Green shakes

Hi all

I started to try losing weight - YET AGAIN at the end of last year. My strategy was simply to stick to 3 meals, 2 snacks a day including no more than four portions starch (usually three), 3 protein, 3 or 4 fruits and lots of vegetables. I also started to count calories and have tried to stick to 1200 kCal a day. I am just about 1.5 m tall and weighed over 60kg when I started. THis works very well if I stick to it, which for the most part I have without all that much difficulty. The last week, however, I decided to try replacing my normal breakfast of 1/2C fat free plain bulgarian yoghurt, 1/3 cup all bran and 1/3 cup homemade muesli/granola and 1 fruit, with a cup of coffee with fat free milk, with a green shake. I added lots of spinach, celery, cucumber, fruits and dried coconut and almond butter. This ends up being below my planned 250 kCal for breakfast but I either added a homemade bran rusk or 5 nuts to get it to 250 kCal cos I did not want to undereat at breakfast, as I thought this would ruin my day diet wise. But what I have found is I love the shake and it does make me feel quite satisfied and I try to keep my other meals as they had been but I end up losing control in the afternoon and bingeing - and feeling drained and exhausted in the afternoon. And so this shake, which I thought would take my weight loss efforts to the next level and give me tons of energy seems to have done the opposite. Is there something else I should be adding to the shake or doing differently to stop this afternoon bingeing?

And also, in a previous email from Jackie she very clearly stated snacking makes one fat. All eating plans I have ever been on - planned by a registered dietition - included snacks. If I don't snack I eat too much at a later stage and since I already have really low blood glucose levels the plunging blood sugar plays havoc with my emotions. Also, I could not live on a shake only (about 500ml to 600ml) all the way till lunch. Is my situation an exception, or once again, is my shake incorrectly composed?

Many thanks

Thu. Feb 2, 9:25am

I know for me I have to have snacks. If I don't I will get hungry. In a book I'm reading "100 Days of Weight Loss" by Linda Spangle it says that we need to eat something every 3 hours. This is different that what PT says, however, I've learned that for me I can take what works for me and leave the rest. Although it's been a while since I listened to them I seem to recall in the Point of No Return calls something Jackie said about customizing a diet plan for yourself. It may mean you have to read 3 books about dieting it may mean 10 - bottom line you customize a plan to fit your needs. This has been my experience it so far I have lost 49 lbs. since January 2011. It has not been easy. Have I had set backs? Oh yeah! But I've overcome them.

Thursday, February 02, 2012, 2:06 PM

You're probably bingeing because you're not getting enough fat or protein in the morning. Those two macros are the most satisfying *biologically*. So add some coconut or flax oil to the smoothies, add in more nuts or nut butters, or protein powder (I DO prefer whey, I know PT wants people to use rice or pea).

I don't eat my greens in the am, I eat them at lunch and dinner. If I'm going to eat brekkie, it's likely to be a chocolate hazelnut smoothie (whey isolate (protein) hazelnut butter (protein, fat, and minimal carb, some fibre) cocoa powder (fibre) cream (fat and delicious) and stevia.)

This method of gorging yourself on greens means you fill up on bulk, but doesn't always appreciate you still need to balance the macros to keep satisfied throughout the day.

Friday, February 03, 2012, 12:46 AM

I love green smoothies, too, but I agree that they don't stick with me in the way that a breakfast with protein, fat, and carbs does. I think the issue is in the different balance.

Your original breakfast was this:
1/2C fat free plain bulgarian yoghurt
1/3 cup all bran
1/3 cup homemade muesli/granola
1 fruit
a cup of coffee with fat free milk

While there's not much fat there, you've definitely got protein and carbs. And there's a LOT of fiber there, which helps fill you up and keep you full.

The green shake has this:
lots of spinach, celery, cucumber
fruits
dried coconut
almond butter
a homemade bran rusk or 5 nuts

You've got the fat and protein with the nuts and nut butter, but not the carbs/fiber that you had before that would fill you up and keep you satisfied. I know you've got fiber in the veggies, but it never fills me up in the way that bran or muesli does.

If the green smoothie is working for you in the morning, I'd keep going with that, but accept that you are going to need a healthy snack early afternoon. You might consider saving the calories you added with the nuts and putting them toward a snack in the afternoon that will hold you over until dinner.

Friday, February 03, 2012, 4:02 PM

Green shakes and protein shakes

Green shakes are the best protein items which have essential ingredients for healthy life. Add some pieces of mix fruits like apple, banana, mangoes, papaya, milk and some sugar. Use it 3 time in a day. It have full of energy which best to keep active all the day. After exercise must use it because body a handsome shake to recover calories and energy which are burn in work out.

Link

Thursday, April 19, 2012, 7:00 AM

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