How to Make a Power-Packed Breakfast Smoothie

with CRYSTAL ANTHONY, Liv Racing Athlete

Are you looking to kickstart your day with a super healthy, colourful and delicious breakfast smoothie? Of course you are! Liv Racing Athlete, Crystal Anthony shares one of her go-to, power-packed breakfasts, which is loaded with veggies, protein, healthy fats and carbs.

Crystal understands that having vegetables for breakfast can be a challenge, after all, who craves a big crunchy kale salad first thing in the morning?! Realistically, many of us don't crave anything early on, besides a cup of coffee…However, it’s important to make a conscious effort to eat a healthy breakfast first thing in order to replenish your body with fuel and nutrients, to help stabilize your energy stores and boost your metabolism.

Liv Racing Athlete, Crystal, fuels her workout with this delightful dish. If you would like to do the same, check out the ingredients below! Don’t forget to snap this totally instagrammable meal and tag us in your uploads! We absolutely love seeing and sharing your awesome shots on our feed!

Smoothie Base Ingredients: 

  • 3 tablespoons hemp seeds
  • 1 cup unsweetened non-dairy milk
  • several handfuls spinach
  • 1/2 cucumber, chopped and frozen
  • 1/2 banana, chopped and frozen

Flavour Varieties:

  • Red Velvet: 1 cup frozen berries, 1 scoop beet powder
  • Mint Chip: few drops peppermint extract, 2-3 dates, 1 tablespoon cacao nibs (optional)
  • Matcha: 1 teaspoon matcha, 2-3 dates, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, vanilla
  • Snickerdoodle: reduce to 2 tablespoons hemp seeds, 2 tablespoons tahini, 2-3 dates, 1 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Golden Milk: 1/2 cup fresh or frozen mango, 1 teaspoon turmeric, 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, (other spices like ginger, cloves, cardamom), dash black pepper, vanilla *note that due to spinach this will be green not golden in color!
  • Blueberry Ginger: 1 cup frozen blueberries, 1/2 teaspoon ginger

Why Crystal chooses these 5 core ingredients in her power-packed smoothie:

Hemp seeds: these are rich in essential fatty acids and have the highest protein content among the three most popular seeds: hemp, chia, and flax. Additionally they are high in vitamin E, phosphorus, potassium, sodium, magnesium, sulfur, calcium, iron and zinc. They add a rich creamy texture to your smoothie!

Non-dairy milk: this provides a creamy base and will not aggravate dairy or lactose sensitivities.

Spinach: spinach is rich in iron, vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C and folate; it also is a good source of manganese, magnesium, iron and vitamin B2.

Cucumber: low in calories and high in water content, cucumbers are great for hydration. They also contain antioxidants, including flavonoids and tannins. By freezing the cucumbers, you can store them for weeks and add body to the smoothie.

Banana: lower in fructose than other fruits, bananas are easier for some to digest for energy. They also contain potassium, calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron, folate, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin B6, and the amino acid tryptophan. The carbohydrate content aids in the absorption of tryptophan in the brain, and vitamin B6 contributes to converting the tryptophan into serotonin, a mood-boosting hormone. Freezing the bananas allows you to store them for weeks and adds body to the smoothie.

Reasons why a smoothie is an effective and beneficial breakfast choice:

  1. Create an easy breakfast routine. Making a smoothie is not difficult or time-consuming. You can easily make this dish part of your daily routine.
  2. It’s all about variety. You may be wondering how variety fits into this standard smoothie base. The variety comes with the flavour additions mentioned above! By adding 1-5 extra ingredients, you can vary your flavour as well as nutrients each morning.
  3. Easy nutrition on-the-go. Smoothies are easy to transport if you need to eat whilst out and about.
  4. You don’t need to be a chef. Smoothies cannot be “messed up” even if you aren’t a great cook. There is no need for precise measurements, chemical reactions, or proper mixing techniques. That said, a Vitamix will make it incredibly smooth and creamy!
  5. Cooling or warming - smoothies can be both.You can adjust your smoothie to be either cooling in the summer or warming in the winter based on this concept from Chinese medicine.
  6. Adjust based on your training plan. If you’re looking to train harder/faster, you can add in extra bananas or dates to increase the carbohydrate content of your smoothie.

Thank you for sharing this delicious recipe with us Crystal!

Did you know October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month? We have teamed up with care and research charity, Breast Cancer Now to raise both money and awareness to help beat cancer! If you would like to see what we’re up to this month or wish to donate, head over to our pedalling for prevention page in partnership with Breast Cancer Now.