Help with smoothies

[Cherry.Chops]

Hi guys,
I really want to become predominantly raw, and one thing i really want to be a big part of my diet are smoothies. I just have a couple of problems.

Firstly whenever ive had a smoothie in the past ive only been able to have a few sips of it and then i just cant manage to have the rest, even if it is yummy and im hungry. I dont know what it is i just cant physically swallow it. I also feel extremely bloated. What can i do!!?????

Secondly im a type 1 diabetic and if im hypo then one thing that i have to have to bring my blood sugars up is fruit juice. Now i have managed to keep my b/s low and level and i dont want it to suddenly go sky high and have to give myself a load more insulin to be able to cope with the sugar.
So does anyone know any recipes that are really nice, but not really sweet, and also that arnt too green!? (it will take me a while to do the green ones!)

Any help will be greatly appreciated!

[cedarblue]

maybe veggie juices would suit you better than fruit smoothies in you are paying attention to your sugar levels? have you tried juicing?

or, have you tried a choco-nana type one?
blend;
banana
water
cocoa or carob powder
teaspoon of nut butter
maybe some seeds
maybe some dried desiccated coconut
maybe a dash of vanilla essence or maple syrup or agarve nectar?
not all the above are raw but can taste good.

[Cherry.Chops]

Hey, thanks for your reply.

I do not have a juicer just yet, although i will get one when pay day comes. I would like to try juicing. Maybe that wont make me bloated within a couple of mouthfuls!

Where can i get cocoa powder from, i havnt seen it around before?

[Mr Flibble]

Where can i get cocoa powder from, i havnt seen it around before?

[cedarblue]

cocoa powder is in any supermarket, usually by the hot choc products/hot drink stuff.

do you have your smoothies too thick? thin them down with water.
are you having green smoothies?
trying to use too much green leaves in them as a beginner can make them too strong and you feel bloated and they can taste too green or bitter.

try
small handful of spinach or 3 romaine lettuce leaves
1 orange
1 banana
a little water
blend up in blender or use hand one.

check out the smoothies and juices threads on here too!

[Verencemos]

I've had almond milk in smoothies - utterly delicious from my perspective. Imagine its reasonably high in protein and probably has a lower GI than fruit juice but you'd probably have to check with your dietician (I'm presuming you'll have access to one as a diabetic).

[Cherry.Chops]

Humm, i like oat milk, so maybe some of that with banana and dates? I will be seeing my dietition in jan, so i'll talk to her about smoothies then.

I havnt had a green one yet. Im waiting a little while to try that one!
I think i may have developed a slight fear of making smoothies!!!
I dont know why. Il always say 'oh il make a smoothie tonight' and then when to comes to it ill avoid to with all costs! maybe because its made me feel so ill afterwards?

I take it you can have cocoa as a hot drink?

[Elahiya]

bananas and dried fruit can be very filling. maybe that´s the reason why you felt so quickly bloated. bananas are a good base to begin with, they make the smoothies creamier. what about pears, berries or peaches and apricots?

[Cherry.Chops]

humm pear and berry sounds nice. So i should have slightly more watery fruits instead?

[Elahiya]

yes, i think you might start more with those ones. if you´re more used to smoothies after some time you can still add some banana or dried fruit and nuts. moreover, something like milk can be filling, too. so i´d also recommend to try it only with some water next time. only add as much until you have your desired consistency. for more nutrition benefits: add some maca powder. you could even add some yacon; yacon is good for the digestion.

so here we go, try it with berries, pears or even apples, plus eventually maca and/or yacon. if you feel like it, spirulina goes very well with berries, i think.

[cedarblue]

i find pears over power everything else in a smoothie. i prefer to eat them as a peice of fruit.

[Elahiya]

i think like that of bananas, but i´m very particular with the banana-taste anyway. i think peaches and apricots would also be a very good option to make it a bit creamier.

[Cherry.Chops]

I had a smoothie the other day and i had 3 sips of it and i became extremely bloated!

I think i should just avoid fruit ones!

[speedylemons]

What exactly are you putting IN your smoothies? Maybe that could help us help you.

[Cherry.Chops]

well i didnt make it, but it had in it

frozen berries, pineapple, 1 small banana, cramberry juice and ice.

