Spinach Is Good For Runners?

Do you know that spinach is good for runners?

IMAG0438 300x200 Spinach Is Good For Runners?I was in a Chinese food restaurant one evening and my spouse was ordering spinach?

That’s right – spinach. I have to ask her why. She said, ” it’s got plenty of  potassium”. And, she needs a lot to replenish her loss of potassium due to some medications she is taking for her high blood pressure issues.

I was surprised and very happy to know at the same time.

This is actually good. Most runners (if not all) knows that potassium is key to recovery specially after a long run. Potassium with magnesium helps reduce cramps.

I love this information. You see, one fruit reach in potassium is banana. Most runners I know eat lots of bananas. Go to races like 5k’s, 10k’s and marathons and you’ll find bananas everywhere. That shouldn’t be a surprise…

Yes, Spinach Is Good For Runners

Now, I know I have another source a potassium that I never knew before.

Spinach’s nutrition is amazing. The calcium content in spinach and other dark leafy greens strengthens bones.

The A and C vitamins in spinach plus the fiber, folic acid, magnesium and other nutrients help control cancer, especially colon, lung and breast cancers. Folate also lowers the blood levels of something called homocysteine, a protein that damages arteries. So spinach also helps protect against heart disease.

The flavonoids in spinach help protect against age related memory loss.

Spinach’s secret weapon, lutein, makes it one of the best foods in the world to prevent cataracts, as well as age related macular degeneration, the leading cause of preventable blindness in the elderly. Foods rich in lutein are also thought to help prevent cancer.

I don’t want to bore you with too much info on spinach but I think we have a winner.

Spinach is good for runners! Remember this whenever you’re in for a Chinese food next time.

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Runners Breakfast In 6 Minutes

What’s in a runners breakfast?

Some goes for a bagel with some fruits and an orange juice. A smoothie or protein shake is more than enough to others.

Let us hear what your favorite, specially after an early morning run.

I don’t really have a favorite, but a protein shake with an immunity twist tube and a slice of bread is all I need. I can go to work and not worry about getting hungry before lunch because this runners breakfast works for me.

Watch this video, if you haven’t done so. See for yourself if it does the trick to get your appetite in control to get you started for the day.

Runners Breakfast In 6 Minutes

Yes, I was out this morning and did a hill run for a little over one hour. It was a new route for me and my running buddy. I was so tired going back home and decided to treat myself a little bit. I haven’t been running like I’m supposed too lately.

This time,  I wasn’t going to settle for just my protein shake and fruits. I’ve got to try this runners breakfast (omelette) that was so easy to do. If I can, you can do it, too.

Who knows, this may become a regular for you. Specially if you wanted your recovery time fast!

OK here’s the recipe of a simple runners breakfast that you can do in 6 minutes:

1 cup Chlorella soup. Click here to check where I get mine
1 medium size sweet onion thinly sliced
1/4 cup sliced Portuguese sausage
2 medium eggs
salt and pepper to taste (optional)
1 tablespoon of olive oil
hot sauce (optional)

Don’t forget the banana and your daily vitamins. I take glocusamine and fish oil.

There you go, a simple runners breakfast…

Now it’s your turn, do you have one that is healthy, quick and easy to do?

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Protein Shake with a Coconut Twist

Do you have a protein shake with a coconut twist?

My favorite recovery drink is protein shake. I make use of any fruit that’s readily available in the market. Once in a while I do try different things, this time – coconut. I wanted to use the juice of it and the shavings or coconut meat as well. To make this work, a young coconut is needed. Watch the video…

Here’s the Recipe for a Protein Shake with a Coconut Twist

  • Immunity twist tube. It is a dietary supplement that supports your body’s natural defenses.
  • 1 young coconut. I used all the juice in it and half of the white meat (shavings)

Do you have a favorite mix for a protein shake? Share it to us…

Good runs everyone!

BTW, How’s a free eBook titled, “How to Burn Calories and Stay Fit Forever” sound like?

stayfit ecover Protein Shake with a Coconut Twist

It’s yours, simply click either the twitter, Google+ or Facebook button for instant access.

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Runners Can Cook – Beef and Broccoli

Beef and Broccoli in 10 Minutes
I love to eat and can overdo it with no problem. All I do is run and burn the calories…

My morning run means recovery drinks with protein shake. It’s got banana and strawberries. Evening runs are more of a recovery with food. Pizza, pasta and others…or beef and broccoli.

