Let’s get something straight. While science may say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, grabbing a cookie on your way out the door does not count as a healthy breakfast.
If a breakfast that is both filling and nutritious is your goal, let’s put down the cookie and pick up the blender. These collagen smoothies will change your morning routine for good.
Collagen Breakfast Smoothies
Why add collagen, you ask. It’s because collagen has been linked to a number of health benefits.
Collagen is a protein; in fact, it’s the most abundant protein in your body. It’s important to start the day with protein that makes you feel full and fuels your body for the day ahead. Adding collagen can also:
♦ Improve your hair health and prompt it to grow longer
♦ Boost skin elasticity and help speed repair process
♦ Strengthen nails and reduce breakage
♦ Maintain joint integrity and relieve joint pain
♦ Prevent bone loss and degeneration
♦ Increase muscle growth and strength to build muscle mass
♦ Reduce risk factors associated with heart health concerns
Wow, right?! Collagen is pretty amazing, and it’s a fantastic way to start your day. With your newly found appreciation for collagen, it’s time to hit the kitchen and plan your next smoothie.
1. Pumpkin Pie Smoothie Recipe
With it’s sweet and spicy flavor, pumpkin spice is a seasonal must for many. It’s also more than just a fall favorite; pumpkin is a nutrient-dense food that is loaded with vitamins and minerals your body needs.
We’ve taken this original recipe and modified it to include pumpkin seeds or pepitas. These little nuggets are packed with zinc, which is a nutrient that your body needs to stay healthy, and it supports the genetic material in your DNA.
Ingredients:
1 cup pure pumpkin puree
1/2 cup almond milk or light coconut milk
1 banana, chopped and frozen
1-2 tablespoons maple syrup
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 scoops Collagen Peptides
a handful of hulled pumpkin seeds or pepitas
Directions:
Put all ingredients into your blender, and blend until smooth. If you’d like a thicker and colder version, add ice cubes to the mix. This recipe makes 2 servings.
2. Green Apple Smoothie
This smoothie is loaded with healthy foods, including green apples, spinach, ginger root, a banana, and chia seeds.
Antioxidants are the key feature of this drink, and you can never have too many. The role of antioxidants in your body is to give you the weapons you need to fight free radical-induced tissue damage, to combat the formation of radicals, to scavenge the radicals that are there, and to promote their decomposition.
Look out free radicals; this smoothie is coming to get you!
Ingredients:
1 green apple, cored and chopped
2 cups spinach
1 cup milk
1 banana, cubed and frozen
2" of ginger root, grated
2 tablespoon chia seeds
2 scoops Collagen Peptides
2-3 cups ice
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in the blender, and blend until smooth. Add ice cubes one cup at a time until the desired thickness. This recipe makes 2 servings.
3. Vanilla Berry Protein Smoothie
You simply can’t go wrong with berries, which is why they’re the featured ingredient in this smoothie recipe. Berries are sweet and refreshing and can add a little zest to your morning. Berries are also one of the healthiest foods around.
If you’re looking for great food that is full of nutrition, look no further than your favorite, juicy berry. Their health benefits can include:
♦ Abundant antioxidants
♦ Improve blood sugar and insulin levels
♦ High in fiber, including soluble fiber
♦ Rich in nutrients such as vitamin C, manganese, vitamin K1, copper, and folate
♦ Low in calories
♦ Reduces wrinkling, and protects skin from sun damage
♦ Antioxidants, anthocyanins, ellagic acid, and resveratrol, reduce oxidative damage from free radicals
Ingredients:
1 scoop Collagen Peptides
2/3 cup vanilla greek yogurt
1/2 cup frozen mixed berries
2-3 ice cubes
1-2 tablespoons water
Directions:
Blend the ice with the yogurt and the berries and one tablespoon of water. If it doesn’t get smooth enough, add another tablespoon of water. Add your collagen peptides, and blend until thoroughly mixed. This recipe makes 1 serving.
4. Hemp & Berry Protein Smoothie
It’s impossible not to get on the hemp bandwagon these days, which is why we’re extolling the virtues of hemp seeds in this recipe. No, hemp seeds will not get you high.
Hemp seeds do not have the psychoactive elements of marijuana, but they do have a lot of very healthy essential fatty acids, protein, and fiber. This means that they’re great for your hair, nails, and skin, they promote heart health, they aid in digestion, and might also assist you as you try to shed a few pounds.
Ingredients:
1.5 cups coconut water
2 cups frozen berries
1 banana
6 kale leaves, ribs removed
2 tablespoons hemp seeds, hulled
2 scoops Collagen Peptides
Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a blender, and blend until it reaches the desired texture. Add ice cubes for a more frozen and thicker treat, and add a tablespoon of water at a time if you want a thinner smoothie. This recipe makes 2 servings.
5. Watermelon Mint Smoothie
If you want your skin to glow with radiance, then this is the smoothie you want to start your day with. The high water content in watermelon helps rehydrate your body, including your skin. At the same time, lycopene and vitamins in watermelon slow down the signs of aging in your skin by encouraging the growth of collagen and elastin.
Ingredients:
1.5 cups fresh seedless watermelon, cubed
1 cup frozen strawberries
juice from one lime
1 scoop Collagen Peptides
2-3 fresh mint leaves
ice as needed
Directions:
Blend all ingredients together, adding ice as needed to create the appropriate thickness.
Waking Up To Wellness
A smoothie a day may help keep aging at bay, as long as that smoothie is packed with collagen protein. You know that having a healthy breakfast that features protein as the base can give your body the energy it needs for the whole day. It can also help you look and feel amazing.
The smoothie recipes above feature collagen peptides, so you’ll definitely have no worries about getting the protein that you need. They also feature delicious and fresh ingredients that are packed with nutritional benefits for your body, both inside and out.
With healthy ingredients on your side, you’re ready to take on the world!
