Nick let me take over the show notes today for our special holiday episode.
First off a couple of special announcements.
We want to thank you all for your nominations for Creative Loafing’s Best of the Bay 2017! Later in the month, voting will start and we’ll most likely need your help once again. For now, mark your calendars and check back on cltampa.com/botb2017 later in July.
In the meantime, if you’re interested in a free fitness consultation from ETTampa, email Nick at elementaltampa@gmail.com. He’s offering up a 30-min phone/Skype call, regardless of location.
Training Recap
While Nick is lifting more at Tampa Strength, he’s also using some new toys. One, called a landmine attachment, is especially great for rotational exercises.

Landmine attachment image courtesy of amazon.com
I’ve been making some adjustments due to the pregnancy even on the Peloton, since my heart rate spikes up faster these days during training. I’ve also been taking prenatal yoga classes, which teaches you how to move with your body when you’re going through some pretty incredible changes. It’s definitely helped me to see what an important need for prenatal and even beyond (fourth trimester) yoga is and has me thinking it’s an area I might want to take my training.
Now onto the main events.
Many people have been talking about the recent USA Today article, “Coconut oil isn’t healthy. It’s never been healthy.”
People have been reaching out to Nick for his opinions, which is ironic because it followed a blog post that he published a few weeks before this one was published. The USA Today article reports that the American Heart Association’s (AHA) recommendation is NOT to use coconut oil because it could raise LDL cholesterol which could lead to cardiovascular disease.
Coconut oil is almost entirely saturated fat, which we’ve discussed the beneficial aspects of before on the podcast, but it is still being vilified by certain organizations. Stating that coconut oil doesn’t provide any health benefits is untrue; it’s great for skin, anti-pathogenic and does contain medium chain triglycerides, which are less likely to be stored as fat.
After examining the details, the article’s title is total click-bait because it actually goes on to discuss why you should keep your coconut oil including how coconut oil won’t turn to trans fat like certain vegetable oils, which the AHA recommends you use.
Our recommendation is not to throw the baby out with the bath water. Use coconut oil in moderation and check out some more facts, like those in the TIME article on coconut oil, which is more non-partisan.
The 1776 Edition of the Macros Game
For anyone that is unfamiliar with the Macros Game, it is a nutritional trivia game that requires the contestants (Nick and I) to guess the macronutrient (fat, protein or carbohydrate) when given its amount in one serving of a specific food.
So, since this comes out in time for Independence day, we’re doing a 1776 edition of the Macros game featuring foods that were popular at that time and are still available today (in some form or another).
You should definitely listen to the full game on the podcast. Some of the food items featured in this edition of the Macros game include:
- mutton (adult sheep – which particularly grossed me out)
- oysters
- scrapple (one of Nick’s fav’s)
- corn chowder
This Macros game has a shocking result so make sure you listen! Feel free to play along and send us your scores.
As we wrap it up, here’s a friendly reminder to take advantage of the ETTampa free fitness consultation. If you are looking for a little guidance, whether it be for exercise, nutrition or even accountability, send Nick an email at elementaltampa@gmail.com. We’d also love it if you connect with us on social media (Facebook, Instagram or Twitter).
Links for this week’s episode
Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/nick-burch-702220833/whats-up-with-coconut-oil-a
Website: http://addictedtofitness.libsyn.com/the-fourth-of-july-edition-of-the-macros-game
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