Belly fat is becoming more of a problem each passing day. With so many other body parts that all the excess fat can go to, for some reason, it all goes to the belly. People are always looking for ways to deal with this extra belly fat. The most effective way of dealing with belly fat so far has been working out and dieting. The good thing is that the experts are always trying to find other ways to deal with this problem, and of late, smoothies have been associated with weight loss, most specifically, belly weight. In this article, we shall highlight different detox smoothies to shed belly weight, how they are made, and what makes them effective when it comes to weight loss.
Detox Smoothies
Smoothies are easy to make, and one can add almost everything they want to them. This makes them great for people no matter how busy their schedules are, their age, or gender. If your goal is to lose weight, green smoothies or detox smoothies may be an appealing option. The best thing about these smoothies is the fact that they are usually made from fresh fruits and vegetables.
Fruits and vegetables contain numerous vitamins and mineral salts that we need to be healthy. In addition to that, most fruits and vegetables are low-calorie foods, which makes them ideal for weight loss. If that was not all, they also contain large amounts of fiber. Fiber should always be present in your diet if your goal is to lose weight. Why is this, you may ask. It’s because fiber has a filling effect. This filling effect makes one feel full faster and for longer (6).
Getting full faster means you won’t be able to consume as many calories as you usually consume, and this helps create a calorie deficit. It is essential to know that for one to lose weight, they must consume fewer calories than their body burns. The fact that fiber makes you feel full for longer also works in reducing your daily calorie intake hence promoting weight loss. Fruits and vegetables are also rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants help fight inflammation properties, hence, aid in promoting weight loss.
Smoothies are usually in liquid form, which means that they have large water content. Water is important in your weight loss journey. It helps keep you hydrated and, at the same time, works to boost your metabolism. When your metabolism is boosted your body burns more calories, and this goes ahead to promote weight loss.
This goes without saying, but for a smoothie to promote weight loss, it needs to be made from healthy ingredients. It would be best if you went for whole, unprocessed, foods. You can’t make a smoothie out of ice cream and expect it to be healthy and help you promote weight loss.
Read More: Metabolism Boost Smoothies to Instantly Foster Your Metabolism to Beast Mode
Smoothies And Weight Loss
Before you go jumping into smoothies thinking they are a magic weight-loss elixir, you should know that no single smoothie can promote weight loss on its own. Weight loss requires a total lifestyle change and not just drinking smoothies and thinking you are good to go. Smoothies should be used to complement other ways of losing weight. Hence in addition to smoothies, you need to stay active and exercise, watch what you eat, avoid stress, get enough sleep, and drink a lot of water.
When you look at weight loss from a big picture where you incorporate all the factors that we’ve mentioned above, then the weight loss becomes easier and more sustainable, which should be your goal. It is easy to lose weight compared to keeping the weight you lost away.
Another thing to note is that targeted weight loss does not exist. You cannot choose only to lose weight in one body part. Weight loss happens through the entire body. For that reason, if you want to lose belly fat, you need to lose overall weight to the point your belly as well as all the other body parts are small as you wanted.
Weight Loss Detox Smoothies
Since now you know what you are getting into, we shall take a look at a few healthy smoothies that will help you in your weight loss journey.
Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Apple Spice Smoothie
Just like the name suggests, this smoothie is made of apples and different spices.
Ingredients (4):
- An apple (You can cut it up into small pieces or quarters.)
- ¾ cup of Greek yogurt
- ¼ teaspoon of cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon of cardamom
- 1 scoop of vanilla protein powder
- ½ tablespoon of honey
- ¾ cup of unsweetened almond milk
- ¼ teaspoon of nutmeg
Take all those ingredients and blend them to end up with your apple spice smoothie.
Belly-Busting Berry Smoothie
This smoothie is made of different components that help with weight loss. It contains different berries like strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries, which are believed to boost metabolism (2). It also has peanut butter or almond butter, which helps provide healthy fats and oils, as well as proteins that will keep you feeling full for longer. This helps prevent you from snacking and thus helps reduce your daily calorie intake.
Ingredients (2):
- 1 cup of almond milk
- A few pieces of ice cubes
- A banana
- 1 tablespoon of almond butter or peanut butter (This is depending on your preference.)
You should blend all these components to get your belly-busting berry smoothie.
Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Spirulina Smoothie
Not so many people know what spirulina is. It is an alga that is usually blue or green or a combination of both colors. Why spirulina?
First, it contains numerous nutrients that your body needs. Apart from that, it is a low-calorie food. Remember, for weight loss to occur, you have to consume fewer calories than you burn. Spirulina also contains proteins that are easy to digest and absorb, which makes it easier in helping building muscles. Muscles have a higher metabolic rate compared to fat mass, and hence the more muscles you have, the more calories you burn.
Ingredients (7):
- A banana
- ½ cup of coconut water
- ½ cup of almond milk
- 1 scoop of vegan vanilla protein shake (This is optional. You may choose to add it or not.)
- 1 teaspoon of spirulina
You should blend all these components to get the spirulina smoothie.
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Lemon Kale Protein Detox
This is yet another smoothie that will help in your weight loss journey.
Ingredients (7):
- ½ lemon, peeled and seeded
- ½ frozen banana
- 1 cup of kale
- ½ cup of unsweetened almond milk
- 1 scoop plain plant-based protein powder
- A few ice cubes
You should blend all these components to make your lemon kale protein detox. You can add a little water to make it easier to blend.
Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Sprig of Parsley
This is one superfood that many people usually ignore for some reason. Research shows that parsley has more nutrients than most vegetables we usually take, like kale or lettuce. When parsley is combined with chia seeds and the rest of the ingredients, as you will see below, they help create a smoothie that will help you fight those extra pounds.
Ingredients (7):
- ¼ cup fresh parsley (You should make sure to include the stems of the vegetable just not the leaves.)
- ½ cup of watercress
- half cup of frozen strawberries
- ½ frozen banana
- 1 teaspoon of chia seeds
- 1 scoop of plain plant-based protein powder
You should blend all these components to make your sprig of parsley.
Spiced Green Tea Smoothie
This healthy breakfast detox smoothie may help you shed belly weight. This is due to the presents of green tea. If you are not new to weight loss diets and programs, you should have come across green tea here and there. Green tea is believed to boost one’s metabolism hence works to burn more calories (3). Another thing that might help in boosting your metabolic rate that is in this smoothie is cayenne pepper.
Ingredients (8):
- Green tea
- Cayenne pepper
- Ground cinnamon
- Honey
- Pear
- Apple
- Orange
- Greek yogurt
Blend all these components to make your spiced green tea smoothie.
Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Romaine Lettuce Smoothie
The main ingredient in this smoothie is romaine lettuce. This particular type of lettuce is highly nutritious. Apart from being full of nutrients, it also has a high amount of fiber, which helps one get full faster and longer. This helps reduce your daily calorie intake, thus promotes weight loss. It also contains a high water content, which works to quench your thirst.
Ingredients (7):
- 1 cup of romaine lettuce
- ½ cup of spinach
- ½ apple with peel, seeded and quartered
- 1 tablespoon of chia seeds
- ½ cup unsweetened almond milk
- 1 scoop plain plant-based protein powder
You can add water while blending to come up with your romaine lettuce smoothie.
Spicy Tropical Greens Smoothie
It contains various fruits, which makes the smoothie packed with numerous nutrients that your body needs. It is also made with different vegetables that have a high fiber count, which helps one stay full for longer. Apart from the fruits providing nutrients, it contains fruits like pineapples, which contains antioxidants and also may reduce inflammation, improve digestion, and promote heart health..
Ingredients (2):
- 1 cup of frozen mango chunks
- a cup of frozen pineapple chunks
- 1 ½ of unsweetened coconut water
- 1 cup of leafy greens (Examples being baby spinach, kale, collard greens, romaine lettuce, and so on.)
- ¼ cup of lime juice
- ¼ teaspoon of cayenne pepper (This is optional. You can choose to add it to your smoothie or not.)
Blend all these components to make your spicy tropical greens smoothie.
Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Kale Smoothie
The main ingredient for this smoothie is kale. This is because kale is a leafy green vegetable that contains a high amount of fiber and a low-calorie count (1).
Ingredients:
- 1 frozen, very ripe banana
- 1 tablespoon of fresh parsley or cilantro (It all depends on your preference.)
- ¾ cup of loosely packed spinach
- 1 teaspoon of grated ginger
- ¾ cups of loosely packed curly kale (Make sure to remove the stems.)
