VitaCoCo, Amazing!

You son't have to love VitaCoCo I sure did not, then I tried the Peach & Mango, wonderful with all the energy of the original stuff. Trying all different stuff, FRS, Hammer Nutrition, even My Vega (which is great) and the Vita Coco beats them hands down.

The downfall to the VitaCoCo is the price. $2.50 to $2.99 is a bit steep, now you know why people drink cola.

Wikipedia says this:
Coconut water is the clear liquid inside young coconuts (fruits of the coconut palm). As the fruit matures, the coconut water is gradually replaced by the coconut meat and air. A very young coconut has very little meat; the meat it does have is very tender, almost a gel. Coconut water has long been a popular drink in the tropics, especially in Southeast Asia, Pacific Islands such as Hawaii, Africa and the Caribbean, where it is available fresh, canned, or bottled.
Coconuts for drinking are carefully packaged and sold in many places. These are typically Asian coconuts whose outer green husk has been removed, and the remainder wrapped in plastic. In Central America, particularly in Costa Rica and Panama, they are found and sold in strategic highway stops and on beaches. Coconuts are cut in front of customers to ensure the coconut water's freshness. Coconut water can also be found in ordinary cans, tetra paks, or plastic bottles (sometimes with coconut pulp or coconut jelly included). It is also being marketed as a natural sports drink because of its high potassium and mineral content.
There have been cases where coconut water has been used as an intravenous hydration fluid in some developing countries where medical saline was unavailable.

Now Goya has some amazing products at an incredible price, I have not tried the coconut but if it is like their other products then you can't loose.

Last is Costamar Cream of Coconut Milk, wonderful stuff and $1 for the can, dump into shakes mix and go.

My Vega, A Natural Replacement

Vega training: part one of four from Vega on Vimeo.

If you are a vegan and are looking for that edge as a performance athlete than Vega could be the product for you.

The Vega Story

Told from the onset that a plant-based diet wouldn't cut it on the professional Ironman circuit, Brendan Brazier's nutritional journey began with unpromising results. Several months of chronic hunger, the need to constantly eat and a decline in energy culminated in a decline in athletic performance.

Brendan's stubborn curiosity persevered however, and after many years of research, trials and tribulations, he created a plant-based whole food diet that worked better than he had ever expected. Since then, Brendan has become one of the top professional Ironman triathletes in Canada, crediting his diet for his success competing in one of the world's most demanding sports.

For years Brendan has packed plant-based whole foods into a daily blended shake to supply his body with premium fuel in liquid form for easy digestion. It worked great at home but when he traveled it became troublesome dragging around a blender and shopping for or packing along his favourite whole foods. Brendan began searching for a convenient healthy, plant-based whole food meal replacement but was disappointed in his findings.

He found most meal replacements on the market were whey protein based "“ off limits for a vegan. Though some vegetarian options existed, they were all soy protein based, an ingredient Brendan was trying to cut back on due to concerns regarding GMO's and phytoestrogens. All meal replacements he found were deficient in essential fatty acids, especially Omega 3's and most contained large quantities of low quality carbohydrates (eg. maltodextrin), artificial flavors, colors and sweeteners.

Brendan realized there was a need for a meal replacement that did not compromise food quality for convenience. He approached several nutritional supplement manufacturers but everyone told him it wouldn't work "“ "you can't put whole foods into a commercial meal replacement" , they said, "too short a shelf life, low product demand, poor taste and texture, too high a cost" they said. There were too many negatives and not enough positives to warrant such a product. So Brendan put his idea on the back burner and continued to lug his trusty blender and cooler full of whole foods wherever he traveled

A couple of years later, Brendan was struck by a car while training on his bike and injured his leg. Told by his doctor to take 6 months off from training and competing, Brendan sought alternative options. He underwent intense physiotherapy and began taking a product his naturopath recommended called ChlorEssence, hoping the high level of growth factors in it would help heal his injury. At the same time, Brendan also began taking a supplement called MacaSure, for adrenal support, helping him deal with the physical and emotional stress of his injury.

Within 8 weeks of rehabilitation, all the while taking 10g of ChlorEssence and 10g of MacaSure a day, Brendan made a full recovery. Though he was not in his top form, remarkably, he was able to compete professionally again participating in the Ironman Canada triathlon event and finishing the gruelling race despite his recent injury. Brendan was so pleased with his rapid recovery that he contacted Sequel Naturals, makers of ChlorEssence and MacaSure, and shared his success story with Charles Chang, President of Sequel Naturals.

