The Worst (and Most Common) Smoothie Ingredient if You’re Trying to Lose Fat

Many of my readers know that I am a big fan of Pinterest when it comes to Health & Fitness information.

Looking for a home workout when you can’t get to the gym? Search Pinterest. Need a healthy but fast breakfast idea when you’re in a rush? Pinterest has your answers!

However, just like anything else when it comes to Health & Fitness, you need to find a trustworthy account. There is plenty of misinformation out there, but if you find the right account, you've found a goldmine. 

For example, smoothies are my favorite choice for a quick and healthy breakfast. The other day I was searching for a new smoothie recipe on Pinterest when I started noticing a trend. A lot of the recipes I found were promoting themselves as “healthy” and “great for fat loss”, but they contained one of the most common, but worst, smoothie ingredients…

Orange juice (or actually most juices, with some being worse than others)!

Are you shocked?

Orange juice is definitely one of the most popular ingredients in smoothie recipes because it makes them taste delicious. However, many people don’t realize that it can be awful for your fat loss nutritional program.

Don’t believe me? Check out some of these nutritional facts:

• 1 cup of orange juice (which is less than what people add to their smoothies or drink in one sitting) contains over 20 grams of sugar, over 25 grams of carbohydrates, and contains about 120 calories.
• Marketers will promote how packed with Vitamin C orange juice is, but there are much healthier alternatives that contain the same or more Vitamin C.
• It contains a lot of calories, carbohydrates, and sugar for something that will most likely not be filling you up for very long.

I know it is delicious. But if you’re searching Pinterest for a HEALTHY fat loss smoothie, you might as well find one that is actually helpful!

**A quick note about juices- most store-bought juices contain only a percentage of real juice (commonly as low as 10%!) and contain A LOT of sugar and other artificial sweeteners.

A few quick solutions:

Looking to sweeten up your smoothie? Try some organic raw honey.

Like the fruity taste that orange juice provides? Simply add your own fruit (frozen or room temperature).

Worried about the nutritional value of your smoothies? Vitamins and Minerals? Try this greens powder!

Looking for some healthy smoothie recipes? I wrote an article that you can check out here!