If you find that commercial weight loss shakes are costly and you are not sure about their ingredients, then try making homemade weight loss shakes instead. Homemade weight loss shakes are one of the most popular weight loss supplements because anyone can make them as long as you have the right ingredients, a blender, and some ice. In fact, they may even be helpful for some people compared to other weight loss products being sold in the market.
Simple but healthy
Homemade weight loss shakes are simple and easy to make because they do not require any cooking. When you use fruits or vegetables as your main ingredients for homemade weight loss shakes, you can get a healthy serving of all the vitamins and minerals all in one beverage. Furthermore, it can also serve as a replacement for other meals.
Common ingredients
Sometimes, you may need other ingredients to add to your homemade weight loss shakes. It will depend on the type of nutrients your body needs and the kind of energy boost that you want. Here are some common ingredients that you can add to your shake:
o Fruits - these are helpful in getting rid of toxins from the body while providing antioxidants.
o Yogurt or low-fat milk - for your dose of vitamin D and calcium.
o Protein powder - for easier and faster digestion of your food while keeping you full for longer periods of time.
Other ingredients
Additional supplements and vitamins can also be added into your homemade weight loss shakes. Examples are bee pollen, black cohosh, ginko biloba, and dandelion. These ingredients promote healthy liver functions, cleansing of the intestines, more energy for exercise, prevention of fatigue, and prevention of allergies.
The benefits: vitamins and minerals
Freshly made homemade weight loss shakes are good sources of vitamins and minerals that pair up with co-enzymes and enzymes. These vitamins make the enzymes work and without them, our bodily functions will stop.
Enzymes
This is because enzymes work as catalysts in several chemical reactions happening inside our bodies. These chemical reactions are important to carry out digestion and the absorption and conversion of food to body tissue. Furthermore, enzymes are able to produce energy that are important for metabolic activities in our bodies.
The benefits: better vitamin and mineral absorption
When you drink homemade weight loss shakes, your body tends to absorb more vitamins and minerals coming from the fruits or vegetables you added in them, compared to eating them as a whole. This is because a lot of nutrients are trapped within the fiber present in the whole fruit or vegetable. However, by placing them in the blender, you break down the fiber to release the important nutrients.
You need vitamins and minerals
Even when you are on a diet, you still need the right amount of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients that your body can take so your organs can still function properly. Furthermore, without the proper dose of those essential nutrients, you can become malnourished. Malnutrition can cause a lot of deficiency disorders and diseases, so make sure that your body is still getting its recommended daily dose of nutrients coming from healthy fruits and vegetables that you can eat whole or blended into homemade shakes. Here are more benefits of the vitamins and minerals you can find in fruits and vegetables:
1. Stronger nails and hair
2. Smoother skin
3. Essential compounds needed for health, physical well-being, metabolism, and health.
4. Maintain bone strength and bone density.
5. Regulation of blood clotting.
6. Aiding the functions of muscles and nerves.
7. Regulation of your heart beat.
8. Reducing risks on heart attacks and strokes.
Tips and tricks for making shakes
To start making your homemade weight loss shake, make sure that your vegetables and fruits are juiced raw. Depending on the fruit, small fruits with seeds can be placed into the blender with the seeds, like pears and watermelons. However, if you are using apples, grapefruit, oranges, nectarines, peaches, or papaya, make sure to remove the seeds or large pits.
Peeled and ripe
Make sure to pick ripe and fresh fruits and vegetables. If they are bruised, wilted, over-ripe, under-ripe, or even rubbery, the shake will end up tasting bad. If the fruit or vegetable is not grown organically, peel off the skins since all the chemical residues can be found on the surface. If you are using pineapples, grapefruit, papaya, kiwis, and oranges, make sure that you also remove their skins.
More tips with the blender and mixture
Vegetables and fruits should be cut into pieces that can easily fit your blender. If they get stuck under the blade while blending, use a spatula to remove the jammed ingredients before proceeding to blend. If your shake is blended evenly, add 2 ice cubes and keep adding them once in a while until it sounds smooth. However, if your blender cannot blend the ice cubes well, substitute them with cold water or cold fruit juice instead. Finally, if your shake is too thin, add more ice or fruit, and more liquid if it is too thick.
