Yoga can wreak havoc with eating. Between not eating before doing yoga (ideally eating lightly two hours before practicing) and teaching classes that coincide with regular meal times, I often find myself starving, but not wanting to eat heavily.
Thankfully, smoothies and energy bars (I like Larabars best) are there to fill the gap and soothe my grumbly tummy 🙂
The only problem with smoothies is that they need a supplement like protein powder to up their nutritional and calorie content and I’ve yet to find one I like the taste of. I also lean towards vegan protein powders, which sometimes means that they taste even worse!
Thankfully, there are lots of creative flavour combinations to hide the generally artificial taste. My current fall favourite features homemade apple sauce and autumnal spices. Yum!
Maybe an apple smoothie a day will keep the doctor away 😉
Here’s the recipe:
Vanilla apple smoothie
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup unsweetened apple sauce (homemade and chunky is best, but store bought and pureed works too)
- 3/4 cup non-dairy milk (I like almond milk best)
- 1/2 cup apple juice
- 2 tbsp vanilla protein powder (or one serving as recommended by the package)
- 1 tbsp plain or vanilla non-dairy yogurt (I like Amande, a cultured almond milk)
- generous 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon (plus more for topping)
- scant 1/4 tsp ground allspice
Method
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and swirl until smooth; add extra non-dairy milk if it’s too thick, or extra yogurt if it’s too thin
- Pour into a glass and sprinkle with cinnamon
I drink smoothies several days a week. Use fruit, ice will give it some body, making it more shake-like and more filling.
I usually add protein powder, but don’t know if you can as a vegan. I also add a tablespoon of olive oil and some fiber (the kind that comes in a shaker to add to foods). This gives a good balance of carbs, protein, and healthy fats. The fiber will help keep you feeling full longer. The protein also makes you feel full.
I use whey protein which is a animal product but I believe they do have soy protein powder.
Also a use fruit juice instead of milk, but that is just a preference.