We’re so excited about our newest easy hack for an anti-inflammatory diet—and it doubles as a flat belly food! A simple weight loss recipe that fights belly fat and belly bloat? You bet! And with two of our favorite ingredients—ginger and turmeric, our #obsessionisReal! You may be surprised to learn that Lyssie’s love affair with ginger didn’t begin until we were writing our 3rd book, The Nutrition Twins’ Veggie Cure. While you’d probably think she fell head over spicy heels for its’ antioxidant and health-promoting benefits first, what actually sucked her in was ginger’s flavor. We had an incredible chef preparing some test recipes for our book, and each time she’d prepared one that contained ginger, Lyssie (and her huge sweet tooth) could’ve sworn there was candy in it (if you’ve never tasted ginger, it actually adds a sweetness that some folks, like Lyssie, love!). AND, just like with sweets, Lyssie wanted to eat the whole batch. 🙂

The ginger-love affair was like a slip-and-slide into the anti-inflammatory spice world for these twin registered dietitian nutritionists and we soon fell just as hard for ginger’s inflammation-fighting soul sister and botanical cousin, turmeric—and that’s why we’ve created anti-inflammatory foods recipes like:

Vegan Quinoa & Kale Power Protein Bowl

Lemon Ginger Turmeric “Detox” Tea

Ginger Mint Turmeric Green Flat Belly “Detox”

5-minute Turmeric Golden Milk

Morning “Detox” Shot

Easy Turmeric Avocado Egg Salad 

If you spend much time on our blog, you know we talk about inflammation A LOT (and about belly fat and getting a flat belly, but more on these two in a moment). That’s because chronic inflammation is the root of many health issues and diseases, everything from heart disease, diabetes and cancer to arthritis, Alzheimer’s and even obesity. If we can lower inflammation in the body, we can help to fight off disease and we can live a longer, healthier and happier life. So, we’re constantly looking for easy ways to help everyone to eat an anti-inflammatory diet which contains lots of plant foods like veggies, fruits, pulses; omega-3 fats, like those found in fish-especially fatty fish like salmon and sardines; plenty of healthy fats like olive oil and avocados; and low in sugar, trans fats and processed food like chips and cookies and white bread; while including some especially powerful anti-inflammatory foods, like ginger and turmeric.

Since ginger and turmeric are anti-inflammatory powerhouses, one of our favorite hacks to help you easily slip more of them into your life is with these Anti-inflammatory Ginger Turmeric Ice Cubes.

You can add these cubes in water, tea (hot or cold), smoothies and stir-fries.

And while these ice cubes are a great addition to your anti-inflammatory diet, you may wonder…

What makes these cubes so good for your flat-belly and for reducing belly fat?

For your flat-belly:

Lose the bloat:

• Ginger is a carminative spice, which means that it relieves gas. It also seems to act as a muscle relaxant and since bloating is often caused by gas and sometimes by tension or spasms, ginger is a great way to help conquer either cause! (This is why it’s a main ingredient in our Lemon Ginger Turmeric “Detox” Tea.)

• Ginger helps to ease stomach and intestinal discomfort and settles your insides. This becomes especially important after you’ve overindulged in food and drinks—or if you’ve eaten too fast. Typically, your intestinal tract lets you know if you’ve done either and you’ll feel bloated and your tummy feels full of discomfort.

As ginger helps your intestinal tract to calm down, much of the havoc that causes the puffiness is taken away and the bloat dissipates allowing the repairing, anti-inflammatory actions of ginger to take charge.

• Ginger also helps to fight bloat by supporting digestion to assist with food breakdown. This is really important because when foods aren’t broken down they will cause gas and bloating as they start to ferment in the gut.

• Ginger and turmeric fight inflammation: Your body responds to poor food choices and toxins with inflammation. Chronic inflammation causes damage to tissues in the body and it speeds the aging process. Preventing this inflammation means not only will you be less inflamed on the inside and have less stomach distress, but you’ll also be healthier in the long haul!
Less inflammation= a calmer body on the inside, less stomach distress, less bloat.

More flat-belly benefits:

• These Ginger Turmeric Flat-Belly Ice Cubes are water-based so they provide your body with fluid. And since they taste good, their pleasant flavor encourages you to drink more so they help to keep you hydrated directly and indirectly. A major bonus of drinking more water as a result of consuming these ice cubes is that the water helps to flush bloat from salt by clearing the body of the salt, as well as flushing the extra water the body holds on to in order to dilute the salt to protect itself from salts’ damage. So add our ginger turmeric ice cubes to a glass of water and see the results!

• Water helps to rinse bloating sodium and push waste out of your body, preserving your kidneys and intestines, keeping them in better condition. This helps give you a flatter tummy and rids the unsightly gut bulges from constipation.

For belly fat:

One of the best things about these cubes is when you drop them in water and tea, you’ll notice they have a little sweet—and a little spicy– flavor that makes you want to keep drinking and that also works wonders for fighting cravings. If you feel as though you’re someone whose cravings get the best of you, possibly adding to the accumulation of a few unwanted pounds especially around the belly, these cubes will help to squash those cravings, ultimately saving you hundreds of calories and inches off your middle. Our clients tell us that adding these cubes to a glass of water especially work well for sweet cravings but find them helpful for salt cravings too, and we’ve noticed the same as well. (In fact, in the summer, we’ll suck on an ice cube to squash a sweet craving).
PLUS, since they taste great and make you want to keep drinking, you consume more water—which takes up space in your stomach, taking an edge off hunger as well as helping to prevent overeating and the belly fat gain that accompanies it (all while flushing bloat!).

And water helps the body to function at its’ best since every process in the body relies on water and without enough, all body processes suffer. As you stay hydrated, you’ll have more energy to exercise and to be active, which means you’ll burn more calories, which means it can help you to lose fat from all over your body, including your belly! Your entire body will be working more efficiently (including your metabolism)– you’ll feel better and have more energy too.

Add these cubes to water.

You can keep them around and simply add them to make hot and cold tea and to flavor water, add to smoothies and stir-fries.

The next time you want some body and belly feel-good benefits, drop a few of these cubes in whatever you’re drinking–we can’t wait to hear what you think! Please let us know in the comments!

Anti-inflammatory Ginger-Turmeric Ice Cubes – Our Easy Hack to Fight Inflammation

Keep these in your freezer so you can easily boost flavor and fight inflammation, as well help to promote a flat-belly. Simply add them to water, tea (hot or cold), smoothies and stir-fries.

Ingredients:
• 3 cups water
• 2 Tbsp (heaping) fresh turmeric root, peeled and chopped
• 2 Tbsp (heaping) fresh ginger root, peeled and chopped
• Juice from lemon, optional*

Directions:
1. Add ginger, turmeric, a few squirts of lemon, if using, and water to blender and puree.
2. Pour mixture into ice cube trays.
3. Freeze for about 5 hours until ice cubes are solid.

While these cubes will help to jumpstart your anti-inflammatory lifestyle and your flatter stomach, to find out how we can help to make these results permanent set up a free chat with us.

Anti-Inflammatory Ginger-Turmeric Ice Cubes

 

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Author: NutritionTwins.com

Ingredients

• • 3 cups water
• • 2 Tbsp (heaping) fresh turmeric root, peeled and chopped
• • 2 Tbsp (heaping) fresh ginger root, peeled and chopped
• • Juice from lemon, optional*

Instructions

1. Add ginger, turmeric, a few squirts of lemon, if using, and water to blender and puree.
2. Pour mixture into ice cube trays.
3. Freeze for about 5 hours until ice cubes are solid.

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