Balanced Smoothie Bowl

I think one of my favourite parts about this whole blog this is while I'm editing photos & writing the blogs I get to enjoy eating the creations - #winning.

For those of you who don't know, my next workshop is all about Hormone Balancing & Women's Health. It's Saturday June 23rd @10:30am at The Remedy Your Fitness Rx. I have been recipe testing like crazy. My goal is to create simple, easy, nutrient dense, & of course tasty recipes to make you guys feel & look amazing AF.

Smoothies/ Smoothie bowls can be packed with SUGAR. I always aim for 3/4 vegetables & 1/4 fruit. One simple way of achieving that is always having frozen veggies in my freezer. Lately it has been Cauliflower & Zucchini. First I dice them into chunks and lightly steam them. Then I lay them out on a baking sheet and place them in the freezer. Once they are frozen, or at least won't stick together in the bag, I place them in a freezer safe ziplock bag that is labeled & dated. It's time saving when I'm making smoothies & I am able to pack more veggies in. I also don't love super sweet things. A good starting point for someone who LOVES sweet would be trying 1/2 veg & 1/2 fruit, then slowly working their way toward 2/3 veg & 1/3 fruit. It can be done, "Rome wasn't built in a day". Making that your challenge for the month is more than enough. Changes take time & you don't have to do it all at once - that leads to failure, unless you are super Type A & it's all or nothing.

Okay, let's get into Hormone Balancing ingredients. There are a few hormones I am going to highlight in my upcoming workshop - estrogen, progesterone, testosterone (yes we have that too), cortisol, leptin, & insulin.

In this super food smoothie bowl I have targeted Estrogen, Cortisol, Leptin & Insulin. Have you ever heard of Seed Cycling? Seed Cycling for your menstrual cycle can easily implemented into your daily routine - smoothies, salads, oatmeals, soups, stirfrys, just basically sprinkle on anything.

Days 1-14 (Follicular Phase) focus on Flax Seeds & Pumpkin Seeds. Why? These are rich in Omega 3 - essential fatty acids. Flax Seeds also contain lignans which help block excess estrogen. Pumpkin Seeds are high in Zinc (super important in men's hormone health & both female & male immune systems). In order for progesterone levels to rise, they require zinc.

Days 15-28 (Luteal Phase)focus on Sunflower Seeds & Sesame Seeds. These are rich in Omega 6 - essential fatty acids. Sunflower Seeds are high selenium. Your Liver requires this antioxidant to support it's detoxification process. Sesame Seeds are contain lignans, as mentioned above lignans are help block excess estrogen.

Also, Nuts & Seeds contain fibre. Fibre is key to balancing hormones as it helps detox the excess hormones in your system through elimination - don't forgot to keep your H20 intake up/increase.

Maca has to be one of my top 10 favourite superfoods. I personally use it in powdered form. I always buy "gelatinized" instead of raw because of my digestive issues. Gelatinized is easier to digest than raw. What is Maca & what does it do for hormones? Maca is also known as "Peruvian Ginseng". It is a root grown in the high plateaus of the Andes Mountains in Peru. It is apart of the brassica family like broccoli. It contains a variety of vitamins, minerals & plant sterols. Plant Sterols are biochemically related to hormones such as estrogen, testosterone and progesterone. Plus it contains healthy fatty acids, which are beneficial for the heart and appear to help stabilize blood glucose levels and reduce inflammation. Traditionally & presently is has been widely used for improving energy, stamina, vitality & sexual libido ( especially in men). Maca is also known for it's "adaptogen properties". It can directly effect your endocrine (hormone) system to help you adjust to stress (cortisol). A few more highlights include - reducing PMS symptoms (estrogen & progesterone), aiding blood sugar balance (insulin) to reduce cravings, plus liver & enzyme support - just to name a few.

The other star of the show - Complete 360 by Purica. It is a synergistic blend of 8 medicinal mushrooms & ashwagandha to strengthen & support the body's response to stress and strengthen immunity. This blend is packed with antioxidants to fight stress & reduce oxidative stress on cells caused by free radicals.