Coconut Water Craze!

I've been hooked on coconut water for some time now. Growing up I was not a big fan of coconuts, but years later it has sunk its hooks on my taste buds and I can't get enough masha'Allah.

It all started with what you see on the left, O.N.E. Coconut water.

We saw an endorsement for O.N.E. by the Gracies about how rich and pure it was, how healthy it was, and so on, but I really wasn't convinced.

My brother ended up going to visit his wife is California in 2010 and he had a chance to visit the Gracie Academy. Shortly after that, he told me he tried O.N.E. coconut water and that it was delicious.

Now my curiosity started to grow. So walking down M.O.M's one day (short for Mom's Organic Market) we saw a bunch on a shelf and decided to buy some. I was a bit skeptical knowing that I have never liked anything coconutty, but I was ready to give it a try and I am glad I did.

Now I am like a walking billboard for coconut WATER (only cause I still don't like the coconut itself, just the water). Its especially refreshing after a serious workout to get you hydrated.

So I wanted to share with everyone some of the benefits of coconut water and get you on the band-wagon if you're not on it yet.

The following is taken from Home Remedies Web:

What are the Benefits of Coconut Water?

Many studies have shown that the antiviral, antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activity of Coconut Water may help with a number of minor to severe health conditions. This nutrient rich drink has been used to regulate blood pressure, blood sugar, and cholesterol levels, and it has been found to boost energy levels and increase metabolism in the human body. Other conditions that it has been found to be effective at treating include stomach flu, dysentery, indigestion, constipation, intestinal worms, cholera, urinary abnormalities, urethral stone, malfunctioning kidneys, dry and itchy skin, age spots, and wrinkles.

Uses of Coconut Water

Age Spots, Wrinkles, and Other Skin Problems

Researchers have found that Cytokinins help regulate the cell growth and their divisions. Coconut Water contains these cytokinins and lauric acid which can minimize the aging of skin cells, balance PH levels, and keep the connective tissues strong and hydrated. Therefore, simply applying Coconut Water onto affected skin areas every night before going to bed may help with acne, age spots, wrinkles, stretch marks, cellulite, and eczema.

Boosting Energy

Abundant in vitamins, minerals and other nutrients, Coconut Water makes a wonderful energy drink. In particular, coconut water has less sugar and sodium content compared to most sports drinks, while packing more Potassium, Calcium, and Chloride, which makes it a better choice to rehydrate, replenish and boost the body's energy levels after any strenuous activity or workout. For example, in every 100ml of Coconut Water there is approximately 294mg of potassium compared to 117mg in an average energy drink, 25mg of sodium compared to 200mg in energy drinks and 41mg in most sport drinks, 5mg sugar compared to 20-25mg, and 118mg of chloride compare to 39mg in average energy and sport drinks.

Cardiovascular Health

According to researchers, individuals with high blood pressure usually have low potassium levels. Therefore, drinking coconut water on a regular basis can be quite effective at regulating blood pressure due to its high concentration of potassium and lauric acid. Similarly, some recent studies have found that coconut water can help increase HDL (good) cholesterol, which makes it a wonderful natural treatment for maintaining good cardiovascular health.

Dehydration

Rich in Potassium and other minerals, Coconut Water helps to regulate our internal fluids and replenish and rehydrate the body. It has been used to treat dehydration caused by dysentery, cholera, diarrhea and stomach flu, and the electrolyte balance and plasma in Coconut Water has been found to be similar to that of human blood. Therefore, drinking one cup of Coconut Water twice daily during digestive tract abnormalities, hot temperatures, and after strenuous workouts can help rehydrate the body quickly.

Digestive Problems

Coconut Water contains Lauric acid which our body converts into monolaurin. Monolaurin has great antiviral, antiprozoal and antibacterial activity which helps fight against intestinal worms, parasites, lipid-coated viruses and other gastrointestinal tract infections in children and adults. Additionally, the water from coconut may not only act as an antibiotic but it can also rehydrate the body. Therefore, a simple remedy for Intestinal Worms is to mix one teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil into a cup of Coconut Water and drink it daily for at least three days. For constipation, diarrhea and other common digestive problems drink one cup of Coconut Water twice daily.

Weight Loss

Coconut water is a natural electrolyte and isotonic beverage which help increase the body's metabolism. Therefore, it can greatly benefit people who are struggling with weight issues.


-End of article...

So as you can see, there is an abundant of reason to start drinking coconut water in general. Adding it to you diet will definitely be a healthy move.

As for what brand, then I prefer O.N.E. or Vital Coco, they are 100% coconut water and both brands are from Brazil.

So go ahead, get bold, get wild, and buy O.N.E.!!!!

Royce Gracie Seminar

I got to experience my first seminar with the legendary Royce Gracie this past Friday and Saturday.

For those who don't know who Royce Gracie is then allow me to share some amazing points about the man.

