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Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Health
- Yahoo
Dietitians Say You Don't Need To Take Electrolytes—These Everyday Foods Already Contain Enough
"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links." Electrolyte drinks are everywhere right now. Between Liquid I.V., LMNT, BodyArmor, and more, everyone wants to make sure they're hydrated and ready to take on the day feeling their best. But what you might not realize is that everyday foods are packed with these minerals, too—and you probably already eat them. 'Electrolytes are minerals, such as sodium, potassium, magnesium, and calcium, that regulate fluid balance, nerve signals, and muscle contractions,' explains registered dietitian Keri Gans, RDN. 'They are vital, but most people don't need to worry about them every day. Unless you're sweating heavily or exercising for long periods, a well-balanced diet will provide everything you need.' Meet the experts: Keri Gans, RDN, is a New York-based registered dietitian and author of The Small Change Diet. Molly Kimball, RD, CSSD, is a New Orleans-based registered dietitian. Julie Stefanski, RDN, is a registered dietitian nutritionist and spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics. Sweat is mostly water and sodium, along with some potassium, calcium, and magnesium, adds registered dietitian Molly Kimball, RD, CSSD. That's why it's important to replenish these minerals, but only after you sweat buckets—like after long endurance workout sessions (anything over 60 to 90 minutes) such as marathon training, especially in hot weather, or when you're sweating heavily during your hot yoga class. While drinks are a convenient way to replenish your electrolytes when you're on the go, whole foods provide electrolytes (along with other nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and antioxidants) without the added sugars or artificial colors that many drinks contain, Gans says. It's important to consume 300 to 600 milligrams of sodium right after an intense sweat sesh because you lose a lot of this electrolyte with sweat, Kimball adds. You'll want to also eat some potassium, magnesium, and calcium, but because you don't lose as much of those through sweat, there's no need to hit a quota—all that matters is they make an appearance on your plate. Wondering which foods contain the most electrolytes? The next time you go grocery shopping, keep these expert-approved recs in mind—no sports drink required. Why Electrolytes Are Important Sodium, in conjunction with potassium, regulates blood pressure, helps your muscles contract, and maintains your body's fluid balance, per the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Adults should consume no more than 1,500 milligrams per day, according to the American Heart Association (AHA). (Too much sodium can put you at risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke, per the CDC.) However, athletes may need at least 2,000 milligrams of sodium per day (the equivalent of slightly less than one tablespoon of table salt)—if not more—to replace the sweat they've lost during activity. Potassium is a necessary electrolyte for muscle, kidney, and heart function, according to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and women need 2,600 milligrams per day. Magnesium is important for muscle and nerve function, blood sugar control, and blood pressure regulation, per the NIH, and women need 310 to 320 milligrams each day. Calcium plays a role in heart rhythm, the dilation and contraction of blood vessels, and blood clotting, per the AHA. Women need 1,000 to 1,200 milligrams each day, according to the NIH. The 10 Best Electrolyte-Packed Foods After a long, sweaty workout, consider adding these expert-recommended foods to your meals to replenish your electrolytes. Each option is a good source of one—or more—of the main electrolytes. You can combine more than one of these foods into a meal to eat a mix of all of them. 1. Avocados According to Gans, half an avocado contains: - About 700 milligrams of potassium- 20 milligrams of magnesium Both Gans and Kimball sing the praises of this fruit when it comes to replenishing potassium and magnesium. Avocado toast or a salad with half an avocado is an easy post-workout meal to reap its benefits. Adding a quarter teaspoon of table salt will get you 600 milligrams of sodium, too. 2. Cottage Cheese A of cottage cheese packs:- 355 milligrams of sodium- 117 milligrams of potassium- 94 milligrams of calcium- Nine milligrams of magnesium When you think of cottage cheese, you likely think of hitting your protein goals. But this type of cheese should be considered for its electrolytes as well, says Kimball. To pack even more electrolytes into your next snack, pair cottage cheese with a fruit, like berries, or a vegetable, adds registered dietitian Julie Stefanski, RDN. 3. Potatoes Gans says one medium sweet potato (about five inches long) contains:- Around 540 milligrams of potassium- 30 milligrams of magnesium (about a half-cup of chopped potatoes) contains:- 446 milligrams of potassium- 22 milligrams of magnesium White potatoes and sweet potatoes are good sources of potassium, says Stefanski. Gans loves roasted sweet potatoes with a sprinkle of sea salt for a post-workout dose of potassium and sodium. 