Retailer Name: Sierra Trading Post
Website: www.SierraTradingPost.com

Continue reading for my thoughts and opinions on Sierra Trading Post, an online retailer selling outdoor gear for activities such as camping, hiking, running, cycling, and more. Their store offers many amazing deals and closeouts.

Sierra Trading Post also has a few brick-and-mortar outlet stores (Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada,) but I have never been there, so I cannot comment on them.

Product Selection and Availability

Sierra Trading Post is a BIG store! The main menu features just six categories (Outdoor Gear, Men’s Clothing, Women’s Clothing, etc.,) but under each category is a huge list of subcategories! Just start browsing and you could stay all day!

There are quite a few brands of clothing I don’t see often outside of Sierra Trading Post, which is great. There are also some very popular brands to be found there. There’s just so much stuff.

The only problem comes from lack of availability when you’re looking for a certain size. (This issue plagues most discount stores.) There have been plenty of times where the product I wanted was only available in sizes XS or XXL, or the shoes were only in size 6 or 14.

My size is hard to come by in these types of stores, but there have also been plenty of times my clothing choices were available in S, M, and/or L. It’s definitely worth looking.

My favorite items to shop for are base layers and apparel. There are tons of undershirts for hot and cold weather, and quite a few are from Terramar, one of my favorite brands.

You never know what you’ll find at Sierra Trading Post, which makes it fun. You can go back each week and find something different. Along the same lines, if you find something you want in a normal size, you better order fast!

Pricing

Sierra Trading Post is home to the best deals I’ve found on cycling and running apparel.

For example, those undershirts I just mentioned… super cheap! We’re talking $6 for regular Coolmax undershirts and $25 for super warm winter undershirts (retail values more like $20-150.)

I’ve found some great deals on helmets, shoes, socks, and bib shorts as well. My Northwave Team MTB shoes – $220 shoes for $100. My first Castelli bib shorts – $110 bibs for $40.

As I alluded to, the best deals are found on items in odd sizes, but as you can see from my examples, the deals on regular sizes are still great.

Discounts & Coupon Codes

At Sierra Trading Post, all prices are already discounted. And as I mentioned already, the deals are great! I’d say the stuff I buy is usually 60% off.

Get this – Sierra Trading Post offers coupon codes! (That’s not very common at discount stores like this.) Typically you can get a “10% off your order of $75 or more” coupon. That all adds up to some of the best deals on the net.

Ease of Use (Website and Shopping Cart)

SierraTradingPost.com has come a long way since I first started shopping there. Today, it is a very well organized site with many advanced functions for browsing and searching the merchandise.

You can use the site-wide search box, or you can browse by category. Within the category, you can choose subcategories or use the category search function. The coolest part, though, is to use the “Filter options” menu. This lets you filter by color, size, and brand, so you don’t have to browse through three pages of listings only to find there are no size smalls available!

The product listing pages are nice and descriptive, plus they feature customer reviews.

Adding an item to your shopping cart is easy as well, and the checkout is seamless. PayPal and Google Checkout are options (as well as the standard secure checkout.)

Overall, everything works well and the clean look and feel of the website makes shopping there a pleasant experience.

Shipping & Handling

Sierra Trading Post ships via UPS and all the fees seem reasonable. As of 11/30/09, using UPS Ground, a $20 order will ship for $5.95 and a $100.00 order will ship for $10.95. (Add an extra $10 for 2 Day Air and $20 for 1 Day Air.)

Even if the shipping is a dollar or two more than other sites, the low prices on the merchandise make Sierra Trading Post the obvious choice.

Customer Service

Sierra Trading Post seems like a very helpful company.

There are many options to get in touch with them if necessary. They have the phone during business hours, email, and even a 24/7 live chat feature.

Even during normal shopping, you can see the effort they put into giving you an ideal experience. For example, shoe sizing:

Sierra Trading Post provides the manufacturer’s sizing chart, but they also have employees who are designated “fit models” for different types of footwear. These employees try on their proper size (and sometimes smaller and larger sizes) to see if the sizing chart is on target. If not, there are notes from Sierra Trading Post accompanying the item’s description. They also track returns to see if customers have issues with a certain sizing chart, then they can tweak or verify sizing recommendations.

I have never had to return an item, but their return policy seems very simple.

My final verdict is…

I absolutely love the discounts! I’d say Sierra Trading Post is my favorite discount store. Heck, it’s my favorite place to shop online! I love to see what I can find there, cheap.

It’s not a place I go to if I need something specific, but if I need cycling undershirts or a sleeping bag of some sort, I’ll check Sierra Trading Post before heading to Performance Bike or REI.

