Australian Hiker

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GU Energy Chews Review

While energy chews and energy blocks are more often considered in the realms of endurance sports like running and cycling, my reason for reviewing this type of product on a hiking website is that I’m in the process of planning a long distance thru hike with consecutive days of big distances. Through monitoring myself over the past few years on how my body reacts to big days on the trail there are days where I can burn around 8000+ calories. Sometimes I just need an energy boost and products such as these come in handy.

GU energy chews can best be described as large soft jubes. That’s what they look like and in many respects it’s what they taste like as well. The five flavours readily available are Blueberry/Pomegranate, Orange, Strawberry, Lemonade and Watermelon. Gill and I tried all flavours and in most cases they are fairly subtle with the exception of the Orange which is reasonably strong.

The 60 gram packet contains two servings with each serving being 90 calories packet. The flavours contain sodium and are caffeine free with the exception of the Strawberry. Who needs coffee when you can get a caffeine hit out of a packet?

I tend to hit a wall in the afternoon at work and will usually go for something like chocolate but tried these as an alternative. Now I’m a bit of a sugar addict so it was all too easy to eat the whole packet in one sitting. The best way I can describe the effects (from my own personal perspective) is that is it similar to consuming too many energy drinks or cups of coffee. I definitely got the energy back but I was ‘wired’ to say the least. Lesson learnt, don’t consume these unless you can burn off the energy. Apart from that I didn’t have any adverse effects on my digestive system so that was a bonus.

This product is very similar to the Clif Shot Bloks but unlike the Clif product which provides a more sustained gradual energy release, these give an almost instantaneous boost so depending on your needs you may choose one or the other or a combination of both.

Overall I can see myself consuming these for big days and will seriously consider them for my upcoming thru hike particularly when I need a quick energy hit. I’ll just need to develop will power and not eat them as lollies.

Listen to podcast episode 057 Nutrition on the trail for additional information on supplements and hiking.

We Like

• A range of flavours
• Relatively lightweight
• Quick energy response when you need it

We Don't Like

• Too easy to eat the whole packet
• If you aren’t exerting yourself then the impact is like drinking extra strength coffee or an energy drink

Best Uses

• All outdoor activities where you need an quick energy hit

Buy One

You can purchase GU Energy Chews from Wildfire Sports

Disclosure: We may earn a small commission, at no additional expense to you, if you click through and make a purchase. Please note that our affiliations do not influence, in any way, the independence of our reviews. If we don’t like a product, you’ll hear about it from us!

If you have used the GU Energy Chews or if you have questions, we’d like to hear from you. Post your comment or question below

Investment

AUD $6.25 RRP per packet

Other Versions

GU also do Energy Gels

GU Energy Chews Watermelon

GU Energy Chews Strawberry – for caffeine fans

GU Energy Chews Orange

GU Energy Chews Lemonade

GU Energy Chews Blueberry Pomegranate

GU Energy Chews flavours

• Orange
• Blueberry/Pomegranate
• Strawberry (contains Caffeine)
• Watermelon
• Lemonade

GU Energy Chews open packet showing the individual chews

Disclaimer

This review was done with product purchased from a retail store by Australian Hiker

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