Eat Well, Live Well
I love my blender. I really do. It’s a red Vitamix and I use it every day because it helps me stay healthy.
If you know anything about Vitamix products you’ll know that I paid more for it than almost anything else in my kitchen—well, except for the large appliances. An expensive blender might seem unnecessary, but after wearing out three regular blenders during the past twenty years, I decided to purchase a machine that will last. (By the way, I have not received any endorsement money from Vitamix. Darn it.)
The reason I use my blender every day is because I’m not as hungry as I used to be. It’s a challenge for me to eat enough food to get the amount of protein and other nutrients my body needs to stay strong and healthy. I wish I could eat more. I love to eat! But a small amount of food twice a day is all I can consume without feeling stuffed and gaining weight. So, I decided to pack as many nutrients as possible into my morning smoothie.
In 1982, when I started drinking smoothies, I wasn’t overly concerned about nutritional content. Back then I threw stuff in the blender because I had a lot to do. I wanted quick meals that I didn’t have to chew. I calculated all the hours I spent chewing in a year: 3 meals a day multiplied by 20 minutes of mastication per meal equals 365 hours a year. Holy cow! (By the way, cow parts take a lot longer to chew than other foods—when you chew them properly, that is.) I admit to being a slow chewer. You can probably get the job done in half the time. But 365 hours or 182.5 hours per year (3,650 hours or 1,825 hours in ten years)… I just do not want to dedicate that much of my life to chewing. Hence the smoothies.
But as I’ve gotten older, my smoothie routine has changed. Now, a pint of liquid-gold nutrition is what I’m after. My nutrients of choice come from a blend of blueberries, banana, fresh lemon, flaxseed, spirulina, plant-based protein powder, spinach, matcha powder, and ground lion’s mane mushrooms all blended with almond milk. Sometimes I add a slice of avocado, a few cherries or strawberries, cucumber, or a stalk of celery. Whatever’s in the frig.
One of my friends told me that she can hardly stand to look at my glassful of blue-ish, green-ish liquid, much less think about drinking it. She’s an eggs and toast for breakfast kind of gal. But since my smoothie recipe has slowly evolved over decades, as I’ve educated myself on what I need to eat to stay healthy while consuming fewer calories, I’m used to the taste. We all like what we’re used to, yes?
What I’m used to is a healthy body and lots of energy. So, I fuel it with top-quality food and daily exercise. Now that I’m careening toward the big seven zero (gasp, hands on face emoji), I’m more eager than ever to get stuff done—before I run out of time.
Eating enough protein is important and, for me, challenging, since I’m not a big fan of meat or eggs. I include organic protein powder made from peas in my morning smoothie and then eat fish or (occasionally) chicken at my second meal. I aim for 60 grams of protein per day.
I’m not perfect, but I do my best to eat mostly fresh food and stay away from processed junk foods. Fresh produce is getting easier and easier to buy year-round at summer and winter farmer’s markets. Numerous community supported agriculture projects (CSAs) offer seasonal deliveries of vegetables, flowers, and fruits. Some of those CSAs also sell their farm products at roadside stands and farmers markets. An online search for “CSA” in your area will give you a long list of choices.
With each year that passes, eating (or drinking) fresh, healthy food becomes more important to me. Your nutrition needs are different from mine, but I encourage you to do whatever is necessary to stay strong and healthy. Will I live another 10 years? Twenty? Thirty? I don’t know. But I do know that I want to be physically capable of living my best life. And that I will not be spending any more time than is necessary on the boring task of chewing. Also, I will always love my blender.
