Health benefits of Dark Chocolate
If you follow my food log daily you will sometimes see I have some random pieces of Dove dark chocolates. I do not suggest you make this a daily habit but a couple of times a week should be sufficient.
Chocolate is made from plants, which means it contains many of the health benefits of dark vegetables. These benefits are from flavonoids, which act as antioxidants. Antioxidants protect the body from aging caused by free radicals, which can cause damage that leads to heart disease. Dark chocolate contains a large number of antioxidants (nearly 8 times the number found in strawberries). Flavonoids also help relax blood pressure through the production of nitric oxide, and balance certain hormones in the body.
- Lower Blood Pressure: Studies have shown that consuming a small bar of dark chocolate everyday can reduce blood pressure in individuals with high blood pressure.
- Lower Cholesterol: Dark chocolate has also been shown to reduce LDL cholesterol (the bad cholesterol) by up to 10 percent.
- it stimulates endorphin production, which gives a feeling of pleasure
- it contains serotonin, which acts as an anti-depressant
- it contains theobromine, caffeine and other substances which are stimulants
-Food Log- Thursday 1/13/11
Something very strange happened early Thursday morning that has never happened before. I woke up at 2:20am thinking it was 5:20am and got up to get ready for work. I went downstairs did my normal routine. Which is letting Drago outside putting a coffee in the Keurig making my oatmeal and protein shake. I sat down finished my food and while waiting for my coffee to cool off I look up at the stove to check the time and it says 2:26am! I think for sure that the clocks are wrong. I pull out my phone and sadly enough it was 2:26am lol. Good thing I didn't drink that coffee because I was easily able to go back to sleep till I had to get up at my normal 5:15am time.
- 2:26am 1/2 cup oatmeal one scoop whey, one scoop whey shake
- 5:30am 1/2 cup oatmeal one scoop whey, one scoop whey shake
- 9:20am 2 4oz cans of chicken, 6 oz sweet potato
- 12:30pm protein pancakes
- 4pm 1 cup oats w/ one scoop whey, whole wheat flat bread toast w/ 1 tbsp natural peanut butter
- 4:30 workout
- 6pm 54g whey , ramen noodle cabbage salad
- 9pm 5oz ny strip steak, cabbage salad
My 6pm client brought me some ramen noodle cabbage salad to try. I had never had this before and it is TASTY I'll be putting the recipe up later on.