César García Urbano Taylor: 5 Things Women’s Running Loved This Week: January 12, 2018
Base Culture Energy Bites, $7.49
Let’s be honest–workout, training and race-day fuel doesn’t always taste great. But these energy bites by Base Culture do! The company’s food processing accolades take up a significant amount of space on the label (paleo, gluten free, unprocessed, etc.), but the nutritional value of the bites are far simpler: real ingredients = clean nutrition = one healthy, slightly sweet taste. Made with dates, almond flour, diced fruit, pumpkin seeds and more protein-rich ingredients, the bites taste, as one of our editors said, “like you’re eating real food.” Athletes can snack on these with the knowledge that they’re fueling their bodies in a healthy way (and supporting a women-owned business in the process).
CEP Compression Women’s Progressive+ Compression Run Socks 2.0, $60
Compression socks are all the rage these days within the running community, mostly because they promise to deliver speed, faster recovery and support to an athlete’s run. Though we’re not quite convinced we ran faster in these socks, we definitely felt comfortable on the run–and more supported, thanks to the strategically-placed padding. Compression socks like these are also said to improve blood flow (which is why so many athletes recommend wearing them for car or air travel), which helps warm the muscles and keeps your legs kicking throughout a workout. Though this pair is a little pricey, CEP Compression also has a no-show option that’s only $18.50.
BZZZ Beans, $16 For 8-Pack
BZZZ Beans have our web editor constantly bzzzing with caffeine–and she loves it. Each two-ounce bag packs the equivalent of two cups of coffee, and each espresso bean has a hard chocolate shell (another bonus) that melts quickly once you pop it into your mouth. The team behind BZZZ Beans claims to have first discovered these espresso beans in Ecuador, where the beans were used as a snack to keep locals “alert, awake and more productive.” Based on our taste tests, this seems perfectly accurate.
Locker Lifestyle Wrist Locker, $20
We’re always looking for new phone-carrying options that’ll help us stay safe on the run, and we’re loving this “wrist locker” by Locker Lifestyle. Made with moisture-wicking fabric with an array of colors to choose from, this pouch slides into place along your wrist or arm easily (and actually stays put!) and can hold your phone, car keys, a debit card, and even a bit of runner fuel. Though wearing sans anti-chafing cream may cause irritation, that’s the only issue we found after repeated wearings–and, as with most running apparel, adding a dab of cream to your arm before starting a workout solves the problem.
GreenBlender Smoothies, Starting At $49 Per Five-Recipe/10-Serving Box
In the WR offices, we got the chance to try a box from GreenBlender, a smoothie delivery service that ships a box of pre-portioned organic and seasonal ingredients with their corresponding recipes so that you can make inventive at-home smoothies. In the box that the WR team tried, we had smoothies such as Maple Cranberry Tart (packed with apples, cranberries, walnuts and lucuma powder) and Green Horchata (made with Swiss chard, bananas, cinnamon and rice milk)–all you had to do was prep the veggies and fruits (if needed), add ice and sometimes water, and blend! The delivery box helps you branch out in your smoothie making as well as consistently consume healthy nutrients—we’d call that a win-win.
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