I can’t say that I felt much like a warrior during my first trimester. I did look and feel a little green though! I was cruising along feeling fine until week 6 came along and then I discovered that pregnancy hormones are no joke. All day nausea and extreme fatigue hit me like a ton of bricks. The fatigue was like nothing I’d felt before; it’s almost like feeling tired deep in my bones. I considered it a successful day if I could peel myself off the couch and do something productive. As someone who likes to be in motion at all times, this was a big adjustment. I said to Eric, “I’ll never complain about PMS again!!” hah. It was difficult trying to crank out blog posts because I wasn’t the least bit excited about food. Even drinking water was a struggle for my nauseous tummy. I despised water with a passion. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. Bedtime was 8:30pm most nights (that’s if I could make it that long without falling asleep on the couch) – Sketchie has been loving all this extra cuddle time though! Some mornings I would wake up after 11 hours of sleep which I still can’t wrap my mind around. The human body just amazes me how it conserves energy when it needs to. It’s been a great lesson in trusting that my body knows best.
Anytime I need a boost, I just think of the end result and I’m filled with a burst of excitement. I feel like I’m walking around with this little friend inside of me, who goes wherever I go and lets me know when to slow down and rest. Now that I’m in the second trimester I’m starting to get back a bit of energy although the nausea is still pretty strong some days. Last week, I stayed up until 10pm a few nights – a darn miracle if you ask me! Bring on the honeymoon trimester!
Spending a lot of energy cooking hasn’t been my forte many days. That’s why smoothies continue to be such an important daily aspect of my diet. In 10 minutes, I can have a smoothie in hand that would just about rival the most nutritious meal around. I’ve been drinking this smoothie as a way to pack in a ton of nutrition with minimal effort. This smoothie was actually a contender for my cookbook, but I didn’t finalize the recipe in time. However, the photo of this smoothie did make it into the book (see page 54). A couple of you noticed the picture and asked me for the recipe, so I’m sharing it today!
Drinking this makes me feel like a bit like a warrior (even if this warrior is asleep on the couch before her favourite show comes on TV). I even started doing a 30 minute prenatal workout which is another big victory of late. It’s the small things. It really is.
Kale – Rich in folate, vitamin C and K, calcium, iron, and beta-carotene. It’s also a hormone balancer, digestion booster, anti-inflammatory, and contains omega-3 fatty acids.
Grapefruit – Rich in vitamin C and is a great detoxifier for the liver.
Cucumber – Prevents water retention, promotes a healthy digestive track, packed with bioavailable minerals, vitamins, and electrolytes.
Celery – Rich in fibre and B vitamins, prevents water retention
Apple – Source of fibre and vitamin C, helps balance blood sugar levels, boosts digestion, reduces inflammation
Algae oil (DHA rich) – A sustainable, plant-based source of omega-3 fatty acids. My go-to brand is NutraVege. Making up 97% of the fatty acids found in the brain, DHA is a very important long-chain fatty acid in the omega-3 family. It’s super important for pregnant women and children under the age of 2 as it supports brain, vision, and nerve development. Note: I don’t add this oil directly into the smoothie. I simply take it seperately so it doesn’t impact the flavour.
Virgin Coconut Oil – Coconut oil has antiviral, antifungal, and antibacterial properties. It’s rich in medium-chain triglycerides (MCTs) which help boost the metabolism and lower the risk of heart disease.
Hulled hemp seeds – A great source of complete protein, contains the ideal balance of omega 3-6-9 fatty acids, and is high in fibre. Hemp seeds also reduce inflammation in the body and balance hormones.
Mango – Rich in vitamin C, fibre, and beta-carotene. It also contains enzymes that help with the breakdown of protein in the body (great for the above protein-rich hemp seeds!).
Sources: Healing Foods: Eat your way to a healthier life, Flora Health
Featuring all new, protein-packed salads, hearty toppers, flavour boosters, and dressings you'll want to drink, my new cookbook will transform the way you think about salads. Oh, and be sure to flip to the back for a surprise dessert chapter!