It was very sweet, but that doesnt normally bother me.

[speedylemons]

Hmm.. Have you ever had problems with candida in the past? I wonder if that would be an issue.. with the bloating and stuff, it sort of sounds like maybe yeast issues... maybe.

Personally, I would probably have problems with that smoothie too. It sounds soooo sweet! I prefer to break up some of the sweetness with greens, which I know you've said you aren't ready for yet, but you can easily put in a small amount of greens and not taste them at all! I promise! It really does help with things being so sweet. I think the combination of all those fruits just seems.. a little strange. Are you able to eat those fruits separately, as whole fruits? I think the pineapple, cranberry and other berry combination sounds a little too much for me. Pineapple and banana work well together, especially with spinach [I swear!] and even adding a teeny bit of cranberry juice could be good, but that combination just sounds like a gut ache for me. Even berries mixed with pineapple would give me a bit of a tummy ache.

I have a feeling this is all rambling on my part, but maybe it will be of a littttttle help to you. If not, disregard!!

[Cherry.Chops]

Hey, thanks for your reply.
I used to have problems with it, but since i got diagnosed with diabetes, it hasnt been a problem.

Eating the fruits seperatly is no problem at all.

Will banana, pear and spinach be ok? I have no pineapple.
Perhaps it sould be that im trying smoothies with too many things thrown in?

Thanks for your help

[Elahiya]

usually it should be ok, but bananas are very filling. how many things to you throw in your smoothies? that could also be a reason.

what about banana, apple and some orange? that should work. maybe you should also add some ginger, it helps you to digest.

[Cherry.Chops]

good job i got some ginger the other day!
I usually have a few things in smoothies. There not ones ive made, the ones ive got from cafe's etc. There is usually a bix mix of fruit.
is there anything else i can use as a base instead of bananas?

I need a juicer, then at least i can hold my nose and gulp it down if i dont like it!

[Elahiya]

bananas are just making it creamier. as i mentioned before, pears or apricots should work as fine to make it "smoothier". how do you get alng with the bought ones?

when u have a juicer, it will be only juice, no smoothie anymore. it´ll be more liquid.

[Cherry.Chops]

The bought ones are the ones that make me bloated.
They're made in front of me, so i know what there putting in it etc. I havnt as yet, made my own. I will do though. I just dont want to make it and the throw it away, it will be a waste of good fruit.

Id like a juicer because i think it will solve the bloated problem. Ive never been bloated from juice before (exept if i drink too much oj) And also id love to do green juices and get all that extra nutrition. Would be a good drink before the gym too
Its so much easier to drink too. Hold your nose and gulp! I cant do that with smoothies.

[speedylemons]

I've never really been one to force myself to consume something- i.e. holding my nose to gulp down something.


I also prefer to make smoothies rather than juice because once you juice something, you are no longer getting the fiber. My blood sugar goes crazy [I'm not diabetic or anything] when I consume huge amounts of fresh juice. A little is fine, yes, but too much makes me float away into daydreams. Also, you say you are not able to do green smoothies.. so I'm just curious what makes you think you'll enjoy green juice?

There's got to be something behind this.. a secret culprit of why smoothies aren't be as nice to you as they could be!

Hmm..

[Cherry.Chops]

Oh, im counting on green smoothies to be gross at first, but i think before i go to the gym, or if im feeling low, the nutrients would be a fantastic boost.
I know not to drink pure fruit juices, as you know, it makes the bloodsugar go haywire. Ive never got bloated from juices though.
I just want to feel good after drinking something which is packed full of goodness (not inc water!), not worse.

[Quantum Mechanic]

I've had almond milk in smoothies - utterly delicious from my perspective. Imagine its reasonably high in protein and probably has a lower GI than fruit juice but you'd probably have to check with your dietician (I'm presuming you'll have access to one as a diabetic).

Yeah, my first smoothie I made I put in almond milk, some soy yogurt, an orange, freeze dried strawberries and mango (didn't have fresh), dried pineapple bits, some naked juice, and finely chopped nut pieces too. The almond milk I get anyway isn't too high in protein, though it's got plenty of other good nutrition like calcium, vitamin A, vitamin D, b12, stuff like that it's high in, and low calorie too.