I was given a one-month supply from EnduroPacks for free for the purpose of review. All opinions are my own.

EnduroPacks are a monthly box of nutrition for endurance athletes and I was fortunate enough to receive a box (for free, full disclosure!) to test and review. The basic premise is that the experts behind EnduroPacks have done the research on what supplementation is needed and what is the most effective way to get these essentials into the human body.

1. Multivitamin

A liquid multivitamin (keep in the fridge on opening) that is easier for the body to absorb than a pill. I admit, when I first poured some out to take the first dose… it looked scary! I really thought it was going to taste gross, but it doesn’t! The berry flavor is actually quite pleasant. Surprise!

How to use: Take a tablespoon each morning with food.

2. Concentrated Electrolyte Spray

My favorite part of the whole pack! Just 5 squirts into your water and it becomes an electrolyte drink without all the sugars that can cause intestinal distress and without much flavor. I say “much” because there is a very faint taste to the water after using this, but it’s not really a “flavor”… if that makes sense. It’s not offensive or harsh, just a subtle change in the flavor.

How to use: 5 squirts into your water bottle for during/post exercise

3. Essential Amino Recovery Patch

Easy recovery, just peel off a patch and stick it to your skin. Okay, admittedly that isn’t the only thing you need to do for recovery. You should still eat, stretch, foam roll, shower, whatever…. What? Showering isn’t part of “recovery”? Are you sure? But this transdermal method of getting essential amino acids is a super effective way of getting these into your system and being able to use them quickly/efficiently.

How to use: Post workout, peel it off and stick it to your inner arm, back or stomach. Leave on for 4-8 hours.

4. Glutamine Recovery Complex

Endurance training reduces the amount of glutamine in our system. By replenishing the supplies we are able to reduce post-workout soreness and keep training.

How to use: Pop 2 tablets at night.

Practical Use

I tried this protocol in the weeks leading up to Ragnar. I picked up the training and was running a couple of two-a-days to practice running fatigued. So I used the EnduroPack I received to help my training. I ramped up my mileage by quite a bit during those weeks, more than the typical 10% rule would call for. But I found that my energy levels were high and I didn’t feel any soreness or fatigue from the additional training. I can’t help but think it was due to the supplementation I was getting from the EnduroPack.

You can’t purchase the elements separately, it comes as the entire pack… all or nothing. Which I can understand, they have a whole team of experts who have helped develop these to work in perfect harmony. But if I could purchase the electrolyte spray on its own… I would. I like the idea of being able to replenish electrolytes without having a sweet flavor to my drink, I like the idea that you can customize it to your sweat-rate (if you’re a salty sweater, add another pump!) and I like that you wouldn’t have to use salt pills to get those traits (I’ve never carried an electrolyte pill while running successfully… they break, I drop them, can’t find them in my waistpack, etc.)

You can buy a one-month supply of EnduroPacks for $75. But if you sign up for extended month deals, that’s when the price starts to drop. Signing up for 6 months makes the price $63 each month and 12 months drops to $59 a month. There is no auto-renewal, so you don’t have to worry about forgetting and getting charged unexpectedly.

The products are gluten-free, non-GMO, vegetarian, organic and made in the US. In addition to all of the aforementioned, they are also publishing a blog where they share all kinds of information from their experts.

For me, I don’t see adding this expense to my daily life year round… but if I was getting serious about training for an event, I would strongly consider signing up. If I ever get to do a marathon again (sigh… working mother life, that’s a post for another time), I would definitely sign up for EnduroPacks and I may sign up if I decide I’m really training hard for a half sometime soon. I think it’s a really interesting concept and if I did train that way, I would definitely report back on the process!