4. Spinach According to Gans, one cup of cooked spinach delivers:- 157 milligrams of magnesium- 840 milligrams of potassium This leafy green is Popeye's favorite vegetable for a reason. 'These greens have a rather strong bite, so pairing them with strong seasoning can help balance out the somewhat bitter flavor profile,' Stefanski says. A simple stir fry with tofu, spinach, and mushrooms is a good source of magnesium, Gans adds. 5. Bananas Gans says one medium banana is good for:- 420 milligrams of potassium Tropical fruits like bananas are the highest in potassium of all fruits, says Stefanski. A classic banana smoothie with Greek yogurt is a satisfying post-workout drink packed with over 400 milligrams potassium and protein, Gans says. The Tropical Paradise Electrolytes Stick from Just Ingredients, on the other hand, only has 300 milligrams of potassium. 6. Watermelon Per Gans, one cup of diced watermelon contains:- 170 milligrams of potassium Watermelon is a summer staple, providing a ton of flavor and hydration when the temps rise. But did you know this fruit is also rich in potassium? One cup of diced watermelon has about as much potassium as LMNT's watermelon salt flavor—sans the stevia. 7. Tomatoes Gans says one large tomato delivers:- About 400 milligrams of potassium The fruit that makes regular appearances in your favorite dishes like pasta and salad does more than just add flavor. One large tomato delivers almost as much potassium as a banana—about 400 milligrams, says Gans, which makes spaghetti with tomato sauce the perfect post-race meal because of its carb and electrolyte content. 8. Pumpkin Seeds According to Gans, a one-ounce (or quarter-cup) serving of these easy-to-eat seeds contains:- 150 milligrams of magnesium- 230 milligrams of potassium Typically thought of as a fall staple, pumpkin seeds can be a year-round favorite for those looking for a good source of magnesium and potassium. In comparison, LMNT's unflavored mix has only 60 milligrams of magnesium and 200 milligrams of potassium. 9. Greek Yogurt Gans says six ounces of Greek yogurt contains:- 240 milligrams of potassium- 200 milligrams of calcium This protein-packed snack isn't only good for building muscle. Eating Greek yogurt after a workout will help you replenish lost electrolytes too. Feel free to eat the yogurt alongside a fruit like a banana, or add it to a smoothie for your hit of electrolytes. 10. Oranges Per Gans, one medium orange has: - 240 milligrams of potassium- 50 milligrams of calcium While oranges are primarily known for their vitamin C content, this fruit packs a punch in the potassium area as well. For comparison, the citrus salt flavor of the LMNT electrolyte drink mix only has 200 milligrams of potassium and no calcium. How To Eat Electrolyte-Packed Foods If you're sweating a lot, whether during workouts or just being outside all day, Gans suggests including electrolyte-rich foods in your meals and staying hydrated with plain water. 'For most people, drinking water regularly and maintaining a balanced diet are sufficient,' she says. (However, if you're not sweating excessively, you typically won't need to use multiple electrolyte products, unless you have a medical condition where it's necessary, Stefanski adds.) But there's a catch: 'An electrolyte food won't rehydrate you if you don't also consume enough fluids during and after exercise,' Stefanski says. In fact, you should drink three cups of water—or 24 ounces—for every pound you lose during a workout to replace the loss of fluids, according to Mass General Brigham. The amount of electrolytes you need in general post-workout will depend on the length and intensity of your workout or activity, the temperature and the humidity, your size as a person, and how much you sweat, says Stefanski. There's no one-size-fits-all answer because individual traits like body size and sex can affect how much you sweat and how many electrolytes you lose and need to replace, Gans adds. So, just make sure to hit the recommended daily allowances cited above. Still like your electrolyte drink mixes after a sweaty run? Consuming an electrolyte drink with electrolyte-rich foods is usually fine, especially after a tough workout or a hot, sweaty day, Gans explains. Just make sure you're not overdoing it—very high doses of any electrolyte (i.e. more than the recommended dietary allowances mentioned above) can cause gastrointestinal upset and interfere with your heart rhythm and blood pressure regulation, which may lead to death, Stefanski says. But eating everyday foods—like potatoes, bananas, Greek yogurt, avocados, and more—can deliver the correct amount of electrolytes without having to worry about going over. (And they taste way better, too!) So the next time you're making your grocery list, don't forget about these mineral-packed options that keep your body functioning at its best. You Might Also Like Jennifer Garner Swears By This Retinol Eye Cream These New Kicks Will Help You Smash Your Cross-Training Goals
