I just got word from Simbree that they are making a couple small changes to their Energy Bites. These changes don’t really affect my review, but just in case you are interested:

1) They have upgraded from regular brown sugar to organic brown sugar. Great news if you like to buy organic products.

2) They are removing soy from the product. If you are allergic to soy, that’s great news!

And as long as they still contain oat bran, peanuts, sunflower seeds, etc, there should be plenty of protein.

Here’s a quick ab workout you can do at home that’s geared towards building your lower abs. Take 10 minutes after your rides to do some ab work and you’ll be riding stronger in no time.

That video is one routine from a new program called Turbulence Training for Amazing Lower Abs which was released in celebration of “Ab Workout Month” at Turbulence Training. (In other words, swimsuit season is getting close, it’s time to get ripped!)

Here’s the deal though, if you’re interested in learning more or purchasing the workout… When you get started with Turbulence Training, you’ll get access to two killer ab workouts, including this latest workout. However, this program is ONLY available for a limited time - it will be removed at the end of April.

(You’ll find these two ab workouts in Craig’s TT membership section, which you can access for 3 months when you get started with Turbulence Training.)

Get started today at www.TurbulenceTraining.com

Who would have known that the energy foods market is full of multiple variations on the tried-and-true “bar” format?

I recently reviewed the Chunks, have mentioned Bloks, and now have to try some Bites.

You have to love the “out of the box” thinking! Energy bars are so 2005!

That’s why I’m testing these Simbree Energy Bites, which are small, bite-sized versions of the quintessential cycling treat, the energy bar.

The best way to describe these is… taking healthy energy bar ingredients, mixing them up together, and cutting them into little bite-size squares. Imagine taking some rolled oats, nuts, and seeds, and mixing them together with some honey. (Yes, these are quite similar to the “Chunks of Energy” I reviewed earlier.)

How do they look?
They look very moist and chewy, and the pistachio flavor (pictured below) looked best because of the green pistachio pieces in there. All of them have a similar ‘bird seed clumped together in honey’ look. (I’m not sure how that sounds, but it entices me!)

They also look like they’ll stick to your hands. Well, if it gets warm, they will stick to each other. But luckily they didn’t make my fingers all sticky on the journey from bag to my mouth.

And the taste?
They taste just like they look. Moist overall, but with plenty of texture from all the little goodies in there. They are sweet, too, thanks to the honey in them.

How about the price?
The price seems to come out somewhere around $1 per serving, which is basically the same price as most energy bars. However, you can buy these in various size containers, so you have some bulk discount options. (Bags pictured above are 6 ounce bags.)

For something of this quality (i.e. an energy bar with healthy ingredients,) it’s not bad at all.

Any health benefits?
These bites are on the healthy side for energy bars. The ingredients are all-natural (no processed crap in here) and some are organic. Just take a look at the pistachio ingredients list below:

Rolled oats, wild blackberry honey, dry-roasted peanuts, ground soybeans, brown sugar, oat bran, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, pistachios.

Coolness - wild blackberry honey! I had to do some research on this, but it looks like high-quality honey that is only found in the Pacific Northwest! (Good thing Simbree is based in Seattle.)

Now it’s time to do a taste test!

The Taste Test

Oat Bites with Peanut, Almond, Pistachio
Tastes like a mix of rolled oats and honey, with some peanut pieces in there. I could only taste the pistachio if I took a small bite that had a large Pistachio piece in it. I love pistachios and anything pistachio flavor, but these didn’t really deliver that pistachio knockout. (They’re still good, just don’t buy them looking for a solely “pistachio bite.” They’re more of a “mixed nuts” flavor.)

Oat Bites with Walnuts and Maple
Starts off with that familiar maple walnut aroma. Then the taste is a mix of sweet honey with a hint of maple, and then some walnut flavor. The first try, these seemed to hit my taste buds with a little bland flavor and sweet flavor, which kept alternating back and forth. That was kind of odd, but they were still pretty good.

The second time I had these, the flavor seemed much more powerful, and really had that maple walnut goodness! (Maybe my taste buds were worn out the first time?)

