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Table of Contents
  1. Weight Loss Shake Ingredients + Benefits
  2. How to Make a Weight Loss Shake
  3. Ingredient Swaps
  4. Common Questions
  5. More Weight Loss Shake Recipes
  6. Chocolate Weight Loss Shake Recipe

This weight loss shake recipe uses whole food, plant-based ingredients that will give you the nutrients you need to conquer your day. I use this recipe as a breakfast meal replacement shake for a few reasons.

It’s high in protein and healthy fat, so I start the day full and satisfied. Cacao powder also gives this weight loss protein shake natural caffeine to wake me up, a bonus on busy mornings.

Weight loss shake ingredients labeled with white boxes and black text, featuring spinach, cacao, hemp hearts, almond butter, cayenne pepper, almond milk, cinnamon, and banana.


Weight Loss Shake Ingredients + Benefits

Unlike most โ€œweight loss shakesโ€โ€”which are often filled with cheap proteins, artificial ingredients, and leave you with a chalky taste and hungerโ€”this one is the complete opposite. It truly tastes great and is good for you. Here’s what I’m blending:

How to Make a Weight Loss Shake

The beauty of a shake is that you can “eat and run.” I call it the world’s healthiest fast food because you can get a delicious, fast meal in five minutes! Blending this chocolate protein shake is super easy, yet I like to do it in two steps to ensure I always get the smoothest result.

  1. Blend the almond milk and spinach together until there are no leafy chunks left. If you need to stop the blender and scrape down the sides to achieve this then go for it.
  2. Add the banana, cocoa powder, almond butter, cinnamon, hemp hearts, and cayenne pepper. Then blend again until smooth.

Perfectly chill your Shake

Use a frozen banana to cool down this chocolate weight loss shake, or pour over ice after blending for a refreshingly cool drink. This will last up to 24 hours in the fridge, so feel free to make two servings and save one for tomorrow.

Jen Hansard standing over a kitchen sink, holding a chocolate weight loss protein shake in a glass jar with a black straw.


Ingredient Swaps

If you read through the ingredient list and got caught on one or two ingredients then let’s fix it to make this weight loss protein shake work for you.

Common Questions

Are protein shakes good for weight loss?

They can be, but make sure your protein shake recipes are full of some key things: healthy fat, protein, and whole food ingredients. Ditch the weird powders and fancy supplements and stick to healthy weight loss shakes made with only real ingredients. I make sure every protein shake I drink has healthy fats, protein from plant-based sources, and only natural sugar from fruits and vegetables.

Which protein shake is best for weight loss?


If you are using a protein shake as a meal replacement, or really anytime, make sure it has a good balance of carbs, fat, and protein. Your body needs healthy fat to function fully and surprise, it actually helps you stay full longer! A good amount of protein in each meal will also help fill you up, and help process the natural carbs.

Is it OK to drink 2 protein shakes a day to lose weight?

If two shakes a day works for you, go for it. Make sure you focus on a variety of ingredients in those drinks so you get the most nutrients you can. I like swapping up my leafy greens on a regular basis as well as using a wide variety of produce. This way, my body gets all the vitamins, minerals, and more that it needs to thrive.

More Weight Loss Shake Recipes

If you love this weight loss shake recipe, then Iโ€™ve got even more protein shake ideas for weight loss to add to your meals.

  • Meal Replacement Smoothie: This is my go-to lunch, knowing I won’t feel hungry or have a sugar crash 30 minutes later.
  • Vanilla Protein Shake: I love this protein shake and how full I feel after finishing it.
  • Flaxseed Smoothie: This is a great smoothie for those mornings when you need to “get things moving,” if you know what I mean. And it tastes delicious.
  • Caramel Protein Shake: For those that like a sweeter start to their day, this is the perfect morning beverage. It’s creamy, thick and protein-rich.
Close-up of a chocolate weight loss shake in a glass with a pink straw and a black-and-white striped straw.

Don’t forget to rate + review this shake once you’ve made it. I love getting all your feedback!