The Guardian
4 hours ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Bounce legend Big Freedia on going gospel: ‘I never heard 'God doesn't love gay folks'. God loves us all'
On stage at Nashville Pride festival on a sweltering June afternoon, Big Freedia is her usual boisterously commanding self. She invites volunteers and the sign-language interpreter to join her and her dancers in getting down to bounce music, the relentlessly kinetic style of hip-hop for which she has become a figurehead in her native New Orleans. Then she pauses for a brief heart-to-heart with the audience. 'I don't know if y'all know this, but I started in the church,' she says. Big Freedia's forthcoming album, Pressing Onward, is a gospel record and she is keen to stress that she isn't abandoning her core audience. The gay, gender-fluid rapper and reality TV star exhorts every kind of body to shake it and is unequivocal about her support for all marginalised people; her reputation led Beyoncé and Drake to sample her on some of their most successful tracks. 'This album is for us,' she emphasises. 'It is for people who are LGBTQ and who love God.' When the beat of a new song, Take My Hand, kicks into double time, just the way a sanctified rhythm section would in church, she brings gospel catharsis to queer people in the same southern state where the US supreme court recently upheld a ban on transgender youth healthcare, at a time when LGBTQ+ progress across the US is meeting with forceful religious pushback. The week after, Big Freedia logs on to our video call to talk gospel. 'It's already an ass revival when they come to a Big Freedia show,' she says, referring to the mass twerking her shows inspire. 'And now they're coming to a Big Freedia gospel revival.' In one sense, it's a superficial distinction. Back in the church choir of Big Freedia's youth, she moved people to ecstatic dance: 'We would have lots of clapping, stomping of the feet, choreographed dancing that we would do in our robes.' The young singer, who back then could hit soprano range, showed such dedication and promise that the choir's director made her their assistant. By high school, Big Freedia was leading ensembles and envisioned that as her future. 'I thought I was going to be a famous choir director and that I was gonna be singing with choirs all around the world.' Big Freedia says she grew up feeling welcomed by the working-class Black Baptist congregation that knew her as Freddie Ross Jr – so much so that she used its name as the title of her new album. 'From the first time I walked in the doors, they put their arms around me and gave me the biggest hug,' she says. 'And they knew I was a young gay boy. I was loud and proud, even as a kid. We didn't have those moments of the pastor talking about: 'God doesn't love gay folks.' God loved us all.' She was also becoming part of a circle of rappers that were making boastful, bass-heavy New Orleans club music a vehicle for their party-starting queer and gender-expansive personae. The bounce scene beckoned. Big Freedia received assurance from her mum and other church folk that pursuing it wouldn't be sacrilegious, as long as she maintained her relationship with God – and she lets it be known, loudly and often, that she has. Before she took the stage at Pride, her team huddled and someone offered a prayer: 'God give Freedia the supernatural strength, in the name of Jesus, from the top of her head to the soles of her feet.' Big Freedia certainly isn't the first member of the LGBTQ+ community to contribute to the gospel canon. That lineage might be more widely acknowledged if generations of the music's pioneers hadn't been required to live closeted lives. 'Once you start historicising, you figure out that so much of what is sung in churches was created by, and continues to be created by, queer folks,' says Ashon Crawley, a religious studies scholar and cultural critic who draws on insight he gained as a young, Black, queer Pentecostal church musician. In her youth, Big Freedia recorded with the New Orleans Gospel Soul Children choir, but she had never contemplated her own gospel project until a 2024 session yielded the spiritually ebullient dance track Celebration. 