Oat Bites with Cashews and Coconut
I popped these open when I wasn’t even hungry, but then I couldn’t stop myself from eating them! There wasn’t an overwhelming cashew or coconut flavor; they were just plain “good.” The coconut was noticeable, and I guess even cashews themselves won’t have an overwhelming cashew flavor, but this cashew/coconut combo just had it. (Whatever “it” is, these had it, and they sure were good!)

My favorite?
It’s hard to say. Something with the Cashew Coconut had an overall goodness, so I’d say it’s my favorite, but the Maple Walnut is a nice, sweet flavor. I guess that puts Peanut/Almond/Pistachio in last place… it’s not bad at all, but the mixed nuts flavor wasn’t as exciting for me as the other ones.

My final verdict is…

These taste good and are quite healthy. Get some! (At least give them a shot as something to rotate in with your current energy bar choice.)

Not in stores near you? Try Amazon.com then - they have Simbree bites in red tins, big containers, or small bags.

Official Website: Simbree.com (which includes more info and a complete online store)

Today’s edition of Water Bottle Wednesday features one of my most beloved water bottles, this green giant from Gatorade.

This baby holds 32 ounces of precious water, and it still fits in a normal bottle cage!

Here’s why I love it - Carrying two of these lets me carry 64oz of water, which is equivalent to carrying three normal size bottles! (And carrying three, 20oz bottles is a pain in the butt!)

With 64oz of water securely attached to my bike, I can venture out into the remote, desolate back roads without fear of running out of clean water - and I can do it without carrying a bulky hydration pack!

Another cool feature on this bottle is the clear view strip along the side (not pictured.) This allows you to see the current water level, even though the rest of the bottle is green.

I have encountered a few problems along the way, though. Since the bottle is much taller than normal, it might not fit all frames, especially funky mountain bike frames. It’s also a bit harder to maneuver into and out of the cages, because even when it does fit in the frame, it’s a close fit.

[It fits both cages on my road bike and my hardtail MTB, but it is kind of hard to fit it in the MTB's seat tube cage.]

Since it’s hard to maneuver, it’s not a great bottle to carry during races. You would probably drop it or at least take way too long to pull it out of the cage and replace it. (But the bottle’s benefits don’t really apply to races, so I don’t actually consider this a downside.)

Some people might not like this, but the mouth piece is hard plastic. There’s no “give” like there is on most cycling-specific bottles, but it hasn’t hurt my mouth any. The benefit is that it closes easily and securely. (Unfortunately, I think it drips a bit more than usual when it is open, so it’s a trade-off.)

The real problem… is that I need another one!

I bought two of these bottles about four years ago for something like $1.88 at a Wal-Mart in the Boston suburbs. Once I realized how sweet these were, I went back for more, but never saw them again!

Even worse, I broke one of the two I had! (See story box for the details…)

You know how you freeze some water inside a water bottle so you don’t have to use normal ice cubes? Well I did that with one of these bottles… Oh, it worked fine, until I dropped it!

I was using the bottle for a road trip, and while taking a sip at a rest stop, I dropped the bottle right down on the cement. It looked fine then, so I picked it up and put it back in my cup holder.

So I packed up and was driving along, grabbed the bottle, and noticed it was dripping onto my pants… Then I glanced at my cup holder and saw it was full of water!

What had happened was the ice at the bottom of the bottle was so hard that the bottom cracked when it hit the cement. But since it was ice at the time, there was no leak. Until it started to warm up!

So I was cruising down the highway with about 30oz of water leaking out into my car! At my next stop I simply had to throw the bottle in the trash can due to the large gash on the bottom…

But hey, one is better than none

How to Get a Similar Gatorade Bottle

The good news is that Gatorade still makes some water bottles. They have discontinued my beloved 32oz bottle, but they have a new 32oz bottle out there. They have it at Amazon.com, so if I don’t see it in the stores, I’ll get one next time I order from Amazon…

But this new bottle has some ridges, and the nozzle is new… So we’ll see… [Yes, I'll review it in an upcoming edition of Water Bottle Wednesday.]