Caffeine from your cup: A tool in your workout arsenal

Peter Valencia

Could the superpower from your cup of coffee serve as an effective pre-workout regimen? As it turns out, it definitely can help you with your fitness goals. Speed & AgilityIf you're looking for something that can give you a little more oomph during your endurance exercises — think swimming and running — a 2017 study found that "caffeine has the most pronounced performance-enhancing effects on movement velocity"  Reduces Muscle Pain and StiffnessAnother study published in the last decade discovered those who had been treated to caffeine were more likely to report less soreness during days two and three of recovery...

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A cool way to refresh a hot summer: Cold brew!

Peter Valencia

Summer is in full swing, the heat wave is out in full force across the country and many of you are probably taking a break from the hot drinks in search of something a little more refreshing. For starters — Cold Brew is the process of leaching flavor from the beans directing using water produces a chemical profile different from conventional brewing methods. Coffee is steeped over 12–15 hours, a slow brewing method and ultimately creates fuller-bodied, sweeter and less acidic flavor profile. AND No — Cold brew is not just hot coffee poured over ice. It’s totally different. Cold...

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Coffee & Work — A winning combo

Peter Valencia

Perhaps nothing else is more attributed to the productivity and work than the almighty caffeine laden hot beverage that we know of as coffee. As most of us start our day with a cup of it, sometimes maybe even end the day with one smooth cup. Society has greatly appreciate the role of coffee in making us successful and persistent throughout the day and now the scientific evidence is here to back that up. According to a recent study at UCDavis, participants who had consumed caffeinated coffee rated their group colleagues and themselves higher in sociability than those with decaf...

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A (quick) history lesson on coffee shops

Peter Valencia

The modern-day coffee shop has undergone a radical transformation since it’s preconception of ancient tea-houses and coffee sharing spaces across the world. Let’s take a quick step back into the 17th century, shall we? It was the time that coffee first appeared outside of the Ottoman empire and into Europe, migrants settling into Italy, officially hosting the first coffeehouse in Venice in 1629 and then quickly expanding through the continent through the end of the century. Levied by the popularity of the coffeehouses, they overtook as England’s main meeting spot. Over the centuries, coffeehouses transcended across the Atlantic, many from...

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Brewing a new era: What is third-wave coffee?

Peter Valencia

When you drink your coffee, you may not think much about where your coffee comes from. For many, coffee is simply a preference of light or dark roasts, black or with creamer and sometimes hot or iced. To the coffee purists, debates over light or dark roasts go down the same path as politics and religion — it gets complicated. To coffee purists, origin, roasts, and brewing methods are integral to the experience First, did you know there is an industry called “Third-Wave Coffee” or “Speciality Coffee”? — This begs anyone to wonder what about the First wave (think your...

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Hario V60 Pour Over

Peter Valencia

The Hario V60 Pour Over combines chemistry, glass products, and coffee. The company Hario, founded in Tokyo in 1921 started by producing practical physical and chemical glass products. After several years of research, they produced Hario Glass and launched it into the coffee scene. The V60 was launched in 2005 and has become Hario’s best coffee invention yet. The name uses your geometry skills (sorry....no Pythagorean theorem) and V60 comes from vector 60, the 60° angle of its cone. It was designed for better heat retention, which leads to better extraction. Place filter into V60 and pre-wet filter. It sounds...

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