Report on my Green Smoothie Experiment for June

Here it is the 9th of July, and I haven't yet reported on my Green Smoothie Experiment for the month of June.  I drank at least a quart a day of green smoothies for thirty days, just to see what would happen. To let you know how it went, I thought I'd answer the same questions that Victoria Boutenko asked her Roseburg Study Participants (Boutenko, Green for Life, Raw Family Publishing 2005, pg.135).   

1.  Was it hard to drink one quart of Green Smoothie every day?
No.  I usually drink it over a two-hour period in the morning while I work at the computer.  On days when I have to go into town, I drink it down more quickly and I don't like doing that.

2.  Did the rest of your diet change as a result of the green smoothies?
Yes.  Big changes.  The GS now takes the place of both breakfast and lunch, although I confess I have yet to give up my morning coffee. (I am drinking less than I used to.)  In the late afternoon or early evening, I have a big salad or vegetarian tostada piled high with greens for my one non-liquid meal of the day.  I'm not much interested in meat anymore (although I've fallen in love with tempeh).  I did have a few bites of chicken and beef here and there and found it tasteless (when other people found the same meat quite tasty, so it wasn't the meat itself).  I'm not much interested in cooked vegetables (although I wonder if that will change when the weather turns cold).  But the biggest change has been that I've lost my interest in refined sweets. Now that is a major change in a lifelong (bad) habit.

3.  Did you notice any changes in your health?
LOTS more energy. 

4.  Did your cravings for unhealthy foods lessen?
Yes!  Yes!  Yes!   I'm thrilled that refined sweets no longer interest me, although I am still interested in fruit-and-nut type bars I buy at the organic food store.  I even ate a regular white-flour-and-sugar chocolate chip cookie about halfway through the month (this used to be a favorite).  It tasted like cardboard to me. And, as I said above, meat is no longer particularly attractive.

I did, however, notice that my cravings for carbs in the form of whole-grain breads increased, bigtime.  I'm wondering if I have an allergy or sensitivity to wheat and plan to get tested for that.

5.  Have you noticed any change in your weight?
I lost five pounds, without feeling deprived, with no sense of being "on a diet."

6.  Did your sleep change?
Not that I noticed.

7.  Did your elimination change?
Twice a day instead of once (aren't you glad you know that?)

8.  Did your energy change?
Yes!!!

9.  Did anybody comment on how you look?
Yes — different people said my eyes were brighter, my face was thinner, I was glowing.

10.  Did you have any symptoms of detox?
Not sure.  I had an acne-type rash, but I'm not sure if that was from detox or not.

11.  Did you have any negative experiences?
No.  Other than getting pickier about what I will and will not eat, especially in restaurants.  And that's not really negative; at least not for me.   It does mean seeking out natural food stores and cafes when I'm traveling, or at least finding restaurants that serve fresh, raw or lightly cooked vegetables. (Salads made from iceberg lettuce don't count.) That's easier in some locales than in others.

12.  Would you like to continue drinking Green Smoothies?
I don't plan to ever stop.  I don't want to go back to feeling bad ever again.

How about you?   Julie?  Kris?   Anyone else who tried it for 30 days?   (And 3 cheers for Valerie, who is celebrating a loss of 100 pounds since March 5th, on her own Green Smoothie Experiment!)

Comments

[kris]

Yup, I'm back to drinking them! And I do feel a difference. I'm not drinking a quart a day, though -- more like half to 2/3rds a blender full, which I share with Thea. But I agree with something you wrote about the lack of interest in processed foods. I had a cookie and it tasted too sweet, too processed to me. And I'm back to no coffee -- don't need it.

Interestingly, I'm actually flirting with veganism, and have been decreasing the amount of dairy, chicken and fish my family eats. I've gotten a great vegan cookbook and we've gone a few days here and there with very little to no animals products. (I haven't eaten red meat in over two decades). I wonder if the smoothies are leading me this way?

