Blender breakfast

How to make your own recovery drink to kickstart your day after a morning workout

Breakfast is my favourite meal of the day. I love a lavish homemade breakfast — especially on days that some-one else makes it or when I wake up energised and fresh, with lots of time to spare. Even with limited time, a scrumptious breakfast with eggs and sausages always feels like the sweetest thing to tuck into, to break my fast.
Although I work from home, my morning routine is pretty rigid. I prefer it so. I have found that applying a level of discipline to how my mornings are structured gives me the best start to productive, successful and happy days. You see, I am on a mission. 
As a certified NLP (neuro-linguistic programming) coach, I know that to achieve real outcomes, you have to have a practical plan. I keep mine &simple and consistent so that it will soon become second nature. Of course, since breakfast provides critical refuelling of the body, it is also part of that routine. One of the things I know for sure after blogging about food for almost five years is that whatever you choose to eat (or not) first thing in the morning really makes a huge impact &on what you eat for the rest of the day. When you find out how I make breakfast even simpler yet healthy, you will be surprised.
First things first. I wake up and drink water. Then, I work out with my husband for an entire hour, six days a week. No excuses. No exceptions. When you want real outcomes, you have to decide and commit to succeed. Since there is no time for us to drive to and from a gym, we work out at home using the popular P90X routine made famous by the sensational recording artiste Pink.
I say this to communicate just how intense the routines are and how much they leave us winded (yet thoroughly excited to meet the challenges of the day). But having said that, I am so wiped out that, many times, I can barely stand to make us breakfast, so I have resorted to the world’s easiest way to make and consume nutrients — blending them!
Blending your breakfast is not a new concept. I have written about smoothies and fresh juice extraction countless times. But this is different. What you imbibe within the golden hour just &after a strenuous workout is extremely important to your body’s recovery, so that you can make it through the day and be ready to do it all over again the next morning.
I have been making my own recovery protein smoothies from scratch in the mornings and I can definitely feel and see the results of my efforts. Due to all the ingredients, they also serve as meal replacement shakes if I cannot sit down to have my eggs or a big brunch.
I have also been consuming more nut milks, which I have been making (most cost-effectively) at home and on the spot in the mornings. My recovery drink smoothies typically contain whey protein isolate (a variety sweetened only with the natural Stevia), nuts, flaxseed, raw cocoa powder, high fibre fruit like strawberries and some supplements that aid muscle recovery.
Don’t get me wrong: eggs are still my favourite morning meal — but drinking a healthy smoothie sports recovery drink, high in Omega 3, guarantees I get my nutrients without the junk. Feeding my mind and body well tastes so good these days!
 

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Sweet  As Sugar
Stevia is a natural sweetener, derived from a plant, and is widely loved as the sugar alternative without &calories

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CHOCOLATE STRAWBERRY & RAW CASHEW PROTEIN SMOOTHIE RECOVERY DRINK
Ingredients
• ¼ cup raw cashew nuts

• 400 ml cold water
• 2 scoops whey protein isolate
• 2 scoops glutamine

• ¼ cup flaxmeal (ground flaxseed)

• 1 tbsp raw cocoa powder
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 4 fresh strawberries
• 2 sachets Stevia

Method
Put cashews and water in a blender and blend on and off for about two minutes.
Add the remainder of ingredients and continue blending till done. Serve.
 

• When Hunger Strikes

Kari Heron

• kari@khaleejtimes.com