Green Warrior Protein Smoothie
Yield
3 cups (750 mL)
Prep time
Cook time
0 minutes
Total time
Talk about a super charged meal in a glass! I use hemp hearts as the major protein source for this drink. In addition to being a complete protein source, hemp hearts also contain the ideal balance of omega 3-6-9 fatty acids and are high in fibre. They work wonderfully to make this smoothie super creamy, all without needing any banana. This smoothie also highlights one of my biggest cravings - the juicy red grapefruit - which is balanced with a sweet apple and buttery mango. If you prefer a sweeter smoothie, feel free to swap the grapefruit juice for coconut water or orange juice, or add a touch of liquid sweetener.
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh red grapefruit juice*
- 1 cup (25 g) destemmed dinosaur/lacinato kale or baby spinach**
- 1 large sweet apple (200 g), cored and roughly chopped
- 1 cup (130 g) chopped cucumber
- 1 medium/large celery stalk (85 g), chopped (about 3/4 cup)
- 3 tablespoons (30 g) hemp hearts, or to taste
- 1/3 cup (55 g) frozen mango
- 2 tablespoons (4 g) packed fresh mint leaves
- 1 1/2 teaspoons (7.5 mL) virgin coconut oil (optional)
- 4 ice cubes, or as needed
Directions
- Juice a red grapefruit and add 1/2 cup grapefruit juice to the blender.
- Now add the kale (or spinach), apple, cucumber, celery, hemp, mango, mint, coconut oil (if using), and ice. Blend on high until super smooth. (If using a Vitamix, use the tamper stick to push it down until it blends). You can add a bit of water if necessary to get it blending.
- Pour into a glass and enjoy immediately! This makes enough for a large glass with some leftover so you can also divide it into two servings and save one for later.
Tip:
- * Feel free to sub the grapefruit juice with orange juice or coconut water if a sweeter smoothie is desired.
- ** I use dinosaur/lacinato kale because it has a milder flavour than regular curly kale. Feel free to use baby spinach too.
Nutrition Information
(click to expand)
The Oh She Glows Cookbook hits Costco US!
Today is a very special day – The OSG Cookbook hits shelves across Costco in the US! We are thrilled to have another major retailer pick up this cookbook. Don’t forget, it’s already in many Costco locations in Canada too. We’d love it if you could snap pictures of the book in Costco stores and share them on twitter using the hashtag #osgcookbook!
We’re packing up to move this week (ahh!) and my kitchen is all in boxes. *sniff, sniff. If you don’t hear from me again this week that’s why. Wish us luck!
I need to invest in a blender….I feel I’m missing out! ;(
vodkaandarose.blogspot.co.uk
This smoothie is boss! I have everything on hand but kale but I think I’ll sub in spinach and try it out this afternoon.
I hope you start to feel better soon!
This looks so healthy and delicious. I make smoothies all the time but a recipe like this makes me want to get a legit juicer!
May wanna hold off on that. My understanding is that actual juicers move their blades at high enough speeds that they destroy the fiber content. I don’t know if anyone’s looked into high powered blenders similarly.
I was on the fence about getting one as well and then read about how it strips out all the fiber from the fruits/veggies :( boo
Nathan & Amy, it really depends on the quality of the juicer. Many of the higher end juicers actually keep quite a bit of the pulp/fibre because they use a low speed extraction versus high speed grinding. I would say that like most things, you get what you pay for with juicers. I use the Kuvings Silent Juicer and I’ve been so happy with it!
Juicers do remove quite a bit of the fibre. I have a masticating juicer, and after grinding the fruit/veg it strains out the fibre and leaves the juice. There are recipes that you can use to make things from the leftover fibre (like crackers). Personally I can’t digest that much fibre, so while I can tolerate a small smoothie on occasion, I can drink a few glasses of juice a day without and digestive difficulty (as long as there’s not too much fruit in them). One isn’t better than the other. They’re really different things, depending on what you’re looking for.
Juicers do take the the fiber out of the vegetables and fruits, but the advantage to juicing is you can fit a whole lot more nutrients into a juice than you can a smoothie without feeling full. Somebody on a short cleanse will juice because they get so many nutrients and without the fiber, it gives your digestive system a rest. Smoothies are easier to make and clean up after, however, and the fiber is great for cleaning out the pipes!
try a nutri bullet machine
absolutely unreal !!!!!!!!!!!
Love my recipe book! Good luck moving and congratulations on the little one on the way!
This looks delish and hey, it’s okay to be a couch warrior when you’re whippin’ up a human. ;-)
Good luck with the move! Hope everything goes smoothly!