'God put it on my heart that this is what I need to do,' she says. Big Freedia made clear to potential co-writers that she still wanted her audacious swagger and compassion to come through and that she wasn't out to convert anyone. 'I'm representing for the LGBTQ community,' she told them. 'So when they come here, the door is bust wide open and there is no judgment and you have this moment to lose it in the spirit.' Parson James, a Nashville-based pop artist who is queer and biracial, helped her craft some of the hooks. He had dealt with the homophobia of his small-town South Carolina congregation by distancing himself from the church and its music, so he was wary of returning to gospel, but he put his trust in Big Freedia's intentions. 'Doing it with someone who's so confident – you can't tell her shit – it just was amazing.' Pressing Onward has ample pop accessibility: over an 808 drum machine, Sunday Best blends hip-hop fashion flexes and brags about Black church finery. But the album is also lifted by unmistakable gospel elements: warm, reverberant eruptions of Hammond B3 organ; the taut, powerful unison of mass choir singing. Crawley sees Big Freedia's reclamation of these traditions as potentially subversive. 'It demonstrates to the church: your excluding of us doesn't have to be the end of our story; we find community with one another in ways that you both taught us how to do and in ways you could not anticipate. So perhaps you should pay more attention to the very thing that you have excluded.' Big Freedia initially planned to release Pressing Onward in June's Pride month, but in May her longtime partner, Devon Hurst, died unexpectedly of diabetes complications. She insisted on directing the choir at his funeral. The day before our interview, she closed on the house they had planned to buy together. 'My whole life has just changed within this last month,' she says. 'It has been an emotional rollercoaster, all the things that me and him had planned and the things we were doing and working on. And now I'm doing all these things by myself.' Even in her profound grief, she was willing to push the album release back only by a month. 'I need it more than anybody,' she says. 'And I know if I need it, there's other people out there in the world that need it. There's always someone who's depressed or going through a hard time. There is always someone who's fighting who they are, or fighting against a community of people that don't accept who they are. This album is not just for me – it's for the world.' Pressing Onward is released via Queen Diva Music on 8 August
USA Today
8 hours ago
- Sport
- USA Today
45 days until Saints season opener: Every player to wear No. 45
Looking through all the Saints players that have worn No. 45 There are 45 days remaining until the New Orleans Saints take the field for their 2025 regular season opener at home against the Arizona Cardinals. One returning name for new coach Kellen Moore is linebacker Nephi Sewell, who has worn No. 45 since 2022. Sewell is the 14th player to wear 45 in New Orleans history. This is the full list. Saints' History of No. 45 Jimmy Jordan was the first to wear 45 for the Saints, doing it for one game during the inaugural 1967 for the franchise. Elbert Kimbrough was the first defensive player to wear the number, doing so for 10 games in 1968 with an interception. Pete Athas had 2 interceptions and a fumble recovery during his only year as a Saint in 1971. The first four players to wear No. 45 for the Saints were gone before the next year and appeared in a combined 31 games. Jack Holmes broke that trend in 1978. Holmes was with the Saints for five years and 64 games, which turned out to be the longest stretch of any New Orleans player that has worn 45. Over his time with New Orleans, Holmes accounted for 6 touchdowns and had 846 yards from scrimmage. Of the 14 players that wore No. 45 with New Orleans, not one was drafted by the Saints. Six of them were with the team for more than one year. Four of those managed to stay with New Orleans for greater than two seasons. Fullback Jed Collins was one. Collins didn't fill up a stat sheet, but was with the Saints for three seasons and 47 games as a quality lead blocker. He also scored 7 touchdowns out of his 58 touches in short yardage situations. Garrett Griffin's time with New Orleans was also as a blocker, but he'd appear in just 20 games and catch five passes. Nephi Sewell has been with New Orleans for the last three years. Mostly a special teams contributor, Sewell's agility and experience as a college safety could earn him a role in defensive coverage packages. Sewell has appeared in just 27 games, but already third among players who have worn No. 45 with New Orleans.
