EnergyBits Review and Giveaway

So I tried a new nutritional product this week that I want to share with you. I will say this, it was not what I expected when I got the sample and checked it out. I was expecting something more along the lines of a 'chomp", and what I got was so not like a chomp, it was better!! Let me explain.

About a week ago I got a tweet from Energybits asking if I would like a free sample of their product. I guess they know I am a sucker for free product that I said yeah, I will even do a review on my blog about them! It was a match, I sent them my address and waited for the delivery.

So once my package arrived int he mail, I immediately opened it. It contained two plastic packages and a lot of information. Here is the first thing I looked at and read.

found on the Internet

So my first thoughts on this product were:

1. Man, that's a lot of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and I am not sure what they do!
2. 100% Spirulina, which I had no idea what that is
3. Dosage: 30-40 tablets before a workout. Say what????
4. Algae? it's algae???

Now I will admit, three of these four four things gave me pause. SO I had to keep reading to find out exactly what this stuff is.

From the information provided:
"ENERGYbits have the highest concentration of protein in the world and deliver a steady stream of energy all without sugar, caffeine, chemicals or stomach distress" ENERGYbits are the only protein in the world that also contain natural antioxidants and Omega 3 which reduce muscle inflammation, iron which prevents fatigue, chlorophyll which builds the immune system and electrolytes which replenish mineral imbalances, all for just one calorie per tab. No other protein offers all this.

Sounds good so far, now what is this algae stuff?

Algae is a food, not a supplement. FACT THAT I DID NOT KNOW!
ALGAE is a crop that is grown, like all other foods found in Nature! BOOM FACT DELIVERED!
Supplements are made in a lab, Algae is not. BOOM ANOTHER FACT!

"Taking ENERGYbits is the nutritional equivalent of having a great night sleep, a natural cleansing and an invigorating workout all at the same time" So, I decided it was worth a try...

My Thoughts:

When I first opened the package, there were a lot of tablets in that package. Knowing I was suppose to swallow them all at once was concerning, plus it did not smell that great. I really thought about only taking a few of the tablets, but I did manage to take all the dosage at once (OK, in three drinks). They really went down very easy and I did not taste them, so I can't report on that. So I went for a run and felt great. I came home and mowed the yard and felt great. I never got that 2 P.M. "James needs a nap" feeling. I also noticed that I did not have that "snacky" feeling all day, but one of the most important things was that I never had any stomach issues or burp issues (which I kind of expected) and we all know that this is very important to endurance athletes! So what is my overall opinion of ENERGYbits?

Likes:
Run went well
No stomach issues
Felt energetic all day
No crash late in the day

Dislikes:
Smell
Dosage amount
Cost ($115 for 1000 bits)

I am probably not doing this justice, but it is definitely a product I would recommend. So one lucky Daily Trainings reader can win their own sample of ENERGYbits. (Unfortunately it is only open to the U.S.A.) And I am going to make it easy for you. Here are the requirements to enter yourself in the drawing. 1. Leave a comment 2.Become a follower (If you already are a follower, just mention it) So two ways to enter. The winner will be announced on Monday.

ENERGYbits are only available at ENERGYbits.com, and Jonathan (their Community Manager) has shared with me that he'd be happy to connect anyone with a current ambassador to share a discount on a bag of bits, or more info on their sample program - you can email him at jlevitt@energybits.com ENERGYbits has also generously is giving a 10% discount for Daily Trainings followers. Simply type in the word "BLOG" into the coupon box!!!

HAMMERTIME!

I am slowly getting over this nagging cough and I really am hoping to be back up and running soon. I have actually missed it, but this cough has been no joke! My biggest fear was trying to come back to early and having this crud linger on indefinitely  so I am planning on Saturday as being my comeback time. I plan on taking it slow and easing back into the miles and routines. The only thing I can say about this cold is that it seems the best thing for me was sleep. It seemed that each day I got a good night's rest, I was a little bit better!

So since I had almost 2 full weeks off from training (that's another post in itself) I decided to do a couple of things. One thing I did was some research on Redman 140.6. I found out that on the course that are going to have Hammer products and Gatorade. Only problem is that I have never used Hammer gels or products before, so I thought it would be a good idea to order some and start using them (Remember, nothing new on race day!) So I placed an order for the starter pack of Hammer products! Here is what I got in the mail:

2 packages of Hammer Recoverite, 1 package of Hammer Soy, 1 package of Hammer Sustained Energy, 1 package of Hammer Perpetuem, 1 package of Hammer Whey, 1 package of Hammer Heed, 1 package of Hammer Endurolytes Fizz, 1 package of Hammer Endurolytes, 1 Hammer Energy Bar almond Raisin, 1 Hammer Chocolate Peanut Hammer Bar, 1 Hammer Vegan Recovery Bar Almond Cacao and 9 Hammer gels: Expresso with caffeine, Chocolate, Tropical with caffeine, Montana Huckleberry, Raspberry, Orange, Apple Cinnamon, Banana, and Vanilla.

Now that is quite a starter pack! It only cost me about $20, so I was literally blown away by all this stuff, especially since I am not sure what all of it does! I mean, I know what they gels are for and what they do, but as far as knowing what the Whey, Soy and Recoverite does is beyond me! Now to be fair, they did send along a lot of reading material (Hammer Nutrition Consumer Guide) that explains the products, but man, that's a lot of reading to do! Plus a representative from Hammer called me to ask if I got my order and if I had any questions about any of it! Had I been at home, we might have had a lengthy conversation! (He did say I could call them anytime I had a question about the products). I know that nutrition is a huge part of Ironman training, so I am looking to get a heads up on it as soon as possible and I have a lot to learn, so it is going to be quite the journey. My ironman training actually starts in late May, which will be here soon. ( I know you were all looking for a MC HAMMER reference, but I just couldn't make it fit!)

No Other Word for It but Epiphany!

Now I have never claimed to be the smartest guy around. Let me make that clear, but recently I had an epiphany! (while writing this I also learned that epiphany is not in a thesaurus, I was going to try and show you that I really was smart, but that backfired quickly) Not sure why I never thought of it before, but I think it could be a break through for me.

One of the biggest issues I have with training is nutrition. I always worry about getting in enough calories and what should I take on the bike so I do not bonk the run. I always worried about this because I never really thought to track how many calories I was burning during a swim/bike/run. I know right? Seems simple enough, and it is pretty darn important!

Even on my logs where I record my workouts, it tells me exactly how many calories were burned doing that activity. So I really do not even have to think about it, just review my logs. All I need to do is really make sure that my weight is close to be accurate and it will do all that fancy math for me. Now, I do not know if it is accurate or not to a science, but it should give me a pretty good idea about what I need to replace.

This will become more important once I start my Ironman training. I have to fuel this machine. So logically thinking, if I know about how many calories I am burning during a 5 hour run, that should give me an idea of how many calories I need to replace. Now I am not looking at re hydrating OK, i am specifically looking at what nutrition I need. I still have a lot of research to do regarding special needs bags, but this epiphany gives me somewhere to start.

I normally just kept up with my logs to see my progress and my weekly, monthly totals, but I feel like I have been missing a lot of important information now!

Now I just want to drop some more "troof" on ya:

Every pair of Anti Fog goggles I have owned have fogged up!

I am running the last race in the Winter Off Road Series this Sunday. A 10K trail run. This is the 1st time I have ever been able to complete the series! I am looking forward to having a good run!