As you all already know, Pete and Stacy both did very well at Sectionals in St. Charles, MO and qualified for Regionals. The top 4 men and top 4 women at Regionals will qualify to compete in the 2010 CrossFit Games.

Affiliate Teams will also be competing at Regionals this year. The top 8 Affiliate Teams will also qualify to compete in the 2010 CrossFit Games Affiliate Cup Challenge.

All CrossForters are invited to join us in Colorado for Regionals. If you have attended a CrossFit competition in the past, you know just how exciting this is. For those of you who have yet to experience this, what are you waiting for?!

Below is all of the details surrounding Regionals. I have included the airline and hotel details of Billifer's travel itinerary. Hope to see you in Colorado!

Regionals

Friday, April 30, 2010 - Sunday, May 2, 2010

500 Fairgrounds Dr.
Castle Rock, CO 80104

Affiliate Competition begins at 8:00am on Friday, April 30, 2010 and concludes on Sunday, May 2, 2010.

Individual Competition begins at 8:00am on Saturday, May 1, 2010 and concludes on Sunday, May 2, 2010.

Leave

Thursday, April 29, 2010
AirTran Airways Flight #676

Depart: 11:46am Milwaukee General Mitchell Airport
Arrive: 1:16pm Denver International Airport

Return

Monday, May 3, 2010
AirTran Airways Flight #346

Depart: 7:45am Denver International Airport
Arrive: 11:00am Milwaukee General Mitchell Airport

Hotel

Holiday Inn Express
884 Park Street
Castle Rock, CO 80104
Phone: 303-660-9733

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From Wikipedia:

Gout is a medical condition that usually presents with recurrent attacks of acute inflammatory arthritis (red, tender, hot, swollen joint). It is caused by elevated levels of uric acid in the blood. The uric acid crystallizes and deposits in joints, tendons, and surrounding tissues.

I have heard that the pain experienced during an episode of gout is akin to having someone walk on your eyeballs. Sounds like some pretty serious stuff if you ask me.

We have all probably heard that gout is brought on by consuming too much red meat and alcohol. This misconception has been around for well over 100 years and just won't go away. This past Christmas, while enjoying a delicious feast of prime rib roast and wine with our extended family, someone chimed in, half joking, that we were all going to get gout. Where did this faulty science originate?

The faulty logic comes from the following: There is a protein compound known as purines that is found in every cell of your body as well as virtually every food; meat having the highest concentration. When these purines are broken down by your cells, uric acid is produced. If we go back to the definition of gout, we will see that gout is caused by elevated levels of uric acid in the blood. At first glance this seems to be solid science, but the problem is that the production of uric acid doesn't necessarily result in an elevated level in your blood.

If you're a little confused, think about this in terms of cholesterol. If you eat a lot of dietary cholesterol, that will not, in and of itself, have a direct effect on the level of cholesterol in your blood. This is because your body auto-regulates itself and slows down its own production of cholesterol if you are eating plenty of it. Back to uric acid, a high purine diet will have a negligible effect on uric acid levels in the blood because the kidneys increase their excretion of uric acid.

So what causes uric acid levels to increase? I know this will shock you, but like the other diseases of civilization, insulin resistance, hyperinsulinemia, and fructose are to blame. When one is insulin resistant, uric acid excretion by the kidney is decreased. Therefore, anything that raises insulin levels would in turn raise uric acid levels and cause gout.

Whereas glucose indirectly increases uric acid levels by decreasing uric acid excretion, fructose has a more profound, double whammy effect by not only increasing uric acid production, but by also reducing the excretion of uric acidy by the kidney.

Why then has the sugar/fructose hypothesis been ignored by the masses? It all comes down to money. In the 1960s, shortly after the formation of this hypothesis, allopurinol, a drug for curing gout, was discovered and funding for nutritional research was cut-off. Why spend time and money researching something that they could now cure?

Even more frustrating is a 2004 article in the New England Journal of Medicine by Walter Willett, Gary Curhan, and their Harvard colleagues reporting that men with gout seemed to eat more meat than healthy men. In it, Gary Curhan admits that he might have once known that fructose raised uric acid levels, but that it had slipped his mind. He also acknowledged that he never knew that sucrose was half fructose! Remember, this guy is regarded as the ultimate authority on gout. The establishment can truly be a scary thing.