That’s right. I love this dish and it can be done in just 10 minutes. It has beef for protein and broccoli for dietary fibers. Beer goes with it perfectly, a least for me. You should give it a try.

Any runner can do it.

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Glucosamine For Aching Runners Joint

glucosamine for runners joint Glucosamine For Aching Runners JointIf your joints have you walking around like the tin man from The Wizard of Oz, you  may be considering glucosamine for aching runners joint.

Well, you’re far from being alone. Glucosamine happens to be the #1 top selling supplement in the world. Sure, an aging nation with weak joints plays a major role –but running enthusiasts are also top users of this controversial supplement. The reason that glucosamine is controversial is not because it’s claims are completely unjustified – it’s that there’s so much conflicting research. Despite being one of the most intensely researched supplements of all time (with a whopping 1500+ research studies), there remains a lack of conclusive evidence for or against its use.

How Does Glucosamine For Aching Runners Joint Work

Here are some of the claims you’ll read if you’ll do research online;

1. Reduces joint pain. This is clearly glucosamine’s most important health claim. It’s nice
that glucosamine can reduce inflammation in a lab, but it doesn’t mean a thing if you still wake up stiff as a board. Although there have been literally hundreds of Glucosamine
studies concluding that it is an effective natural pain reliever, most of them are now considered bunk because they didn’t use a placebo. It turns out that the placebo effect for pain relievers like glucosamine is extremely high. Nevertheless, this is probably one reason why glucosamine for aching runners joint is popular.

2. Builds stronger cartilage and joint tissue. Glucosamine has been shown to make joints
stronger. It helps in bolstering production of new joint cells and preventing joint cells from an early death. Amazingly, glucosamine directly interacts with your genes, shutting off the enzymes that are programmed to kill joint cells. In the long run, this leads to a “net positive balance” of joint tissue –translating to burly, strong joints that can take on the wear specially on runners.

3. Treats osteoarthritis. Although osteoarthritis tends to affect mostly older folks, that doesn’t mean young runners are immune to this debilitating condition. Years of high impact sports like marathon running or track and field can do a number on your joints. Should you consider glucosamine for aching runners joint early on? Who knows, in fact, osteoarthritis simply means “inflammation in the joints”. As is its trademark, the results of glucosamine research in the treatment of osteoarthritis are inconclusive. Some studies show that is helps people in pain get back on their feet, and some have shown that it’s all in the subject’s heads.

4. Reduces Inflammation: You can track almost every chronic disease, from heart disease to a bad back, to inflammation. In fact, popular over the counter drugs like Tylenol and Ibuprofen work by blocking the enzymes that ramp up inflammation. It turns out that glucosamine does the same thing, only naturally. A number of studies have shown that glucosamine is able to reduce harmful inflammation in a test tube and in the human body.

My Take On Glucosamine For Aching Runners Joint

It will be years before there’s any clarity regarding glucosamine. If you look at the research data, you’ll find that glucosamine works tremendously well for some, and does nothing for others. Scientists are forced to aggregate the data and come up with a broad based conclusion, but you aren’t. You may be one of the “outliers” who feels like a million bucks after taking glucosamine. Does that mean glucosamine for aching runners joint is really good for you?

The only way to tell is to try it yourself. Understand that some of your relief will be a
placebo effect – after all you’re only human. But if you can get back running the next day  pain-free again, does it really matter whether it’s the glucosamine or your hopeful mind? After all, glucosamine is generally well tolerated and comes with an extremely low risk of side effects.

If you’re frustrated with the joint treatments you’ve tried thus far, you may want to give glucosamine for aching runners joint a shot.

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Is Beer Good For Runners?

nutrition mix 277x300 Is Beer Good For Runners?Have you ever seen banners or signs along a race route that really caught your attention? I’ve seen some interesting signs through the years. Lately I saw one that says, ” beer at the finish line – you’re almost there”.

When I saw the sign at mile 23, I told myself I want a beer right now – not later!

I’d like to hear from an expert…Is Beer Good for Runners?

I’ve always believed everything in moderation is good. A beer after a run is something that I do once in a while. How about you?

I have study from PubMed.gov and the title is, Non-Alcoholic Beer Reduces Inflammation and Incidence of Respiratory Track Illness

Here’s the bottom line;

CONCLUSION:

Consumption of 1-1.5 L/day non-alcoholic beer for three weeks before and two weeks after marathon competition reduces post-race inflammation and URTI incidence.

