I'm Melting!!! A Gatorade Endurance Review

"Disclaimer: I received Gatorade Endurance to review as part of being a BibRave Pro. Learn more about becoming a BibRave Pro (ambassador), and check out BibRave.com to review find and write race reviews!"

Hey everyone, I'm back to talk about Gatorade Endurance Formula Gel and Hydration Mix. I had a short test time with this one, but was able to get in several runs while testing and I have to say, I quite liked it.

I remember back in my misspent youth drinking Gatorade and the only choice we had was Lemon-Lime, and it was horrible. Well Gatorade has come a long way. They sent me a container of the new Watermelon Endurance formula and I have to say I really liked it. The powder was fine and fast dissolving, while having a light and good taste. It was perfect for the heat and humidity here in Central VA. You're looking at 90 calories per serving and 300mg of Sodium. There's also 140mg of potassium, 22g of carbs with 13g of sugars rounding us out. Sometimes when I'm running and it's hot out drinking something sugary will make me sick, but I never felt that with the Gatorade Endurance.
 2 scoops in a 16 oz bottle seems to do the trick for me. It's also good to mix up the night before in warm water and chill it in the fridge. I haven't tried freezing it into cubes but that will be an experiment for another day. There's also Lemon Lime, Orange, and Cherry.

 I have a love/hate relationship with gels. I've tried some where I like d the flavor and they upset my stomach and others tasted bad but gave me that boost I needed. The Gatorade Endurance Gel was a surprise. Usually you have gels that are very thick and need a lot of water to get down. The Endurance Gel was smooth, light and the first gel I felt I could take without drinking anything. It didn't bother me one bit. I felt like I could take multiples during a long race/training run and be fine. On my most recent long run, I followed their instructions and had one 10 minutes before and around an hour into my run, and didn't feel rundown or tired. Now I was sent the Mango flavor, and I'm not a mango fan, but it kind of grew on me so I could tolerate it. They also make a Blackberry, Vanilla, and Apple Pear if you want something different.

  The gel comes in at 80 calories with 90mg of sodium, and 35mg of potassium. Finishing up with 20g of carbs and 6g of sugars.

Looking at the website Gatorade offers a chew, and a Energy drink too.

For more information on Gatorade Endurance, click on the link.
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Thanks for reading and as always,

Lace up and get out there!

Ben

Blisters Suck!

Hey everyone and welcome back. As a Bib Rave Pro I am sent items to review and promote and this time we are looking at KT Tape Blister prevention. For more information on becoming a Bib Rave Pro and to read and write your own reviews go to Bib Rave.

 So like I was saying, I was selected among others to test and try out KT Tape Blister Prevention Tape and Blister Treatment Patches. This was a rather hard assignment as I was training for a half marathon and did not want to get, nor try to get a blister. Luckily some new shoes, decided otherwise and I gave both products a good run thorough their paces.

 I had started testing a new pair of shoes, more on those next month, when I started to get a rub on my Achilles tendon. Looking at the new shoes and what I usually wore, I could tell that the heel cam in and I was not used to it. I wear short socks so they didn't help a lot but provided minimal protection. I added the prevention strips on my heel and they helped relieve the rubbing. There is one problem, if you have sweaty feet like me, the strip will only last a day. Also being part Hobbit or Bigfoot, I would shave where you place them if needed. I regularly use KT Tape pro for my IT Band and shave my legs where i apply and it will stay on longer. The strips are about 3 inches long and maybe an inch wide and are more fabricery that other versions. They did the trick as my heel stopped hurting and once my shoes broke in they worked out well.

 Like I said earlier, I did not have any blisters so I couldn't test the blister treatment so I went ahead and placed one on my heel. It's hard to see it but it's there on my heel where i was rubbing a spot. From speaking with other Pros that had blister, the patches work well for keeping the wound dry and clean, and that's what you really want. They are about the thickness of a moleskin patch and are 3 inches long and an inch and half wide ovals so they will cover a good variety of blisters or other problems.

Well that about covers this review, I wish I had more time or ailments to explore and use the product on and if something comes up I will post an update video on it. If you want to try out KT Tape use the code BIBRAVE30 for 30% off your purchase at KT Tapes website. IF you want to see my Youtube review, go here, and to follow me on Twitter and Insta look me up bwachter70.

 As always lace up and get out!



Ben

Live More Now. (Rainy Day Edition)

   Welcome back to the blog. Last post I got to talk about returning to fly fishing with Buff and today I would continue the story but we've received almost 12 inches of rain in the last month and the rivers have been high and muddy. I've still been getting my runs in between the rain so at least we are getting something accomplished.

The other weekend  I went back out to Charlottesville to run on the Rivanna trail and maybe do some fishing. The river was still up and even though the kayaks were enjoying it, I did not want to get in trouble out on the rocks so it was just a running day for me. This section of the trail is paved for 2 miles, then you hit a small section of single track dirt until you reach the end. Yes, there's a sign to tell you that.

Found it!

After my run, I decided to pull out my fly tying gear and give it a try. One of the allures of fly fishing for me was being able to catch a fish on something you made. I went all in back when I first started and threw away most all of my materials when we moved three years ago. Going through my box all I had left was some string, most of my tools and a bag of alpaca fur. While out shopping with my daughter I found a small bag of pheasant feathers at a craft store so I picked them up to see what I remembered.

 The first one while the body looked good, the floss wrapped well and the body was tapered nicely, the hackle was way too big. I tied a second one exactly the same and while it was better overall I messed the head up and tossed it to the side.

My last one came out pretty well. I found some green yarn and used it for the body with an orange tag using some embroidery thread. After adding the hackle and finishing the head, I think it turned out well.

Thanks for reading and lace up and get out there,

Ben