1. He is the son of one of the founders of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Helio Gracie.

2. He is a 7th Degree Red and Black Belt.

3. He is one of the main reasons why so many people do Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in the world due to his dominance in the early MMA years.

4. He won the Ultimate Fighting Championships 1, 2, 4.

5. He is the 1st inductee into the UFC Hall of Fame.

6. He has the most submission wins in UFC history.

and the list goes on...

Now that you know a little more about Royce, imagine getting the chance to acquire some of his extensive knowledge of the art. Amazing is the the word that comes to mind and that is exactly how my experience was.

Friday: My wife and I attended the seminar at Capital's Takoma Park branch. The room was packed with familiar and unfamiliar faces. People traveled from Virginia, Massachusetts, New York, DC and other places to attend this seminar. It was awesome seeing so many blue, purple, and brown belts in one place. It was a haven for benefit of the art.

I also got to share this experience with two dear friends and fellow martial artists, Sensei Jamal Pender, fellow Aqabah Karate instructor, and Abdul-Malik Ahmad of al-Azhar Silat. Masha'Allah, there presence there made it that much better.

While we waited for the seminar to start, many of us did a little mingling, stretching, and warm ups. We were all eager to get start.

Royce got there a bit late due to his flight being delayed, but once he got changed, he immediately jumped into a technique. His attitude and teaching style reminded me of Rodrigo's seminar, exactly the same M.O.

We started with Side Mount to North/South and setting up a Bread-Cutter submission.

From this single position, he broke down positional control, transitions, and about 4 to 5 submissions.

We kept drilling and drilling, switching partners, practicing the moves on people of different weight-classes, skill levels and ranks. This was great cause it gives you an indication of who it will work on, how to transition properly, weight distribution due to weight variance, etc.

Towards the end, Royce put us in teams of four and we did "King of the Hill". Then he paired us up and had us spar with one had tied. This was probably the best part of the night. It just made us realize how much we are capable of and how much we're not. The handicap highlighted areas of weakness and strength.

By the end of the night the once cold studio felt like a sauna.

Coolest part of the night: I was rolling with my fellow training partner, Peter, and Royce comes up to me and asks me, "How long have you been training?". I said about 20 months now. He said to me, "How many stripes do you have?" I showed him my belt and he saw that I didn't have any. He says to me, "Put a stripe on your belt, congratulations." He shakes my hand and my jaw drops in disbelief.

WOOOOOOW! That was totally unexpected, but AWESOME!

Man I had the biggest Kool-Aid smile after that.

Soon after we took some group and individual pictures and then headed home.

Round 2: As if last night wasn't enough, I drove out to Alexandria for another session with Royce. This was my first time driving out to Capital in Alexandria so I was pretty stoked.

I got there and was super interested with the set up. The facility was state-of-the-art. I loved the reception area, the paraphernalia that hung on the walls, the locker rooms were off the hook, the mat space was HUGE, and the best part of it all was THE BIG *SS FAN (This is literally the brand of the ceiling fan).

The academy was packed from wall to wall with students and spectators. I thought Friday night was impressive, but Saturday, there was 3x the amount of people. White belts, Blue belts, Purple belts, Brown belts and of course ROYCE GRACIE!!!!!

Again the techniques were incredible. The simplicity behind what he taught fascinated me the most. I learned some fancy moves, but in the end its the basics that I love to learn the most. We drilled some hip throw set up, some grip fighting defense, sweeps, and submission from side control.

Again basics stuff, but effective.

I got the chance to roll, but it was the purple and brown belts that took up all the mat time today. It was great seeing them roll. You can see the years of experience in the way they moved, their control, their techniques. One can learn a lot from simply observing. Royce was walking around, watching and evaluating each one of them.

After all was said and done, many earned stripes and a few got their new ranks.

Another successful seminar with the legendary, Royce Gracie in the books. We ended with a group picture and headed home...can't wait 'til the next one.

Until then, I got my notes to review, type up, and drill....

Recipe: Man-Berry Smoothie!

Mango-Strawberry Smoothie aka "MAN-BERRY" Smoothie!!!

Here is a typical blend we love to have at home. It's great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. We recommend that you have it alone as a meal. We also recommend using only organic ingredients to promote a healthy mind and body. Try it out and enjoy!





Ingredients:

10 oz. organic frozen mangoes

5 oz. organic frozen strawberries or fresh strawberries

½ of raw non-pasteurized milk or organic whole milk

½ of organic pomegranate cranberry juice (100% juice only)

One (1) tablespoon of organic honey for sweetness (add as desired)

Two (2) tablespoons of whole black seeds (also known as black cumin seed)

Directions:

Add to mixer and blend until smooth on medium to high speed.

Serves four (4)

*This is an exclusive recipe of Aqabah Karate and Rukaanah Martial Arts Journal