Brendan and Charles also discussed the concept of producing a complete whole food meal replacement that was made from 100% plant-based ingredients. Only now, Brendan wanted to have a full dose of ChlorEssence and MacaSure in every serving of this meal replacement as well. Charles was intrigued by the passion of this young athlete and he loved the idea of the whole food meal replacement. Aware of the many challenges that developing such a product would present, Charles was confident that together they would be able to overcome them.

Brendan was given the job of product formulator and Sequel Naturals would take care of the ingredient sourcing, production, packaging and marketing. They agreed that this product would be made without compromises and had to meet several key criteria, including:

1) Complete meal, meeting all Canadian meal replacement guidelines when mixed in plain water
2) Made primarily with whole foods in their freshest, least processed form possible
3) Made with all natural, plant-based ingredients (absolutely no animal products)
4) Target nutritional profile of 40% protein, 30% carbohydrates, 30% essential fats
5) Proteins must come from a diverse variety of vegetarian sources, including a minimum of one third raw protein
6) All carbohydrates must be naturally occurring, complex and low glycemic with no added sugars or simple carbohydrates
7) Essential fats must be of high quality, with the majority being Omega 3's; no trans fats or cholesterol
8) No common allergens such as dairy, gluten, soy or wheat
9) No artificial colors, flavors, or sweeteners and GMO & pesticide-free
10) Must taste good with pleasant texture and flavor

After a year of product formulation and testing, Vega is a replica of Brendan's favourite shake. All the ingredients in Vega were chosen by Brendan to work synergistically to nourish the body and reduce nutritional stress. And now Brendan doesn't have to lug his old blender with him when he travels anymore.

Providing sustaining energy, enhanced mental focus and increased aerobic and anaerobic capacity, Vega Sport Performance Optimizer beverage also replenishes electrolytes and reduces inflammation, joint and muscle pain to assist recovery. Sporting a synergistic array of organic plant-based ingredients and free of common allergens such as gluten, dairy and soy, Vega Sport will help take you to the next level, safely and naturally.

Vega Sport was formulated by Brendan Brazier, professional Ironman triathlete and bestselling author, to significantly enhance physical and mental performance for anyone seeking athletic improvement.

Vega Sport Performance Optimizer provides a complete array of key performance enhancing benefits including:

• Immediate and sustaining energy
• Increases endurance, aerobic and anaerobic capacity
• Enhances mental focus and motor performance
• Reduces stress and enhances immune system function
• Replenishes electrolytes lost during exercise
• Reduces inflammation, joint and muscle pain
• Improves body composition and reduces body fat
• Supports healthy weight management

Vega Sport Performance Optimizer is available in lemon-lime and acai-berry flavours in convenient single serving pouches and economical 30 serving bottles.

Dark and Dense, Perfect Ice Cream!

Looking for a break, indulge after a great race, treat yourself to this recipe.

Dark, dense, and oh-so-delicious: Chocolate Decadence - From King Author Flour (best).

Chocolate Decadence is an overworked recipe name; it seems every restaurant dessert featuring even a hint of chocolate has been given the over-the-top "decadence" label. But this ultra-smooth, dense ice cream truly is decadent, meeting at least one of the word's definitions: "downfall." If you're dieting — this ice cream will surely be your downfall!

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• 1/2 cup Dutch-process cocoa
• 1 cup sugar
• 3 tablespoons Instant ClearJel or cornstarch
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup water
• 1 tablespoon vanilla; or 1 tablespoon espresso powder; or 1 teaspoon cinnamon, all optional
• 2 cups (1 pint) whole milk
• 1 cup chopped semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, or chocolate chips
• 1/4 cup coffee liqueur (e.g., Kahlua) or the liqueur of your choice, optional

Directions

1) In a medium saucepan, whisk together the cocoa, sugar, ClearJel or cornstarch, and salt.

2) Slowly whisk in the water, then the flavor of your choice and the milk or cream.

3) Bring to a boil over medium heat, whisking frequently as the mixture warms, then almost constantly as it becomes hot; you don't want the mixture to stick to the bottom of the pan.

