What happens when you try greens powder?

From the heart of an Aussie winter, the effects of various lockdowns still rolling around the country, I have to laugh a little at poor, misguided 2019 Penny and her NYE resolutions for “boot camps, no wine and no take-away for a whole year”.

2020 has done a number on most of us, there’s no shame in admitting it, but a few weeks ago I decided that I needed to get a handle on things when I realised that my (honestly terrible) diet was impacting my life dramatically – everything from my mood, to how I physically felt, to how I was sleeping.

What I did

I knew whatever changes I made had to be low-effort, but high-impact. I decided on a very insta-friendly Greens Powder Fortnight of Power, vowing to work in a powdered multivitamin and / or superfood into my life every day for two weeks.

Digging into this extensive list of ingredients, Vital All-In-One was a good fit for what I was hoping to get a boost in. Easily absorbed, this carefully balanced powder has a blend of essential nutrients extracted from vegetables and fruits, with the addition of probiotics, prebiotics, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, essential fatty acids, fibre and a unique high-alkalising pea protein.

It’s not a meal replacement, so shouldn’t be thought of as an alternative to eating a nutrient-rich diet, but as a supplement it’s packed with everything my poor body was craving.

On top of that, I was interested in how it would function as both a prebiotic and probiotic supplement. So many probiotics kill off good bacteria in your digestive system before they even have an opportunity to do their job – but prebiotics help to make sure that more of those bacteria survive.

While the best way to take greens powder is with an ol’fashioned glass of water, on an empty stomach, I am a giant sook and opted to work them into delicious recipes supplied by Vital All-In-One.

How I felt

It’s now been nearly three weeks and one of the main things I’ve noticed is that I feel so much more alert first thing in the mornings. I’m also now eating a regular breakfast because of this (recipes below) and getting back into that habit has honestly changed the whole shape of my morning.

In general, I feel like my body is alert and energised – though not in a buzzy or jittery way – maybe a byproduct of its various b-vitamins. My sleep has become much more consistent and the low-level blergh feeling I’ve had for the last few months has cleared out.

Another benefit I’ve experienced (sorry if this is too much information!) is that I’m much more… regular. In the past I’ve needed to take fiber and probiotic supplements but since starting my Greens Powder Fortnight of Power I haven’t needed anything extra in that department.

I’ve also noticed a pretty significant ‘good habit’ domino effect starting my day this way – I’ve been more likely to do things like remind myself to take breaks and walk outside, I’m more likely to choose my standing desk over the sofa, and when it’s time to eat I’ve been more conscientious of what is in the food I’m eating and the amount of processed food I’ve had.

Getting it into every meal

If you’re going to use Vital All-In-One like I did, remember to stick to recipes that don’t use heat as this can affect the potency of the probiotics. Here are the best recipes I’ve learned.

Breakfast // Vital All-in-One Fresh Green Smoothie Bowl

Ingredients:

– 1 medium-size ripe banana sliced

– 2 cups frozen chopped spinach

– 1/2 cup fresh pineapple cubes

– 1/2 cup coconut water, plus more as needed

– 2 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

– 2 small kiwis, peeled and chopped

– 2 tablespoons chia seeds

– Pinch of salt

– 2 teaspoons chopped fresh ginger, optional

– 1/2 teaspoon raw honey, optional

– Desired toppings, pictured here with fruit, desiccated coconut & chia seeds

Method:

1. Place all ingredients in a Nutribullet, blend and pour into a bowl
2. Add desired toppings and serve

Lunch // Vital All-in-One Nut Pesto

Ingredients:

– 125g almonds/pine nuts/ cashews/walnuts etc

– 60g fresh basil, including stalks

– 1 garlic clove, peeled

– Juice of 1 lemon

– 125ml olive oil

– Pinch of sea salt flakes

– 3 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180c (fan forced)
2. Place nuts and garlic on a baking tray and cook for 10 minutes until golden. Once cooked, remove and leave to cool.
3. Simply place all of the ingredients into a food processor and pulse until smooth. Adding a splash of oil will make it smoother.

Snack // Vital All-In-One Choc Fudge

Ingredients:

– 2 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

– ½ cup Vital Protein (choc or vanilla)

– ½ cup cocoa powder

– ½ cup honey

– 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil

– ¼ teaspoon of sea salt

– 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract

Method:

1. Line a baking tray with baking paper
2. Mix ingredients thoroughly until smooth consistency
3. Place ingredients in a baking tray and smooth the surface
4. Refrigerate for several hours

Breakfast // Vital All-In-One Chia Pod for Two

Ingredients:

– 1 cup chia seeds

– 1 cup coconut milk

– 4 tablespoons Coconut yoghurt

– Green apple

– Banana

– 2 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

– 2 teaspoons Kale powder

– 1 cup coconut water

– Ice

Method:

1. Soak chia seeds with coconut milk overnight. Add to the base of cup or serving glass
2. Add 4 tablespoons of coconut yoghurt as middle layer
3. Blend apple, Banana, Vital All-In-One, Kale powder, Coconut water & ice
4. Add to the top of the coconut yoghurt layer, can also mix in if preferred
5. Top with your preference of fresh fruit, our recipe uses sliced app

Lunch // Vital All-In-One Raw Green Slice

Ingredients:

– 2 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

– 1 cup desiccated coconut

– 180g dates, soaked for 15 minutes in water, then drained

– ½ cup pumpkin seeds

– ¼ cup chia seeds

– ½ cup ground almonds

– 3 teaspoons coconut oil

– ½ cup water

Method:

1. Blend dates to make a smooth paste
2. Mix in all other ingredients, and press the mixture into a 20cm x 20cm tray
3. Refrigerate until the slice is firm

Snack // Vital All-In-One Icy Poles

Ingredients:

Green layer

– 2 teaspoons Vital All-In-One

– ½ avocado

– 1 banana

– 1 cup coconut water

Gold Layer

– 400mL coconut cream

– 1 cup diced frozen mango

Method:

1. Blend all ingredients for the green later in a high power blender. Pour mixture into popsicle moulds halfway, freeze for 4 hours until firm.
2. Blend all ingredients for gold layer in a high-power blender. Pour mixture into moulds on top of green layer.
3. Freeze for a further 1-2 hours until popsicles are frozen.

Find more legit delicious recipes here.

Vital All-In-One is a powdered supplement especially formulated in a bioavailable powdered form to help assist with optimal absorption.