New York Times
11 hours ago
- Sport
- New York Times
He ‘found his place in the world' through football. Then came 15 years of suffering
The University of Utah had eight sacks in its 31-17 win over Alabama in the 2009 Sugar Bowl. The fifth one that night in New Orleans did not make most fan-made highlight reels on YouTube. But it was the most compelling. For three seconds, No. 56 took on three SEC offensive linemen on his own before making a last-ditch, right-handed arm tackle of the quarterback. Advertisement It was both the final official tackle of Greg Newman's football career, and everything he represented every time he pressed his fingers into the turf. The Utes went on to cap a historic 13-0 season, helping elevate the program and university to a power conference just 18 months later. Greg, a former walk-on who was taller and much less hefty than prototypical defensive tackles, was essential to that season's perfection, coaches and former teammates said. Earlier in the season, he snagged an interception in a win against Wyoming even after his helmet was dislodged. Utah coach Kyle Whittingham said Greg's success was due to his 'sheer hard work and determination.' Many of Greg's teammates on defense went on to make tens of millions of dollars in the NFL. A couple won Super Bowls. For most fans, the Sugar Bowl was the last time they heard about Greg — who, like the estimated 98 percent of all college football players who don't go pro, would have to learn to live a life beyond game days. The game that gave him everything he wanted early on would play a significant role in keeping him from fulfilling his other goals: to have a family of his own. To work on Wall Street. To dig his snowboard into the powdery mountains above Park City. To live what he would often describe as a normal life. Football, where family members said Greg 'found his place in the world,' was also the stage on which he suffered irreversible damage. Greg became one of the several hundred former football players diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE), a degenerative brain disease caused by repetitive head trauma, for which football players are at a substantially higher risk. Fifteen years after Greg left football, on the evening of May 21, 2024, The Ventura County Star published a news roundup identifying a local man who, four days earlier, had been found dead near the Highway 101 South onramp near Thousand Oaks, Calif., about 45 miles north of downtown Los Angeles. Advertisement The 38-year-old, described in the article as homeless, was Greg. There were no signs of foul play, authorities reported. He was found face down with a sizable bruise on his forehead, believed to be a result of a fall. The summary of the end of Greg's life in the local newspaper totaled 139 words. An autopsy would eventually reveal the cause of death was multiple organ failure, caused by kratom, a stimulant supplement he believed would help him get his life back on track. Greg's only sibling, Laura Dyer, a nurse who works in home health and hospice, had long suspected that his football career was the primary reason for his decline into an eventual state of mania. CTE symptoms range from mood changes and aggression to memory loss and confusion. He may also have had, she would eventually learn, a genetic predisposition for psychotic breaks. 'He just started changing,' Greg's mother, Yvonne, said, 'and we couldn't figure out what was wrong.' The family would turn to the stacks of journals Greg left behind, which detailed his tortuous decline but left much unanswered. Laura needed to know if she was right. Less than 48 hours after Greg's body was discovered, in search of understanding, she made a call. Always oversized for his age, Greg played with older age groups in youth football. But the big guy with a goatee was 'a gentle giant' off the field, as Yvonne put it. He volunteered as Prince Charming, using his 6-foot-4, 250-pound frame at a fundraiser, where he danced with children who used wheelchairs. Another time he dressed up as Batman. 'Greg was always intense,' Yvonne said. 'But on the football field, he compartmentalized everything. Off the field, he loved to make you laugh. He'd do anything for you.' In the early 2000s, Greg starred as a linebacker for football powerhouse Westlake High School, often featured in the local paper that would inform the public of his death years later. 'I love contact,' he said in a December 2003 profile. Greg spent one season at Colorado before transferring to Utah in 2005. He was soon asked to move from linebacker to the defensive line, where he eventually thrived. Two years after his arrival, he was placed on scholarship. Advertisement Greg's senior year was his best. He had 50 total tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss. On a Utah defense that had seven starters drafted, it was Greg who was voted the team's most inspirational player by his peers after an undefeated season. 