Official website: www.SierraTradingPost.com

If you’re already skinny and start weight lifting, you probably want to gain muscle mass, not lose weight…

Since I started working out, I’m losing weight instead of gaining it. Shouldn’t I be gaining muscle mass?

Since I started two months ago, I went from 156 to 147. I am getting more toned, but I’m not gaining muscle mass for some reason. Is that supposed to happen, or am I doing something wrong?

By the way, I eat a lot. It’s not like I don’t eat either.

Thanks,
Hardgainer Harvey

Hi Harvey,

Since I don’t know the exact details of your diet and training, I can’t say exactly what’s going on, but I can point out a couple main issues here when it comes to weight loss, diet, and muscle gain.

First, the initial weight loss and “toned” look.

As weird as it seems, this isn’t uncommon. Most people out there, especially if they’re new to working out, have high enough body fat that they will end up noticing the fat loss more than the muscle gain. And in most cases, you can lose fat faster than you can gain muscle.

From the information given, I would guess that you may have gained a little muscle mass, but lost a lot of fat along the way. That’s what leads to the “toned” look.

If you think about it, what is “toning” anyway? Getting toned is all about losing fat so that your muscles become more visible.

The toned look comes from a combination of losing fat and gaining muscle. Many people think they are “toning” their muscles when they workout, but that’s kind of a misleading statement. You can’t really change the look of the muscle. Getting “toned” is simply making the muscle bigger so it stands out more, or losing fat so that the muscle is less hidden.

Now, that is all just speculation. It’s entirely possible that you’re just losing weight (fat) and not gaining any muscle. That happens with beginners, because it takes years to really learn and understand your body and how it responds to food intake and workload in the gym.

Second, are you really eating enough?

I would bet that you aren’t eating enough to gain muscle (even if you think you are.) Think about it – you need to consume more calories than you burn in order to gain weight. If you are working out, you are burning more calories, so you have to eat more than normal to get that calorie surplus.

If you have lost nine pounds in two months, that’s a good sign that you will have to eat more in order to build muscle.

Third, are you working hard enough to gain muscle?

I like the saying, “building muscle is simple, but not easy.” What that means is that building muscle is a simple concept, but it takes a lot of hard work to actually accomplish it.

You may have a great program and work ethic, but it’s worth pointing out, gaining a lot of muscle takes seriously hard work in the gym. Not to mention the discipline to do every single workout in the first place!

Lastly, how do you know what to do?

The final step is constantly learning and striving for improvement (i.e. muscle gain.)

You should be keeping a training log and food journal to chart your progress. With a food journal, you can see what caloric intake you need in order to gain weight. (Basically you would slightly increase your food intake each week until you hit the point where you gain weight.)

With a training journal, you can chart your progress as well as analyze what types of training yield the best results.

As you improve at weight lifting and want to learn more about nutrition, you can look into more advanced topics such as intense training programs, nutrition plans, nutrient timing, intermittent fasting, and many others.

Here are a few resources that would be good for your current situation:

• “Build Muscle and Lose Fat Simultaneously?”
• BUILT FOR SHOW by Nate Green
• “How to Build Muscle”
• “How to Maintain Muscle While Losing Weight”

Good luck with your muscle gain!

If you know anyone that does network marketing (MLM stuff,) one of the nutritional products they might be promoting is TruBoost Honest Energy. This is a 4oz energy shot from LifeForce International (the company behind Body Balance, Osteo Omega Care, and other health supplements.)

TruBoost is claimed to “boost energy naturally” and “enhance mental clarity.” That’s nothing new. What sets this energy shot apart from the rest is that it contains no stimulants, no caffeine, is non-carbonated, and is free of artificial colors and flavors.

Health, Ingredients, and Nutrition Facts

To start with, let’s look at the “Proprietary Organic Blend.” TruBoost contains 1.4g of these herbs: Krishna Tulsi leaf and flower, Vana Tulsi leaf and flower, Rama Tulsi leaf and flower.

Apparently all those herbs are forms of “Holy Basil”, which is an interesting herb from India that may help relieve stress (read more from Dr. Weil.)

Then you have 500mg of Potassium D-glucarate and 125mg Sensoril (which is Ashwaganda Extract.) There are also some B vitamins in there, but just about 30% DV for each, which isn’t much compared to other energy drinks.

Finally, the other ingredients…

Other ingredients: Peach Juice (Water, Peach Juice Concentrate), Organic Agave Nectar, Natural Flavors, Citric Acid.

