Homemade Coconut Butter!

Before I begin this post, I just want to say sorry for my lack of posts lately.  Life is just crazy busy right now (guess, that is a good thing though lol).  Anyways, I do believe this posting will make up for my procrastination (especially in the $ department).

Anybody that knows me will tell you, I love my coconuts.  With that said, coconut butter is an essential must have in my kitchen.  In case you didn't know, coconut butter can be used in a number of ways.  It can be used in your favorite baked goods or sauces (as a replacement for butter) or as spread on your toast (my personal favorite).  I'm sure you can find other uses for it as well.  Now, it should be noted that coconut butter is not the same as coconut oil.  Coconut butter is made from the oils and meat of the coconut.  Image all that nutritional goodness.

If you are new to coconuts, let me be the first to tell you that the health benefits of coconuts are massive.  Keeping this with coconut butter, some of the benefits are as listed - It is known to improve your skin and hair, giving them a more nourished appearance.  Helps maintain weight by providing immediate energy with fewer calories than other fats.  For the women readers, I'm always looking out for you ladies lol, it is also known to reduce the craving for sweets.  That's right, the notorious "sweet tooth", reduced!  What's not to like about coconut butter?!?! 

It's not over yet.  Like always, I saved the best for last, it is an antimicrobial (from the oils).  What does that mean, it kills bad bacteria and fungi found inside the body.  Boom! Mind blown away lol.           

Alright, lets get started.  You will be surprised at how easy it is to make coconut butter.  And, how inexpensive it is to make.  All you need is dehydrated (unsweetened) coconut flakes, which can easily found in the bulk section of your grocery store, and a food processor.  Seriously.

1 cup of coconut flakes made me about a hockey puck size of butter.  It also cost me less than a buck.  True Story.


Depending on the size of you food processor, place as much coconut flakes in and process for approximately 8-10 minutes.  Depending on your food processor you may want to do two 4-5 minute sets so it doesn’t burn out your motor.

You will know you are finished when the contents inside are a milky, watery consistency.


Pour the liquid into a glass jar with a tight lid. The mixture will solidify over about 45-60 minutes.  You may want to store in fridge to speed up this step.  With that said, you don’t need to keep this in the fridge, it will keep as is for months in at a solid state at room temperature.  That is all.  Enjoy!  Till next time!  

   

Rethink what you know about fruit

Too many times I hear from people that fruit is this or that (ie. high in sugar, high in calories, etc).  I'm not sure where that misguided information originated but I can tell you it's simply not true.  If your an active individual, fruits should be your best friend.  Not only does it provide the body with much needed vitamins and minerals, it also is a great source of natural sugars.  If your unfamiliar with natural vs processed sugars, here is the skinny, the body is very efficient at digesting and converting natural sugars into usable energy.  When was the last time you heard from someone that they were feeling sluggish and tired (an effect of ingesting too much processed sugars) after eating fruit.  Did I forget to mention, that they are also so damn delicious too!! 

SYMFIT Team hikes scheduled for the last Sunday of every month

If you're a reader from Vancouver, BC come join me and the SYMFIT team for our monthly hikes.  There is no charge to join in on the fun.  Come out and say hi, meet some new friends, and feel free to pick the brains of two elite personal trainers.       

Hiking Notes: Please Read

• Hikes begin at 10:00am from a predetermined place
• Preregistration is required: to register for a hike please email dj@symfit.com or leave me a comment (and i'll get back to you personally).
• All Levels Welcome (Black Tusk is available for intermediate-advanced hikers)
• All hikes and trekking require proper footwear, hydration packs, and are guided by one of your coaches

The Hikes:

Lions Hike | Sunday May 26, 2013
Chief | Sunday June 30, 2013
Black Tusk | Sunday July 28, 2013
Garabaldi | Sunday August 28, 2013 

For more info CLICK HERE - There is in fact a typo with the time on the page, it should  say 10 am.  Everything else on that page is correct.  Website is not 100% complete yet, we are slowly putting the final touches on it - check back soon!! 