To sum this all up, if someone you love is suffering from gout, have them avoid sugar, especially fructose, while still enjoying the oh so delicious rib eye steak.

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I picked this wonderful book up several months ago and learned quite a bit when it comes to cooking with fat. What I am going to share with you today is the recipe for Bacon Mayonnaise (p. 101):

• 1 egg yolk
• 3/4 tsp Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 1/2 cup liquid bacon fat

Combine the egg yolk, mustard, and lemon juice in the small bowl of a food processor or in a blender and process to mix. Season with salt and pepper.

Have the bacon fat liquid, but not hot. With the machine running, gradually add the bacon fat until the mixture starts to stiffen and emulsify, about 2 minutes. Once it starts to emulsify, you can add the fat more quickly. If the mayonnaise is too thick, just blend in 1 teaspoon of boiling water to thin it. Taste and adjust the seasoning.

I made this the other day and it was actually quite tasty. My only recommendation is to be sure to let the bacon fat cool before adding it to the mixture. If the fat is too warm still, it will not emulsify properly and you will have runny mayonnaise.

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Chad from Ultimate Test Lab will be coming back to the Fort on Saturday, February 27th to do some testing. It will have been a little under a year since their last visit. It will be exciting to see the progress you all have made. If you missed out on the testing the first time, this will be a great opportunity to set a baseline.

The 3 tests beings offered are:

1. Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR) - This test lets you know how many calories you would burn in a day if you did nothing other than sitting still in a chair. Makes calorie counting much more meaningful. Do not eat or have any type of caffeine before taking this test. It will take just under 15 minutes to complete. Cost = $50
2. Hydrostatic Body Composition - This is an underwater test to accurately determine your body fat percentage. This test can be truly humbling for some and motivating for others. There are no restrictions on eating or drinking prior to this test. Please wear a swim suit, bring a towel, and allow 5 to 10 minutes for completion of this test. Cost = $40
3. VO2 Max - This will determine your aerobic and anaerobic thresholds. Cost = $60

Sign-up for all 3 tests and the cost will be reduced to only $135.

The costs listed above are direct for Ultimate Test Lab. We will not be making any money off of this. We want to make it as accessible to all of you as possible. We must have a minimum of 12 tests though to make it worth Chad's time.

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Our next ramp-up session has been scheduled so sign-up now! As a reminder, all new members must successfully complete our 6 class ramp-up session before they may join our regular group classes. This ramp-up session is limited to 12 participants so be sure to reserve your spot today by paying through our online store. The schedule for the this ramp-up will be:

• Monday, March 8th at 7:00pm
• Wednesday, March 10th at 7:00pm
• Saturday, March 13th at 8:00am
• Monday, March 15th at 7:00pm
• Wednesday, March 17th at 7:00pm
• Thursday, March 18th at 7:00pm

If you are unable to attend any of the classes, you will need to contact Jennie to schedule a private make-up. The cost to make-up a class is $35.

Additionally, if these dates/times do not work for you or you would prefer to go through ramp-up by yourself, you may contact Jennie to schedule your private ramp-up classes. The cost of the 1-on-1 program is $150.

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There have been a couple studies getting some attention lately. Here is a quick rundown:

In a study, recently published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, Dr. Krauss and his team concluded:

A meta-analysis of prospective epidemiologic studies showed that there is no significant evidence for concluding that dietary saturated fat is associated with an increased risk of CHD or CVD. More data are needed to elucidate whether CVD risks are likely to be influenced by the specific nutrients used to replace saturated fat.

Also in the news, is a new article in Men's Health. Here is Dr. B G's summary of the article: Krauss is in the HOUSE: 'Low-fat Message Was a MISTAKE'

I leave you with a quote from Petro Dobromylskyj:

There is a general feeling in THINCS and the Nutrition and Metabolism Society that 2010 could be a good year for saturophiles and the rest of mankind too of course, should they care to listen.

Meat On!

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