Alameda Runners – Get After It!

If shopping for energy gels, the majority of athletes immediately think of Clif and GU, and disregard other products available. I understand the reasoning behind this decision, as gels are typically expensive and athletes often are creatures of habit.

If you’re willing to mix things up and give a new product a try, we may have found something of interest for you.

Vitalyte is a company that you may not have heard much about, but it’s a well established company with products ranging from energy gels and electrolyte supplements to chia seed bars. I recently tested out the Raspberry Vitalyte Chia Surge energy gel, and want to share my initial thoughts.

Full review available after the jump: 

The gel itself has the following nutrition (vital nutritional facts):

Calories: 75
Calories from Fat: 5
Sodium: 4mg
Potassium: 26mg
Total Carbs: 17g
Chia seed: 2000mg

The raspberry flavor isn’t overwhelming, which is nice because I don’t enjoy energy gels to be overly flavorful while exercising.  I still needed to gulp down some water after consuming the gel, but not quite as much as I would have needed if I was eating a GU or similarly thick gel.

Chia Surge gels have whole chia seeds mixed within the gel, and it’s something that will take getting used to.  I found the consistency similar to rice pudding and thought it went down fairly well – but it certainly is a unique energy gel.  I’m sure some of you may like the chia seeds, and I was initially hesitant in consuming whole chia seeds while training, but the gel was enjoyable enough.

If you’re interested in trying out Vitalyte Chia Surge gels, they can be purchased from REI for $2.00, or a four-pack at the Vitalyte website for $7.00.

I’d recommend at least giving the Chia Surge gels a try at least once, which should give you an idea if the chia seeds and flavor are right for you.