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Read Sarah’s Inspiring Story About a Year of Green Smoothies!


Robyn Openshaw - May 27, 2012 - This Post May Contain Affiliate Links


Today I share a letter we got recently. As reply to this blog entry, tell me—what happened to you when you (a) started drinking green drinks daily, and/or (b) started following my program to shift to whole foods? (There’s more! Don’t stop with just green smoothies!)

I think it’s important that people hear YOUR story, too, so please reply! I would love even a few lines listing the health changes you saw. I might pull a reply or two out, later, to post on the blog front-n-center.

I’m always so excited to read these testimonials; CONGRATS to Sarah for turning her life around! The photo here is of Sarah with Biggest Loser at-home winner Deni Hill from Season 11—Sarah taught her about green smoothies.

Dear GreenSmoothieGirl:

I’m writing this in hopes that Robyn can read this and know how much I appreciate her and what she does!  My name is Sarah S. and I have been drinking green smoothies for just over a year now.  It has played a HUGE part in helping me manage my depression and my thyroiditis (Hashimoto’s).

I have a bachelors degree in Community Health and have been an avid cyclist for 10 years. But that all changed two years ago after the birth of my son.  My son cried constantly and my health started to decline.  I was sleep deprived, had no energy, and felt hopeless.  I hardly ate, and when I did, it wasn’t healthy.  I was spiraling downward.  I was diagnosed with post-partum depression and nine months after he was born I had a breakdown and had to be admitted to the hospital for a few days. On top of the depression I also was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s disease, which played a large part in my depression and my fluctuations in sleep and mood.

Two months after my hospitalization I started nannying for the Jorgensen family, a dentist and GSG reader.  Through her I learned about Robyn and green smoothies.  The first thing I would do with the kids in the morning is help them drink their green smoothies.  They were still getting used to them then.  I decided to give it a try.  I started out with just a spinach, frozen berry and rice milk smoothie.

Just a couple days after trying it I noticed a significant improvement in how I felt.  I bought kale, chard and collard greens to add to it.

Now, a year later I’ve added chia seed, maca powder, kelp powder, wheat germ, flax seed, and now all three of us drink a green smoothie daily.

We rarely get sick, we’re active and happy.  Dosages of my depression and thyroid meds have been cut in half.  I honestly believe that it was green smoothies that helped me get a jumpstart into eating healthy again.  Once I started drinking them regularly I started craving healthier foods again.  Now, most of our meals are vegetarian and always full of fruits and vegetables.

Whenever the opportunity presents itself I encourage people to give it a try.  Or I make one for them and bring it to them.  I tell them if they’re overwhelmed with trying to reform their whole diet, or if they are depressed, or if they are overweight, then try green smoothies!  It was THE KEY to helping me get motivated to eat and crave healthier foods and manage my depression.

I’m also happy to report that after 3 months of green smoothies every morning, I was ready to start competing again.  I signed up for the Bear Lake Brawl Triathlon.  My training went great and in August of 2011 I met my goal!  I even finished in the top 10 in my division.  I owe much of my success in that race to green smoothies.

SarahSince that race I have competed in two other triathlons and am signed up for two more this summer.  I also became spin certified a few months ago and teach a spinning class at a local bike shop twice a week.  I am SO SO grateful for Robyn and what she promotes.  It has changed my life.   I can literally feel all of the systems in my body working properly together.  I have felt a significant improvement in my ability to handle the ups and downs of depression.   I am happier and healthier.  I feel much more confident about life and my ability to live an active and healthy lifestyle in spite of the challenges that will come.  I’m a better mother, wife and friend.  I don’t feel like my depression or thyroid disease controls me, I’m on top of it.

Robyn, may you continue to be blessed for all you are doing to help other people!  You are an answer to prayer in my life.  You are a wonderful person and a fantastic mother!  Thank you thank you for your hard work and example!  Thank you!

–Sarah S.

From Robyn: I hope you’re inspired by Sarah’s story. I am! Now…please tell us YOURS. I read every word.

 

Posted in: 12 Steps To Whole Food, Green Smoothies, Relationships, Whole Food

6 thoughts on “Read Sarah’s Inspiring Story About a Year of Green Smoothies!”

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  1. Anonymous says:

    I started drinking green smoothies on April 20, 2010. My goal was to drink 1/day for 3 days in a row with the thought that I needed to get more fruits and vegetables into my body. I really thought it was going to be a miserable 3 days but it wasn’t! 2 years later and I am still drinking a green smoothie almost every day. I have been adding Sole to my morning water for over a year and have recently started making my own kefir which I add to my smoothies. Overall we as a family are eating a lot more whole foods than we were 2 years ago. I don’t have a testimony like Sarah but I can say that I have more energy, sleep better and have been able to maintain my weight whereas before my weight was constantly up/down. In closing, I will add while on vacation (Disney World) and thus eating less healthy than I would at home, I realized that I was irritable and feeling yucky and yet I was at the “happiest place on earth” How could this be?! Then I realized that it was the food I was putting into my body. I never realized until that moment how profoundly that what I eat affects my mood, well-being and outlook on life.

