We all have those memories of sitting at the dinner table, as our parents told us we couldn’t get up until we ate our vegetables.
I know I did, and never really understood why, except that they were “good for me”.
Now my parents were onto something for sure, and yours probably were too.
As I have become older and realized the benefits of these foods, I wish I had eaten more of my veggies back then.
So, what makes vegetables so beneficial and important when talking about your health?
Well, it’s the same things that make greens drinks and powders so popular in the world today.
It can be hard to get the right nutrients every day to stay healthy.
This is exactly where a greens drink can fill that gap and make things much easier.
To understand just how a greens drink can benefit us, we also need to know about the benefits of simply consuming vegetables on a consistent basis.
What makes vegetables so good for you?
You see, vegetables are an important part of any well-balanced nutrition plan. Understanding their importance may have you wanting to incorporate more of them.
Vegetables are incredibly nutrient-dense without being calorically dense. Meaning, they have a lot of micronutrients (vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients) without having a lot of calories.
This makes them ideal for someone who is dieting, or anyone just trying to eat healthier. Vegetables help keep you full during the day to cut back on the need for snacking or overindulging.
Our bodies need essential micronutrients in order for us to look and feel our best. Consuming the right variety/amounts of vegetables, and even fruits, will help fill the nutritional gaps that we have in our diets.
Think of this as “nature's multivitamin”, since most vitamins and minerals you need can be found in vegetables and fruits.
Filling these gaps can ensure you are able to lose weight, build muscle, and stay healthy all year long.
Additionally, vegetables also have antioxidants, fiber, and digestive enzymes. The antioxidants help regulate free radical production, which improves your overall health and protects your cells from damage.
The fiber and digestive enzymes will help with regularity and digesting the food we eat properly.
Now that we have gone over some of the benefits of vegetables, we must also realize that we have to get the right combinations of vegetables to give our body the correct nutrients.
This is where we can look to a greens drink to help fill all of these gaps.
Because in the world we live in ... staying on top of your macronutrient and calorie intake, while balancing everything else you have to take care of on a daily basis is already challenging enough sometimes.
Finding solutions to fill these micronutrient gaps conveniently can make all the difference in your health … and results!
What makes up a greens drink?
Greens drinks can be made up of a wide range of different ingredients. However, the base of a greens drink is made up of green vegetables.
They can be anything from a couple different veggies all thrown into a blender or a juicer at home, to visiting your local juicery before work to grab yourself a shot of wheatgrass.
One option is making smoothies with a variety of vegetables and fruits. Most people do this in the morning, as it’s a great opportunity to kickstart your day with a huge boost of nutrients.
Others add a scoop of protein powder in their smoothies. (Pro tip: adding in your favorite protein powder can even mask the taste of ingredients you don’t like.)
Another option for consuming your daily dose of greens is dehydrating vegetables and grinding them into a powder.
This is a way to get a large variety of not only the vegetables, but their benefits, into one convenient drink each day. Just throw a scoop or two into some liquid and you’re good to go!
This allows you to get a diverse range of veggies (which contain the nutrients you need to stay healthy) at one time, without having to shove an entire garden into a blender.
The best part though, is that you don’t have to do this yourself. In fact, this is where a high-quality greens supplement comes into the picture.
Are powdered greens healthy?
Yes! I want to make it clear that powdered greens are very safe for the vast majority of individuals. They are typically made up of vegetables and fruits that have been dehydrated, then ground down to their powdered form.
Normally, they have very little, if any, added ingredients that were not grown naturally from the earth. People who drink greens supplements are doing so to enhance their overall health and just feel/function better.
In addition to that, I often get asked “Does drinking greens help with bloating?” The answer is “Yes!” This can definitely be a huge benefit of the best greens powders.
Knowing exactly what is in the greens supplement you are taking can be an indicator of the results you will see.
What’s the best greens drink?
I can confidently say that our Opti-Greens 50 here at 1st Phorm is the most complete greens powder on the market.
Made of 50 hand-picked ingredients, Opti-Greens 50 ensures we are getting the variety of nutrients I mentioned earlier.
Plus, to keep the bioavailability intact, it’s Low-Temperature Processed. This means it wasn’t exposed to harsh heats during processing, allowing our body to absorb as much of the nutrients in it as possible.
8 of those 50 ingredients are ORGANIC greens and grasses:
- Spirulina, Wheatgrass, Oat Grass, Kale, Spinach, Barley, Alfalfa Grass, and Parsley
This combination is the equivalent to a daily 2oz shot of juiced greens. These superfoods pack a ton of vitamins and minerals that our body needs to function, while giving you the benefits of 11 servings of fruits and vegetables at once!
Each serving also contains:
- Antioxidants, which help with our body’s free radical production and making sure we are staying on top of our cellular health.
- Digestive Enzymes that aid in our ability to break down the food we eat.
- Probiotics that will ensure we are absorbing the nutrients we consume and helping alleviate any bloating.
- Glycemic Balance Blend, because stabilizing blood sugar can aid in better overall energy and fat loss.
Overall, Opti-Greens 50 can make sure you fill the gaps in your nutrition. That way, you can break down your food, get more out of what you eat, while being less bloated, and just overall healthier.
All of this can work together and lead to better progress, whether you are wanting to lose weight, gain muscle, or just improve your overall health!
So can I just drink greens instead of eating whole foods?
“My mom said I should eat my veggies, are you saying I can just drink them?”
No ... I am not saying there is zero need for whole food vegetables if you take a greens powder. In fact, we should always strive to get a large amount and variety of vegetables through our nutrition plan.
What I am saying is that if you are like me, there are gaps created by our inability to get a large variety and quantity of them on a consistent basis.
A greens powder is a great addition to a well-balanced nutrition plan that includes consistent vegetable intake. So, we still need to put forth some effort to get our greens through our regular nutrition plan.
No matter your goals, you need the micronutrients that are in veggies and fruits.
But if you’re unable to do so on a daily basis, adding in a supplement like Opti-Greens 50 is a convenient way for you to get those nutrients and reap the benefits such as reduced bloating, help with balancing blood sugar, improved gut health, better digestion, and a body that is simply functioning better overall.
