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Whether you’re a devout smoothie-for-breakfast person or you like to whip one up as a mid-afternoon snack, a smoothie can make for the perfect treat. They’re easy and quick to make; all you need are your preferred ingredients and a blender. In addition to being convenient, smoothies can also offer a boatload of health benefits—depending on the ingredients you choose, because using the wrong ingredients can quickly turn a smoothie into a sugar and calorie bomb. But if you’re thoughtful about what you put in your blended drink, incorporating smoothies into your diet can be a great asset in helping you reach your weight loss goals.
To build a smoothie that supports weight loss, you’ll want to make sure your creation contains at least one of the following—and ideally, more:
- Protein: Whether it comes from protein powder, yogurt, or nut butter, adding protein to your smoothie will make it more filling, which reduces your appetite (and prevents over-snacking) and makes you feel satisfied. Protein also helps you build lean muscle mass, which can help with weight loss.
- Fiber: Fiber helps reduce feelings of hunger and slows the rate of digestion, so adding fiber-rich ingredients like chia seeds, flaxseeds, vegetables, or fruit is important.
- Healthy fats: Unsaturated fats from sources like avocado, nuts, and seeds (which are all great smoothie ingredients) are known as ‘healthy fats,’ and they can help you feel more full after eating them.
- Little to no added sugars: Added sugars are empty calories, and snacking on foods or drinks that are high in these sugars can result in consuming more calories without actually satisfying your hunger. Try using natural sources of sugar (like fruit) in your smoothies instead.
Now that you have an idea of the best types of ingredients to go in a weight loss smoothie, read on for 20 delicious smoothie recipes that won’t derail your diet. And for more healthy eating tips, check out the 10 Best Protein Shake Recipes for Weight Loss.
Our berry cauliflower smoothie is great for weight loss because it’s packed full of protein and fiber, and it satisfies your sweet cravings without using added sugar.
Frozen cauliflower is the perfect smoothie ingredient because it adds a super creamy texture while also providing a couple of grams of fiber and protein. Along with cauliflower, the peanut butter adds protein and healthy fats, and the berries and chia seeds provide some fiber as well.
Get our recipe for a Berry Cauliflower Smoothie.
Sip on this paleo-friendly piña colada smoothie and pretend you’re on the beach with your toes in the sand, all year round. This smoothie may not have much in the way of protein or fiber, but it can save you calories and added sugar as a substitute for a typical piña colada, thereby aiding in your weight loss goals.
Get our recipe for a Paleo Piña Colada Smoothie.
Like our original piña colada smoothie, but with a superfood twist. This spirulina version uses pineapple, banana, non-dairy milk, and spirulina—a powdered form of seaweed that contains protein and powerful antioxidants and has been found to have possible anti-inflammatory effects.
Aside from the small boost of protein, this smoothie also offers a way to satisfy your sweet cravings without turning to ultra-sugary snacks.
Get our recipe for a Spirulina Piña Colada Smoothie.
Made with oats that provide protein and fiber and oat milk that contains protein as well, this smoothie is a great way for plant-based smoothie lovers to have a filling and sweet snack. The combination of pear, cardamom, and oats makes for the perfect fall drink.
Get our recipe for a Pear Cardamom Oats Smoothie.
One of the easiest ways to up the amount of protein in your smoothie (aside from adding a scoop of protein powder) is to add some low-fat Greek yogurt. Combining the yogurt with raspberry, banana, peach, and a small amount of ginger creates a sweet, mildly tart treat to enjoy as part of your weight loss plan.
Get our recipe for a Raspberry Peach Smoothie.
Take the sweet and tangy flavors from key lime pie and make it healthy with this key lime pie smoothie. It uses limes, graham crackers, banana, and oat milk and omits the piles of added sugar that you’d find in a real slice of pie. Although this recipe doesn’t contain high amounts of protein or fiber, drinking it instead of reaching for a snack full of added sugar will help you with your health goals.
Get our recipe for a Key Lime Pie Smoothie.
If you’re trying to lose weight, you know that operating on a calorie deficit is an important part of the equation. This low-cal smoothie recipe can help make sure you’re still burning more calories than you consume without feeling deprived. Coconut, pear, avocado, and lime work together to create this uniquely tasty, bold, and refreshing drink. We love how many nutrient-dense foods are packed into this recipe while keeping the overall calories low.
Get our recipe for a Low-Calorie Avocado-Lime Smoothie.
Bet you weren’t expecting to see a smoothie bowl on this list! Take the beloved summer flavor of coconut and combine it with the fall flavor of pumpkin, and you’ll get an unexpected gem of a snack. While it may be served in a bowl, you’re still getting the texture, health benefits, and convenience of a regular smoothie. With canned pumpkin, pepitas, and Greek yogurt, this recipe serves up about 8 grams of protein and 5 grams of fiber.