4.69 from 48 votes

Chocolate Weight Loss Shake

This weight loss shake uses all natural ingredients to kickstart your metabolism and burn fat. We're using all plant-based ingredients to keep you full until your next meal and get you the results you want.
Prep: 5 minutes
Total: 5 minutes
Author: Jen Hansard
Course: Breakfast, Shake
Cuisine: Plant-Based, Vegan
Serves: 1 shake

Ingredients  

Instructions 

  • Add leafy greens and liquid to blender, blend until all chunks are gone.ย 
  • Add in remaining ingredients and blend until smooth.
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Video

Notes

  • If you prefer your shakes extra cold, feel free to pour your shake over a glass of ice.ย 
  • Serve immediately or refrigerate until ready to enjoy.ย 
  • Swap almond milk with the unsweetened plant-based milk of your choice.
  • Swap almond butter with nut or seed butter of your choice.
  • Swap spinach with any leafy greens you want.

Nutrition

Calories: 406kcal, Carbohydrates: 30g, Protein: 17g, Fat: 29g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 11g, Monounsaturated Fat: 13g, Sodium: 354mg, Potassium: 784mg, Fiber: 12g, Sugar: 9g, Vitamin A: 3039IU, Vitamin C: 14mg, Calcium: 498mg, Iron: 6mg
Tried this recipe? Show me!Mention @SimpleGreenSmoothies or tag #SimpleGreenSmoothies!

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Rating




Comments

  1. 5 stars
    My daughter is 51 and she is struggling to lose weight.she hates the feeling of hunger pains her weight is now again 200 and her height is 5.6.
    She has her own business and does not have much time for hourly workout outs.she also has bad knees and just had Bunyan surgery done. She is so disgusted with her weight.I am trying to help her,this way,by doing research. THANK YOU SO VERY FROM FRO. MY WHOLE โค. sincerely Monika Burmann

  2. Hi Iโ€™m in Australian just wondering if I can use hemp powder and what would you use to sweeten choc weight loss smoothie.

  3. 5 stars
    Delicious! I did not expect this to taste so good, it was nicely filling too – perfect for lunch ๐Ÿ™‚
    I didn’t have any hemp hearts though so I swapped with chia seeds, is that ok nutrition-wise? I think it made my shake a bit lumpy as it soaked over night, but that’s ok.
    Thank you for this great recipe!

  4. My wife and I discovered this recipe while determining what we could do with a massive amount of organic hemp hearts what was mistakenly shipped to me (it was supposed to be erythritol). I am a Type 2 diabetic, so I have to be very careful of what I consume in the way of carbs and sugar. That said, we both really liked this smoothie! It has everything we could want and need for a breakfast or midday treat. I don’t typically want either, but now we just whip up a batch and put it in the refrigerator. Problem solved.

    THANK YOU!

    1. So awesome Les!!! Way to be resourceful with that accidental shipment. ๐Ÿ™‚

  5. Hi, I have a thyroid condition and am often told to avoid spinach and other goitrogens as they can interfere with the production of thyroid hornomes. I know that cooking goitrogens removes the issue but would this work as well in this type of smoothie or can you suggest an alternative? I would feel uneasy about eating them every day. Thank you

    1. Hey Amanda – you can swap greens any time. We use spinach quite a bit just because it’s mild and easier for everyone to get used to when first rawkin green smoothies. Check out our article Ultimate Guide to Leafy Greens for great swap ideas for your greens. And def check-in with your doc to be sure the ingredients are best for your thyroid. ๐Ÿ™‚

  6. Hi! I just made this for the first time. It’s good! I prefer it colder, so think I will add ice next time. I had it for dinner. I don’t normally have smoothies for dinner, but we had lunch out and I wanted to do something lighter. Is this smoothie better for you in the morning? I just did your 7 day cleanse and have been checking out your other smoothie recipes. I am considering doing this recipe and the fat burning smoothie, 2 smoothies a day for weight loss – 1 for B, 1 for L. Is that a good plan? Does it matter which one I do for which? Thank you!

