earth and finish this up.

You Are What You Eat

Here’s a bold statement. One that a lot of people won’t like to hear, and one that is just MY opinion and not to be construed as advice. I feel, we, as humans, don’t need to consume meat to survive. That’s right, the plant kingdom has everything we need to survive and thrive. What about Vitamin D? Get some sun. Plus there are some algaes I believe that provide a source of Vitamin D. What about Vitamin B12? Sure, B12 is abundant in meat, granted, and besides some forms of algae, there may not be a source of B12 in the plant kingdom. However, it is suggested that one of two things may be going on in our favor. First, it is suggested that B12 will recycle itself in the colon so it does not need to be ingested. And another school of thought is that the body will manufacture B12 on its own using other resources that are provided by diet. Who knows for sure, but I’m not deficient in Vitamin B12 myself and I don’t eat meat anymore.

The Best Diet Going

I’m a big advocate of raw foods. The suggestion that heating food above a certain temperature destroying much needed enzymes that are important for digestion makes sense to me. Further, it is suggested that to get the most out of our food we must chew it until it disappears. Our body has troubles handling big chunks of food. Also, I strongly believe that we can survive and thrive off of a diet of mostly fruits and dark green leafy vegetables, with the occasional healthy fats. Healthy fats in the form of avocados, soaked nuts and seeds is all I consume.

My goal each day is to eat plenty of raw ripened fruits and greens. The best way as far as I’m concerned, in order to consume enough and to help my body with digestion is to drink green smoothies throughout the day. Finally, I am creating a body that has ALL the tools that it needs to heal itself and give me the energy, mental clarity and vitality that I need to get through my day.

One Major Hurdle: Cravings

Some people worry about the green smoothies tasting bad. That’s before they try them. Others worry about losing the “social” aspect of eating. Get over that or be creative or stay sick OK? Another hurdle is cost. Eating unhealthy is cheap that’s for sure. But we’re just talking about produce here for the most part. If you can’t afford to grow your own or to buy organic at first, don’t. Eventually, as you heal and feel better, if you are like me, you will start to become more productive and more energetic which could eventually lead to the desire and motivation to grow a garden or even earn more money to buy organic foods. I’m not kidding!

Another hurdle for some, and a big one for me was fighting unhealthy cravings. Just like a person addicted to drugs or alcohol must go through a detox to heal, we essentially have to do the same thing. Our cells are made up of stuff from the food that we have consumed in the past. The body may crave more of the same unhealthy foods that contribute to the contents of the individual, sick cells in our body. For drug detoxes, often times, sauna therapy is used to sweat the drugs out of the system. That generally helps eliminate the physical drug cravings allowing the individual a better chance of staying sober. For us, improving our eating will trigger the elimination of toxic foods as well which can be naturally removed in stool, sweat and urine. However, we still might crave those foods while some of the toxic elements in our cells are still present.

I, myself, have found that immediately after having the first drink of my green smoothie the cravings for greasy foods, meat, sweets, salt, etc started to subside. After I was done drinking the smoothie, the cravings were gone completely and I’d be content. The problem then was that the cravings would come again as I became hungry. What I did was make sure I was on top of it and have a green smoothie ready and waiting before the cravings would reoccur, or shortly after they reared their ugly heads. The unhealthy cravings eventually subsided for good as I cleaned out my body. Suddenly I began to crave greens instead!

Be Proactive

How many small kitchen appliances do you see collecting dust? People use them once and since they don’t like to clean them, they avoid using them again. Please don’t attach that negative feeling to this process and to your life saving smoothie blender! What works for me is, I make a smoothie, pour it into a mason jar, and then immediately rinse out the lid and the blender and set it on a dish rack to dry. It’s then ready to go for the next time around. Just take it apart to clean at the end of the day, not for each use! Forget that noise! Plus, give your jars a good rinse after drinking to avoid having to scrub them later. You may be eating a lot of smoothies at first as your body heals. Eventually, though, you’ll likely require less and less, but still maintain the same vitality, energy and ideal weight!

photo credit: avlxyz