Get our recipe for a Coconut Pumpkin Smoothie Bowl.
Chocolate and banana is one of the most classic smoothie combinations, and for good reason. Those two flavors are delicious on their own, but when you add coconut, vanilla, and a little bit of Greek yogurt for a protein boost, this smoothie becomes even more impressive. And thanks to that yogurt, this smoothie provides 9 grams of protein.
Get our recipe for a Chocolate-Coconut-Banana Smoothie.
For a smoothie that’s going to deliver fiber, healthy fats, and flavor—while keeping the calories and added sugars to a minimum—try our avocado-berry smoothie. You’ll get fiber from the chia seeds and three types of berries (blackberries, strawberries, and blueberries), while the avocado will provide a dose of healthy fats. The combination of these nutrients can help slow your digestion, making for a filling midday snack. This one is also paleo-friendly.
Get our recipe for an Avocado-Berry Smoothie.
This weight loss snack is a little bit smoothie, and a little bit yogurt parfait. It combines frozen banana, cashew milk, granola, chia seeds, and protein powder, and all of these ingredients together provide you with a high-protein smoothie with a boost of fiber that you can enjoy for breakfast or a snack. The best part? It’s 100% paleo-friendly.
Get our recipe for a Paleo Yogurt and Granola Smoothie.
People often go for peanut or almond butter in a smoothie, but cashew butter provides similar levels of protein and healthy fats with a bit of a naturally sweet flavor. This smoothie recipe also contains frozen raspberries, cashew milk, and cottage cheese, ingredients that combine to supply you with a boost of protein, healthy fats, and fiber.
Get our recipe for a Cashew Butter and Raspberry Smoothie.
This healthy Carrot Cake Smoothie is perfect for fall, and it will give you all of the cozy feelings of a piece of carrot cake—without all of the added sugar. It’s made with carrots, chickpeas, oat milk, flaxseed, and a secret ingredient—Neufchâtel cheese, a creamy type of cheese with less fat than a typical cream cheese.
Get our recipe for a Carrot Cake Smoothie.
For a smoothie that will give you a hint of the flavors you love in Nutella, you can make this Chocolate Hazelnut Smoothie, which uses chocolate hazelnut milk, cauliflower for texture, and Four Sigmatic Organic Protein—a protein powder we love because it provides 18 grams of protein and tons of mushrooms and adaptogens, which can help with energy, stress relief, and immunity. It may not be quite as tasty as a scoop of Nutella, but this smoothie will give you sustained energy and help you toward your weight loss goals.
Get our recipe for a Chocolate Hazelnut Smoothie.
Another smoothie recipe that utilizes the power of mushroom powder, this Chocolate Tofu Smoothie includes a reishi mushroom mix, as well as a serving of tofu for high-quality, plant-based protein.
Get our recipe for a Chocolate Tofu Smoothie.
As you may have guessed, we are big fans of taking popular desserts and making them into healthy smoothies, like the Key Lime Pie Smoothie or Carrot Cake Smoothie. Another recipe we love is this Pumpkin Pie Smoothie, which is completely paleo and vegan-friendly.
This one takes a bit of prep work because it has you freeze canned pumpkin overnight in an ice cube tray, but the result of a super creamy and delicious smoothie with fiber and healthy fats is worth it.
Get our recipe for a Pumpkin Pie Smoothie.
This Pumpkin Spice Smoothie is a bit lighter than our Pumpkin Pie version, but it’s equally as tasty and good for your weight loss goals. With pumpkin puree, flaxseeds, banana, and protein powder, this smoothie supplies you with protein, fiber, healthy fats, and antioxidants—all while helping you get in the festive fall spirit.
Get our recipe for a Pumpkin Spice Smoothie.
Some days the chocolate cravings strike with more intensity than usual, and when it does, this Dark Chocolate Banana Nut Smoothie is a no-brainer. Made with dairy-free dark chocolate morsels, banana, almond milk, walnuts, and chocolate protein powder, this smoothie recipe can give you your chocolate fix while also keeping you full and satisfied until your next meal.
Get our recipe for Dark Chocolate Banana Nut Smoothie.
The issue with green smoothies is that they don’t always contain enough protein, so even though they’re full of healthy nutrients, they may not fill you up. This peaches and kale smoothie bowl solves that problem by providing all of the leafy greens and fruit you love from a typical green smoothie, plus 11 grams of protein thanks to yogurt and almonds.
Get our recipe for a Peaches and Kale Smoothie Bowl.
With tofu, almonds, Greek yogurt, chocolate, and raspberries, this Mexican Chocolate Smoothie Bowl packs in 11 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber, and the fact that it uses both chocolate almond milk and bittersweet chocolate is great news for chocolate lovers.
Get our recipe for a Mexican Chocolate Smoothie Bowl.
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