Smoothie-licious

I really like fruit, but for some reason just can't seem to eat it before it goes bad when its in my fridge.  In college I made smoothies in the morning, but had sort of written that breakfast choice off.  It just so happened that I was thinking about those smoothie-making days when I lived just outside the city and commuted to nursing school every day.  I would make a smoothie and take it with me as I ran out the door. In some ways, I find my mornings similar.  This semester I am working 2 12-hour shifts, doing 2 8-hour days of clinical, attending class on Thursdays from 0800-1400, and using the two days left over to do laundry, zumba, and study. 

Thankfully, I discovered Trader Joe's hemp protein.  I've enjoyed it quite a bit in my quick-and-yummy breakfast smoothies.  To use a phrase of my mother's, rice protein just "doesn't with me." Whey protein is dairy-based, which I generally try to stay away from.  Since I cannot eat soy, I don't have too many protein powder options left over.  I have been living my college days in the morning, whirring through the house at early hours, hungry. I make smoothies on most week day mornings, and find that adding the hemp protein to my smoothies is filling and has staying power. 

Often, I just put random combinations of the fruit in my fridge together in the blender with a bit of almond milk and hemp protein and call it breakfast.  Over the holiday, my sister-in-law talked about doing this Dr. Oz 3-day cleanse thing with her friends. (Why my sister-in-law, who grows much of her own produce and has a 6-pack of abs is doing a 3-day cleanse is a topic for another post.) Though I eat very clean, I thought I might just try it out the on the 30th for just one day.  Why just one day, you ask.  To be honest, I wasn't sure I would be successful if I was starving at work- hangry nurses are not nice nurses. My one-day cleanse went well, and I was never hungry. Dr. Oz put out some good ideas.  I have been making the smoothies from the cleanse for breakfast, but cutting the recipes in half and adding a touch of hemp protein.

You should check it out:
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/dr-ozs-3-day-detox-cleanse-one-sheet