That makes for 6g sugar (peach juice and agave nectar are nearly pure sugar,) all in all giving you 30 calories. That’s quite a few calories for a healthy 4oz drink (compared to Ola Loa or something,) but not many if you compare it to other energy drinks or to juice.

Taste Test

TruBoost is a peach flavor according to the bottle.

The first time I tried it, my exact words were “this tastes like peach-flavored urine!” It was pretty bad and I did not enjoy finishing the 4oz.

However, a couple days later I reluctantly tried another bottle… and it was pretty good! Nothing special, but it was drinkable and actually tasted like peach that time.

The third time, I really enjoyed it! I’m not sure why, but the peach taste was just plain better the third time around. If I had had a 12oz can of this stuff, I would have gladly consumed the whole thing.

With the fourth bottle, it was the same thing – it was actually good.

Perhaps since I don’t regularly consume energy shots, I needed a couple warm-up sessions? Whatever it was, I wouldn’t hesitate to have a fifth bottle.

The Energy Boost

The first time I took this, I thought it may have given me a boost, but I was unsure. The second time I was thinking, “OK, I’m pretty sure this gave me a small energy boost.”

The third time I could finally tell for sure. I had one at roughly 6pm when I was getting tired from a long day of exercise and work. While I didn’t notice a kick, about 45 minutes later I started thinking, “hey, I feel pretty good.”

And I felt good and alert the rest of the evening. It was a good feeling – relaxed yet awake and alert. Much better than a jittery feeling! I was still able to get to sleep at 11pm.

But if you already have a tolerance to energy drinks or you’re really run down from a rough week, this might not be a big enough kick.

Overall it turned out to be a pretty good drink, and I only have one complaint – the bottle itself! The packaging sucks!

To start, you have to peel off the thick plastic covering, but that’s not so bad. The real problem is that “lift n pull” seal under the cap. I hate those things. Now, it’s one thing to take it off a 32oz bottle of something, but to remove it for one measly energy shot, it’s a huge pain in the ass.

It takes longer to remove the seal than it does to drink the drink!

My final verdict is…

At first I didn’t like this at all, but now I kind of like it. It provides a small but pleasant energy boost that sets it apart from other powerful energy drinks.

I would definitely get some more if it was cheap, but it’s not convenient to purchase and it’s probably like $3 per shot. So I don’t mind going without it since there are so many energy drink options out there.

Official website: Lifeforce.net

A dropped chain poses serious problems for all cyclists. Not only is it annoying, dropping a chain can damage your frame, especially if it is full carbon. And if it happens during a race, congratulations, you just lost!

The worst part is, even if you practice shifting for years and get really good at the nuances of your bike, and you adjust the front derailleur perfectly, it still happens!

So what do you do?

You need to get yourself a chain catcher!

A “chain catcher” (or “chain watcher” as some say) will prevent the chain from dropping off the small ring and onto the frame. If the chain is about to slide off the small ring, it hits the chain catcher, which pushes the chain back onto the ring. This saves time, keeps your hands clean, lessens frame damage, and could very well salvage your chances of winning a race!

The chain catcher is actually a simple device. It is nothing more than a small piece of plastic or metal that clamps to your seat tube or front derailleur and rests beside the small chainring.

They are cheap, too, so you have no excuse not to use one!

In my research, I have found six options for chain catchers. Here they are…

Third Eye Chain Watcher

This is a small piece of nylon with a built-in metal clamp. It clamps to the seat tube, and the nylon piece keeps the chain on the ring. It should fit seat tubes of 1 1/8″ to 1 3/8″, even if they’re oval.

Link: www.3rd-eye.com

Deda Elementi Dog Fang

This looks similar to the Third Eye Chain Watcher, in that it is a small piece of nylon. It fits 28.6 mm (1 1/8″), 31.7 mm (1 1/4″) and 31.8 mm (1 3/8″) round seat tubes.

Link: www.dedaelementi.com

N-Gear Jump Stop

This is a stainless steel plate with a plastic clamp. It clamps to your seat tube and the plate is there to act as a chain guide. It fits round seat tubes with a standard outside diameter of 1″ (needs shim), 1-1/8″, 1-1/4″, or 1-3/8″.

Link: www.gvtc.com

JTek DropStop

The DropStop is slightly different in that it mounts on the bottom bracket rather than the seat tube. This solves the problem of seat tube size, although it requires more time for installation.

Link: www.jtekengineering.com

K-Edge

The K-Edge is the fanciest chain catcher out there. If you want a good one, this is the one to get. But you do have to shell out $45 or more for this luxury!

Link: www.acecosportgroup.com

There is also a good story at VeloNews featuring the K-Edge.