  2. Anonymous says:

    I’ve always eaten healthily, but when I met someone at yoga teacher training who ate all raw, and I saw how she glowed, I decided to work toward going mostly raw, and green smoothies made that much easier. I have felt expected changes, like good energy, clear skin, haven’t gotten sick in ages….

    But the unexpected change that I feel could only be attributed to the smoothies — as there was no other real change in my life/diet — is that I had had a massive group of plantar warts on my right foot ever since I was a child. These had grown over 40 years. It started as one and then a family the size of a quarter, and then an extended family in addition, the size of a dime.

    I had seen a doctor, who told me that because the main patch was on my heel, surgery to remove would be very painful, recovery difficult, and it was probably not worth it. I tried home remedies, from duct tape (messy) to neem oil, as well as over-the-counter products. Nothing but mess. So I had given up, resorting to always having to wear shoes because barefoot hurt so much.

    Then, about 4 or 5 months after starting daily green smoothies (kale-, collard- or spinach-based), one day I was doing yoga and in a position where I brought my foot up toward my head and I happened to look at the sole of my foot in this position and…the warts were ALL GONE. Completely. I was astounded. Could not believe it. Those ugly and painful things had become so much a part of my life, such a pain and inconvenience, that I could not imagine life without them. But it’s true. They are still gone. It’s been about 2 years now. And I am still amazed.

    My smoothies vary a bit but are generally this:

    coconut & almond milks
    kale, collards or spinach (lots)
    big chunk of fresh ginger
    1 radish
    1/2 apple
    1/2 avocado
    Amazing Grass green superfood (plain) and
    Vega Whole Food Smoothie Infusion or
    Vega Vanilla Almondilla Shake & Go Smoothie or
    Spirutein Cappuccino protein powder (not sickly sweet like the other flavors)

    added recently to the mix:
    1/2 cup beans (any kind)
    Amazing Grass Amazing Meal Vanilla Chai infusion
    Trader Joe’s Super Red Drink Powder
    chia & flax seeds
    1/2 carrot
    coconut oil (for fat in non-avocado smoothies)
    pumpkin pie spice blend (when I do vanilla chai flavor powders)
    peppermint oil
    sunflower seeds
    1 soaked date or prune

    Oh, also during the first few months during which the warts died, I also was putting chickweed from my (natural) yard in my smoothies. This weed is everywhere, so it made friends laugh that they were struggling to kill it while I was grazing on it. I wish it grew all year long.

    Sometimes I have smoothie meals 2-3 times a day (no wheatgrass at night; it really perks me up). But at a minimum it’s once a day.

    I’ve also cut carbs & sugars recently in order to shed a stubborn 5 lbs. So I’m having very little fruit, and I had to give up the high-sugar/carb Spirutein & cut the TJ’s red powder in half. But the smoothies are still as sweet as I like them to be. I don’t like things too sweet. My protein/wheatgrass powders are hardly sweetened or flavored if at all. Certainly no artificial sweeteners.

    As you can surmise from the ingredients, the smoothies have become quite thick. That may not appeal to everyone, but I love them. We used an Oster beehive blender for years and that was fine. But when it started leaking, and I wanted to add carrots (difficult to blend) to my smoothies, we sprung for a Vitamix. Love it.

    I hope this helps others who might have stubborn skin ailments. It can’t hurt to try!

  3. Hello Robyn,
    I was introduced to green smoothies in 2004, when I started getting into raw foods. I was all about green juice, but just couldn’t get into the green smoothie thing. Then in 2010 everywhere I turned I saw something about green smoothies, it was like the universe was telling me I had to start drinking them!

    My excuse before was that I didn’t have a Vitamix, so I couldn’t make them because a regular blender just isn’t strong enough. But I didn’t have $450 to drop on a blender, so finally I gave in, spent $30 on a blender and hoped for the best. I can’t say I loved them at first. I was going way too heavy on the greens, plus using super bitter greens, but once I figured out the proportions I started to like them.

    I’ve been drinking green smoothies now for about two years and they’ve become a huge part of my diet. I’m a vegetarian and eat a decent amount of raw food, but I have a sugar addiction like no other! One huge benefit about drinking green smoothies is that I notice I eat way less sugar when I’m drinking them. I think my body gets a good amount of the sugar it’s craving from the fruit and doesn’t need the refined white stuff as much.

    I also love that it helps up my leafy green intake by about 50%, this is HUGE!! I know all about the health benefits of greens, but it’s so hard to get enough in your diet. Plus when I’m drinking the green smoothies my body starts craving more greens, so my lunches and dinners are usually loaded with greens now as well. I eat tons of salads, raw kale salad being my absolute favorite!

    I decided I needed to start spreading the gospel of green smoothies, so I started sharing them with everyone! My mom drinks one almost every day now. My step mom started drinking them as well.

