By Sergei Boutenko

If you run, hike, swim, snowboard, cycle, attend crossfit, or actively engage in any other sports, then you’re probably aware that your body requires extra nutritional supplementation in order to function properly. Simply put, athletes need more nutrients than less-active people. They demand more from their bodies and thus must compensate with the right nutrients to keep up performance and recovery. Unfortunately, today’s athletes have been duped into believing that in order to maintain proper health, they must consume a wide range of animal products, supplements, and power gels.
I think this is one of the biggest misconceptions in the field of sports and fitness. In this post, I am not interested in arguing whether athletes should be vegans or not. I simply want to challenge the traditional approach and illustrate that the nutritional needs of an athlete can be met through natural means. I believe all athletes can benefit by consuming more fresh, organic greens and fruits in a blended concoction commonly referred to as a “green smoothie.”

To keep the body performing optimally, you must consistently replenish the following seven essential nutrients: calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, selenium, sodium, and zinc. Traditional athletes accomplish this by taking multivitamins and supplements. In my personal practice, I have found it beneficial to disregard tradition and instead blend green smoothies made from dark leafy veggies and fresh fruit. While I do not consider myself an “endurance athlete,” I live an extremely active life. Here is my idea of a good time: last summer I climbed Mt. Shasta (a 14,179 foot tall mountain in Northern California) in four hours and forty-five minutes. The following day I decided that I needed to climb more mountains so I scaled nearby Mt. Mcloughlin (9495 feet) and Mt. Thielsen (9182 feet) in one day. Mind you, I have never taken artificial supplements and base my success and endurance largely on my diet.

Let us now look at the essential nutrients needed to sustain prolonged exercise, as well as how one can get these elements in natural form.

1.) Calcium is essential because it prevents muscle cramps and helps strengthen bones. According to the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association (ICPA) most athletes don’t meet their need for daily calcium intake. Lack of calcium can lead to a slew of problems, such as, osteoporosis and hormone imbalance. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) recommended daily dose of calcium ranges between 1,000-1,500 mg per day. Most people think that the best way to get calcium is to drink a glass of milk. Few people are aware that dark leafy greens are just as effective at loading the body with calcium. According to the USDA, one cup of milk has 314 mg of calcium (http://ndb.nal.usda.gov). A cup of collard greens has 357 mg of calcium. That’s 63 mg more than a glass of milk. Thus a green smoothie crammed with collard greens can meet ones need for calcium no worse than milk.

2.) Iron is another common element that athletes are deficient in. One of iron’s primary functions is to carry oxygen to cells and eliminate carbon dioxide from the body. Most sports nutritionists recommend eating red meat to get your daily dose of iron. In traditional sports nutrition it is rarely mentioned that tomatoes, apricots, pomegranates, currants, olives, Swiss chard, and parsley are also excellent sources of iron.

3.) Magnesium is essential for athletes. Its presence is vital in more than 300 chemical processes that sustain basic human function and health (http://triathlon.competitor.com). These functions include blood pressure regulations, muscle contraction and relaxation, nerve function, immunity, and cardiac activity. Foods that contain high amounts of magnesium include: almonds, flaxseeds, sunflower seeds, spinach, beet greens, collards greens, and dates. Adding these foods to your green smoothies will aid your body in many of its metabolic processes.

4.) Potassium is easy! Every good smoothie needs a banana. According to the USDA, one cup of mashed banana has more than 800 mg of potassium. If you’re not a fan of bananas, here is a list of other foods that are high in this essential nutrient: avocado, beet greens, spinach, apricots, cantaloupe, figs, nectarines, and pears.

5.) Selenium is critical to antioxidant production. Athletes who don’t get enough selenium in their diet experience more cell damage and take longer to recover from strenuous exercise. Regular consumption of Brazil nuts, sunflower seeds, spinach, and seaweed will ensure that your body gets enough selenium.

6.) Sodium retains water in the cells and prevents dehydration. Fresh fruits and vegetable are better at helping cells retain water than any sports drinks on the market. Period!

7.) Zinc levels are directly correlated to endurance. Athletes who have lower than recommended zinc levels in the body will struggle to perform at their peak. According to the ICPA (www.chiro.org) zinc is also crucial for tissue repair. Here are some foods that contain high amounts of zinc: pumpkin seeds, squash seeds, water melon seeds, peanuts, bee pollen, sweet peppers, spinach, parsley, and seaweed.

