Our Favorite Energy Gels and Chews for Outdoor Activities
Energy gels, energy chews, GUs, BLOKS, and energy bites that taste good
Whether you're running, hiking, climbing, cycling, or backpacking, energy gels and energy bites are the outdoor snack to prevent hitting the wall during high-output activities. Chews, GUs, Bloks, gels–whatever you call them, energy food and snacks make a difference mid-day outdoors by providing quick (and sustaining) energy, electrolytes, vitamins, and carbohydrates.
In the spirit of our popular Best Backpacking Meals guide, we're dedicating a review to our favorite (not bar) energy snack food items. We asked our writers including runners, bikers, hikers, paddlers, and skiers for their single favorite on-the-go energy snacks. Here's what we came up with:
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When I first started backpacking and running, I found most bars, chews, and gels to be palatable enough. But as I racked up miles, I became pickier. I found that too much sugar made for an upset stomach, and not enough sometimes made it hard to scarf down a snack. Through all of my adventures, one of my favorite energy chews has been the Honey Stinger Organic Pomegranate Passion Fruit Energy Chews.
These are delicious — just sweet enough to give you a boost and I could eat 100 of them without growing tired of the flavor. Compared to a number of competitive energy chews, I also found these to be more balanced in terms of ingredients.
Tater Boost initially piqued my curiosity with the name. It made me think of Lord of the Rings, when Sam has to explain “taters” to Gollum. When I heard that it was designed in an Oregon State University food lab with the intention of replacing gels I was intrigued. I’ve never been a fan of gels. I don’t like the taste, and they usually just give me a sugar high, with the subsequent crash.
Tater Boost is just what it sounds like: potatoes, with a boost in calories from coconut milk, and flavor from things like rosemary and garlic. The idea is that the use of whole foods will provide longer sustained energy without the crash of processed sugars.
Tater Boost isn’t ready to eat. You do need to add cold or warm water and mix before eating. The amount of water used is variable, based on your preferred consistency. I found that one 300 calorie packet makes a great snack, and is pretty darn tasty. Or I’ll combine it with a protein and vegetable for a quick trail lunch. It may not be as filling as Lembas bread, but I’m pretty sure I could deliver the ring of power to Mount Doom if I had enough of these.
I’m picky about the flavor of my sports nutrition, and there’s one brand that’s never let me down in the taste department: Skratch Labs. One of my all-time favorite items for when I need quick, easily digestible energy is the Green Tea + Lemon Energy Chews. The flavor is a refreshing departure from berries, and while I tend to despise anything that’s lemon-lime, these are truly delicious.They’re perfectly sweet with a good balance of simple carbs and electrolytes.
I particularly like that Skratch forgoes ingredients like carnauba wax (which is often used to keep chews from sticking together, but wreaks havoc on my gut after a while) and instead just coats the chews with a dusting of sugar. The packs are a little tricky to open and eat mid-bike race, but they’re my go-to for when I’m stopped at an aid station, or during training rides and long trail runs.
The watermelon Jelly Belly Sport beans taste like success to me. There's something about the candy coating requiring chewing that tricks my mind into thinking this is a more substantial meal than other energy foods.
With carbs, electrolytes, caffeine, and vitamins, it's got everything the more "grown up" looking gels and chews have. But this throwback from my childhood feels like comfort food. When I'm bonking, it provides more than a calorie boost but a morale boost. I wouldn't say my FKT of the Appalachian Trail from a decade ago was completely due to eating massive quantities of jelly beans, but I do credit it with keeping my blood sugar, caffeine levels, and morale high throughout the trip.
- Liz Thomas, Treeline Review Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief
As a hiker and backpacker who dabbles in ultramarathons, I feel like I have a leg up on many runners since my stomach and I have so much practice eating while moving. But at a certain point in an ultra (or a long distance backpacking trip), I get tired of chewing. For my most recent 100-mile ultramarathon, Precision gel was my secret weapon.
It’s a simple, bright tasting gel made with a 2:1 combo of glucose and fructose for ease of digestion, with a consistency like aloe vera that’s easy to sip without choking on it as I run. Each serving has 30g of carbs, and their 90g/360 calorie packet is resealable, preventing sticky fingers and keeping me fueled for hours on a single packet! It’s unflavored to reduce flavor fatigue while also being a pleasant neutral taste.
I always looked forward to my slurps of this gel; I was sad when I ran out for the last few hours of my race and had to use other gels. I’m proud to report that after pre-race practice, I was able to fuel 300 calories/hr with no stomach upset for my entire 28-hour race primarily using these gels. I’d recommend these to any runner looking for a simple gel that goes down smoothly from start to finish!