I just love the versatility of smoothies. I get so bored with the same thing, so it’s nice to have an arsenal of different green smoothies to keep things fresh–pun intended :) I’m really looking forward to hearing more about your vegan pregnancy journey and how you’ll approach things. My husband and I are trying to conceive and there aren’t a ton of resources out there for vegan pregnancies. What I’ve found has had a lot of conflicting information (ie: take supplements or just be super vigilant with diet?), so it’ll be nice to see your approach. Best of luck with it all, and I hope you continue to feel better along the way!
I agree with Anele, being a couch warrior is totally fine when your body is busy supporting another one! :)
This sounds delicious, I can’t wait to try it. I’m in graduate school right now, working, and married so sometimes I am lucky if I can eat. Stress makes you not want to eat as much, so I have been relying on smoothies quite a bit. I’ll have to add this one to my go-to list to get all of my nutrients.
Best of luck with your pregnancy! So exciting.
Wow, that sounds like a delicious and wonderful smoothie! What does algae oil taste like??
And congrats on Costco! That is amazing!! :o)
Listening to your body is so important. It must have been exhausted from all the work of developing your little one. :)
What kind of prenatal work out are you doing?
Totally hear you on the grapefruit cravings and I’m not preggers! I love hemp hearts they are so nutty and tasty.
Best of luck moving! I hope it is not too stressful!
Whoa! I definitely need to try this out. I also need to look into algae oil! Huge hemp lover over here. Glad you’re feeling a bit more like yourself!
YUM! This looks really delicious.
This looks so delicious! I made a really good antioxidant smoothie (veganosity.com/food/burst-of-antioxidants-smoothie/) but I’ve always wanted to make an all green one. Can’t wait to try it!
When I was pregnant and too exhausted to do anything, I’d tell my husband… “Shhhh… I’m creating fingers, toes, lungs, etc….” Or, once the development stage stopped and the baby was just growing, I’d say, “I’m creating life! Please get me some water”. It works… use it while you can! :)
Good luck with the move!
Great to hear that this has given you the opportunity to learn to trust your body. After years of disordered eating, I’ve decided today that I don’t trust my body, and my body doesn’t trust me :-(
Ooh I could use one of these right about now Ange! I had a green smoothie for breakfast but seem to have a really sore throat today and could use a nice green boost! Good luck with the move – I know it feels like it’ll be a ton of work but just think about how amazing your new space will be!! Have a great week (and I hope the preggo nausea isn’t too bad!) :)
This smoothie looks amazingly delicious and easy to put together!! I can totally relate to everything you said about the first trimester. It’s like the worst case of the flu and mono at the same time. I had the hardest time staying awake at work for 10 hours a day. I’m in week 17 this week and the energy level and nausea are both better, although some days my body knows best and I nap and nap and go to bed early!
What kind of exercises have you been doing? Have you still been jogging at all? My doctor told me to keep running, but not to let my heart rate get above 140 (which is impossible for me), so I’ve been speed walking and doing yoga and a light strength training prenatal video.
“It was difficult trying to crank out blog posts because I wasn’t the least bit excited about food.”
This is why last summer, when I was in my first trimester I took a full 3 months off of blogging. Between being so tired & abhorring food (especially anything green or healthy!), I knew I couldn’t bring myself to blog. Also, I wanted to keep my pregnancy under wraps (like you did), but didn’t know how I could genuinely hide it when I was feeling so lousy.
Again, kudos to you for keeping up with everything despite all the sickness. I always feel much more energetic around week 14 (but still nauseated until about week 20-22).
Love the green smoothie! My Blendtec jar broke & while I’m waiting for them to send me a new jar I got a sore throat, which naturally calls for upping the smoothie intake. BUT, since I don’t have a working blender, I had to buy some naked juice. I bought a bottle that has similar ingredients to this one, but it cost $4! Ouch, ouch. I certainly couldn’t afford to support my green smoothie habit if I had to shell out that kind of cash each time. I’m going to try this one as soon as I get my blender jar.
Congrats on all the great news and starting to feel better! Just bought my algae oil…was so curious about all the options and couldn’t decide until you recommended it, so thank you!!
This smoothie is definitely going to come in handy with the big move! I love the creamy texture..