The value of drinking your fruits and vegetables cannot be underestimated. Smoothies and shakes are a great way to get all the vitamins, minerals and supplements you need for a healthy lifestyle. Perfect for replenishing your body with nutrition it needs.
Green smoothies – packed with dark leafy greens like kale and spinach – are a great choice.
They’re a good source of alkalinity, which is needed to balance out the acidity common in most diets, and full of iron, vitamins C & K plus a host of other important minerals and nutrients.
You’ve got the perfect smoothie – now you need the perfect time to drink it. Because the real benefits you get from a green smoothie depends on the time of day you drink one.
Avoid drinking with meals
The main purpose of drinking green juice is to get all the nutritional benefits as quickly as possible. When you have a meal at the same time, your stomach will have other contents it needs to digest. That means the absorption of the nutrients will be delayed.
It may also mean you don’t get the full benefit of every single nutrient in the juice either. As there’s other food and liquid in your stomach, some of the nutrients may get consumed by the bacteria in your gut alongside the other contents, rather than getting absorbed into your blood stream.
Don’t replace dinner
Because these drinks contain all the calories, nutrients and protein (especially if you have add-ins) that you need, you might choose to use them as a meal replacement. For breakfast and lunch, they are quick, easy and can curb your hunger until your next meal.
But for dinner, green drinks can be a little more problematic as a meal replacement. Willpower wise, dinner is often the hardest meal to skip, especially if you enjoy going out with friends and family. Even just sitting and sharing a meal at home can be a very important part of the day for many families.
You may also have eaten a full, heavy meal at lunch, if you’re having a juice drink for dinner, which means that your stomach and gut could still be digesting that food. This will hold up the digestion of your green smoothie, and could lead to bloating or gas.
Breakfast is best
Drinking your green juice on an empty stomach is therefore the best option, and there’s no better time to do it than first thing in the morning, at least an hour before or after a coffee too, to avoid any acidic interaction with the juice.
It’s the best way to absorb all the nutrients each drink contains, and it’s also the best time to drink one as a meal replacement. Breakfast can often be an unhealthy meal - toast, pastries, cereal - so a gulp of green juice instead gives you all the calories you need, and the sweetness of added fruits should stave off any cravings for snacks until lunchtime!
Want to try one for yourself? See what’s on the menu at FUEL.
