Bowl of Yum

I've been meaning to write this post for the longest time! I was kindly sent a few recipe books, and one of them is all smoothie bowls!

Smoothie bowls are those works of art you see on Instagram that are usually some combo of a thicker consistency smoothie topped with fruit, nuts, granola, and other healthy things. I experimented with them while I was on my cleanse (see here), and the honestly don't take nearly as long to make as the appear to. 

It was hard for me to pick the first smoothie bowl to attempt from 200 Best Smoothie Bowl Recipes by Alison Lewis, but the one that won my eyes over is below.

Orange, Banana and Coconut Bowl (serves one)

2 tbsp freshly squeezed OJ 

2 tbsp milk

3 tbsp old fashioned rolled oats

1 frozen banana cut into pieces

1 cup sliced oranges

2 tbsp unsweetened shredded coconut

4 ice cubes

Suggested toppings:

Sliced banana 

Unsweetened shredded coconut

Grated orange zest

Granola

Combine all ingredients except for suggested toppings in blender. Blend until smooth. Pour into bowl and top as desired.

My decorative efforts at 7AM aren't the best.

My did some mild alterations which likely affected the outcome very little. My OJ was not freshly squeezed, I used almond-coconut milk, and my toppings were goji berries, hemp hearts, coconut and oranges.

Also note that if you have a big blender (like me, I have a Blendtec) you can't just press "smoothie" and go with this one. There isn't much for liquid so it barely covered the blades. I had to use "pulse" and keep pressing it until it was blended. 

This was delicious and really easy! I made it in the morning before work and didn't mess up! The night before, I set the non-refrigerated items on the counter so I'd have less to gather in the morning.

Let me know if you end up trying this recipe!

XOXO
Glitterary Girl

*this book was provided to me for free but my opinions are my own*

Arbonne 30 Days to Healthy Living and Beyond: Week One

I've been complaining for about a year about the need to get back in shape. While my meals are usually decently healthy, my snacking habits are out of control. I officially have a pile of pants that no longer fit, and I've got some tops that can really only be worn with certain bottoms without looking completely unflattering. Replacing my wardrobe is something that I don't want, nor can afford, to do.

Changes needed to be made. I signed myself up for the Arbonne program as  a way of committing myself to sticking to a program. If I'm paying for it, I'm going to do it!

Included in the program (and I believe it can be modified) is:

1  30 serving bag of chocolate meal replacement (20 g vegan protein)
1 30 serving bag of vanilla meal replacement (20 g vegan protein)
60 omega 3 supplement capsules
40 bags of detox tea (herbal blend, pretty good!)
1 bag of 30 serving fibre boost powder (I blend it in my morning smoothie)
40 fizz tabs to flavour water and give an energy boost (I crack mine in half)
7 Day Body Cleanse (mine hasn't arrived yet - on back order)
Guide book
Access to private Facebook group for support
I also purchased a bag of chocolate Fit Chews. They have the texture of saltwater taffy and are good for a quick snack.

There are a lot of exclusions in the program: white pasta, gluten, cereals, bread, dairy, processed food,  refined sugar, alcohol, pork, most beef (allowed once per week at max), corn, white potatoes, and soy.

I planned on starting the challenge on Monday Feb 8, but my shakes were late arriving in the mail, so I started last Friday Feb 12. There is some planning to do, involving trips to the grocery store, Costco, and Bulk Barn. Some of the items I picked up were:

Tons of cartons of dairy-alternative milks (almond and various almond blends, all unsweetened), lemons, limes, green apples, frozen berries, brown rice pasta, quinoa, various organic salsas, plain almond and pumpkin seeds, avocados, almond butter, brown rice crackers, "clean" hummus, chicken breasts, frozen haddock, and ground chicken.

My thoughts after Week One:

The shakes are quite tasty... not McDonald's milkshake tasty, but I certainly don't dread them like most other protein shakes I've drank. I love that you don't need a blender. They mix perfectly fine in a shaker cup. I do blend my morning vanilla shake (thank you Blendtec!) with raspberries and avocado, but my chocolate lunch shake is just shaken with almond milk. My supper meals have been filling and good. I do a protein (chicken mostly and once a week haddock), a grain (quinoa, brown rice tortilla, or brown rice with salsa mixed in), and lots of veggies (broccoli, spinach, salad, sweet potato, etc). The only veggies I can't have are white potatoes and corn. I've worked out four days out of seven. The Facebook group leader throws out an exercise routine every few days, but I've just done some google searches to find basic circuit routines that take 20-30 minutes and involve lots of resistance training. I generally don't find myself getting hungry, but I did wake up in the middle of the night on Day 3 feeling like I could have a snack (I was too lazy to actually get up). My clothes are less snug, and the scale tells me I'm down 2.5 lbs.

Here are a few of the suppers I made this week.

Chicken and green salsa, spinach and lemon, cherry tomatoes, brown rice with red salsa

Brown rice tortilla with ground turkey, salsa, spinach and cherry tomatoes

Haddock with sweet potato and broccoli

So far, so good! I'm glad I decided to try this program, and I'm excited to see what progression I make in the next week.

XOXO
Glitterary Girl