Acai Bowl or Snickers?

I ate a snickers bar for breakfast yesterday.

It was delish and I went on with my day as per usual.

I know this may surprise you. But I was craving a Snickers bar. So I had one, I didn’t beat myself up about the decision and most importantly, I went back to eating my normal healthy diet afterward.

Just because you eat something unplanned or “unhealthy” once doesn’t mean that you should completely give up eating good healthy food for the rest of the day or week.

I know that there are a lot of registered dietitians and health experts out there eating acai bowls every morning for breakfast. But how healthy are smoothie bowls?

Acai Bowl Health Halo

Of COURSE, some foods have more nutritional value than other foods.

If you’re looking to lose weight you shouldn’t be eating a chocolate bar for breakfast every morning. But there are two things at play here.

Firstly, nutrition and calories.

Cutting out processed food can help you begin to design your diet around eating healthy food. Real food, like veggies, quality protein sources (meat or plant-based), and good fats should make the majority of what you eat each day.

You want to be getting a good balance of protein, fats, and good carbohydrates every day as well as other vitamins and minerals. So eating fresh fruit or a smoothie bowl can look good on paper. But how many calories are really in that bowl? And how many grams of sugar? Is there any protein?

Monitoring what you’re eating with a food diary for a week or so can give you more insight into how many calories you’re really consuming. You might be surprised.

There are foods like acai bowls that have a health halo around them. What does this mean? We look at them on a menu when we’re eating healthy and presume that they’re the healthy option that we should choose. There’s no added sugar, they’re full of natural fruit, they’re gluten-free and they seem like they’re good for us. But that fruit is high in sugar and carbohydrates. Add in chopped fruit or granola on top, a spoonful of peanut butter, and any other toppings and you can end up with as many calories as a bowl of ice cream.

Secondly, the mental health side.

Eating what you’re truly feeling like, also makes a big difference in your overall happiness and – at the end of the day – weight management! Yes, if you’re trying to achieve weight loss you need to begin cutting back your calories. But you want this to be sustainable over the long term.

If you feel like you’re depriving yourself you’re not likely to stick with your meal plan. Also, if you switch your favorite foods out for healthier alternatives that you don’t enjoy, you’re still going to feel deprived. Which can lead you to eat the alternative, eating something else and then finally giving in and eating the food you were trying to avoid. This can end up with more calories, more grams of sugar and you feeling guilty. So why not just eat the Snickers bar?

What are your favorite treats? Just plan them into your meal plan – and ENJOY them!

If you’re looking for a smoothie that isn’t too high in calories and is still providing nutritional goodness, here are some of my favorites. The recipes that state they’re for smoothies, add a little less liquid to make them thick enough to serve in a bowl.

Mango Spinach Smoothie

132 calories

Ingredients

1 cup Leafy greens, spinach, raw – 7 calories

• ¼ Zucchini, medium – 8.25 calories

• ¼ cup Celery stalks, chopped in half – 4 calories

• ½ cup Mango, frozen, chunks – 45 calories

• ½ Banana – 52.5 calories

• ½ cup Almond milk – 15 calories

• ½ tsp Vanilla – 0 calories

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice.

2. Blend until smooth.

Pineapple Smoothie

165 calories

Ingredients

• 1 cup Pineapple, frozen chunks, unsweetened – 93 calories

• 1 cup Leafy greens, spinach, raw – 7 calories

• 1 cup Coconut water – 45 calories

• 1 Ginger – 20 calories

• 1 cup Water – 0 calories

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients in a blender with ice,  and mix until smooth.

Protein Smoothie

294 calories

Ingredients

1 Protein powder – 120 calories

• 1 cup Strawberries, fresh – 50 calories

• 1 cup Almond milk – 30 calories

• 1 Tbsp Peanut butter – 94 calories

Instructions

1. Slice strawberries.

2. Mix all ingredients in a blender, add ice if you like.

Green Smoothie with Banana

252 calories

Ingredients

1 cup Almond milk – 30 calories

• ½ Banana – 52.5 calories

• ½ cup Pineapple, frozen chunks, unsweetened – 46.5 calories

• 1 Tbsp Almond butter – 101 calories

• 1 cup Leafy greens, kale, raw – 15 calories

• 1 cup Leafy greens, spinach, raw – 7 calories

Instructions

1. Add in all ingredients and 3-4 ice cubes to a blender

2. Blend

Blueberry Pineapple Smoothie Bowl

252 calories

Ingredients

½ cup Blueberries, frozen – 35 calories

• ½ cup Pineapple, frozen chunks, unsweetened – 46.5 calories

• 8 oz Yogurt, plain, Greek, 2%, from tub – 170 calories

Instructions

1. Mix all ingredients in a blender, pour into a bowl, & enjoy!

2. No dairy? Use a dairy-free yogurt.

Read More