BTW, Thea cheers when she hears the blender going in the morning. She's so cute with her green smoothie moustache! It's a great way for me to get greens into her, since she won't eat them otherwise. Typical toddler!

[Teresa Michelsen]

Hi Joanna,
Consider the idea that your craving for whole grains may be your body telling you something it needs, rather than some form of allergy or abnormal reaction. I have gone on all-green diets also, and one thing you do need to do over the long-term is eat some whole grains along with it.

Also last summer when I went wholly to organic vegetables for several months on end, eventually my body let me know that I needed a little more protein, as I had almost entirely cut it out of my diet. You may already be watching that, but I wasn't paying enough attention to it.

It's just generally my thought that when you're on a healthy diet, a craving for something else that is healthy (like whole grains) is usually a good message to pay attention to :) - Teresa

[JulieZS]

I'm still keeping the smoothies up, and there have been I think two days I missed making them because of a weird schedule. Both of the boys are very supportive and helping me remember to make them. Alex still likes to "steal" some, he thinks he's getting away with something?! I feel I ha ve more energy, and my skin is better, also up to 2x per day on elimination which is amazing considering the pain meds that I take. I also am noticing not craving sugar nearly as much, except right around my moontime. So those are all good changes. I've been experimenting with what I put in, and beet tops are really yummy! Thanks for turning me on to these Joanna!

[Valerie]

Thanks for the three cheers. What a great post to answer the questions from Victoria’s Roseburg Study. I’m so happy you got great results. Not only have I lost 100 pounds but I also completely cured my longstanding and debilitating IBS. Like you, I found they really help with cravings. I also take a couple of hours to drink a quart of green smoothie and since I’m drinking 3 quarts most days it sometimes feels like I always have one in my hand. (Smile) Talk to you soon.
VW

[joanna]

Kris, so glad you and Thea are enjoying the smoothies. I love the image of Thea with a green mustache! :-) I've been a vegetarian off and on since my early 20's but never thought I could give up dairy until a few years ago when I tried the MacDougall diet (low fat vegan). I was amazed at how much energy I had just by giving up dairy. (And even more now with all the greens.) Now I use dairy pretty much as a condiment; a little organic half n half in my coffee, a little organic feta cheese on my salad. I've pretty much gone off yogurt or heavy cheese dishes like enchiladas. I think it *is* because of the green smoothies. Another thing I like about veganism is eating low on the food chain. (I get to feel virtuous.)

Teresa, thanks for your thoughts about my cravings for whole grains. I guess I wasn't clear that I *was* eating whole grains every day and still craved more. I'm eating 2-3 pieces of whole grain bread a day, including Manna bread. And sometimes corn tortillas and brown rice. I'm looking forward to trying millet and quinoa. So I don't plan to cut whole grains out of my diet; I'm just wondering about a wheat or gluten sensitivity. But I see your point; if you're craving something healthy, it makes sense that your body needs it.

Julie, it's so great to hear you're having such good results! Beet tops, yummy? Who woulda thought it? I'll have to try them. Alex is such a cutie.

Valerie, so glad you enjoyed reading my answers to the questions. Curing IBS is pretty darned amazing. Yesterday I made about a quart and a half of GS and didn't finish drinking it until about 3 PM. So yes, one in hand almost all day long!

[heather w]

How smooth are your smoothies? I tried making some in my food processor because I don't own a blender, and the texture wasn't working for me -- little bits of greens (the size of pepper flakes) and too much air in the mixture made it hard to drink. I'm hoping to borrow a blender to see if it makes a difference -- I don't want to buy one otherwise.

Thanks for posting about your experiences with this!

[Joanna]

Hi Heather, my smoothies are very smooth because I bought a VitaMix after 3 months or so of using a regular blender. But a regular blender works just fine. In fact I am visiting a friend right now who is making them in her blender, and I am traveling with a Magic Bullet and that works just fine too. Little bits of greens are not real palatable -- you definitely want it smooth. So I think investing in a blender is a wise choice if you're going to drink smoothies on a regular basis. Have fun!