Smoothie as a meal (w/general diet questions)

[danzasmack]

So recently my buddy has me on a health kick which I'm loving. Lost a bunch of weight early (like 30something lbs.)in the year but have since gotten lazy, but not really put much back on.

Anyway, like i said, i'm back at it and this time doing the "5 small meals a day". I've gotten into oatmeal for breakfast again along with some bogus protein breakfast bars (how are those things?)

Lunch is usually a salad w/chicken and egg whites and veggies w/some black pepper and red vinegar for flavor. Then later in the afternoon grilled chicken on 7 grain bread with lettuce/tomatoe and a hint of mustartd.

Evenings are pretty easy and i usually have a salad and then some egg whites w/another protein (esp. if i lift).

Anyway I always hated smoothies because i thought they all had yogurt and unfortunatly, i hate yogurt. Had one yesterday and it was fine. It fits right in my calorie range for a meal (< 400) w/low fat and high protein.

Can i substitue 1 or 2 of my small meals each day with a smoothie?

Anyway have any good advice for the diet? Things I should change? More meals w/less calories? I space them out like 9-12-3-6-9 btw.

And finally - anyone have any favorite smoothie recipes? My friend bought me one of those "Magic Bullet" things for my birthday (i have NO idea why). And so far all i know is ice + skim milk + protein powder.

[thirddan]

a lot of people have shakes as their meals...on days i workout my first meal is 1.5scoops whey + flax meal...every night i have a shake of 1.5scoops protein + flax + cottage cheese or nuts or something...shakes are a great way to get in more cals...

depending on your goals you can mix in fruits/nuts/peanut butter whatever...

[danzasmack]

As far as goals go, i just want to be fit. I would like to lose like another 25-30 lbs. and then start trying to add some bulk, but i'm not the type of person who wants to be able to bench press a lot, etc.

who are we kidding - i just want to look good.

[thirddan]

danza,
its more a matter of whether or not your can fit the carbs (fruit) or the calories (nuts/peanut butter) into your daily allowance...

experiment a bit, some powders mix better with milk, some better with water...i find that vanilla/fruit powders work best with fruits and chocolate works best with nuts/peanut butter...

if you google protein shakes, im sure you can find thousands of crazy recipes...

my favorite snack right now, usually reserved for weekends postworkout is...1 scoop vanilla protein + 1 can pumpkin + some pumpkin pie spice + handful of walnuts, stick it in the freezer for a little bit and enjoy...kind of like eating the filling of a pumpkin pie except really really healthy...

[secretprankster]

Yeah I have at least two a day, they're awesome. Key for me is mixing in frozen berries and lots of ice and then eating it with a spoon - makes a custard-y texture.