Clif Bar Organic Energy Food Review

As a Chief Running Officer for my run group Run Eat Tweet AZ, I had the opportunity to try out Clif Bar Company organic energy food pouches.

All of these opinions are my own.

I apparently have a very sensitive stomach when it comes to running fuel. I haven't found much yet that doesn't make it upset, so I was pretty excited to give these a try and see how they worked for me.

There are 4 flavors available and I received 2 of each. The fruit ones are smaller than the other two, but with both sizes, you need to have a reasonable sized pocket to put them in to take on a run with you. I'm injured so I've been running shorter loops in order to come home and stop running if I needed to, so I never had to carry one with me.

The first one I tried was the Banana Mango with Coconut. I was running in the heat of the Arizona morning sun at 10:00! Not my smartest plan. I looped home every 2 miles, and thankfully I did so I was able to refill my water. I was trying to decide what kind of fuel I was going to use, the sun was sapping everything out of me and I new I needed something. I remembered I had the food pouches in the fridge, so I pulled out the Banana Mango with Coconut to fuel up. It was so good! It hit the spot big time, nice and cold with a light flavor. I only used half and figured I'd finish the other half after my next loop home. I started off for another two miles. After the first mile I felt a little discomfort in my stomach, but figured it was probably just the heat getting to me. I looped home and finished off the pouch and then went back out for my last mile. Overall I enjoyed that one. I ended with a little discomfort, but I really think that all had more to do with the heat. I'd probably have no problem using this flavor on a regular basis.

The next one I tried was the Pizza Margherita. I had just come home from a double workout, a quick 800 meters in the pool and a 5 mile run. I reached for this pouch thinking it would be a perfect end to the workout. This flavor just wasn't for me.

The next week I was up extra early for a morning run. I did a similar run, 2 miles, pit stop at home, then back out and so on. This time I took out the Banana Beet with Ginger pouch. I really enjoyed this one too. I was anxious about the beet flavor, but it was pretty good. It was a slightly stronger flavor, so for me it wouldn't work as a mid run fuel, but it would be great for a post run. This is my situation, but take a look at the other CRO reviews, because they may have a different take. Like I said before, my stomach is very sensitive while running and doesn't respond well to very much.

The last one I tried was the Sweet Potato with Sea Salt flavor. I had just come back from a 7 mile run and was starving! While I was getting breakfast ready I pulled out the sweet potato pouch and gave it a try. Again, just not a flavor for me, a little too salty I think and not quite my taste.

I'm glad I got a chance to try all the flavors. It helped me figure out which ones would possibly work for my pre/mid/post run fuel. Overall I'm pleased with the product. It's easy to pack and easy to store. I love that it's resealable for later use. The fruit ones were definitely my favorite and I could probably use one of them post run/workout and the other mid run!

Would you like to try Clif Bar Organic energy food pouches for yourself? Head over to Run Eat Tweet AZ Facebook page to enter to win. Good Luck!

Healing from Injury and Refocusing

Gettin' real for a minute. I've been a bit of a hot mess for a couple weeks now. Not everyone believes in stored/trapped/stuffed emotions and their effects on the body presenting in illness/injury, but I actually do. I was introduced to the idea about 4-5 years ago, and it just clicked.

For anyone who may not know, I have been dealing with intense pain in my upper back/shoulder area. I finally went to the chiropractor and discovered my rib heads were out of place back there. I cannot for the life of me, think of when I got injured, what would've made my ribs move out of place. But I know when I finally started noticing the pain and it lines up perfectly with when some things got exponentially more difficult....possibly sooner, but I know for sure it started in May. Life, work, family... Since going in for chiropractic adjustments, I've been kind of an emotional wreck. Laughing and crying in the office during treatment, then going home and riding the waves of emotion, scattered all over, from happy to sad to grumpy to excited to anxious...you name it, I've probably felt it. It has made me so frustrated (anger).

I finally reopened a book I hadn't looked at in a while, that I was told about by another friend called "Heal Your Body" by Louise Hay. I went through all the symptoms I've been experiencing in the past couple weeks and the spinal misalignments page as well trying to pinpoint what emotions are surfacing, and what they're tied to, and how to release them. Fear and anger are the two the most high on the list. Of course they are. Feeling left out, not belonging, feeling not good enough, not measuring up, resentment, too much on my mind... it goes on and on. I'm working through some of those problems and trying to recognize what's triggering the emotion so I can deal with it in a healthy way. Thank goodness for the support of my husband.

What does any of this have to do with running? Well...I always talk about how I use running as a means to clear my head, refocus and come home refreshed, and then exercise second. Well, I think I've been using running as a way to escape the things I couldn't deal with at the time. I just kept stuffing the emotions and would run to "run away from the problem" which is probably why the runs have felt so disconnected, frustrating, not cleansing, cluttered....I would come home jumbled and sometimes more of a mess. They certainly weren't fun. I'm hoping that this is the case and working through stuff will help solve the loss of love for running, the physical ailments in my back/shoulder/ribs/hip/neck, and the illnesses that have accompanied them.

I realize I probably sound like a crazy person to some, but for me, it makes complete sense. Maybe it'll resonate with someone else as well.

In the process of relearning how to take better care of my body, I guess I also need to remember to take better care of my mind as well. What our minds say, our bodies feel.

I guess what I'm saying is, I'm glad I decided to finally go to a chiropractor. I'm glad that the pain is leaving my body, I'm not excited about all the emotions it's evoked, but in the end, it'll make me healthier and stronger, and gentler.

Does anyone else believe in whole body healing? Do you have similar experiences when getting chiropractic work done, or even from a massage?