YERBA MATE

Bought Brendan Brazier's (Vegan Triathlete) book Thrive Diet and love it because I do a few sprint triathlons as well as practice and teach barre/cycle/pilates and of course do yoga in-between everything else.

I like the idea of fueling the body with pure ingredients that the body can digest and put into action right away, ingredients that are from the earth, in it's natural state - not manufactured in a factory or laboratory with ingredients that I've never heard of or can't even pronounce! SO in my research with Brendan's books and beyond I came across Yerba Mate.

Yerba Mate's (yer-bah-mah-tay) claim to fame is it has "the strength of coffee, the health benefits of tea and the euphoria of chocolate all in one beverage". It gives the body both energy and nutrition. It does contain caffeine, theophylline and theobromine (all stimulants in coffee, tea and chocolate) BUT unlike coffee it has low tannin content and is not acid forming.

It is made from naturally caffeinated leaves from the South American rainforest's Holly Tree.

These leaves provide 24 vitamin and minerals, 15 amino acids and antioxidants. It practically holds "all of the vitamins necessary to sustain life" according to a Pasteur Institute study. The rainforest people find invigoration, focus, nourishment and rejuvenate benefits from Yeba Mate.

I brought to class last Saturday. I made it in my French Press coffee maker - buy loose-leaf and make in the french press or even can make in your espresso maker! If you buy the Mate Gourd let me know:)
You can find at Whole Foods or other health food markets!