Apples

An apple a day will keep the doctor away, well it certainly will if you pelt him with them!

But seriously apples will help you prevent a wide range of illnesses.

A medium apple contains around 14% of you vitamin C.

Around 5% of your potassium

17% of your dietary fibre, which will help you feel fuller which 

5% of your vitamin B6.

There is also studies that suggest that apples have anti cancer, anti depression and anti inflammatory properties.

Apples also contain the same antioxidants as green tea ( catechin ) which has been shown to improve brain and muscle function, this means that apples will help help protect you from Alzheimer's disease in the same way green tea does.

They also have the same antioxidants found in coffee ( chlorgentic acid ) which has been shown to lower blood sugar and aid weight loss.

Lower cholesterol which reduces the risk of heart disease.

Apples help clean your teeth, this is not a replacement from frequent brushing/ flossing and you should also be aware that too many apples can weaken the enamel of your teeth.

Help with constipation.

Apples apparently give you as much energy as coffee in a morning, I am on the fence about this one but if anyone has had any experience of this let me know.

Remember to get the full benefit from your apples then you need to eat the skin.

As far as I can tell green apples have a more nutrients

than red but to be honest I would say eat which ever you prefer the taste of.

If you ever get chance to try a Jazz Apple then take it, they are possibly the most delicious apples in the world, I tried them at the Body Expo this year and wish I had signed up to monthly deliveries  of them!

Music and Exercise

Music is amazing, it can effect your mood, focus and even restore memories.

It has a massive effect on the brain and has been used to help people suffering from Alzhimer's disease.

Music also effects our cardiovascular system affecting blood pressure, heart rate and stress levels.

In the fitness realm pretty much any endurance athlete will tell you that  music with help you go faster, for longer.

Music reduces your perceived effort and pain, if you don't feel the pain as much then you can push past where you would normally stop.

 Of course you need to pick the right music,Enya or David Gray are not going to quite cut it I'm afraid.

Faster music works the best, just think of all the songs that come on the radio that give you an energy boost and suddenly you want to get drunk and go dancing!

If you are not currently listening to any music then maybe you should re think buying that I pod, if music can help make plants grow or cows produce more milk then imagine what it can do for your performance!

If you are a runner be warned, be careful when listening to music when running near traffic.
If you lose concentration or don't hear a car coming you are more likely to be hit.

The other danger is if might unwittingly start belting out Ke$ha while on the treadmill!

Pomegranate

Pomegranate is amazing for your health, particularly for men, being a fully qualified man myself I thought I would blast through it's benefits!

Pomegranate has a good amount of vitamin C and K.

Good source of fibre.

Has some zinc and potassium.

Helps prevent and stop the spread of prostate cancer.

Good for your heart health, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, if you are taking anything for high cholesterol or high blood pressure then please check with you doctor if you decide to add pomegranate to your diet.


Pomegranate juice can help reduce dental plague, you still need to brush and floss though!

Can help give you strong, lustrous hair.

A strong anti inflammatory, from muscle soreness to arthritis!

Reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

May help with preventing Alzheimer's disease.

Can help with erectile dysfunction.

Preparing the fruit can be a bit of ball ache but going on from " Me man, You puny fruit"!
I got my biggest, most powerful knife and cut it into quarters then went feral and ripped it apart with my hands to release the seeds!

You can buy pomegranate pre prepared and get buy the juice to wash it all down!

Coconut Meat

Everyone seems to always be raving about how wonderful coconut water and coconut oil are but what about the meat? 

Coconut meat has good levels of fibre, 80g gives you 29% of you RDA

Helps boost testosterone levels.

More than half of your RDA of Manganese which helps your body break down fats and proteins, helps your immune and nervous systems and also helps your body use other nutrients like vitamin E and iron.

13% of your RDA of potassium per 80g which is great for helping your body balance your fluid levels.

Now the really interesting thing that I came across is to do with the fat that's in coconut meat.

Coconut meat it's self has a high amount of saturated fat, however the type of fat in coconut gets broken down into energy very quickly so it does not get chance to get laid down as fat in your body.

I found that to be quite interesting but the bit that tipped me over the edge was it's potential to help people suffering from dementia.

Your brain likes to get it's energy from glucose but diseases like Alzheimer's make it harder for your brain to do this.

This is where coconut meat steps into the ring because your brain can happily get fuel from fat that has been broken down from the coconut!

For more in depth reading just google coconut and Alzheimer's.