- ½ cup of chopped carrots
- 1 teaspoon of lime juice
- 8 ounces of water
- A few ice cubes
You need to blend all these components to make your kale smoothie.
Chia-Berry Belly Blaster
This smoothie is made up of Greek yogurt, which contains a lot of nutrients. In addition to that, it also contains chia seeds and numerous berries. The smoothie contains a high amount of fiber and proteins, which helps you feel fuller for longer, curb hunger pangs, as well as reduce daily calorie intake, thus creating a calorie deficit (2).
Ingredients (2):
- 1 cup plain unsweetened Greek yogurt
- 1 cup of assorted frozen berries (You can add berries like strawberries, blueberries, and other types of berries.)
- a tablespoon of vanilla extract
- 1 tablespoon of ground chia seeds
- ½ cup of ice
Blend all these components to make your chia-berry belly blaster smoothie.
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Detox Smoothies To Shed Belly Weight: Raspberry Chocolate Smoothie
This is a smoothie that will get the attention of many since it has chocolate (cocoa), because at the end of the day, who doesn’t really like chocolate? Cocoa powder contains flavonoids that may promote brain health, as well as heart health. These are two of the most important organs in your body. It also has raspberries, which contain many vitamins and nutrients, an example being vitamin C. It also contains plant-based proteins that help build muscles and help them recover quickly after working out. Hence this smoothie is a good post-workout smoothie.
Ingredients (7):
- ½ banana
- 1 handful of spinach
- ½ cup of raspberries
- 1 tablespoon of almond or cashew nut butter (It all depends on your preference.)
- 2 tablespoons of raw cocoa powder
- 10 ounces of unsweetened almond, hemp, or coconut milk (This also depends on your preference.)
- 1 scoop or serving plant-based protein powder
You should blend all these ingredients to make your raspberry chocolate smoothie.
Read More: Breakfast Smoothies For Weight Loss- Healthy Sipping For Fat Loss
Pumpkin Spice Smoothie
This smoothie contains pumpkins that are a good source of all the major macros, plus other micros that your body needs. It contains proteins, which help build muscles. Remember, the more muscles you have, the higher your metabolism. It also contains fiber that helps keep you fuller for longer, thus reducing the number of calories you take. It contains vitamin C, which is an antioxidant and is involved in collagen formations (5).
Ingredients:
- ½ frozen banana
- ⅓ cup of pumpkin puree
- 1 teaspoon of flax seeds
- ¼ teaspoon of pumpkin spice
- 1 cup of unsweetened almond milk
- ⅛ teaspoon of vanilla extract
- 1 scoop plant-based plain protein powder
Blend all these proteins to come up with your pumpkin spice smoothie.
The Bottom Line
Highlighted above are different detox smoothies to shed belly weight. When making these smoothies, always go for fresh and whole components; processed ingredients should be avoided at all costs. Smoothies alone cannot promote weight loss, and hence you should combine these weight loss detox smoothies with other weight loss activities like working out, sticking to a weight loss diet, getting enough sleep, drinking a lot of water, and avoiding stress. While making the smoothies, make sure to read the ingredients carefully and avoid any ingredient that you might be allergic to. Some of these smoothies are quite heavy and can be used to replace certain meals like breakfast or lunch. Before you add any of these smoothies to your diet, it is advisable to consult an expert like a nutritionist or dietitian as they know if the smoothies will work for you or not.
DISCLAIMER:
This article is intended for general informational purposes only and does not address individual circumstances. It is not a substitute for professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. Any action you take upon the information presented in this article is strictly at your own risk and responsibility!
SOURCES:
- 5 Detox Smoothies To Make This Week For A Flat Stomach (2018, shefinds.com)
- 7 Weight-Loss Smoothies Nutritionists Swear By (2016, self.com)
- 10 Things To Add To Your Smoothies For Quicker Weight Loss (2020, food.ndtv.com)
- 15 Weight Loss Smoothies That’ll Help You Slim Down (2020, thehealthy.com)
- 30 Healthy Smoothy Recipes That Can Help In Your Weight Loss Journey (2020, womansday.com)
- EASY DETOX SMOOTHIE (WITH NO WEIRD INGREDIENTS!) (n.d., detoxinista.com)
- The 25 Best-Ever Weight Loss Smoothies (2020, eatthis.com)
- Top 10 Flat Belly Breakfast Smoothies (2018, skinnyms.com)
