So, don't judge me, but up until last weekend I'd never tried making my own smoothies :O! I've always been a "rather eat my calories than drink them" kinda girl, but after a tough spinning sesh at the gym a cold smoothie was just what I was craving. So armed with my cheapo blender and a stash of frozen bananas I set about making a delicious-looking fruity protein-filled smoothie...
This smoothie involved a scoop of vanilla protein powder, some skimmed milk, couple of ice cubes, a frozen banana, handful of frozen summer berries and a tbsp of ground flax. I topped it with some Bear granola and fresh bluebs (swoon!). My verdict on this smoothie? Horrible, disgusting, just plain wrong... I did not like it AT ALL and had to give up half way through :( Such a tragic waste of my beloved bluebs! I knew exactly who the disgusting culprit was here: the protein powder. It gave the smoothie such a strange synthetic taste that was in no way enjoyable and left my stomach feeling dodgy for hours afterwards... definitely a protein fail.
The good news is that the following day I returned from my usual Sunday long run and decided to try again, except this time I stuck with the standard "green monster" style smoothie recipe. I'd never tried making one of these and was certain the addition of spinach was going to lead to the same failure as the protein powder... how wrong could I have been?! I enjoyed my GM so much that I actually forgot to take a photo, it was LUSH! I used a couple of handfuls of spinach, a few ice cubes, splash of skimmed milk, a frozen banana, tbsp of flax and topped it with a sprinkle of dried fruit+seed mix... I'm not one for being over-dramatic but this was heaven in a bowl! I couldn't taste the spinach (although I love spinach anyway) and it actually left me feeling energised for hours afterwards - quite a difference from the dodgy protein smoothie of the previous day. Definitely a GM win!
So, the moral of the story? Protein powders might be all well and good for some people but, for me at least, I've yet to find one I actually like the taste of (I've tried maybe 2 or 3 brands so far). My all-natural GM smoothie might be lacking in the protein department, but atleast it tasted good! My protein powder stash has once again been resigned to the back of the cupboard and I'm going to stick with natural sources until I can find a protein powder that tastes nothing like protein powder! I'm looking forward to my next GM already...
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There are a couple of great giveaways going on in blogland at the moment and if you like Nakd bars you NEED to check out these blogs.
I'm generally a huge fan of free stuff (who isn't?) but even more so when it involves my favourite healthy bars and snacks. I don't normally have the chance to try many food-stuffs that can't be bought in standard supermarkets, simply because I don't have the time to make special trips to healthfood stores and I'm not organised enough to hunt them down online, so I really appreciate the generous giveaways of other bloggers where I can *hopefully* have the chance to try some fab new products. I'm sure most of you are already aware of these, but here is a couple of the UK-based giveaways going on at the moment:Freya @ britchickruns is hosting a Nakd bar giveaway, giving you the chance to try some of the brand new Nakd flavours. I have yet to try these delicious specimens, although I'm a massive fan of the other Nakd flavours (I'm looking at you, Apple Pie!) Head over to Freya's blog to enter :)
Jemma @ celeryandcupcakes is hosting a similar giveaway where readers have the chance to win a stash of 18 Nakd bars, enough to keep me in supply for, oh, a week! Check out Jemma's post for a chance to enter, but be warned I will be highly jealous if you win ;)
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Have you ever suffered a protein fail?! Gotta admit, I was a little gutted that my first protein smoothie was disgusting as they seem quite popular here in blogland!
Thanks for linking my blog. Keep going with the smoothies. I think it pays off to experiment with different flavours to find what works best for you! :D
ReplyDeletehey, I just found your blog! It's nice to find other UK bloggers (I'm in London). What type of protein powder did you use? I use Myofusion that I buy online and it always works great in smoothies. I think a lot depends on the brand (and you're right, it does make it slightly synthetic tasting!)
ReplyDeleteI tried protein powder and althoigh it was ok, it made my stomach feel weird after, and after logging my food I found I was getting enough protein anyway, so I have not bought any more. :)
ReplyDeleteI've never tried protein powder, like Maria I think I get enough protein from other sources.
ReplyDeleteI've also never made a smoothie (OMG!) but that is definitely something I'm going to try very soon.
I found the same thing when I first used protein powder (it all clogged together in the smoothie and was gross!) but when I used a better quality powder it was so different! I now can't taste it at all! I used Holland+Barrett own brand the first time, and I now use Pulsin' pea.
ReplyDeleteI'm a big fan of protein powder, especially as I have pretty much ditched meat from my diet. I get a huuuuuge tub of toffee fudge flavour from myprotein a few times a year. I find that mixes up really well in porridge and smoothies. I also have a big bag of Sun Warrior vanilla which I was quite disappointed with, but I suppose it's more natural than the myprotein stuff so it's going to have a different texture. I use that for baking as it seems to cook a lot better. I keep a bag of pulsin' pea protein on hand for mixing into soups and the like. Oh dear, that all makes me sound like a protein powder junkie!
ReplyDelete@sweettoothrunner.com
ReplyDeleteI've heard good things about Pulsin Pea protein, I might have to save up some pennies and give it try :)
@deisegirl
ReplyDeleteWow, you certainly have a good collection of protein powders there! I have really reduced the amount of meat I eat too so I badly *wanted* to like protein powder, but I just couldnt stomach it. Maybe I just haven't found the one for me yet - the toffee fudge flavour sounds tempting ;)
@snaxandthecity
ReplyDeleteHey :) Thanks for the comment - it's great to find other UK bloggers so I've bookmarked your blog for future reading.
I'm glad I'm not missing out with the protein powders! I've never bought them but I see them all over the blogs. For some reason they have never appealed to me.
ReplyDeleteFirstly, thanks so much for the responses to my posts ~ it's really lovely to know that you enjoyed some of my random ramblings.
ReplyDeleteProtein powder...I have a love/hate relationship with it. Sun Warrior is the only vegan one I really like, although Nutiva Choc Hemp shake isn't bad. But it is terribly hard on the digestive system and I don't know many people that can really stomach them. I adore the taste though and I suspect they may be a little addictive!
I think you either go for protein powders or you don't, and there's nothing wrong with the 'all natural' approach either.
xxx