I saw a post like this on Cotter Crunch and I am stealing this great idea! As a blogger who loves trying new things and sharing the best, I get LOTS of awesome things to try. I feel like the holidays, and the suck of the polar vortex, have gotten me a bit behind in sharing some of my great finds. I am going to do mini-reviews here and tell you about opportunities for you to try these awesome things, too!
Nutrilux – Nutrilux offers two supplements “Glow” for women and “Drive” for men. They sent me a 10 “bubble” pack of each to try. Their Twitter description is, “Burst and chew a vitamin reimagined. Whether it’s beautiful skin, energy or immunity, nutrilux bursting vitamin bubbles can take your health to the next level.”
Why bubbles with liquid in them?
“Because solids take longer to digest, your body absorbs liquid vitamins faster. But seriously, who wants to wait? With the nutrilux® liquid core, you can get the nutrients you need when you need them. In addition, some vitamin pills and capsules have chemical binders so strong that the vitamins end up passing straight through your digestive tract. Liquid vitamins (like nutrilux®!) are easily absorbed by your body – at 80-90% compared to solid vitamins’ 10-20% absorption rate according to Physician’s Desk Reference.”
I tried these. The “Glow” is Acai Blueberry flavor. I like the flavor, but the bubbles themselves took a bit of getting used to. They are a bit more like plastic than the candy they look like (and the “twizzlers” that nutrilux says people say they taste like – they are not gummies like they look like!) I got used to them. The formulation contains Vitamin C, Vitamin E, A bunch of B vitamins and Vitamin K. It is supposed to help your skin, hair and nails. I will take all of the help I can get this winter! I tried these for three days (3 bubbles/day) and I can’t say I noticed immediate results, but I would like to keep at it and see! Ok. I will also admit that I tried the “Drive” for men, because I could not get the husband to try it! (Don’t worry – I emailed first to see if I would grow a mustache or something! They said “no.”) It is basically a B vitamin cocktail with creatine and caffeine. I liked this one before running. I felt a boost.
If you are a fitness instructor, personal trainer, nutritionist or blogger, you can get a set of free samples for yourself and your students/patients/readers. Check them out on Twitter or Facebook for more information. They also gave me 6 trial samples – 3 Glow and 3 Drive.
Want to try it? Leave a comment on this post and I will select three winners at random in order of comment with random.org on Wednesday, March 19th. Want an extra entry? Like Nutrilux on Facebook or follow on Twitter and leave a comment to tell me that you did. The winners are Laurel C., Valerie and Amanda!
Badass Vegan Power Cookie – The folks behind “Badass Vegan” sent me an email to see if I wanted to try a Badass Vegan Power Cookie. Hell, yes. They say:
“Forget everything you knew about cookies! This delicious oatmeal raisin cookie is packed with nutrient dense sea vegetables with out compromising the baked at home by grandma, taste. Just one cookie provides key phytochemicals that exceed those found in 4-5 servings of fruits and vegetables. In addition, you can get your vegan protein, B-12, antioxidants, iron, calcium and plenty more nutrients while you’re on the go, or just because you love the cookie so much!*spirulina is really great for muscle repair, so we definitely recommend this for all BadAsses and BadAsses in the making!”
I loved the cookie and it’s nutrition profile. It is 2 servings at 200 calories each and was not super large – in my opinion. I thought it was delicious and love that it includes spirulina – it is a bit green! I will definitely get these again. And, I love their sass! They are reasonably priced, too! ($2.59/each for one cookie/2 servings)
Kevala – I owe a huge apology to the nice folks at Kevala. They sent me Almond Butter (Creamy) and Black Tahini a few months ago and I finally opened it and used it last week. (I am SO sorry for the delay!!) Kevala has a motto of simple ingredients. This means that all of Kevala’s products are made with only one ingredient. There is no sugar, salt, oils, or chemicals added or used in their production process.
The almond butter is just almonds! It is the perfect texture and it is so creamy. It is just delicious – even on a rice cake. I used it in oatmeal and directly from the spoon. I think it would be great to cook with, too!
The black tahini is just black sesame seeds. It was so easy to stir and use. I used it in an awesome roasted cauliflower recipe from Branny Boils Over that called for tahini. Here are 28 great tahini recipes that are not just hummus from Babble, too!
Check out Kevala’s website for more information, specials and great all natural deliciousness.
ZYM Portable Electrolyte Tablets – Amanda and I ran the Cupid’s Dash in Highland Park in February. We won some cash for the local running store and when we went in, there were samples of ZYM.
ZYM is like NUUN but it also has a ton of vitamins. They say, “ZYM us the most powerful electrolyte drink tablet our there for intense workouts. It quickly replaces what your body needs – potassium, magnesium, calcium and vitamins.” It has a ton of B6 and B12 which I find really help me with energy, too. I tried the lemon-lime flavor and then wrote to ZYM .
They sent me all 4 flavors to try (and they are going to let me host a giveaway, too! I will have that up this week!) The flavors are: Lemon-Lime, Berry, Grape and Orange. The Berry and Grape both have 100 mg of caffeine per tablet. These are my faves for before running or after my morning workouts. I have been using the non-caffeinated flavors for afternoon workouts or for general hydration.
Want to try it? I am giving away one of each flavor of ZYM as a part of my blog-hop giveaway that starts this Friday 3/14, so please come back!
Hydrapak Soft Flask – 350 ml is an innovative, collapsible bottle that is perfect for any on-the-go activity. It squishes down really small and can fit in your jacket pocket or gym bag. When you fill it, you can carry it by holding the soft finger loop. There is a bite valve for no-drip use. This bottle really is no drip. It works.
I brought it to hot yoga and it was great. It rested on it’s side (the bottom is not flat!) but did not drip. The opening is wide, so I found it easy to dry out and clean. Other great features: Optional dust cover included, dishwasher safe (top rack)/freezer safe, and BPA free. The 350 ml size is great for winter. I would want to use the 500 ml size for summer running, I think!
Want to try it? I am giving away a new, 350 ml soft flask away as a part of my blog-hop giveaway that starts this Friday 3/14, so please come back!
What do you think? Have you tried anything new recently? Tell me about it in the comments!
PS. Don’t forget my Ocean’s Halo Seaweed Chips giveaway and my awesome raffle for Alexandra’s Playground!
Please note: These products were provided to me at no cost in exchange for a review. I was not compensated for this post. All opinions are my own.