Grape Pomegranate Carb Boom!

So as this years 6 Days of Boom! comes to a close...

We reflect on the many gifts given to us this year...

Hang your Boom! grenade on your tree with care

Hang your stocking with don't give a $hit...

And participate in the running of the beers.

So the final gel in this review was the winner as predicted.  

Grape Pomegranate was delicious!  It was smooth and fresh tasting.  I could taste the grape skins almost.  The pomegranate was a light mellow tart aftertaste.  This is the perfect gel. I can't wait to try these out on a Charleston South Carolina summer run.  I can imagine these might even be freshing on a hot day. And no gel tastes good on a super hot summer day. 

The final rankings for this Celebration of Boom! 

1st. Grape pomegranate 

2nd Cinnamon apple

3rd  Strawberry kiwi

4th  Raspberry

5th  Orange vanilla

6th  Banana peach

So thanks for helping to celebrate the 6 Days of Boom!  

Special thanks to Boom Nutrition for providing the Feast

And thanks to everyone for reading!  Now remember to hang up your compression socks on the shower bar, leave a smelly running hat on the front door knob, and leave a running gel in your running shoes at the end of your bed for the boom fairy.  And if you have been a good runner all year then you will find a reward at the bottom of your next running bottle!

Happy Boom! to all and to all a... Gotta run!

Banana Peach Carb Boom!

On the fifth day of Boom! Carb boom gave to me... Bananas and Peaches?!?!?

So I was totally ready with a bunch of fruit porn jokes.

I mean come on... I have to censor these emojis.  

This is like a fruit orgy.

I have to admit to a bias here, I love bananas, but I hate really ripe bananas.  I'm more of the almost green banana kind if guy.  

This gel tastes almost exactly like smushed ripe bananas.  Sweet ripe bananas. If you love ripe bananas then this is a total treat.  It really tastes like a banana paste tube.  Fresh ripe bananas. That is what you get.  

Unfortunately... I really hate ripe bananas.  So this one just went to the bottom for me.  This is the dessert that your grandmother brought to the Boom! Festival that everyone likes but you.  I can appreciate how fresh and real it tastes it's just not a fresh taste I like.  

So the current race is looking like this...

Apple Cinnamon

Strawberry Kiwi

Raspberry 

Orange Vanilla

Banana Peach

So where will the fabled Grape Pomegranate wind up?  Tune in to find out, but for now... Gotta run!

Raspberry Carb Boom!

On the fourth day of Boom! Carb Boom! Gave to me... Raspberry!

So I reached into my compression sock that I had left hanging in the laundry room to air dry hoping that the Boom! Fairy had brought me another treat.  And what did I find...

This one was simple. As far as regular gels go, this one is great.  Simple flavor.  Not too sweet, not too tart.  But when judged against the high standards of Boom! it kind of falls flat.  

Not impressed, not let down.  Just par.  This is par gel.  This is the perfect generic gel.  

So the current ranking going into day 5...

Apple Cinnamon

Strawberry Kiwi

Raspberry

Orange Vanilla

Sorry orange...

Thanks for reading... Gotta run!

Cinnamon Apple Carb Boom!

On the third day of Boom! carb boom! gave to me, Apple and Cinnamon gel (not even going to attempt a rhyme).

Ok so I am having to rethink my evaluation of running gels after this season of Boom!  I have always judged running gels in the same way I judge cheap beers.  I'm looking for after taste and how it burps since the initial taste is only ok at best.  As long as it goes down well and stays down, I'm good.  

But now Carb Boom! is making me judge gels on a much higher level.  

Apple Cinnamon... I had very low expectations.  Usually a very generic combo.  Not this, it was more like someone had blended this...

And put it into this...

The cinnamon really was bright and fresh tasting.  The apple tasted like apple pie.  Not a sharp tangy apple but like apple pie filling.  

So in another Boom! Miracle this is the new top dog!  I thought that Grape Pomegranate would be the only contender left but it's anybody's game right now.  Except Orange Vanilla.  Sorry. It's good compared to other running gels, but compared to its Boom! Brethren it pales.  So the rankings right now are..

Apple Cinnamon

Strawberry Kiwi

Orange Vanilla 

So stay turned to find out how the other three remaining  flavors will stack up.  But for now... Gotta run!

Strawberry Kiwi Carb Boom!

On the second day of Boom! carb boom! gave to me, Strawberry and Kiwi.

Here are the secret ingredients... Don't tell.

So the second day of boom! I got a great surprise.  Strawberry Kiwi is actually really tasty.  And I don't mean in the way a regular gel is palatable.  I mean actually good, like I would eat again. Like I wish there were candy this.  It was like making out with this...

Or this...

The strawberry was actually a very natural taste.  There wasn't that tart strawberry taste as much, I think the kiwi kind of softened that. Which is my only complaint,  I like the tartness.  I only really noticed the lack of tartness because the strawberry tasted natural, not artificial.

So I might be calling it early but this is the taste winner so far.  The pomegranate grape is the only competition I see coming up, but who knows? Boom! is a time for miracles.  

Again, thanks for reading. Gotta run!

Orange Vanilla Carb Boom!

On the first day of Boom! Carb boom! gave to me, orange and vanilla gel with some caffeine...

So for the first day of "The six days of BOOM!" starts with orange vanilla.  

What's in it?