'It didn't matter what it was,' former Utah defensive coordinator Gary Andersen said, 'he was going to keep fighting and clawing until he won his matchups. That's what carried him through football.' It's what also nudged along a dream to fight and claw as a potential late-round draft pick or undrafted free agent ahead of the 2009 NFL Draft. But while training in the weeks leading up to that year's combine, Greg tore muscles in his hamstring, essentially ending his playing career. 'In some ways, it was painful for him to see friends go on and be successful,' said Laura's husband, Geoff, the insight coming from Greg's journals, which he filled for years. Greg played his final football game less than a month before he turned 23. By his 24th birthday, he began exhibiting worrisome behavior. 'That's when the voices started,' Laura said. Friends and roommates told his family that Greg's irritability would spike in an instant. He had mental lapses, when he would just stare for minutes on end. He spoke to walls. In 2011, Greg told Laura that angels in his mind told him to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the religion in which they were raised. He served in Florida, but was sent home after four months due to erratic behavior; the same thing happened when he was reassigned in Utah less than a year later. Several therapists and attempts at prescription treatments came and went. Some thought he was suffering from bipolar disorder, some thought he was schizoaffective. Nothing was ever definitive. But Greg's decline ebbed and flowed. From 2014 to 2019, he had good spells that lasted as long as six months at a time. He worked for two international banks with branches in Salt Lake City. He had a girlfriend. He stayed in great physical shape. But he would not watch football. He told Yvonne that, if he could do it over again, he would've played soccer. Advertisement He moved to New York City in 2018. He was hired as an associate portfolio manager by Northern Trust and passed the first two stages of the Chartered Financial Analyst exam. Greg posted Instagram highlights of life in the city: 5K races, ramen restaurants, concerts and breathtaking views. The COVID-19 pandemic was a pivot point. Greg went an estimated 50 straight days in isolation in his studio apartment, a few blocks from Madison Square Garden, during the spring of 2020, which exacerbated his symptoms. On May 9, 2020, he posted a smiling selfie with the caption, 'Getting outside, my mom said it would be good for me.' The smile would soon be harder to find. Greg's episodes caused him to be fired from two jobs while in New York. 'In his altered state of mind, he couldn't understand why nothing was working out for him,' Laura said. 'No matter what he did, it all just kept falling apart.' By August, Greg was back in Southern California, working as a chief financial officer for a friend's family trucking business. But the final unraveling, family members said, had begun. 'His imaginary world was more real to him than this,' Yvonne said. 'There wasn't a light side to him anymore.' Greg's journal entries from that time showed only faint glimpses of his former self. He wrote about a lot of things. Some real, most not. Finding a book so rare it would change his life, references to 'coronation day intel,' and 'The Stick of Ramses.' Ancient Egypt became an obsession. Crystals, too. Football, meanwhile, was still drifting about in his mind. He wrote about a rally to win a game with a 2-point conversion, just as Utah did against Oregon State during the 2008 season. 'He was suffering to a degree that was just unbelievable,' Yvonne said. The last few years of his life featured stints in voluntary transitional hospitals, long-term treatment centers and sober-living housing. Therapists who worked with Greg said he was no longer mentally fit to hold a part-time job. Experts again oscillated between diagnoses of Bipolar Type II and schizoaffective disorder. No health care professional, Yvonne said, ever raised the topic of CTE. Advertisement The prescription drug Greg always felt like he needed was Adderall, a stimulant used to treat attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). He also used Vyvanse, a similar prescription for ADHD. Those drugs, he believed, would help him focus. While in the treatment center, Yvonne took Greg to take the third level of the CFA exam. He came out feeling like he did well. But he ended up failing. Antipsychotic drugs like Abilify were administered to combat his episodes with limited effectiveness. He complained of feeling like a zombie, his father, Terry, remembered. 'It wasn't Gregory,' Terry said. Greg bounced between staying with family and living in his Toyota Prius. He began self-medicating on the street, where Greg lived the last year of his life. In December 2023, when Greg was living out of a tent, his parents brought Greg a meal on Christmas Day. While he was often right in front of them, he was simultaneously nowhere to be found. And family members increasingly believed that CTE was the root cause of his decline. 