Beat Cravings with a Loaded Smoothie

In this episode, JJ answers Kathy’s Facebook question about how to make a smoothie that keeps you full and focused for at least 4 hours. Tune in to learn the best fluids (including specific brands and varieties) for your smoothie, the magic trifecta that helps crush hunger and cravings, how to create an amazing milkshake-like texture to your loaded smoothies, plus the perfect amount of protein, fat, and fiber to include in your smoothie. Plus, JJ reveals her banana trick to get the most nutrients, the best fruit smoothie recipe, the secret smoothie hack to help keep your blood sugar balanced, and how to thicken a smoothie (or make it thinner). With these tips, you’ll create a loaded smoothie that helps you stay satisfied and energetic for 4 – 6 hours.

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ATHE_Transcript_Ep 507_What Can I Add to a Shake to Keep Me Fuller Longer?
JJ Virgin: [00:00:00] Looking for recommendations on what, how much to add to Shake Mix to make it last for four hours.
This is JJ Virgin four time, New York Times bestselling author, celebrity nutrition expert, and fitness Hall of famer. I've been on a lifelong quest for answers to the toughest health. And now I'm sharing what I found with you. Welcome to Ask the Health Expert.
All right, Kathy from Facebook asks, looking for recommendations on what, how mapped much to add to shake mix to make it last for four hours. All right. I am the queen of the loaded smoothie. I will be right back to walk you through how to build the perfect one that will help keep your blood sugar balanced and you satisfied and energetic for four to six hours.
So stay with me.[00:01:00]
So when I very first started, like I had been using shake mixes since I was, gosh, let me think now. It was like almost 35 years ago. Wow. That is crazy. I think it is 35 years ago, and it is actually why I made my own shake mixes because as I really started to dig into food intolerance, I was like, I cannot find one that doesn't have something that's gonna be a problem.
So I made my own, and I've always made my smoothies where I have the, the shake mix. And I very specifically, I plant based or paleo. If you're in my store, you know this. The shake mix and then adding in not water. Now when I'm, when I'm creating these and tasting what we're getting sent for flavor profiles, I use water.
But in general, what I want you to start with is next, you [00:02:00] put in the fluid. What is the fluid you ask? It should be either a nut or a seed milk. So this could be coconut milk. It could be flax seed milk. It could be cashew milk. It could be almond milk. The key important thing here is it's not sweetened unsweetened.
Nut milk. Now, if you're allergic to nut milk or seed milk, you could use a little bit of rice milk. Important unsweetened. Could you use water? Yes. But I think you're missing out on an opportunity right there to get some more nutrition. And when we're putting together your loaded smoothie, we're doing it just like we would do the plate.
Right? It's just a plate. It's just a, it's just in a cup instead of on a plate. You want your fat, fiber, and protein trifecta. So the protein obviously is coming. This smoothie mix. Now I add in extra of my collagen, so I'm getting extra in there. And I use usually this good karma, unsweetened, vanilla, flax milk.
So I'm getting even more protein cuz I like to start my day with like a 40 to 50 gram loaded [00:03:00] smoothie protein hit. But I'm also 150 pounds. Right. So, and I'm really working, I work out hard so that's why. Now that's step one. So then the, the nut or seed milk. And generally I'll do about, mm, I tell people to do about 10 ounces.
But here's the thing, I like mine super thick. I eat mine in more of a coffee cup type of thing, like a big bowl. So if you like it thicker, Then use less fluid. I use a Nutra bullet and I literally use only enough fluid so the Nutra bullet won't like blow up. Then I add in some kind of a healthy fat, and what I like to do is either some flax seeds or some avocado.
You can also use coconut butter. You can use a chia. You could use almond butter, right? Or some kind of nut butter. So something that's a little bit of. One to two servings of that. I think you're probably better off with two. So there you go. I add in [00:04:00] some of my extra fiber. My goal is to kick my fiber in my morning smoothie up.
I know I'll get at least 10 grams, but generally I'm going for like 20. I am bopping it up cuz I'll do my flax seeds in there. Two tablespoons of those, I heave in two servings of my extra fiber and then I add in half of a slightly green banana. So I say, Hey, you know, you could throw in some berries, you could throw in a little apple, you could throw in a slightly green banana.
I use, I freeze bananas when they're barely turning. Like not super ripe, barely at all. Like they're just outta being green where you can actually peel them so you don't use the peel, obviously. And I freeze those so I can pull out half of that. And so that's my general recipe for me. So you can see what I got.
I got protein and I got it from the shake mix. I also added in collagen. I also had some extra in my. Flax milk and also, you know, [00:05:00] I got some extra in my seeds. If you put some nuts in there, you got that too. Then I got in some more fiber from my extra fiber from the seeds and from the little bit of the banana, the half of the banana.
and I got my fat, fiber and protein. So there, so that's how I, I mean these things keep me full for four to six hours. Super blood sugar, balanced, super satiated. So that is the secret trick. I'll tell you how I make my husbands cuz he loves chocolate cherry. So I use our chocolate paleo shake. I add in some extra collagen.
I add in nut milk, I add in half an avocado, and I add in dark cherries, frozen dark cherries, unsweetened. And that's how I make his. And I actually. Add in a little bit of this cocove part powder I've been messing with too, playing around with. So there's his. So there you go. There's some great ideas and we have a smoothie guidebook, so make sure you check out the smoothie guidebook.
Go over to my website, jjvirgin.com cuz that smoothie guidebook will give you 50 plus recipes and [00:06:00] show you exactly how to make it. No more shake powder and water for you. Ho hum. This is the great stuff. That will keep you looking forward to having that smoothie every single day. Cuz this is a habit you want to instill.
All right, there you go.
This is JJ with Ask the Health Expert. I answer your questions weekly. Plus I interview the top experts in health and wellness, so make sure you never miss a show by going to subscribetojj.com. Yep, it's that easy. I'll see you next time.

 

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