NutriBullet

Prior to jumping into another holiday post, I wanted to just talk to you about this new little thing I'm doing these days. Given the timing, I suppose one could consider it a New Year's resolution, but it really came about through some recent conversations with L about food, exercise, health, etc. Over the holidays, in the few days leading up to my birthday, I got pretty sick. Not puking sick, but the other end sick (sorry, a little too much info). Unfortunately, it lasted for like 3 days, I had a break on my birthday (fortunately!), and then it started again on New Year's Day night. This prompted some general conversations about our wellbeing from a physical standpoint. L has always been far better than me at exercising, eating healthy, etc. He also drinks a ton of water, which is something I know I should do, but it's something I don't do, at least not nearly enough.

Anyway, long story short, we were watching TV one of those mornings, and we caught a random infomercial about a product called the NutriBullet. Perhaps you've heard of the Magic Bullet or Baby Bullet, things like that. It's by the same people. Well, the basic concept is to get more fruits, veggies, and healthy things into your diet by using it. In their words, it essentially "pulverizes" (I've always loved that word) the food you put in it to turn it into liquid form. It's different than a juicer, in that you actually get everything, not just the juice. And it's different than a blender, in that it grinds through pretty much everything. I was skeptical when I watched the infomercial through their website that's linked above. I am very much a texture person, and when you talk about grinding/blending fruits, veggies, nuts, etc., so much so that they take on a liquid form, I am pretty much turned off from that point on. Food is meant to be eaten, not drank, in my opinion. So, we just kinda talked about how we could understand why it would be beneficial, especially for people like me who really don't eat much at all in the realm of fruits and veggies. Didn't really go any further with it, but thought it was kinda neat.

A few days later, when L was back in the office and I was hanging out on his couch since I was on vacation, we were chatting online and I wasn't feeling the best. We got on the health kick again and just talked about it. As a side note, he has a compulsive habit of buying things on Amazon, and that plays in here, because that day, he confessed to me that he went ahead and purchased a NutriBullet online. At first, I was like, "What?!", but quickly after my initial surprise, it didn't seem that outlandish. He didn't think of it when HE bought it, but as I was thinking about purchasing it too, he goes, "They probably have it at Target or something." And they do! Not to mention, for a decent amount cheaper, and I could go pick it up right away. So, off to Target I went! Mom and dad got me a $50 gift card to Target for Christmas, so that helped put a good dent in the price. After that purchase, I also got a variety of fruits and veggies, and L and I had our first NutriBlasts that evening! Again, I was nervous and skeptical, but it was surprisingly pretty good! To be honest, I don't even remember what we all put in mine that first time, but it was a good combo. The 'regimen' recommends 50% fruit, 50% veggies, and then filling it up to the fill line with water. Easy peasy! Best part is, if you use an apple or something, all you have to do is remove the core, and the rest can go in, peel and all! Broccoli? You can use the stem and everything, which is actually very nutritious, and everyone throws it away otherwise. Neat!

Anyway, as some of you know, and some of you don't (because I was going to post about it and never did), I had some semi-recent health issues, and it turned out that my potassium levels were very low. This NutriBullet allows me to add in a whole banana with each one I make (and most days, I have two per day), so that's great for the potassium!  It also allows me to blend in some veggies that I don't eat on a regular basis that are very good for me. Perfect! I've talked with some people about this who were curious about my particular concoction(s), and really, I've just been using one main mixture: 1) A couple decent handfuls of spinach; 2) Half of a carrot (the big sized carrots that you have to peel yourself - yes, mom, I even bought a vegetable peeler!); 3) About a quarter or so of a tomato; 4) A banana, cut up into 4-5 pieces; 5) occasionally a frozen strawberry or two; 6) Two large spoonfuls of flax seed; and 7) 1/2-3/4 of the amount of liquid as orange juice, with the rest being water. They recommend you 'avoid the temptation' of adding fruit juice, but here's my thought: It is no different than me having a glass of orange juice with breakfast, and since it makes it taste much better for me, I figure it's better to add OJ than it is to not add it and not drink these things at all. Am I right?! I think so. I have slowly tried to decrease the amount of OJ and add more water, and it seems to be going okay. I will probably always have at least a little juice, and I'm perfectly okay with that. L, on the other hand, goes with a much heavier veggie route. For instance, last night, he told me he made one with collards, broccoli, carrot, tomato, green apple, lime, flax seed, and water. His combinations don't appeal to me as much, as they tend to be a little on the thicker side. And they're not as sweet But they work! And they ARE drinkable. So even those are do-able. Mine can get a little thick if let sit too long because of the banana in there, but overall, not too bad! I have also used kale as my 'green,' which I would have gotten when I got back to MKE, but the grocery store happened to have the worst possible veggie selection that day and they were out. I will be going back to get more veggies this weekend. Excited!

For most of you who know me, this is  BIG.DEAL. In the past week and a half, I have probably consumed more fruits and veggies than I did in the last 3 months, no joke. Maybe even longer. That alone makes me feel like this is worthwhile! I had never had flax seed before this either, and since it's good for those omega 3's and fiber, this is great, because I would never use flax otherwise! Also, I don't know if it's just mental or if it's actually making a difference (which I'm sure it is), but I feel like I've noticed a difference in a couple of ways. First, I feel much more 'ready' to get up in the morning. I am still not a morning person, and could probably sleep all day if someone let me, but nonetheless, I have actually been getting up even earlier than usual, and I feel ready to attack the day, which has been awesome! Since I often have one after work too, that seems to keep me in productive mode longer in the evening as well. In addition, another too much information thing here, but I have never been the most "regular" when it comes to the digestive system if you get my drift, and this seems to be significantly helping in that arena! One thing that has surprised me, however, is how often I think about food now. It's subsiding a bit, but I think my brain was just like, "You're hungry, you're hungry, you're hungry!" all the time at first. I never used to eat breakfast, so I'm basically adding it in, but by like 10:30, I'm usually like, "Dang, I am hungry!" I think there's a reason behind that, something about my metabolism kicking into high gear or whatever. Anyway, that has been a bit of a hard adjustment, because I always used to snack on unhealthy junk. I've done some research on healthy snacks, and I've been trying to incorporate those in every so often (i.e., pumpkin seeds; guacamole, etc.). Oh! That reminds me, they have a guacamole recipe that you actually make in the Nutribullet, and it is awesome! L and I made it last weekend, and it was a little thick based on their recipe, but the flavor was awesome. I will make it again this weekend and can't wait! I can share that recipe if anyone is interested. Also, if you want a few of the Nutriblast recipes, go here! The book that comes with it gives several more, so if you purchase it or want me to post a few more, I can. Obviously I am not a spokesperson for this, but so far, I am beyond happy with my purchase! I've included two pictures, one pre-"blasted" and one after. Don't be freaked by the green color of the finished product. If you use my recipe, I guarantee you it's tasty! :)

Pre-blended (you would add water and/or juice to this before blending)