In addition to the seven essential nutrients, sports enthusiast also require higher than normal amounts of protein. If you look at the nutritional composition of most dark green, leafy veggies, you will find that they rival many types of meat in essential amino acids (protein). For example, one pound of romaine lettuce or kale provides you with roughly the same amount of protein as a quarter pound steak (www.drfuhrman.com). One pound of greens may seem like a lot, but when you blend a pound of greens in a smoothie, it’s not too difficult to consume it in its entirety. After all, large, muscular animals like elephants and cows get their protein from greens.

In a nutshell, my message is simple… “Stop spending money on expensive supplements and instead, blend a smoothie!” I am so confident that green smoothies rival conventional supplements; I’m making a documentary about it. One week ago I launched a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for a documentary about how green smoothies affect endurance athletes. For more information on my project, check out this link: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/sergeiboutenko/
powered-by-green-smoothies-feature-film

If you pre-order my video your contribution will help me fund this documentary.

	Sergei’s Green Power Smoothie 1 cup spinach 1 cup Swiss chard 1 cup collard greens 1-2 stalks of celery with dark green leaves 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries 1 banana 1 peach, pitted 1 pear ½ avocado 4 dates, pitted 2 Tablespoons bee pollen (optional)Add enough water to blend everything in the blender. Blend until smooth and enjoy! Serves 2-3

Vitamin D is needed for health and to maintain strong bones. It does so by helping the body absorb calcium from food. People who get too little vitamin D may develop soft, thin, and brittle bones, a condition known as rickets in children and osteomalacia in adults.

Vitamin D is important to the body in many other ways as well. Muscles need it to move, for example, nerves need it to carry messages between the brain and every body part, and the immune system needs vitamin D to fight off invading bacteria and viruses. Together with calcium, vitamin D also helps protect older adults from osteoporosis. Vitamin D is found in cells throughout the body.¹

The current recommended intake level of vitamin D is triple the value from 1997:

Many people living in the northern hemisphere suffer from lower levels of vitamin D during the fall, winter and spring. Fortunately, you can get your vitamin D by eating mushrooms. When mushrooms are exposed to sunlight, their levels of vitamin D increase exponentially. You can sun dry store-bought shiitake, button, portabella, and many other mushroom species.


Here is my own supply of boletus mushrooms that I picked and dried last summer. For the higher vitamin D content, I dried my mushrooms outdoors in the sunlight with their gills facing upwards for full sun exposure. Now I enjoy adding them to my salads, smoothies and soups.

According to Professor Hanne L. Kristensen, of Aarhus University, mushrooms contain higher vitamin D concentration than salmon. Kristensen and her colleagues have managed to produce 164 micrograms of vitamin D per 100 grams of mushrooms, and that’s a lot:

“In comparison, salmon, which is often mentioned as one of the main sources of vitamin D, contains only around 30 micrograms of vitamin D per 100 grams.”²

In the following 7-minute video Sergei, takes you on a fun mushroom hunt with Mycologist Cameron Meeks:

If you live in the Southern hemisphere, this may be a good time for picking fresh mushrooms. If you live in the Northern hemisphere, you may buy and add more mushrooms to your daily meals.

Love, Victoria

¹http://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminD-QuickFacts/

¹http://sciencenordic.com/uv-light-turns-mushrooms-vitamin-d-bombs

Yesterday I saw organic strawberries in the store. The strawberries looked red and juicy, $8.95 for a one-pound box. I took two boxes. Suddenly, I heard a lady’s voice behind my back. She and I had the following conversation:

