It happened on a lazy, rainy Sunday, we were lying in bed, channel surfing, defenses weak, when we came landed on it, the Nutribullet informercial.
We were sold and ordered it within ten minutes. No kidding.
I'm generally a big skeptic when it comes to quick fixes or fad diets. Even ordering this, I wasn't convinced (still not) that it actually does everything that it claims to do. I'm really skeptical of the testimonials and let's face it, David Wolfe comes across as a bit nuts. He just has the "crazy eye" going on and nobody has that much energy from veggies. I don't quite buy the whole "Nutrition Extraction"..what does that even mean? It's a high powered blender., you put everything in and grinds it up. It's not extracting anything.
All that being said, Dan and I were excited to try it, because getting more fruits and veggies into our diet is an overwhelmingly positive move. Even if the device is a bit of hyperbole, the advice as to what to put into it, is solid. We have a blender, but not one that crushes up everything so fine.
We didn't have it sent rushed delivery, but it still arrived within five days. We had our first smoothie (blast, if you want to use their lingo) on Saturday, as a lunch replacement. The Nutribullet calls for a minimum of blend of 1/2 greens and 1/2 fruit. You can go heavier on the greens. They also want you to add some nuts or essential oils, like olive oil for some good fat. The remainder is filled with water, almond milk or tea. They want you to steer clear of fruit juice, unless it's pure and even then, that's a lot of sugar.
We headed to our local Whole Foods on Saturday morning to stock up. I thought that it would break the bank, but found out that Whole Foods is cheaper than Ralphs, when you go for frozen fruit and bulk nuts. We walked out with the following.
Fresh- baby spinach, rainbow Kale, bananas, pears, apples
Frozen- pineapple, strawberries, mango, raspberries, blueberries
Bulk- pumpkin seeds, walnuts, almonds, goji berries, figs
Admittedly, it doesn't sound appetizing or look great when you are loading up the blender. Here is our first time using the Nutribullet, Dan's drink.
And here is the video we made.
The big question, how did it taste? Good. It's not like the sugary junk that you get at Jamba Juice. It tastes healthy and you do taste the greens, although the fruit does a good job at masking the flavor. Pear is a really strong taste. I happen to love vegetables and greens, so I have no problem with a heavier greens taste. I think that people who don't have an affinity for veggies, might have trouble drinking it.
The Nutribullet does a great job at finely chopping all of the chunks. I read reviews from people who said that it had chunks, but I think that they didn't run the machine long enough. The consistency is thick, depending on what you put in your drink. Some people have mentioned that it's slimy and again, I think that if you have an aversion to certain consistencies, this might not be the product for you. I like veggies and textures don't bother me, so it works.
Why buy a Nutribullet, when you already have a blender? Well, convenience. It grinds everything fast, is much easier to clean and the cups come with lids that convert them to to-go cups. The Nutribullet also comes with a little hardback recipe and idea book. There are blends that never would have occurred to me.
We have had five blasts in three days, all of them acting as meal replacements. So far, so good. They are filling and between the two of us, we went through all of the spinach and I had to run out to buy more. I have not noticed feeling better or different, as testimonials and reviews have touted, but just knowing that I am eating so much more of the right foods is good enough for me.