Read the full report…

Hhmmnnn, maybe it’s time to get my (non-alcoholic) beer supply up already. How about yours? Beers – I mean Cheers!

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Experts Take: Lost Electrolytes On The Run

electrolytes Experts Take: Lost Electrolytes On The Run

Electrolytes by FLEE

Lately I’ve been doing more long runs over 10 miles as I continue to train for the next Los Angeles marathon next March ’10.

As the miles start to pile up, my hydration needs changes. I do have few mixes and a couple of favorite drinks I take on a regular basis from my online store. However, I always look for other products in order not to miss out on anything that may be new in the sports nutrition market, just in case.

I was reading an article about electrolytes and here’s an interesting take from one expert. He starts with the following;

Why do we see pro athletes guzzling down the Gatorade or whatever other liquids they have on the sidelines? Is all that needed or is it hype?

Interesting title – Home Made Sports Drinks – Replenish Lost Electrolytes (Potassium, Sodium, Etc) by Robert Britt. Read what Mr. Britt has to say… [READ FULL ARTICLE]

What do you drink before, during and after exercise or prolonged run?

You may want to share us your thoughts or any product reviews in here.

Keep hydrated everyone!

Tied A New Knot and The Running Goes On

I’ve been thinking about this for a long time. For sure we’ve run together many times and I thought this will last longer.

But, boy I was wrong! After only 769 miles it’s time to part ways. We’ve finished (together) the Los Angeles marathon with  a personal best. Rain or shine, early morning and late evening run she’s with me.  No regrets. It’s time to move on and try something new.

5kgeek new running shoe 150x150 Tied A New Knot and The Running Goes On This morning after and early morning run I decided to visit my friends and they were glad to see me. They very supportive about the direction I was in and so I tied another knot.

This time I have Nike Zoom Structure. Asics Gel is still a good friend and will get together on short distance running.

Got to give NikeZ full attention now and see if we can work together. LA Marathon training is just around the corner and I’m looking forward to this new knotted running adventure. Will see how many miles we can do.

Social Networks and Smartphone Apps Keep Runners On The Go

4762376623 12511b0b22 m Social Networks and Smartphone Apps Keep Runners On The GoHow do you get motivated or continue to get motivated when you are training – specially when running alone?

No one to chat with on long runs is a challenge. No company…it’s tough.

Well, thanks to the internet and smart-phones. Human interactions maybe tough to replace but now we have some tools. Social networks on any sports activity are popping up almost daily.

Here is one runners experience and secret weapon;

Topf isn’t alone. Social networks devoted to working out are emerging as popular companions to more widely used sites like Facebook and Twitter.

RunKeeper — one of the original apps — already has more than a million users and is growing rapidly, the company says.

Users of DailyMile.com, a social network that ties runners and tracks their progress, have logged more than 13 million miles, the company says.

Fueled by a basic tenet of his medical background, Topf says RunKeeper has offered him valuable data to keep him focused and informed.

“You can’t improve what you don’t measure,” he says.

Having the workout tracker tied to an online community has helped keep Topf accountable.

“When you don’t run for three or four days, your friends notice that,” Topf says. “The fact that it’s public is a great motivator.” Read FULL ARTICLE…

Keep running. Be healthy and have fun.

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Road Runners Tip #97: No White At Night

5016890778 7c58e0c3d0 m Road Runners Tip #97: No White At Night

no white at night

The days are getting shorter and it’s getting a little bit cooler running at night.

It’s a welcome sign to most runners who really doesn’t like running in the high 2 digit to 3 digits temperatures (like here in Los Angeles) even by night fall.

Running at night though have it’s challenges. Safety is one of them. Visibility on the streets is something that every runner should think about and do something for a safe run around the block or for an extended run a few lights away.

I stumbled upon a running video challenge from 3M. The title is “No White At Night”.

What kind of title is that. No White At Night… I though it’s just one of their marketing ploys to get peoples attention and get ‘em into buying their products. Maybe it is, but after watching the video it made me think  and asses how I go out running at night.

I’d love for you to spread the word about this “No White At Night” video to fellow runners specially if your concern about safety.

So what do you think? I hope it was worth your time.

Oh by the way, I missed the answer to the mini quiz big time but made sure I do not miss passing along the info on “No White At Night” video.

Keep it safe fellow runners and yes, there’s “No White At Night”…