– I was curious who buys this kind of stuff. You must be a millionaire.
– Actually, I’m not. Why did you decide so?
– Because you are wasting your money.
– Do you mean buying strawberries is a waste of money?
– Isn’t it?
– I think it is the best buy. And tomorrow my grandchildren come to visit me; they love strawberries.
– You spoiling your grandchildren, what do their parents think about this?
– They are grateful.
– My children always beg me to buy them expensive fruit, but I don’t allow them.
– Do you mean that your children are begging you for fruit and you won’t buy them because you think it is too pricey?
– Yep, my children are not spoiled.
– What do you buy for your children?
– The most important for me is to feed them well so they don’t go around hungry. As you may see in my cart, I bought some milk, chicken, bread, rice, pasta, a little desert, crackers, and maybe I will get some apples or bananas. I would like to buy organic food but it is too expensive. I cannot afford luxuries. I have to watch my budget.
– Do you know how nutritious these berries are?
– How?
– They are an excellent source of Vitamins C and flavonoids. Strawberries have vitamins B1 and B6. Hmm, what else, strawberries contain iodine, which is important for your thyroid gland, as well as multiple other vital nutrients.
– I understand that, and that is why I eat them in the summer. I go with my children to the market and we buy strawberries regularly.
– It is winter now and we all experience a lack of nutrients. Strawberries, and many other berries belong to the most nutritious products available to us. Every time I come to the store I purchase organic strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, or cranberries. I love when they are on sale but I always give my preference to the foods with high nutrient density.
– What do you mean by that?
– Nutrient density refers to the amount of nutrients per the given amount of food. Nutrient-dense foods have lots of nutrients, generally with fewer calories. What you showed me in your cart is mostly Energy-dense foods, which have more calories per the volume of food and generally fewer nutrients.
– What’s wrong with eating Energy-dense foods?
– Energy-dense foods can satisfy you faster. You will fill full but won’t receive an adequate amount of nutrients. This could result in the lower immunity of your body and you can get ill easier. That is why so many people get the flu during winter.
– Both my children are at home with the flu right now but I never connected it to the diet. Do you think that if I will buy them these strawberries they will get well faster?
– The foods you eat can affect your health in a big way. To be healthy or unhealthy? The choice is yours. Any brightly colored fruits and vegetables are big winners in nutrient density. I consider them to be superfoods.
– But even if I will take out most of my food I still won’t be able to buy enough of these strawberries to feed my children.
– If you don’t have enough money, you may purchase other Nutrient-dense foods, such as carrots, tomatoes, broccoli, kale, spinach, berries, apples, cherries, pomegranates, or oranges. And I think you might be surprised that your bill will not be so much bigger. I believe that health is priceless and that is why I chose to wear simple shoes and save on furniture but not on nutritious foods.

Dear Friends,

I am pleased to offer you a video download of my recent lecture “Green Smoothies for Nourishment and Detoxification,” I presented in December 2012 in Michigan.

Brief overview of the content

• Nutritional superiority of greens;
• The biggest shift in human diet in history;
• Deficiency and toxicity – major cause of disease;
• Raw Family story in pictures;
• The birth of the first green smoothie;
• Important tips for preparing the best green smoothies;
• How to plant a seed of health in our children.

I hope this film will answer many of your questions.

Price: $9.95

Length: 1hour 25minutes
This film does not contain subtitles.
This video is available for download only.

To purchase click here.

Love, Victoria

Dear Friends,

Once, when I was ten years old, my father told me that the best gifts are the gifts we give ourselves. I didn’t believe him. “It cannot be so”, I thought. On my next birthday my father invited me to go to the mountains to pick wild strawberries and blueberries so that my mother could prepare a jam from them for the winter.

We left early in the morning even before the buses started running and walked all the way from our apartment to the forest and hiked all day long with a short break for lunch. We found lots of berries and gorged on them until our mouths became sore from eating them.

We returned home in the late afternoon carrying lots of berries. My father brought a large bucket and I carried a smaller container, approximately three liters (3 quarts) in size. I was tired and proud of all my accomplishments, helping family and being able to work all day. I remember how my father explained that we covered about sixteen kilometers (10 miles) that day. My father and I returned home just in time for a special supper my mother prepared for my birthday. The food seemed to be super tasty. My parents presented me with some toy; I don’t remember now what it was. At the table father asked me if I had a good birthday. “I had the best birthday!” I replied, feeling deeply happy inside. I finally understood what my father had meant about the gifts we give ourselves.

Since then, I have always tried to gift myself in this way on special occasions. I enjoyed jumping in a ice-cold rivers on New Eve’s Days, finishing books by my birthday, participated in races, and even fasting on water on Mother’s Day.

Naturally, I encouraged my three children to adopt this way of celebrating and they love doing so. Today, November 27, Sergei is celebrating his 28th birthday. He has created a new song, and has put together a new funny video clip to go with it. Enjoy!

Green Smoothie iPhone App Update

Coincidentally, today we have posted an update to the Green Smoothies App making it version 4.0. We included the ability to rotate the screen, it now has native support for iPad. We have further improved this program and made it compatible with the new IOS version 6 and iPhone 5/iPad 4 devices.
If you own this app please update it.
You may find more information Here.