'In a brutal business like football,' Terry said, 'it seemed like an obvious possibility.' Growing up, Greg was known around the playground as 'The Bully Protector,' his lifelong friend Carlos Gonzalez remembered. If he saw kids pushed around by others, Greg always stepped in, even if he was younger. It was brutal, Carlos said, that no one could help Greg. He'd seen Greg speak in tongues. Greg would randomly call Carlos and cuss him out — or send a text saying how much he respected him. Greg spent most of his final year wandering around local strip malls. At the library, where the librarians knew him by name, he researched the healing protective power of crystals. He tried to sell rocks, which he believed to be rare gems, in a Whole Foods parking lot. He stenciled poorly drawn pictures of dragons and inaccurate hieroglyphics and tried to sell them as cars passed. 'I bought one or two drawings from him just to help him and motivate him,' Carlos said. Around that same time in January 2024, he attempted suicide in an apartment complex parking lot. Laura said a passerby saw the attempt in the front seat of his Prius and called 911. Soon after, he threw a brick through the window of the Goebel Adult Community Center in Thousand Oaks, in an attempt to get help because he thought someone was chasing him with a hammer, he said. Advertisement He was charged with a felony, but the judge told the family it could be reduced to a misdemeanor so long as the damages were paid for and Greg stayed out of trouble. In the meantime, he started excessively using kratom, an herbal substance that can be purchased without a prescription and is sold at most local cannabis stores, saying it helped him focus. The drug is not FDA approved, and if used excessively provides an opioid-like calming effect. Greg's self-medicating, family members said, didn't begin until the last year of his life. In his final days, Greg was living out of the Motel 6 in Thousand Oaks, located just off Highway 101. A room goes for around $90 a night. When Greg came back to his room on the afternoon of May 16, 2024, the door was locked. Laura said management told Greg he hadn't paid for the night's room. He wanted to go in and get his stuff; the police were called. Greg's family believes that he panicked, knowing he couldn't afford another strike. So he took off running. The Ventura County Medical Examiner informed Yvonne last summer that he had so much kratom in his system that it caused his liver and kidneys to cease functioning. Greg wasn't seen again until a driver of a car entering the South 101 onramp the following day noticed his body. Authorities believed he had been dead for roughly 24 hours. Greg's family, though not surprised, experienced a collective state of shock and grief. 'We knew where it was headed for a while,' Geoff said. There was a potential path toward closure, they all agreed. So Laura told her parents she was making the call. The same day the Ventura County Star published news of Greg's body being found, Geoff launched a GoFundMe that raised over $4,000 to fund further research at the Boston University CTE Center. The target goal remains $5,656 — Greg's jersey number, repeated. Advertisement Seated in her backyard in Utah, Laura dialed the BU CTE Center and told them about her younger brother. His brain, eyes and spinal cord would need to be procured and sent to the CTE Center. A definitive diagnosis of whether a person suffered from CTE while they were alive can only be provided posthumously. The center takes a year to dissect portions of the brain and conducts extensive interviews with family members to decipher when bouts of aggression, paranoia and delusion began and how long they persisted. Leading the study of Greg's brain was Dr. Ann McKee, the director of the CTE Center, who, along with her colleagues, has been at the forefront of this medical research field. The scientific breakthrough study of CTE in the early 2000s, and its tie to football, astonished many fans. Former NFL star linebacker Junior Seau, who took his own life in 2012, was diagnosed with CTE less than a year after his death. Former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez, who at 27 hanged himself in prison after being convicted of murder, had what Dr. McKee would describe in 2017 as one of the most severe cases of the disease she's seen in someone so young. In 2023, the BU Center announced that CTE was diagnosed in 345 out of 376 donated brains, all former NFL players. In 2024, a third of former NFL players surveyed believed they had CTE, according to the Journal of the American Medical Association. Most of the brains donated to BU have been from former athletes who showed clear signs of CTE. But former NFL players like Jerome Bettis, Matt Hasselbeck and others have publicly pledged to donate theirs to help further the studies in the field. While there is a clear link between CTE and football, researchers continue to search for reasons why some players develop symptoms and others don't. Optimism remains that in the coming years, a blood test or brain scans could be used to reveal potential CTE symptoms. A December 2023 study found that among 319 donors with college football experience, 70 percent had CTE. Greg is now one of an estimated 1,600 whose brains have been examined at BU. Advertisement 'Football is far more than a sport,' Dr. McKee said. 