CrossFit South Bay | Hermosa Beach, CA

EPA+DHA: cheap health insurance

Why do we recommend omega-3 (EPA+DHA) fish oil supplements? The answer is three-fold:

1. It’s an athletic aid and strong anti-inflammatory for recovery and reaching body composition goals
2. It helps in ‘repairing’ damage done via inflammation over a long time eating a SAD or even quasi-SAD diet (standard American diet — high in refined carbohydrate, hydrogenated oils, low in nutrients, fiber, omega-3′s)
3. You probably don’t get enough of it in your diet (and even if you do, it may need to be added to ‘combat’ the other inflammatory elements of your diet).

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential fatty acids. The ‘essential’ part means they are required for functions in the body but the body can’t make them, so you have to ingest them. Omega-3 fatty acids can be found in fish (especially high concentrations in sardines, salmon, halibut, mackrel) as well as other seafood, some plants, and nuts/nut oils. Omega-3′s play a crucial role in brain function, are highly concentrated in the brain and appear to be important for cognitive and behavioral function (this is key for pregnant women and infants, too).

Omega-3′s have been the subject of thousands of scientific papers in the last decade where the dietary

A 5oz filet of baked salmon contains about 1.8g EPA+DHA

research outcomes have been shown to be overwhelmingly positive at reducing the risk for a range of inflammatory diseases. Here’s a short list of the disease risk reduction associated with increased dietary omega-3 and supplementation: coronary heart disease (the most research has been done here), rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disorders, many types of cancers, macular degeneration, pre-term birth, psoriasis, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes, mental disorders (autism, depression, postpartum depression, bi-polar disorder, borderline personality disorder, impaired cognitive development in infants and children), acne, asthma.

It’s all too often that popular media make a particular research paper the focus of an article, draw conclusions out of the context of the overall research (or lack thereof) on the subject, misinterpret or extrapolate the paper’s conclusions to apply elsewhere. Just as common, a product will imply it’s healthfulness based on the presence of a vitamin, ‘antioxidants’, the absence of fat or carbohydrates. Usually there is no mention of the quantity of the substance/vitamin, its integrity, absorbability, or obviously of the context of an otherwise possibly unhealthy product.

Not surprisingly, many products are jumping on the fortification wagon and touting their omega-3 content. Foods claiming omega-3 fortification are not all equally beneficial; many are capitalizing on the positive attention omega-3′s are getting regardless of the type of omega-3 or the health-promoting qualities of the rest of that product’s ingredients (post findings/predictions to comments… I predict Ben & Jerry’s Oh-Mega Mega-hubby, the sequel/solution to the Chubby Hubby).

There is an important difference between the three main types of omega-3′s: EPA,  DHA and ALA. The SAD diet is deficient in omega-3 fatty acids overall with the majority of omega-3′s in the form of ALA (from mostly vegetable oils). Most of the beneficial effects of omega-3 fatty acids are due to EPA and DHA.  ALA can be converted to EPA and DHA, but very little ALA is, so it’s most effective to both eat and supplement with sources of EPA and DHA. Their role, along with their counterpart omega-6′s role in managing inflammation is summarized nicely by Chris the other week: here. Omega-6′s are considered too abundant in supply in the SAD which it is strongly speculated through research so far (though not human) plays a large role in helping cause the diseases that omega-3 supplementation reduces the risk for.

Animals fed grain/corn (including humans) have fat content it high in omega-6, low in omega-3. The majority of meats in grocery stores/restaurants come from feed-lot operations that use only grain/corn.

The dietary ratio considered ‘safe’ for omega-6 to omega-3 is 2:1, but many experts suggest tipping the scale in favor of omega-3′s if you have a diet or have had a diet over the years that puts you at risk for inflammatory diseases. The SAD typically has 12-25 times the level of omega-6 that is recommended and is deficient in omega-3′s, largely a result of the high levels of omega-6 fats from commonly used vegetable oils in packaged/processed foods, as well as the omega-6 fats that predominate in the great majority of animal products as a result of being grain/corn-fed instead of grass-fed.

Robb Wolf recommends fish oil supplement in a range from 0.5-1g per 10 lbs body weight (the upper end being for those with body fat to lose). No upper limit has been established by the FDA yet, but recommendations are now a measly 1-2g/day. Omega-3′s are a blood thinner so you should talk to your doctor if you take blood thinners, or minimize supplementation if you’re likely to be wounded (police, active duty, etc.). Make sure you buy quality fish oil caps and research brands first. Naturemade and Kirkland (Costco) sell cost-efficient caps in bulk. Contaminants such as heavy metals and PCB’s can be an issue with low-grade fish oil. Check out this survey of companies done by EDF.

Dietary sources of omega-3′s:

• Meat: omega-3 (EPA+DHA) content of seafood (note: farmed fish are often grain fed so buy wild caught and use this as a guide); grass-fed animals contain 2-4x the amount of omega-3, omega-3 eggs
• Vegetables, nuts & seeds: leafy greens, brussel sprouts, walnuts, flax, hemp seed, chia (ALA)
• Oils: watch out for high omega-6 oils such as vegetable and canola oils (found in most packaged food). Use coconut oil and olive oil for cooking; mac nut, and oils derived from high omega-3 sources (flax, hemp), are great, though these shouldn’t be heated to high temperatures (less than 160F).

Zesty Salmon

0.5-0.7 lb salmon (wild caught Alaskan)
3T lemon juice
1T EVOO
1T crushed garlic
1T minced onion + remainder of onion cut into rings
2tsp zest of lemon
1 tsp dry dill

Rinse the salmon and place in a medium baking/casserole dish/cookie sheet. Rub in lemon zest with fingers. Make a mixture as follows and pour over salmon. Add onion rings, cover and put in fridge to marinate 3+ hours, or just bake at 350 for 10-12 min (or 10 min per 1″ thickness).

WOD 2/23/2010

A. On the minute for 10 minutes: Hang Snatch x 2 score is max weight lifted in 30 reps

B.Tabata Ring Rows (3 min)
2 min rest
Tabata V-Ups (3 min)
2 Min Rest
Tabata Ring Dips (3min)
2 min Rest
Tabata Jumping Backsquats (45/33) (3 min)
Score is lowest number of reps in each round.

C. Overhead Squat 2-2-2
Snatch Drop 3-3-3
Snatch Balance 1-1-1-1-1
Snatch Push Press 1-1-1-1-1

CrossFit Rugby

Back squat 5-5-5
Deadllift 5-5-5

500M Row Max Effort

AMRAP 15
Suicide Run
12 Push-Ups
12 Box Jumps