Or… Make your own!

If you want a top-quality chain catcher but don’t want to spend a whole lot, you can make your own. It’s possible to make your own chain catcher that looks and works nearly as well as the K-Edge, while costing less than $10.

All you really do is take a piece of metal and bend it just so, then attach it to your bike via the screw on your front derailleur braze-on.

For instructions and diagrams, check out the RoadBikeRider.com ebook “How to Make a Chain Catcher (And Never Worry About a Suicide Shift Again)” by John Marsh. (Buy here; see my review of the book here.) It’s under $4 for the book, and the materials cost under $2. That’s a great value!

(Or check this thread at RoadBikeReview for some interesting ideas for homemade chain catchers.)

Yes, even the pros use chain catchers!

If you look at the pros’ bikes, you’ll see many of them have custom-made chain catchers!

Alessandro Ballan’s Wilier: click here for picture.

Paolo Bettini’s Specialized: click here for story, here for picture.

There is also a story here and another picture.

Bradley Wiggins’ Felt (equipped with a K-Edge): click here for story.

Don’t wait until you scratch your carbon frame, get a chain catcher soon!

While I am not one to live off crazy energy drinks, I do try them on occasion, especially if I find one that looks relatively healthy. One I tried is called Awake Good Morning Energy, which is 100% juice plus some energy ingredients. It comes in an “orange tangerine” flavor.

Yes, since it is juice-based, it is very high in sugar. However, most of the sugar is naturally-occurring in the fruit juice, and there isn’t a ridiculously high amount of caffeine, taurine, or similar ingredients. That, plus the fact that I found it on sale at Big Lots for 50 cents per can, made it worth trying!

Health & Nutrition

With typical energy drinks, we’re just trying to find something that’s not too unhealthy. With Awake, it’s really just a mix of fruit juice concentrates plus a few other things, so it’s off to a good start.

Juices include apple, orange, tangerine, lemon, pineapple, and passion fruit.

Then you have:

Essentra – 125mg
Taurine – 100mg
Caffeine – 80mg
L-Carnitine L-Tartrate – 15mg

Caffeine will give you a mental boost, the two amino acids are claimed to give you energy and/or help you burn fat, and Essentra is supposed to alleviate stress, reduce fatigue, and improve mental clarity while restoring energy levels.

Here is what the Awake website says about Essentra:

Essentra® is a unique, patented vitalizing and rejuvenating extract derived from a natural botanical called Ashwagandha, a powerful adaptogen that provides restorative nutrition for enhanced mind and body performance. In addition to increasing stamina and overall energy throughout the day, it has been standardized to consistently shield the body against the negative effects of stress by balancing and harmonizing the body’s systems. It helps to reduce fatigue, improve immune system functions, sharpen focus and eliminate your energy “peaks and valleys.”

That adds up to 180 calories in a 12oz can. That’s a little high, and what really takes the cake is most of those calories are from sugar – there’s 50g sugar in the can! It’s all from the fruit juice, but still, that would lead to one crazy sugar rush!

To end on a positive note, this is no added sugar or sucralose!

Taste Test

I think the tangerine and pineapple are the most prominent flavors. Orange kind of blends with the tangerine, and I do taste the apple some, but those flavors are subdued whereas the pineapple and tangerine give it that bite.

On some sips I also notice a little sour note from the lemon juice. I think I could taste the passion fruit when I consciously looked for it, but since passion fruit isn’t a staple in my diet, I didn’t really notice the flavor above any others.

Awake has a juicier texture and sweeter, less tangy flavor than the Guru Juicy tangerine flavor.

Overall the taste is good. As for texture, it’s just like drinking a tropical fruit juice mix. You can’t tell there is anything else in there.

With no carbonation and no artificial sweeteners to leave a bad aftertaste, it’s all good. I could probably drink this every morning and still enjoy the taste (not that I’d make this sugary drink a daily occurrence.)

Energy Boost

I drank a can of Awake in the morning, around 8:45 AM. It gave me a little energy boost.

Not a crazy energy boost, and not jittery; plenty for me because I don’t drink much caffeine.

The boost lasted at least till the afternoon, at which point I had a rare cup of coffee and was awake till the wee hours of the morning! I think that was the coffee, but at least I can say this isn’t one of those energy drinks that lasts 15 minutes and then results in a big crash.

My final verdict is…

If you like tropical fruit juice, and you don’t mind getting 50 grams of sugar in a single drink, this could be for you.

It’s still 50g sugar hitting your body very quickly, though, so I wouldn’t make it a habit.

Official website: www.awake-energy.com