As we approach Summer, smoothies may seem like a more inviting breakfast or satiating snack. Most of the time, our digestion loves warm foods, but smoothie bowls are a great way to cool off when temperatures are high, or when you simply want to pack a LOT of goodness into one bowl.
Many smoothie recipes are high in sugar, which may feel good when you’re consuming it, but will most likely lead to more hunger, cravings, mood swings and a blood sugar crash soon after. Another benefit of this blood sugar balancing smoothie is that it makes a quick breakfast, perfect if your mornings are a little hectic. Wondering why breakfast and balanced blood sugar are so important? Keep reading…
How Blood Sugar Crashes & Skipping Breakfast Affects Anxiety
Are you the type of person who gets hangry? You know, that feeling of needing to eat right now, so much so that anyone who stands in your way might just find their hand bitten off? Symptoms of extreme sudden hunger, feeling shaky or faint before a meal, or needing to eat sugary snacks to quickly bring yourself back into balance are all common signs of a blood sugar ‘crash’. When our levels of blood glucose (sugar) dip below an ideal range, this signals an emergency to the rest of the body, because glucose is the brain’s preferred fuel source, and without it, we pretty much stop working. Our muscles also store glucose too, and when those levels dip too low, it can lead to the heart muscle beating faster to try and pump more blood around the body to compensate for the lack of energy from fuel.
Another issue that happens when blood sugar crashes, is that the adrenals release a huge amount of cortisol (the ‘stress hormone’) essentially shifting us into ‘fight or flight’, because running low on fuel is a huge problem. All of these things, can massively exacerbate existing anxiety, as well as causing overwhelming feelings of stress, and even panic attacks. If this sounds familiar to you, it’s time to start paying more attention to your blood sugar by keeping a journal of your food choices and symptoms, and making choices that serve you better. Here are two simple ways to help balance your blood sugar:
Eat breakfast (especially if you’re a woman): Even though the wellness industry has been expounding the benefits of fasting and skipping breakfast for years, it’s important to understand that this may actually be harming your body. Upon waking, our bodies naturally experience a normal rise in cortisol in order to stimulate us to get up and out of bed. The longer we go without eating breakfast, the higher the cortisol spike is likely to go, and the longer it stays high for. What this means for us, is that skipping breakfast can easily put the body into a much more stressed-out state, wreaking havoc on blood sugar and disrupting hormonal balance. The reason this is even more important for women, is because our ever-fluctuating hormones make us more susceptible to blood sugar issues, and because our fertility is much more easily affected by stress. Especially if you’re already feeling pretty overwhelmed or stressed, eating breakfast within an hour of waking really can be a powerful way to rebalance your blood sugar levels, hormones, and stress and anxiety levels. Choose quick and healthy breakfast ideas from my recipe page HERE, or use this smoothie.
‘Dress up’ your carbs: One way to help balance your blood sugar is to work on making sure it doesn’t spike, because what goes up could come crashing down. Refined carbohydrates like cakes, biscuits, pastries, junk food, soda and even fruit juices can all cause a rush of sugar to enter into the bloodstream, raising our blood glucose levels sky-high. When blood sugar rises sharply, the body tries to rebalance things by pulling levels down quickly – often leading to those nasty symptoms of low blood sugar noted above. You can help prevent these glucose spikes by ‘dressing up’ carbohydrate foods with fats and protein. This prevents the spike, and slows the rate at which sugar enters the bloodstream for longer-lasting energy. Opt for snacks like a banana with almond butter, a bowl of porridge with plenty of seeds and full-fat yoghurt, or toast with avocado. Caffeine can also disrupt blood sugar, so try to have your morning coffee after breakfast, or at least add nourishing fats to create a ‘bullet proof’ coffee that will cause less issues. To nix caffeine altogether, try my cosy chai recipe HERE , or the hormonal support hot chocolate.
Blood Sugar Balancing Protein Smoothie Bowl Recipe
Drink as a regular smoothie instead of a smoothie bowl if you prefer – I prefer smoothies from bowls because it encourages us to ‘chew’ the smoothie more as we eat it, which can vastly improve digestion.
INGREDIENTS
– 1/2 banana
– 1 large handful frozen blueberries
– 1 tbsp chia seeds, soaked in milk or water overnight
– 1/2 cup cottage cheese
– 1 scoop Love Life Supplements collagen peptides
– 1 scoop Love Life Supplements Greens Powder
– 1/4 tsp cinnamon
– I also added 2 tbsp Gaia Sea Moss
– 3 tbsp water (+ more if needed)
OPTIONAL:
– Slice of fresh ginger
– 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
– If you don’t have collagen, add a protein powder, bone broth or tbsp almond butter
– If you don’t have the greens powder, add a handful of fresh greens
METHOD
– Add everything to a blender and whizz!
– Top with seeds, cacao nibs or homemade granola
Use code EMMA10 for 10% off at Love Life Supplements HERE
I’d love to know if you try this!
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