'It's a culture, it's a way of life, it's a national identity. It's a lot of things. But nobody wants to hear that it's a problem.' Greg is buried in a small cemetery in the shadow of Mount Olympus, the most striking peak of the Wasatch Range above Salt Lake City. His funeral was small and not publicized, but when the family arrived, his head coach, Kyle Whittingham, was there in a suit, standing near the last row of chairs. 'We were stunned,' Laura said. Greg's celebration of life memorial was held June 29, 2024, six weeks after his death, in Farmington, Utah, where Laura and Geoff live. More than 13 million people once tuned in to see Greg register his sack in the Sugar Bowl, but fewer than 50 gathered in a room that could hold over 200. A few former teammates were in attendance. 'It seemed like he might've been forgotten in some ways,' said former Utah linebacker Mike Wright. 'I was a little disappointed in some of my teammates for not showing up for him on that day. But for a lot of us, from afar, it was like the Greg we knew passed away long before.' Former Utah tight end Colt Sampson offered an opening prayer and chuckled when reminiscing about his friend, the 'ultimate get-it-done' personality. Greg's No. 56 framed jersey was displayed in the hallway of the church. A massive bouquet of crimson and white flowers sat near the pulpit. One attendee wore a Utah Utes tie. Gary Andersen, Greg's defensive coordinator, greeted friends and family near the photos commemorating Greg. Laura and Geoff tried to summarize the heights of Greg's life — most tied to football — as well as his agonizing final 15 years. Greg opted for hard rock or heavy metal CDs on their early morning drives to Westlake High together, much to Laura's dismay. His most cherished Bible story growing up was David and Goliath. Advertisement Greg's true love was the game that permanently damaged his brain. On Wednesday, June 4, 2025, more than a year after his death, his family learned he had Stage 2 CTE. 'To hear that was a huge sigh of relief,' Laura said, 'to hear that wasn't really him.' Yvonne said she'll shoulder regret for the rest of her life. She wished she'd made him fall in love with golf instead. 'The amount of suffering he went through?' she said. 'I don't think I'll ever watch another football game.' Dr. McKee, who was permitted by the family to speak to The Athletic about Greg's pathology report, said numerous lesions showed that Greg's brain was in a state of degeneration for more than a decade. While it's indisputable that Greg was dealing with CTE, Dr. McKee said Greg's history of psychotic episodes was more extreme than the majority of those they've studied. The most common early-stage symptoms of the disease include inability to control one's own thoughts, behaviors or impulsivity, all of which Greg dealt with as the years wore on. But Greg might have had a genetic predisposition to psychotic breaks in addition to CTE. 'It's difficult to fully account for those symptoms with CTE,' Dr. McKee said. 'We've certainly seen people with a predisposition (have) more severe behavioral and personality changes than those who don't. It was just more than we usually see.' In April this year, just before Greg's family received the diagnosis, members of the 2008 team gathered for a reunion inside Utah's football facility. A poster of Greg in the Sugar Bowl commemorated his life. The team signed a ball and handed it to a tearful Yvonne. A video tribute included a segment for Greg. The Newmans were also able to catch a glimpse of Utah's spring practice. Terry noticed how many players wore spongy Guardian Caps, designed to lessen the impact of repetitive hits to the head. Greg's helmet from the Sugar Bowl still bears the scars of that epic evening. The family came upon it soon after Greg's death while sifting through storage, a coat of dust on the clear visor. The white, metal bars of the face mask are chipped. Deep, elongated gouges remain scattered across the red paint. The helmet could one day be on display in a living room, a symbol of Greg's life. But not quite yet. (Top illustration: Kelsea Petersen / The Athletic; photo courtesy of Ty Cobb)
The Herald Scotland
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- Sport
- The Herald Scotland
Saints' new uniforms: New Orleans reaches to 2002 for "Gameday Golds"
The major difference with the 2025 version is that the new "Gameday Golds" will utilize the alternate black helmet the team began occasionally wearing in 2022. Shop Saints "Gameday Golds" jersey The Saints, along with every other team, will be permitted to wear alternate and/or throwback uniforms a combined total of four times this season. Between their throwbacks, Color Rush and classic sets, the Saints wore eight different uniform combinations during the 2024 season. New Orleans, which hasn't reached postseason since quarterback Drew Brees retired after the 2020 season, opens at home against the Arizona Cardinals on September 7. Cameron Jordan New Orleans Saints Nike Gameday Golds Alternate Jersey Be one with the heart and soul of the Saints defense. Shop new Cam Jordan gold Saints jersey All NFL news on and off the field. Sign up for USA TODAY's 4th and Monday newsletter.
