This is a post on my Meetup group website from one of the members:

Hi James, in response to your query about “green smoothies”, here are my fundamental principles. (I’ll send this in 2 or 3 posts)

As a means of consuming more nuts, seeds and green leafy veg, none of which I could enjoy in sufficient quantities, I blend them with other healthy ingredients to make a “green” smoothie.

My staple is a good bundle of either spinach (pre-washed) or a bag of mixed dark green salad leaves and sometimes a small amount of, say, kale.

I typically add a very good quantity of berries: frozen raspb/strawb/blueb/mixed fruits of the forest style.
(I prefer to thaw these, at least partly)

I also add, as standard…. a piece of fresh ginger and the juice of half a fresh lemon or lime.

I keep stock of a variety of nuts (almonds, walnuts, brazils..) and seeds (hemp, flax, pumpkin, sunflower..). Instead of sesame seeds I add some tahini.

It’s necessary to add liquid and I use a combination of water and good quality fruit juice, usually pineapple.

Note that such a smoothie is not green, it’s closer to brick red or brown, so it might not look appealing.

You need to experiment to find your own quantity preferences and flavours.

You can also experiment with, for example, fresh chilli, or fresh herbs, but beware of some potentially funky tastes. The internet is awash with smoothie recipes, although many tend to be fruit based.

Note, the shell of the seeds need to be broken, otherwise they’ll just pass through you. Not all blenders will do this well. I usually blend the dry ingredients alone first to help the process.

Final note: I strongly advise anyone thinking of buying a blender AGAINST getting a “Nutribullet”.

I need to get more good green leafy foods into my diet again, but choosing healthy foods to eat requires a lot of discipline for me.

I have greater ups and downs with my diet than I do with any other aspect of my life. Although, it never is bad for more than a day or more at a time, it could be much better more of the time.

So what can I do to increase the desire for taking more care of my mind, body and spirit?.

Lets look at it this way, who is responsible for my health, vitality and well-being?

Who decides on what I put into my body and the body of my loved ones around me?

The evidence is strong for the benefits of maintaining a healthy lifestyle and that includes eating lot of leafy greens nuts, seeds, coconut oil, fruit (in most cases), vegetables, pulses, beans, etc.

Problem

The problems I encounter are:

Finding the desire to eat healthy (although when I do I’m much more happy for it)

The lack of recipes

The lack of ingredients in supermarkets

The cost of those ingredients

The shelf life of ingredients

The preparation of the ingredients

My addiction to some bad foods

The longing I start to feel when I don’t eat meat

My daughter likes pasta and foods with meat and sauce

Solution

Build a list of recipes

Find healthy sauces – alternative to tomato

Plan the ingredients for each day of week

Practice visualisation of food preparation in mind

Create daily/active questions

• Did I do my best to feel healthier for eating good food
• Did I do my best to find recipes for healthy eating
• Did I do my best to find healthy non-tomato sauce recipes
• Did I do my best to plan for the next health meals
• Did I do my best to think and act like a person who chooses to eat healthy foods
• Did I do my best to plan to maintain eating healthy by
  [answer = text box]

Go for a streak of 3 months

After a few weeks or months I will probably have enough recipes so I could change the questions listed below for new ones-

• Did I do my best to find recipes for healthy eating
• Did I do my best to find healthy non-tomato sauce recipes

I would recommend using the 6 questions listed above and see if you can change how you feel about eating healthy.

91% of people say they get a change in at least one area of their life.

Use my free KPI app. I have screenshots that guide you through how to create the 6 question survey using Google Forms (you need a Google email account).

You can then track your progress answering the 6 questions on a daily basis, or for better results, answer the questions multiple times throughout the day.

I’d love to hear about how you get on. If you need any help, like getting the Free App onto your phone, email me and I will help you in any way I can.