Frequently Asked Questions about our Green Smoothie Challenge

GREEN SMOOTHIE CHALLENGE FAQs
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• What is the difference between the Green Smoothie Challenge and The Blender Cleanse?
• What if I can’t make a green smoothie at work. How much does each recipe make? How long will the smoothies keep?
• Do I drink at breakfast, lunch or dinner?
• A lot of recipes call for bananas. Should I use yellow, green, frozen, fresh?
• I don’t like stevia/agave/honey/whatever. What can I use instead?
• I hate “X”!!! (Or I’m allergic!) What can I use instead?
• Can I use frozen fruits and vegetables?!
• Which smoothies are good for arthritis/fibromyalgia/diabetes?

• What is the difference between the Green Smoothie Challenge and The Juice Detox? Are they at the same time? I’m confused!
  Blender Babes’ 21-Day Green Smoothie Challenge is different than The Blender Cleanse! In the past, we have combined our 21 Day Green Smoothie Challenge with The Blender Cleanse, as the GSC is the perfect preparation to start cleansing
  • For the Green Smoothie Challenge: – You will drink 1 green smoothie per day for 21 days in a row.
  • For The Blender Cleanse: You will prep your body with a clean, whole foods meal plan for 5 days, slowly eliminating certain foods. You will then use your blender to make 6 whole food juices we created for optimal detoxification. You will drink these juices for  1 – 5 days. Once you’re done with the Juice Detox days, you will ease back into whole and cooked foods in the same way you eased into the detox, including those green smoothies!
  • For a combined Green Smoothie Challenge and Juice Detox: You will drink 1 green smoothie per day for 5 days with your normal diet. You will then prep for 5 days, continuing to drink green smoothies as well as slowly eliminating certain foods. Then you will drink the 6 Juice Detox Recipes for between 1 and 5 days (up to you and your scheduled). You will then ease out for the next 5 days, drinking green smoothies as well as adding whole and cooked foods back into your diet. We have some members who have had one green smoothie a day for over a year, so there are no limits! It is entirely up to you and your goals as to which program you choose to follow or whether you would like to combine the two. 🙂

• What if I can’t make a smoothie at work? How much does it make and how long will they keep?
  Just make it in the morning or night before! They will maintain the nutritional value for at least 24 hours, at which point that will start to slowly dissipate. Most of our green smoothie recipes make up to 32 ounces (4 cups). Typically 1 serving is 2 cups, however many in our green smoothie community drink the full 32 ounces – either all at once or some at first and the rest throughout the day. We like to put them in large mason jars in a small cooler if we’re working or on the road (and otherwise just in the fridge!). Green smoothies should definitely keep through an 8-hour work shift as long as they are properly refrigerated. (Plus, warm smoothies are gross.) You can also freeze your green smoothie the night before and then let it thaw throughout the next day (if you live in a warm climate).

• Do I drink for breakfast, lunch or dinner?
  You decide when drinking a green smoothie is best for you. It also depends on your goals. For maximum weight loss, you will replace one meal per day. You decide whether to drink for breakfast, lunch or dinner. If your goal is more to increase your fruit and vegetable consumption, we recommend having a green smoothie as a snack in between meals.

• A lot of recipes call for bananas. Should I use yellow, green, frozen, fresh?
  Green bananas can cause indigestion, and brown ones don’t taste quite as delicious, so go with a nicely yellow banana with a few spots to make sure that it is ripe enough not to cause any digestion problems. If you want a creamy texture, use sliced, frozen bananas – if temperature isn’t such a big deal to you, use fresh bananas! Make sure to buy enough when you go shopping and then freeze extras as they become ripe so you always have them on hand!

• I don’t like stevia/agave/honey/whatever. What can I use instead?
  There are plenty of alternatives when it comes to sweetening your smoothies and juices. Unrefined whole foods are the best, so we recommend substituting fresh or dried Medjool dates, real grade B 100% maple syrup, raw honey, or coconut sugar. You can also substitute powdered stevia for liquid, if you don’t mind the taste – 6 to 9 drops of liquid stevia is about a ¼ teaspoon of the powder.

• I hate “X”!!! Or I’m allergic! What can I use instead?
  There are always some ingredients that you may not prefer (or are allergic to!). If you have the ability, you may want to just TRY the recipe as is, to see if the flavor is masked or blended with other, dominant flavors. If you are a die-hard hater or allergic however, try swapping out the ingredient for another. For example there are those that don’t like or are allergic to banana – we recommend swapping out banana for mango to achieve a similar flavor and texture. You could also just make one of the other green smoothie recipes that you did like again!

• Can I use frozen fruits and vegetables?!
  Yes, absolutely use frozen fruits and vegetables! They can offer a nice texture change, and you can use less ice, which can slightly water-down the flavor. Also, there are recent studies that frozen foods lose even less nutritional value than fresh ones since they are flash frozen right after picking instead of being transported fresh. Don’t hesitate to use frozen (organic if you can!) fruits and veggies to save some money, too!

• Which smoothies are good for arthritis/fibromyalgia/diabetes?
  Please keep in mind that no one at Blender Babes is a medical doctor. While most of these recipes are especially healthy, anti-inflammatory, and MUCH healthier than your average smoothie recipe, we recommend that you discuss health and diet goals with a nutritionist or dietitian and your healthcare provider. Sometimes the comments on individual recipes will contain other people’s individual experiences with those smoothies that can also be helpful. While green smoothies are VERY LIKELY to result in positive overall health benefits and we have people tell us wonderful stories all the time, these claims have not been tested in any formal studies. We encourage you to do your own research and share your results with us!

We continue to add your FAQs to this post so the rest of our community can benefit from how AWESOME you are! Please don’t hesitate to ask us in the comments below! HAPPY BLENDING!