    1. Hey Kim! You can def add ice but you could also freeze your bananas and spinach and that would make your smoothie creamy and cold. ๐Ÿ™‚

      Because this smoothie contains cayenne pepper, which gives your metabolism a kick, I think I’d drink it in the morning. But, you really can drink it any time during the day. Many folks drink a smoothie for breakfast as well as one for lunch, that’s actually what we do during our 7-day summer and winter reset cleanses. And it doesn’t matter which smoothies you drink, as long as you’re drinking one! We have so many, it really depends on what you’re looking to get out of your smoothie. We have smoothies that are anti-inflammatory, cleansing, and packed with antioxidants. Take a look around our recipe page for those and more.

      Hope you enjoyed our 7-day challenge. We’ll be doing a 10-day smoothie challenge starting on June 15 and our summer Plant-Based Cleanse starts July 6. You should join us for those!

  7. I donโ€™t have almond butter can i substitute with something else? I have chia seeds and not the hemp hearts so I will be try that out. For the meantime that you reply I will try without the almond butter. Hope to get a response from you soon thank you.

  8. I stumbled across this recipe and I decided to give it a try but my gosh the cinnamon and cayenne was too much for me. I may have been a little heavy handed because itโ€™s spicy. I donโ€™t taste any sweetness at all but Iโ€™m going to chug it anyway.

    1. Hey Lakia! Just the smallest amounts of cinnamon and (especially) cayenne will work great in this smoothie! Def give it another try with less of those, and I think you’ll like it more. Also, using a banana with brown spots will give it a little bit more sweetness. ๐Ÿ™‚

  9. Hi,

    Is is possible to make this smoothie without banana? Does the smoothie still have the same benefits or do I have to substitute it with something else?

    1. Hey Stephanie! If you prefer to not use banana in your smoothie, you could use avocado (for the creaminess) and a few medjool dates (for the sweetness). You could also use mango (both creamy + sweet) but that option will contain more natural sugars. ๐Ÿ™‚

  10. I just made this smoothie today for the first time and the taste of cinnamon was a bit too much. I noticed that you say 1 Tsp of cinnamon but in the video u used 1/4 Tsp. Also i doubled the recipe so i can drink one the following morning, i dont know if me doubling the recipe just gave me a strong cinnamon flavor.

    1. Hi Mike! This recipe does call for 1 tsp. of cinnamon but if that’s too strong for you, def try 1/4 or 1/2 tsp. and see if you like that better. I do think that if you made the smoothie ahead of time and put it in the fridge, that could be the reason. The longer a spice like cinnamon sits in a green smoothie, the stronger the cinnamon taste is going to be. Try making the smoothie ahead of time with all the ingredients except the cinnamon and then add that right before you drink it and see if that makes a difference.

    1. Isn’t this one good?! And you feel like you’re eating dessert! ๐Ÿ™‚

  11. 5 stars
    The first time I made this, it tasted awful! I donโ€™t know what I did wrong. I now have it every morning and love it.
    Who knew how delicious almond butter is compared to peanut butter! Loving this recipe!

    1. I agree, Joy. Once I tasted almond butter, I never wanted to go back to peanut butter!

  12. 3 stars
    I tried this today, itโ€™s not as delicious as it sounds, I like the idea of the warm almond milk..Iโ€™m also hoping for the metabolism boost so Iโ€™m going to give it another try tomorrow. Thank you for the recipe!

  13. 5 stars
    This is in my regular rotation now. I am going to prep a lot of bags. It has a lot of my favorites and who doesn’t like chocolate and bananas together?

  14. Thank you so much for posting this recipe! This sounds super easy and doable. Im wondering what the serving size is?

    1. This recipe yields 2 cups or about 16 ounces, which is one serving of smoothie deliciousness!

      1. We don’t have calories listed for this one but you could use something like My Fitness Pal to help you figure that out. ๐Ÿ™‚

  15. Right now, November in I prefer warm smoothies. I don’t feel like cold when its cold outside. So I use warm almond milk and let my vitamix run a little longer. Yummy and warm

    1. That sounds so delicious! I am the same way I love drinking warm things during the cold months ๐Ÿ™‚