- Aubri Drake, Contributing Writer
In my prime marathon and ultra-training days, I really struggled with mid-race nutrition. Most energy gels made me nauseated, and real food was logistically difficult. When I tried Huma Energy Gels though, my marathon game changed. Made from chia seeds, sea salt, either cane sugar or fruit concentrate, brown rice syrup, real fruit, water, and citric acid, the ingredients are simple, easy to digest, and offer necessary carbs, calories, and electrolytes.
And? They actually taste good. I’ve never enjoyed a GU (sorry), but I’ve enjoyed Huma mid-excursion.
If you ever read Born to Run (2009) by Christopher McDougall, you may recall the chia seed craze borne from the Tarahumara practices illuminated in the book. Huma hopped on that train – not to chase a fad, but because of the chia seed’s nutritional profile and slow-releasing energy. Regardless of your feelings on Born to Run’s impact, chia seeds in an energy gel is brilliant and Huma is the only energy gel I use (I especially love the Blackberry Banana flavor!).
As a backpacker, trail runner, and gym rat, I’m constantly on the hunt for portable food that contains just enough calories to offer an energetic boost while not destroying my stomach in the process. I stumbled across California-based MUIR Energy years ago and was instantly enamored with their sturdy little pouches, filled with easily-digestible combos of salt, molasses, and real foods like fruit and nut butters.
I also appreciate the texture - despite their name, these aren’t “gels” in that sticky, gooey sense. Instead, they’re more of a thick paste that feels heartier, more satisfying, and less artificial on the palate. While I’ve never forgiven them for seemingly discontinuing my favorite flavor (I miss you, sweet potato), their strawberry formula served as a bit of tasty, not-too-sweet motivation as I cranked up a number of high alpine passes on the Nüümü Poyo / John Muir Trail this summer.
-Shawnté Salabert, Contributing Writer
When I am doing my long runs I have a hard time eating food and getting calories in so I don’t bonk. After a lot of trial and error with gels and chews, CLIF BLOKS Energy Chews are the best thing for my delicate stomach.
I like that the CLIF BLOKSare readily available online and in most stores, and that there are enough flavors to sample so I don’t get bored. They remind me of fruit snacks. I find that if I am having a hard time eating on a run I can have just a bite of a block and it is not messy in my stash pocket, unlike a gel where you have to eat the whole packet in one go or risk it leaking all over the place. I also like that these blocks hold up well to temperature shifts. I have eaten them on snowy runs and scorching hot days and the BLKS still have their shape.
For super long morning runs I use the BLOKS with caffeine and skip the coffee. My favorite flavors are anything red, they seem to be the easiest to eat. Another plus is that you don’t have to use them all at once. They easily store for another run — eat half a pack on a long day and save the rest for next time.
-Sara Kruglinski, Operations Coordinator and Contributing Writer
I’ve tried the majority of energy chews that other Treeliners love and like most of them, but the ones I gleefully grab whenever I see them on sale (or off sale for that matter) are ProBar’s Bolt Energy Chews.
I’m usually chomping on these in the middle of mountain biking, climbing or backcountry skiing and prefer non-caffeinated chews and gels as the caffeine tends to make me feel jittery and ups my heart rate. The cane sugar, electrolytes and B-vitamin mixes help me feel refreshed enough alone and I find the Bolt chews are easier to digest than some other options I’ve tried over the years.
I also believe in avoiding flavor fatigue so I usually go back and forth between Strawberry and Orange (when I can find them). Since I’ve started using them and sharing them on adventures, it seems like more and more of my buddies start buying them more often, too.
–Chris Meehan, Treeline Review contributing writer
I’m not a huge fan of energy bars or chews, but I took a chance on this one to meet a free shipping minimum and WOW am I glad I did! After trying them once I am absolutely re-ordering for every backpacking trip. These kept me going through a hike without being too sweet or heavy, probably because they’re just made of coconut, almond flour, dried cherries, maple syrup, and salt. There are several flavors, but cherry almond was my personal favorite. These are vegan, gluten-free, and dairy-free, if that is relevant to your life and needs, and also a woman-owned company, which is very relevant to my life and needs. They are lightweight, filling for the size, taste great, and support a small business (two small businesses if you buy them on Garage Grown Gear). They’re also readily available at REI, if you need one at short notice. All the things I love!
–Katie Hawkes, Treeline Review contributing writer
