Blueberry Muffin Protein Smoothie—Without Protein Powder!

Thanks to my no-weight-gain strategies, for the first time ever, I didn’t go berserk at Thanksgiving. Yeah! Instead, I filled my plate with delicious salad and left space for little portions of the rich stuff, which I thoroughly enjoyed. I focused on the company, and even took a midday break to play tennis (badly!) with my hubby, father-in-law, and brother-in-law. In short, it was a fantastic day, and I felt really good about my food choices.

And then there was last night.

Fall from grace

After wrapping up some schoolwork, I decided to run to the Jo-Ann Fabric store at my local mall. Ironically enough, my mission was to buy a cross-stitch kit, so I could occupy my hands while watching TV (okay, actually, just back episodes of Hart of Dixie) instead of eating.

Well, I should have known that it was my witching hour (after 8pm), and that since I was feeling tired and down and overwhelmed, I’d be vulnerable. To the cravings.

For baked goods.

I think you know the ones I’m talking about. (If you don’t, consider yourself lucky.)

Needless to say, seemingly before I knew what had happened, I’d downed a bagel at Panera (!) washed down by a cinnamon sugar pretzel at Auntie Ann’s (!!). Not healthy. Not vegan. And not remotely gluten free!

I went home chagrined, with a well-deserved stomachache. Within an hour, my breasts started hurting (which always scares me), and this morning I woke up with my feet aching and feeling pretty much terrible overall.

The silver lining

So why am I telling you this? Because in a way, my slip-up was a blessing. You see, I’d been allowing wheat and processed junk to sneak back into my diet, thinking it didn’t have an effect on me—at least, not an immediate one. But falling (precipitously) off the straight and narrow reminded me of why I’m on the healthy path in the first place: to keep my breasts, my body, and my mind healthy and happy. So while lying in bed at 6am trying to shake off my food hangover, I made three commitments to myself:

1. No more wheat. Just no. It’s not worth the pain.
2. No more snacking. At least for the next week, until I can get back on track. I know this isn’t for everyone; snacking helps some people stay the course. But it gets me in trouble every time, so better to avoid it altogether for the time being.
3. Back to 2 pounds of veggies a day. If I’m going to be stuffed, I want it to be with life-affirming, energy-boosting (and tasty) vegetables.

Note: Until Christmas—you are my witness—I’m sticking with these commitments. Because these are the three things I was doing when I—effortlessly, might I add—weighed 8 pounds less than I do now. (Yikes!)

Newly rededicated, I proceeded to drag my sorry butt out of bed and to the pool. Thirty laps later, I felt like a new woman. So I decided to celebrate my health “renaissance” with an experimental—and delicious!—nutrient-packed smoothie with all the flavors I love, but none of the guilt. Behold the result: the blueberry muffin power smoothie.

Shared on Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays and Healthy Vegan Fridays.
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