Increase your energy, boost your metabolism, and melt away belly fat with these delicious fat-burning smoothies. In this post, I’ll share my favorite smoothie ingredients, tips, and superfoods to help you crush your weight loss goals.
It’s no secret that I’m a huge smoothie fan. I started drinking green smoothies years ago and never looked back.
Smoothies are a great way to fuel your body with extra vitamins and minerals to help your body perform at its best.
If your international with the smoothie ingredients and incorporate them correctly in your overall diet, smoothies can turn your body into a fat-burning machine.
Of course, not all smoothie recipes can help you lose weight. Smoothies can quickly turn into high-calorie sugar bombs having the opposite effect.
A fat-burning smoothie should include high-quality and nutrient-dense ingredients that are portion-controlled to keep you within your daily calorie limits.
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How to Choose Fat-Burning Smoothie Ingredients
When you’re trying to lose weight choosing the right ingredients for your smoothie recipe is essential.
A weight loss smoothie recipe that will boost your metabolism and burn fat includes ingredients that are:
Higher in fiber. High fiber helps fill you up quickly, keep you full, and, most importantly, keeps the pipes moving.
High in protein – Protein helps you feel full faster, enabling you to eat less, which means you’ll consume fewer calories. Here are some ideas to add 5-10 grams of protein to your smoothies. Or you can use collagen or protein powder in your smoothies.
Healthy fats – When you consume good fats rather than processed sugar and carbs, your body will focus on burning fat instead of burning carbs for energy. Good fats are in foods like avocado, coconut oil, and chia seeds.
Low in sugar. It’s easy to create a smoothie sugar bomb that’ll have your blood sugar levels all over the place. You want a smoothie recipe that will fill you up and nourishes your body, not cause a crash and burn.
- Smoothies include sugar because of the fruits. The key to a fat-burning smoothie is to keep the amount of sugar low by being intentional with the fruits used and measuring out the portions.
- Fruits like berries, kiwi, watermelon, peaches, and cantaloupe have a lower sugar content. Use in moderation higher sugar fruits like bananas, apples, pineapple, and mangoes.
- It’s okay to use a high sugar fruit but again, make sure the portion is measured out.
- Overall, the sugar content for a smoothie shouldn’t be more than 20 grams. You can use the recipe builder in My Fitness Pal to figure out your smoothie ingredients’ nutritional information.
Popular fat-burning smoothie ingredients
- Berries
- Celery
- Spinach, Kale, and other greens
- Green tea
- Chia Seeds
- Cinnamon
- Cayenne
- Avocado
- Peanut butter or other nut butters
- Ginger
Fat Loss Smoothie Recipe Formula
- 1 ½ – 2 cups greens and vegetables – I’ll use 1 ½ – 2 cups of spinach and one small cucumber or celery stalk as a base.
- ½ – 1 cup of berries. I prefer a mix of blueberries, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries.
- ½ of a banana – A lot of times, I’ll leave the banana out, but if I want extra sweetness, then I‘ll add ½ of a banana to my smoothie.
- Superfoods – Every smoothie I make gets 2-3 teaspoons of chia seeds for extra fiber, protein, and omega-3 fatty acids.
- One cup of liquid – It’s essential to use anti-inflammatory ingredients when making a smoothie, so I always use non-dairy milk like unsweetened almond milk or coconut milk.
Of course, you can switch up the ingredients to suit your taste, but that’s the formula I use when focusing on creating a weight loss smoothie recipe.
Fat Burning Smoothie Recipes
See all of my healthy smoothie recipes.
Supplies
- High-speed blender – I’ve owned this Vitamix for close to 10 years, and it’s still going strong. If you plan to make smoothies regularly, I recommend investing in a high-quality blender. If a Vitamix is too pricey, then check out my recommendation for the best blenders for smoothies.
- Glass tumbler – I often use a 32-ounce mason jar for drinking smoothies. I also have this 18-ounce Ello glass tumbler.
- Reusable straws – These Ello reusable straws work fantastic for smoothies.
- Straw cleaner – Definitely grab a straw cleaner to keep those straws clean.
- 20-ounce Yeti tumbler – I love using my Yeti tumbler to keep smoothies cold on the go.
- Reusable silicone bags – These bags come in handy when putting together freezer smoothie kits.
FAQs
You can drink a smoothie any time of the day. It is a personal preference. I tend to drink my smoothie in the morning immediately after exercising. I feel this is a great way to kickstart my day.
Starting my morning with exercise and a nutritious smoothie paves the way for more healthy choices throughout the day. I feel hydrated, energized, and focused.
If you don’t want to drink a smoothie first thing, then have one for lunch or a snack.
I think it’s best to add protein to smoothies with natural ingredients like chia seeds, hemp hearts, or nut butters. I’m not big on protein powders, mostly because I haven’t found one that tastes good.
If you have a protein powder you like, then use it. However, it’s essential to use clean ingredients for the highest quality smoothie, so make sure to read the label to check for no added sugars, preservatives, or artificial ingredients.
I like using almond or coconut milk. You can also use coconut water or any liquid; just make sure it’s unsweetened and doesn’t include a lot of sugar. Of course, you can also use filtered water in your smoothie.
Expert Tips
Be careful of added sugars – I know I sound like a broken record, but the amount of sugar in a smoothie will matter when you want to lose weight.
Watch out for ingredients that can include added sugars like greek yogurt, protein powders, and even certain milks. Always purchase unsweetened or no sugar added ingredients.
Calories still count – Just because you’re drinking a fat-burning smoothie does not mean you can eat whatever you want the rest of the day. Nope. Calories always matter, and you’ll need to control the rest of the food you eat throughout the day.
Smoothies can help significantly with weight loss, but you still need to burn more calories than you consume.
Add in exercise – If you want to increase your metabolism significantly, combine your fat-burning smoothie with building lean muscle. I see the most noticeable results when I do this.
You don’t need to train for the Iron man marathon; just get yourself a set of hand weights and get in the habit of doing simple toning exercises 4-5 times a week.
Plan for a high protein snack – If you feel hungry a couple of hours after drinking a smoothie, prepare some high protein snacks.
My favorite snacks to have ready are:
- Hard-Boiled eggs
- Energy Balls
- Raw almonds or cashews
Storage Tips
Smoothies can be blended 1-2 days ahead of time and stored in an airtight glass container in the fridge. I like to use mason jars to store smoothies.
Keep in mind that the texture of this smoothie will seem pulpy because it includes more greens. Give the mason jar a shake before drinking it.
My favorite way to prep smoothies ahead of time is to prepare smoothie freezer kits. Place all of the ingredients except the liquid into a quart-sized freezer bag (plastic or reusable) and freeze for up to 4 months.
When you’re ready to make the smoothie dump the ingredients into a blender, add the liquid, and blend.
Amber says
I’m trying to lose 30 pounds I’m a type 2 diabetic these smoothies have alot of carbs will tht mess my sugar up and will I gain weight or will I lose weight
Tammy Overhoff says
Hi there! It’s best to talk this over with your doctor to find out if drinking smoothies would be best for your condition.
Kathy says
So much good information plus the smoothies sound amazing! Thanks!
Barbara A says
So glad I’d found your website
Tammy Overhoff says
Omigosh thank you so much for this comment! I’m so glad you found me too!