So here's a transcription of that picture

Let me first start by saying that judging taste in running gels is like judging which antacid tastes the best.  None of them taste really good in my experience, you tend to judge based on aftertaste and reflux more than initial taste.  And of course we judge effectiveness.  

Orange vanilla tastes like a good version of baby aspirin.  Like a kids chewable aspirin or vitamin.  Not bad, kind of like Tang powder.  

A lot of orange flavored gels and drinks give you instant reflux and heart burn feeling.  This did not and it had a nice smooth after taste. It didn't linger.  The taste just sort of dissolved away.  

I didn't really notice the caffeine, but I'm a regular coffee drinker so caffeine doesn't really get me moving too much anymore.  

Fueled great. Didn't feel any candy sugar rush. And no crash.  The thickness of the gel was great, not too think, not too thin. Just right.  

Kind of like judging cheep beers, this didn't have the best taste but it went down smooth with no aftertaste or bite.  And sometimes that is all you can ask for. 

As the first day of Boom! draws to a close I will give Orange Vanilla Carb Boom! a recommend.  It does everything you want a gel to do and noting that you don't.  Thanks for reading,  but for now I gotta sleep, cuz I gotta run in the morning.

carb boom! The 6 Days of BOOM!

So I sent out the word that I wanted to review some gels.  The fine folks at boom! Nutrition were the first to answer the call.  They sent me a mixed flavor sampler

And some temporary tattoos

These are for poowi and mood.  I have never heard of these companies.  Must have been mix up. 

So when I think of Carb Boom!  I think...

The B's blend in my head to make one word.  

And before I really start I want to complain that the boom is not is all caps.  They even use a lower case b.  It's boom!  Not Boom! Or even BOOM!  It kind of like the chorus from Metallica's Damage Inc. they don't scream it. They just whisper it loudly. 

So what makes Carb Boom! Different?  Carb boom!'s biggest strength is their allnaturalness...(now officially a word!)

They tout no added sugars and no artificial flavors, colors, or sweeteners.  Which is great in my opinion.  Red dyes are linked to a lot of neurological issues and xylitol can give you diarrhea. 

When I'm running on the dirt, 

I don't want to have to squirt, 

diarrhea, diarrhea.

The gels are basically maltodextrin with some fruit purée added for flavor.  Simple and elegant.  I like the concept.  The packs are also slightly bigger then most gels and their tear tabs have small "wings" so they are easier to grab and tear off.  

The gels themselves are slightly thinner than other gels making them much easier  to go down.  They are all 110 Calories. With all averaging about 50mg of sodium and potassium each.  The levels vary 10-5mg depending on the flavors.  With only that orang vanilla having caffeine at a small 25mgs.  

They all have fruit porn pictures on them 

I mean come on how suggestive is this picture...

Maybe I just have a dirty mind.  

But today starts the 6 days of Carb BOOM!  I will be reviewing a gel everyday for the next 6 days.  Starting today with a random gel to be reviewed later.  

 

So we will see how Carb Boom! Fuels the monster.  Will it be...

Or will I...

Tune in to find out!  But for now, gotta run...

Peace of Muscle Roller Review

So let me start by saying that I am a recent convert to the Church of the Holy Roller.  

The main problem I have is that my first roller was a more knobby aggressive roller designed for very deep dramatic pressure.  This roller that I got from the fine folks at Peace of Muscle is much gentler and I really wish I had gotten this one first.

 The first one I got was very...

Rough and hurts so good.  Since I popped my roller cherry on the rough advanced model I was worried I couldn't go back down to normal roller. Can you go from weird 50 shades kink back down to sweet puppy love?

Can you go from this...

To this...

Well the answer is yes.  

Here is what came in the mail for me..

The wrapper hides instructions and exercises.

I wish I had read the outside before I started to tear off the wrapper

The big roller has a smaller solid foam roller stuffed in it.

There is a dirty joke there somewhere...

So again I really wish I had this one first.  The larger diameter of the main roller makes for a much more gentle massage. The hex shapes are soft and rounded.  

This is the perfect first roller set.  Hands down.  The size and combo is perfect.  The roller is long enough to go your back but short enough to get single limbs with out getting in the way.  The smaller soft roller is great for super sore spots.  

This roller really helped me get over that initial trepidation with sore muscles and the need to roll them.  My other roller, while very effective, is a bit brutal.

 

 It definitely makes me scared to use it on DOMS day.

The foam is soft but not marshmallowy.  The hex bumps are big enough to be felt but not so hard a massive that they grind into your already sore muscles.  The diameter is enough that is rolls well but provides a wider contact patch with your body so it is not as much pressure as a smaller diameter roller. 

The best running analogy I can make is between your daily trainers and your racing flats.  The racing flats are a rougher ride,  but faster and you probably don't want to use them everyday.  Your base building everyday running shoes are soft and comfortable. Like an old pair of jeans.  They are the shoes you grab for everyday running. Dependable and they are not going to leave you hurting afterward.   

The Peace of Muscle roller is a gentle friend that will convert you from a roller skeptic, into...

In conclusion: 

If you can only get one foam roller, get this one.

If you want a first roller, get this one. 

If you are scared of foam rollers, get this one.

If you already have a bunch of foam rollers you should consider adding this to the pipe stable.  

Thanks for reading guys.  If you like the reviews, please post a reply.  If you love them please use one of the Amazon links to buy something that you are already planning to anyway.

Ok, gotta run!  Then I gotta roll...