    But the most amazing is that some of my customers have started drinking them. This is huge because I’m a bartender, so my customers are bar patrons… I bring green smoothies in for dinner all the time and I drink them behind the bar so everyone always asks me what it is. I always say ‘here, try it.’ To which they respond ‘NO WAY!’ But I’ll pour a little taste of it for them and they always end up tasting it! I’ve only had one person out of at least 50 absolutely refuse. And you know what the response is every single time? ‘Hmm, that’s actually not so bad…’ Ha!!! I love it!

    So three of these people have started adding green smoothies to their diets now. It could possibly be more, but these are the ones that have told me. They even follow me on FB for my green smoothie recipes.

    And one of the three has started spreading the green smoothie gospel herself! Just yesterday a picture of a green smoothie popped up in my news feed with a caption of ‘Most healthy breakfast I’ve ever had.’ This picture was from a friend of my friend (my friend who started as my customer, who the started drinking green smoothies and even went on a green smoothie feast last week!). The guy who posted it had his first sip of a green smoothie at my bar. Then the customer, now friend, that I inspired to drink them, made her friend start drinking them too!

    Sorry if that was a bit confusing… The point is that I love green smoothies and I’m helping to inspire others to love green smoothies as well because everyone should eat more greens. And you know what, it’s working!!

    Anyway, thank you for continuing to spread the good word about green smoothies. I hope one day everyone in the world is drinking them every day!

    Brandy

  4. Anonymous says:

    Robyn,
    I just read Sarah’s story and I’m sitting here all alone since my kids are all with their dad for the long Memorial Day weekend and I’m crying, but I’m not crying because I’m sad or lonely or anything like that I am crying because my life is so good. You already know a bit of my story but I thought I’d share some of it again here.

    When I decided to start green smoothies a little over two years ago it was because my life was a complete disaster, I was on medication for depression and kept increasing my doses and just wasn’t getting better. I hated myself and my life. I knew something had to change so I decided to make that change and green smoothies was the beginning and what a glorious step it was into transforming my life. So now a little over two years later, although I am a divorced, single working mother, I am happier and healthier physically and emotionally than I have ever been.

    I am 70 lbs lighter and it stays off and I keep losing. I have never liked running nor been able to do it before but I have recently run two 5K races and loved every minute and am looking to do more. I have been doing Yoga faithfully these past couple years too and love it so much. I am amazed at how my body has been able to move and get in to positions and stretches I never thought possible.

    I also love kick-boxing, tennis and cycling. That’s just some of the physical exercise I’ve been able to do. Not to mention, I’ve completely cleared up some pretty severe eczema, I’m completely off my depression meds, I have clearer softer skin, much of which is due to faithful skin brushing and almost daily use of my health mate sauna, drinking alkaline water from my life ionizer and all the other healthy habits I have adopted into my life from green smoothie girl.

    I can’t even really begin to describe how much my life has changed since I made the decision to start green smoothies and keep moving beyond. I am mostly a vegetarian now much to the disgust and chagrin of my children and siblings, but do I care? No, I don’t, because I can honestly look at myself in the mirror now and truly love what and who I see. I’m 42 years old and I love the woman that looks back at me. I am so grateful for the changes I have made in my life and the path I am on now.

    I hope sharing a bit of my story can help inspire someone else. I’d really love to be able to work with you in your coaching thing but I’m not sure if you’re looking for locals here in Utah or not and if I’d even be able to do it since I have had to take on full time work now. But I would love to do some part time evening and weekend stuff. I love speaking to crowds and working one on one with individuals and small groups. I love helping others discover their own power to choose to change their lives and helping them find the best ways to make those changes.

    Green smoothies is one of the most simple, yet most powerful ways to make that change because its change effects so many other changes. It is only the beginning, the start of the ball rolling, the first step on a wonderful path and glorious life, but oh what a beginning and first step it is. I am so grateful to have taken it. Thank you Robyn for creating this life changing path to walk on.

    (And let me know what you think I should do about the coaching thing, if I should consider applying or not. How long are the classes? Are they all day for the 4 days or just certain hours?)

    Sue

    1. Robyn Openshaw says:

      Sue, what a great post, thanks for sharing it! I was astonished seeing you at the VIP class—you look amazing! The health coaching certification will be four full days, and somewhat the evenings too. Yes, being in Utah is kind of a detriment because our biggest audience is here and so I have lots of applicants here and can choose only one. For this year, anyway. I suppose I would pick maybe two, if at least one wanted to travel with me and had the freedom to do that and both were rockstar applicants. Anyway, I’m so happy for your lifestyle changes and that you’ve been able to get off meds!!

      Robyn

  5. Anonymous says:

    Robyn,
    Thanks. I’m thinking of applying for your coaching anyway just cause I’m so passionate about the change it’s made for me and I want to share that with others and I figure I can make a way to make it happen if it’s meant to be cause the investment in me and others I could possibly help is so worth it. Is there a deadline to have the application in? I’ll do my best to show you I’m a rock star!
    Sue

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