A personal trainers workout: Post-Food Poisoning (I'm back bitches!!)

Before I begin, sorry that it has been a while since my last post.  Like usual, life has been busy.  Happy to say, that lots of work has been going into the SYMFIT website - it is almost finished!!!  Fingers crossed for end of the month :) 

As for the title - Part of my disappearance was due to an illness, this time around, food poisoning.  How bad was it - it took me out for nine days.  In fact, four of the nine days I couldn't even eat.  Once all the poison was gone, my body was left feeling very weak.   

After an hour of feeling crushed by this feeling, I quickly refocused and marched to the studio.  I knew there was only one thing to do about it - GO BACK TO TRAINING!

Here is what I did:

Hanging Lat Pull Ups
Olympic Clean and Press
Gravity Machine Jacknife & Pike
Followed By...
Battle Ropes & Agility Work down the rope and back 1-2-3
1= Alternating waves & Lateral in and outs hops with 180 spin half way through
2= circles waves & chris cross scissors hops with 180 spin half way through (meaning I move forwards and backwards)
3= Smash Waves & 360 Lateral forward and backward hops
And to finish it off... rope climb!!

I felt like I killed it like a champ lol -  3-4 sets of the first half, 2 sets of second half - all done under an hour!! Not bad for the first one in over two weeks. I'm back BITCHES!!!

Team SYMFIT GROUP TRAIN Is ready to go!!

We have 2 complimentary sessions for you guys to meet our team and let you experience the SYMFIT Advantage.  

At Executive Lifestyles Personal Training Studios, #100 – 555 West 8^th Ave. Vancouver, BC

This is not a bootcamp.  SYMFIT group Train combines strategic strength training, yoga & martial arts (SYM), it may feel more like playing rather than training. Don't be fooled, our goal with the class is to provide a functional full-body strength workout in a semi-private setting - think modified personal training at a fraction of the cost.

Team SYMFIT Group Train Packs:

First Session:  No Charge - Come and try it on us!

20 Session Pack $25 per session

12 Session Pack $30 per session 

(Expires 3 months from purchase date)

Parking:

There is parking in the Whole Foods Parking Lot.  It cost $3 but if you purchase $10 at Whole Foods, they will reimburse you.

Also, free parking in the No Frills Parking Lot. We have parked there and have never had any issues.

Email DJ@SYMFIT.com to reserve your spot!

* For more info on GRAVITY MACHINES, check out this link:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/health-and-fitness/gravity-classes-are-no-fitness-gimmick/article788121/

Come say hi and join the fun!  Please pass this information onto anyone who you think will enjoy it :)

Website coming soon.  We are currently putting the final touches on it now.  Check back soon!

A Personal Trainers Workout: Derailed... Not! (At-home workout Part 1)

Oh man... life has become busy. Good busy of coarse. However, good busy is still busy lol. Some of you may have been wondering why I haven't been posting under my "Personal Trainer's workouts" tags. I'm happy to report that everything is going great with my training. Because of the busyness of the last couple of weeks I've resorted to at-home workouts (which I'm happy to share with you).

If you didn't already, at home workouts can be just as effective as workouts at the gym. All you need is some simple equipment (that can be found at any fitness equipment store), some open space (you'll be surprised how little is really needed), some know how, a open mind, and the will-power to stop when you drop.

The first routine I did:
Inner thigh body ball squeeze
Body ball reverse bridge hold hamstring roll-in
Elbow to thigh sit-up/crunch (90 degree legs on ball)
Push up (hands on ball)
Alternating bent knee jackknife/straight leg jackknife lower abs roll-in
Body ball ab rollout
Body ball weighted bridge with butt drop (used kettle bell as weight, placed under belly button. Any weight will work)

All I used for this routine is a body ball & kettle bell. This routine works on a lot of core, chest, hip stability, glutes, and hamstrings. Simple right?! Try it yourself :)

Stay tuned next week for more at-home workouts. Chao!