Truthfully, it’s hard to imagine life without the creamy goodness of avocados. If they’re not part of your routine, check out the benefits below and then go for it! Experiment by adding to some of your favorite dishes, or try one of these recipes:

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• Consider adding avocado to salads, and not only on account of taste! Recent research has shown that absorption of two key carotenoid antioxidants—lycopene and beta-carotene—increases significantly when fresh avocado (or avocado oil) is added to an otherwise avocado-free salad. One cup of fresh avocado (150 grams) added to a salad of romaine lettuce, spinach, and carrots increased absorption of carotenoids from this salad between 200-400%. This research result makes perfect sense to us because carotenoids are fat-soluble and would be provided with the fat they need for absorption from the addition of avocado. Avocado oil added to a salad accomplished this same result. Interestingly, both avocado oil and fresh avocado added to salsa increased carotenoid absorption from the salsa as well

• The method you use to peel an avocado can make a difference to your health. Research has shown that the greatest concentration of carotenoids in avocado occurs in the dark green flesh that lies just beneath the skin. You don’t want to slice into that dark green portion any more than necessary when you are peeling an avocado. For this reason, the best method is what the California Avocado Commission has called the “nick and peel” method. In this method, you actually end up peeling the avocado with your hands in the same way that you would peel a banana. The first step in the nick-and-peel method is to cut into the avocado lengthwise, producing two long avocado halves that are still connected in the middle by the seed. Next you take hold of both halves and twist them in opposite directions until they naturally separate. At this point, remove the seed and cut each of the halves lengthwise to produce long quartered sections of the avocado. You can use your thumb and index finger to grip the edge of the skin on each quarter and peel it off, just as you would do with a banana skin. The final result is a peeled avocado that contains most of that dark green outermost flesh so rich in carotenoid antioxidants!
• We tend to think about carotenoids as most concentrated in bright orange or red vegetables like carrots or tomatoes. While these vegetables are fantastic sources of carotenoids, avocado—despite its dark green skin and largely greenish inner pulp—is now known to contain a spectacular array of carotenoids. Researchers believe that avocado’s amazing carotenoid diversity is a key factor in the anti-inflammatory properties of this vegetable. The list of carotenoids found in avocado include well-known carotenoids like beta-carotene, alpha-carotene and lutein, but also many lesser known carotenoids including neochrome, neoxanthin, chrysanthemaxanthin, beta-cryptoxanthin, zeaxanthin, and violaxanthin.
• Avocado has sometimes received a “bad rap” as a vegetable too high in fat. While it is true that avocado is a high-fat food (about 85% of its calories come from fat), the fat contained in avocado is unusual and provides research-based health benefits. The unusual nature of avocado fat is threefold. First are the phytosterols that account for a major portion of avocado fats. These phytosterols include beta-sitosterol, campesterol, and stigmasterol and they are key supporters of our inflammatory system that help keep inflammation under control. The anti-inflammatory benefits of these avocado fats are particularly well-documented with problems involving arthritis. Second are avocado’s polyhydroxylated fatty alcohols (PFAs). PFAs are widely present in ocean plants but fairly unique among land plants—making the avocado tree (and its fruit) unusual in this regard. Like the avocado’s phytosterols, its PFAs also provide us with anti-inflammatory benefits. Third is the unusually high amount of a fatty acid called oleic acid in avocado. Over half of the total fat in avocado is provided in the form of oleic acid—a situation very similar to the fat composition of olives and olive oil. Oleic acid helps our digestive tract form transport molecules for fat that can increase our absorption of fat-soluble nutrients like carotenoids. As a monounsaturated fatty acid, it has also been shown to help lower our risk of heart disease. So don’t be fooled by avocado’s bad rap as a high-fat food. Like other high-fat plant foods (for example, walnuts and flaxseeds), avocado can provide us with unique health benefits precisely because of its unusual fat composition.

Saturday:
10:00a WOD
10:00a 101

Monday:
10:00a WOD
11:00a 101

ALL OTHER CLASSES ARE CANCELLED! Have a safe and happy weekend!

Some things bear repeating and this would be one such message that we can’t hear too many times. When it’s hot, we sweat. And when we sweat a lot, we lose important electrolytes and when that happens, we can sometimes get into trouble. Heat stroke, heat exhaustion and even the rare (but dreaded, rhabdo) are possible outcomes of dehydration, so when the temperature rises we need to be smart. Drink plenty of fluids before and after your WOD. Emergen-C, coconut water and good old agua pura are your best options. Sports drinks are less optimal, as many contain large amounts of sugar.

Read below what Kelsey has to say about the benefits of coconut water and make the commitment to yourself now to keep yourself from the detriments of dehydration!

Why should you be drinking coconut water?

Let me quickly clarify the difference between coconut water and coconut milk. Coconut milk is made by grinding up coconut meat and pressing out the liquid. Coconut water is the fluid that’s found in the cavity of the coconut when you crack it open and it contains natural sugar. In addition to water and sugar, coconut water also contains some minerals such as potassium and magnesium.  In fact, coconut water has more potassium than a banana!

On a macronutrient level 1 cup of coconut water contains 46 calories, 2 grams of protein, 9 grams of carbs and 1 gram of fat, but the micronutrients give this beverage its health power. It also boasts 252 milligrams of sodium, 600 milligrams of potassium, 60 milligrams of magnesium and 58 milligrams of calcium. Sodium and potassium are critical electrolytes that must be replaced after workouts that’s the niche Gatorade and other sports drinks fill, but coconut water is a more effective post workout recovery drink as well as a much healthier choice.

Basically, coconut water is like natural Gatorade. Like Gatorade, it contains water, simple carbohydrates (or, sugar), and electrolytes (or, minerals). Compared to a sports drink made with refined sugars, artificial flavoring, and blue food coloring, I’d say coconut water represents a solid upgrade.

Amazing Benefits of Coconut Water:

• Prevents dehydration. In third world countries where clean water is scarce and children regularly die from infections and dehydration, coconut water can indeed save lives. But the coconut water sold in developed countries is probably too pricey to be much help in that scenario. And among those who can afford to pay $2 for a bottle of coconut water, deaths from cholera and typhoid are fairly rare.

• Promotes heart health. Consuming foods or beverages rich in potassium, including coconut water, may help reduce the risk of hypertension and stroke.

• Promotes kidney health. Diets high in potassium, magnesium, and fluids are thought to reduce the risk of kidney stones, so it’s not surprising that coconut water is reported to help prevent or resolve kidney stones.

• Fights aging. Coconut water also contains compounds that seem to protect cells against aging and cancer—in test tubes anyway. It’s exciting to think that drinking coconut water could make us immune to aging and disease. But we really should know better by now. The world is chock-a-bloc with compounds that stop aging and disease in petri dishes. And yet, we don’t seem to have solved the problem of aging and disease. I think its naïve to think that coconut water is the elixir we’ve all been waiting for.

• Muscle performance

• Energy

• Weight-loss

• Stress reduction

• Skin, hair & nail health

• Mental acuity

• Natural hang-over cure