The Beast Report: September 2018

Issue 10
September 2018

By Kim Collings

1. Beast Profiles

2. Nutrition

3. Joe’s Corner

4. Looking Ahead

1. Beast Profiles

Articles and interviews dedicated to reporting on the amazing people and stories of Your Beast Team!

Meet the amazing Emily Ford! She’s a Beasts OCR Ambassador and a friend to all. She’s so much fun on the course and loves everything about OCR.

What was your first OCR race and what made you decide to try it?

My first OCR was the 2015 Spartan Sprint in Montana. My friend had shared a post on Facebook, and it looked really fun. I decided to try it because I wanted to challenge myself, and try something new. I packed up my car and drove out alone, knowing no one, and camped and volunteered. It was a wonderful weekend.

How has OCR helped you overcome challenges?

It has helped me a lot. I approach every day problems differently, and challenge myself, on a more voluntary basis. If something is tough, I can shrug it off and call it ‘OCR training’. I deal with irritating co-workers better, and push myself to work harder.

What do you love most about the OCR Community?

Everyone in the OCR community is AMAZING. I have met so many great people, and we all want each other to succeed. We have fewer walls up and know our true selves better than most people that don’t push their physical limits. I have mostly let my old friends go, and replaced them with a great group of positive and motivated people, that always try new things.

Who inspires you?

Elise Howlett inspires me. I have seen her go through many challenges, and is now stronger, and happier than ever. I love working out with her, watching her grow her personal training skills and business, and I look forward to seeing her podium someday, if that is what she decides to aim for.

What is your favorite OCR memory?

There’s so many. Finishing the Montana Beast in 2016 with Mike James, Jodi Vaningwen, Stevie Williams, and Steve Hammond. FINALLY getting across the rings, and monkey bars. The sweet victory of FINALLY hitting the spear throw and it not slipping out. Finishing the Beast and Sprint in Montana this year with Shadyn Ebey ( my boyfriend) I look forward to making more memories.

Tell us something about yourself that few people know, whether OCR related or not.

I guess most people don’t know I was adopted, and my sister and I (5 years apart) , share our birthdays.

What are your goals for 2018?

I want to learn how to climb the rope. I know there are techniques. I can’t figure them out. Maybe someday I can just use my arms to get up it. I also want to run faster, and lose more weight. I lost 50lbs last year, and I need to do it again.

2. Beast Nutrition

Tart Cherry Juice Fun Facts

Cherries are generally classified as either tart or sweet. Most are familiar with Bing and Lambert Cherries, but tart cherries such as Montmorency have been the subject of recent research and have shown some promising health benefits. The juice is a much more concentrated form of the fruit, so you are able to intake more of the important nutrients than if you just ate the cherries themselves. 1

-The annual U.S. crop produces 275 to 350 million pounds of tart cherries

-The leading producer of tart cherries is Michigan, producing 70 to 75 percent of the crop each year 2

-Tart cherry pie filling is the number one pie filling sold in the U.S.

–Over 200 professional & collegiate teams drink tart cherry juice 3

-Tart cherry juice aids in lowering inflammation (great for athletes)

-Studies show tart cherry juice may aid in fighting Alzheimer’s and Huntingdon’s disease

-Helps fight gout and arthritis

-Helps to sleep by boosting melatonin. Have a glass with dinner

-Antioxidants in tart cherries help to ease muscle pain, making them a terrific post workout choice

Tart Cherry Juice Recipe:

You can purchase tart cherry juice in stores, but if you would like to make your own try this out:

Quick and Easy Method

15 cherries, cleaned and pitted

Sugar, honey, or stevia (to taste)

Water (to taste)

1. Add the cherries (cleaned and pits removed) to a blender. About 15 is good if you’re just making a glass for yourself; use more if you plan on serving to a group. Or if you just want some for later!

The easiest way to clean and de-pit the cherries is to place them in a bowl, run them under cold water, and strain. Then score the cherries vertically, and remove the pit with the edge of a butter knife.

2. Add the sugar, as desired, and blend. If you want some serious tartness, stay away from the sugar. Otherwise, start with about 2 tablespoons (30 ml) — you can always add more later if you need it.

You can also use a no-calorie sweetener, honey, or agave syrup.

3. Add water, as needed. With no water, your juice will be more like a syrup-y concentrate. Add a bit tablespoon by tablespoon, blending in between. Stop when it reaches the consistency you want.

There will probably be tiny chunks floating around preventing you from having a smooth consistency; this is normal. We’ll take care of those in the next step.

4. Filter the juice with a strainer. Unless you like your cherry juice particularly pulpy, of course. It’s easiest if you have a glass strainer (like one you might use for cocktails) that you can just set over a glass and pour in. This’ll remove all the chunks of skin that your blender didn’t take care of.

If the result after the straining is still too thick, add a bit more water. Taste it periodically to see if it tastes how you like.

5. Serve and enjoy. Et voila! Throw some ice in, a straw, and maybe even a garnish to get fancy. Who needs the stuff from the grocery store when you can whip up your own in jiff?

https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Tart-Cherry-Juice

References:

1. http://archive.usrowing.org/news/details/12-03-05/Nutrition_Feature_Health_Benefits_of_Tart_Cherry_Juice.aspx

2. http://www.mi-cherries.com/facts.htm

3. https://www.amazon.com/Cheribundi-Tart-Cherry-Juice-Ounce/dp/B004H3V1TA

Photo Credit: Spartan Race, Emily Ford, https://www.healthline.com/health/food-nutrition/ways-cherry-juice-benefits-you, https://www.wikihow.com/Make-Tart-Cherry-Juice

3. Joe’s Corner

Macros and what’s all the fuss by Joe Loomis

When people talk about Macros what they are really talking about is Macronutrients. Macronutrients are the big three Carbohydrates, Fat and Protein and I’ll explain what each of them does in and for the body.

Carbohydrate:

Carbohydrates or carbs are one of the muscles basic forms of energy for the human body. The body changes any carbohydrates that are consumed into glucose which is the basic form of energy. When the body doesn’t need any glucose, it will change any carbs that are eaten into another form called glycogen. Then glycogen can be stored in muscles, and the liver for later use to be converted into glucose for the body to use to perform. Carbs are also used by the brain since neurons can’t use protein or fats to fire. There are a lot of different ways to get and consume carbohydrates, and some are better than others. In the end, though carbs are needed by the body to fuel the body in multiple different ways.

Fat:

Fats is the long-term energy source for the human body. There are fat cells in the body that can store an unlimited amount of fat for energy usage later. The human body is actually very good at storing fat because in the end the body is designed for when we didn’t always have three square meals a day. Fat has other uses as there are several vitamins or micronutrients (A, D, E, and K) that need fat to be absorbed and stored for later use. Finally, fats are also used for insulation and temperature regulation.

Protein:

Protein has a lot of different uses in the human body and could be considered the most important macro. There are a lot of different types of proteins that have all sorts of different uses, such as repair tissue, maintain muscle levels, provide cells and tissues with stiffness and rigidity, promotes skin, nails and hair health, maintains body pH, immune health, and is a final last-ditch energy source if all other sources of energy (carbs and fat) are exhausted. Protein is a very complex macro and is so complex that the medical community is still learning about its uses.

In conclusion whenever you hear someone talking about their macros they are talking about how many grams of carbs, fats, and protein they eat. Now if the readers are asking how many of each macro, they should be eating to do something specific it always depends because everyone is different. Don’t just listen to a single source because what works for one person doesn’t always works for everyone.