Cool Off With Spirulina!

California, the Golden State, the land of beautiful beaches, people, and sunny weather! California is the stuff of dreams; I mean, how many times have you heard someone talk of "running away to California," and how many songs have been written about doing just that? HOWEVER, on occasion, this beautiful state I call home turns into an outdoor oven, and finding ways to cool off besides staying indoors with the AC running is easier said than done. Don't get me wrong, I'm lucky enough to live in southern California, but this heat is sometimes unbearable!

I wanted to find HEALTHY alternatives to cool off during the hot days with ingredients many of us usually have at home. It's easy to head to your fridge, grab a cold glass of juice, soda, or even a cold dessert, but many of these options aren't healthy! After recovering from COVID, my goal was to make healthier and better life choices with the foods and drinks I ate. I wanted to make my 2020 a healthy one by focusing on making myself #VidaReady now and for the future. Having recovered from COVID, my health and what I ingest became a topic I focused on more and more, so I focused on creating refreshing, healthy alternatives to the sugary drinks I usually craved. Below are my favorite spirulina smoothie recipes that are as delicious and refreshing as they are healthy. I found them to be healthier alternatives to sugary drinks, and quickly they became my go-to "cool off"  superfood option!

Spiru-Vida Smoothie 

Ingredients:

• 1 banana, fresh or frozen
• 1/4 cup blueberries, frozen
• 1 cup kale
• 1 cup unsweetened soy milk (or milk of choice)
• 1 teaspoon Vida Ready Spirulina powder

*OPTIONAL: 2 scoops of Just Collagen Unflavored collagen peptides, great for added protein and nutritional balance!*

First and foremost, this smoothie's green color is pretty awesome, and to top it off; it also made me feel like I was getting every vitamin I needed in a small little package. Its vibrant green color comes from spirulina, an incredibly nutritious blue-green algae that's high in B vitamins and minerals. Not only is this a perfect drink to refresh, but its high vitamin and mineral content allowed me to get closer to my healthy eating and nutrition goal. This smoothie quickly became my daily morning breakfast smoothie because I always felt energized and good about drinking it. Long gone were the days of an unhealthy breakfast energy drink I tended to gravitate to, and the go green smoothie soon became my drink of choice.

Mermaid Lemonade

Ingredients:

• 3 cups water
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1–2 teaspoons maple syrup, or agave nectar
• 2 teaspoon Vida Ready Spirulina powder
• handful of ice cubes

*OPTIONAL: 1 tablespoon of apple cider vinegar helps aid in weight loss and is an excellent antioxidant!*

I wanted to find easy and simplistic ways I could get the proper nutrition my body needed BUT also make it as delicious and refreshing as possible. The apple cider vinegar added a sour note that I wasn't used to finding in a smoothie. It drew me into making this my go-to morning smoothie, and I quickly replaced my daily coffee with this refreshing smoothie. I mean, who doesn't like a nice cold smoothie to begin the day? Especially when living in a place like Southern California, where its hot and sunny 90% of the time. I figured this cold smoothie with Vida Ready's Spirulina would make it easy for me to begin my day and achieve my healthy lifestyle. 

Summer Ready Smoothie

Ingredients:

• ⅔ cup milk of choice
• ⅓ cup of coconut water
• 1 sliced banana
• 1 cup torn kale
• 1 cup spinach leaves
• 1 cup of frozen strawberries
• 1 tablespoon Vida Ready Spirulina powder
• ½ cup of ice cubes

*OPTIONAL: Add 1 tablespoon of Vida Ready's Vitamin C to help boost your immunity!*

This tangy smoothie was a great way to help me drift off to a paradisical island. Like summer in a cup, this sweet and savory smoothie was as refreshing as it was delicious. This smoothie made me make #healthy2020 a reality because it was a great way to introduce myself to greens that I usually didn't eat. It quickly became my go-to daily smoothie because after recovering from COVID, I wanted to boost my immune system any way I could. Adding Vida Ready's Vitamin C was perfect in helping me achieve that goal! Overall, eating and maintaining a healthy lifestyle is easier said than done. Through Vida Ready's products, I reached my short-term goals for a healthier me, and I was able to beat the heat and set myself to be Vida Ready now and in the future.