4) Remove from the heat and stir in the chocolate, whisking until chocolate melts.

5) Pour into a bowl, and stir occasionally as it cools, to prevent a skin from forming.

6) Lay a piece of plastic wrap on the surface of the chocolate, again to prevent a skin from forming, and refrigerate until it's well chilled; overnight is good. Make sure the canister for your ice cream maker is in the freezer, too; it needs to be as cold as it can be.

7) Next day, pour the chocolate into the ice cream maker, and freeze for 20 to 25 minutes, until it's quite stiff.

8) Scoop the ice cream into a bowl. For best texture, stir in 1/4 cup coffee liqueur (e.g., Kahlua), or the liqueur of your choice. This will keep the ice cream soft and scoopable indefinitely in the freezer.

9) Serve the ice cream immediately, if desired; it will be very soft. For harder ice cream, store in the freezer. Ice cream without liqueur will become nicely hard in 3 hours. With the addition of liqueur, it will take 6 hours or more to become quite solid. Ice cream without liqueur will become unpleasantly hard within 5 hours or so; to soften, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes or so before serving.

Yield: 3 3/4 cups, a scant 1 quart.

Slushi to Boost Performance.

From the NYTimes

The reasons are also no surprise. Blood is directed to the skin for cooling, which means it is diverted from working muscles. The hotter it is, and the harder the effort, the harder exercise becomes. Eventually, you slow down or stop, unable to go on. Exercise physiologists debate why. It could be that muscles are starved for blood. It could be that the brain gets too hot. It could be that the heart eventually can’t beat fast enough to satisfy all the demands for blood. But even without knowing why, researchers have found they can delay the time to utter exhaustion by getting people a bit chilled before they start. more..

Simple steps to beat Race Dehydration

This article was originally posted on Runner Dude’s blog, where you can check out more tips for runners from marathoners to beginners.

Here are a few things to keep in mind to make sure you’re well hydrated before, during, and after the marathon.

1. Find out what sports drink will be provided during the race.
2. Never use the featured sports drink in a marathon, if you did not use it in your training. Don’t Do It!
3. Don’t over hydrate.
4. Drink 16oz of water 2 hrs before race time.
5. During the race, drink 6-12oz every 15-20 minutes.
6. Rehydrate after the race.

4 Ways to Avoid the Bike-Run Bonk

All your preparation is done, you have put the miles in, hair smells like chlorine, bike tires worn, shoes been replace, in all you are ready, or so you think. What about the fourth sport, Nutrition. You feel OK on the bike, only to suffer a gastrointestinal meltdown in the run. Stomach feels sloshy, can't shake it, Active.com nailed the reasons why. Now every one is different and take with a grain of salt, but the main gysgt is EXPERIMENT, don't let a simple avoidable mistake ruin a great day.

Water with the Edge, SportAktive, FDA Approved!

Taking water to the next Level and FDA registered. So SportAktive USA is a company with a background from Scandinavia, focused on endurance sports, training and fitness. Their product formula and ingredients have been developed in the field of sports medicine science and research in experience with athletes in Scandinavia since 1987.

We all need to stay hydrated and for endurance athletes that is a bit harder to achieve. One thing that is missed and over looked is that you are hydrated before not that morning but days before is where it all starts, taking fluid in as you exercise is only hoping to keep you even. You are working on getting every advantage that you can, SportAktive get you there and beyond. Proper fluid intake before, during and after will help, therefore enhance the effectiveness of you training. Electrolyte's yea you have heard that before Gatorade tells you about it on every commercial. What they missed was the 200+ calories that you are taking in that you don't need, ok for the masses that is great, for you well you need something more and better for you. Salt loss from sweating can be significant. this makes sodium intake most advisable during prolonged exercise. One tablet of SportAktive Easy in your water bottle provides three things; fluid, electrolytes and performance.

That all you need, now go and get it SportAktive

You Bar - Make and Name Your Own Nutrition Bar

Tired of the same old bars, think you can do better than Clif Bars or Power Bar well here is your chance. Not only can you pick your ingredients but you can name your Bar as well. You pick the base, protein powder, nuts, seed, fruits and berries, sweeteners, seasonings/chocolate, grains/cereals and infusions, best of all you get to name your bar, who know you could be the next Clif bar, remember when Power Bar was the only choice. You Never Know, just pick a clever name.