Looking forward to taking the family out for a long, relaxing camping trip this summer? Check out these massive new bottles from water-storage specialist Chilly's.

The insulating new Big Mouth bottles are ideal for lengthy car camping trips or festivals. Instead of bringing multiple disposable or single-use containers, you can pitch up with your Big Mouth bottle and have enough water for the whole trip.

They're available in 1.1-gallon (2L) and 0.5-gallon (4L) sizes and can keep your cold drinks chilly for up to 72 hours, while retaining heat for up to 48 hours, according to Chilly's.

The new Big Mouth bottles are made from durable high-grade stainless steel. Their polypropylene lids and TPE bases are both recyclable, while ergonomic carry handles aim to help you lug your bottle from car to campsite without too much strain.

These handles can be locked at 90 degrees, so you can keep a firm grip on your potentially heavy water and pour with ease.

Like all great camping water bottles, these Chilly's models boast an accommodating mouth opening, large enough for fruit, tea bags, ice, or whatever else you feel like mixing in your bottle.

Like what you see? The new Big Mouth bottles are available on the Chilly's website in the Abyss Black and Limelite Fleck colorways. The 1.1-gallon (4L) model costs $95 (£80), and the 0.5-gallon (2L) version is $71 (£60).

The Big Mouth bottles are the latest in Chilly's long line of insulating stainless steel water bottles.

Opening its doors in 2010, the UK-based brand aims to do away with harmful plastic bottles with long-lasting, stylish alternatives, which last for years rather than a single use.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails
• The best running water bottles: convenient hydration for mid-length runs

Keep your cold drinks chilled and your warm ones toasty in the wilderness with Vapur's latest bottle.

The all-new BFA and lead-free Vapur Chill bottle is made from durable double-wall stainless steel and features a handy lockable lid, so you can ensure there won't be any spills around the campsite. There's also a non-slip rubber disc on its base, which ensures stability wherever you place it.

The Vapur Chill bottle's main draw is its insulation. Its creators claim that the 20fl oz (592ml) bottle can keep drinks cold for up to 12 hours and hot for up to eight.

This feature could come in particularly handy on long camping, backpacking, or hiking trips, as could its integrated carabiner, designed to clip easily onto your backpack.

Stainless steel bottles are typically heavier than plastic alternatives, and the Vapur Chill is no exception. But at 1.2oz (34g), it's still light enough to toss in a backpack or carry while you hike.

The Vapur Chill bottle is available for $24.99 on the Vapur website or £24.99 at Berryuseful.com.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails
• The best running water bottles: convenient hydration for mid-length runs

Amazon's spring sale might be over for this year, but there are still some great deals to be found on outdoor gear that you'll use as the weather starts to improve. Right now, you can snag the innovative Lifestraw Peak Series Collapsible Water Bottle and Filter System for just $35.16 at Amazon. That's a healthy savings of 20% off the list price for this water bottle and filter combo, which campers say is "incredibly useful."

When I was thru-hiking the West Highland Way several years ago, this piece of kit proved invaluable. Instead of having to carry several hard water bottles and my filter along with all my other camping kit and food for a week, I just bought this. Each time I needed water, I could simply fill it up and start drinking, with no need to stop and pump.

When I want to move really fast and light in the mountains, I bring just the filter and drink directly from a stream without the need for a bottle at all. Meanwhile, when I'm traveling by plane, I can bring the bottle without the filter and it rolls up and packs away in my carry-on when it's empty.

This deal applies to the 1L size in Dark Mountain Gray and Mountain Blue but it's for a limited time only, so I recommend you act fast if you want to secure this at a good price for this summer's adventures.

If you're outside of the US, just scroll down to the bottom of this article for today's best deals on the Lifestraw Peak Series Collapsible Water Bottle and Filter where you are.

This filter protects you against 99.999999% of bacteria (including E.coli, Salmonella), parasites (including Giardia) and microplastics, silt, sand, and cloudiness, but not viruses. Make sure you follow the instructions for regular maintenance of the filter to prolong the life of this high-quality hydration system.

If you're not in the US, here are today's best deals on the Lifestraw Peak Series Collapsible Water Bottle and Filter where you are.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Water filters have always been essential kit for hiking and backpacking, but traditional designs can be heavy, bulky and require regular backflushing to keep the filter free of debris. A new soft bottle uses activated carbon to help you source safe drinking water in the backcountry, with almost no maintenance required.

The Katadyn BeFree AC 1.0 L Water Filter Bottle looks to have taken its cues from the Lifestraw Peak Series collapsible squeeze bottle, which integrates the filter directly into a soft bottle. The design means you can stop at a stream or waterfall during your hike, fill up the bottle and drink straight away.

Designed by a Swiss-based company that specializes in self-sufficient nutrition and drinking water supply, the carbon filter acts like a sponge to grab onto bacteria, parasites and silt (but not viruses) so you can get on with hiking or trail running without having to carry lots of water.

A second removable activated carbon filter reportedly takes care of bad taste, which is great when water sources aren't the freshest, but if you want that pure mountain stream taste you can just leave it in.

Soft water bottles can be a little trickier to squeeze into the side pockets of your backpack compared to hard bottles, but Katadyn says the integrated rugged handle makes it easy to hang the BeFree AC from your pack with a carabiner. When you're not using it, you can roll it up and stash it in any pocket.

When you get home from your adventure, instead of having to backflush the filter, simply shake or swish the filter in water to remove grime – and it's this that makes the BeFree AC potentially more promising than the Lifesaver Peak Series, though it's also more expensive.

The Katadyn BeFree AC 1.0 L Water Filter Bottle is available in Slate Blue, Moss Green and Misty Red for $49.95 at REI. It's also available in a smaller version 0.5L for $44.95.

Remember that water filters such as these do not effectively remove viruses and for that you'll want something more comprehensive water purifier, such as the Lifesaver Wayfarer.

• The best water purifiers and filters: clever devices for supplying safe drinking water on the trail and in camp
• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Few things are more important to the human body than proper hydration, especially when you're exercising.

The age-old rule of thumb for trekkers is that we should carry 35 fl oz (1l) of water for every 2 hours of hiking. This can obviously vary depending on the conditions and temperature you're hiking in, but the point stands - getting enough water is non-negotiable.

Now outdoor brand CamelBak has launched two new water bottle designed aimed at helping you do just that..

The 100% leak-proof Thrive Flip Straw and Thrive Chug bottles are made from dependable stainless steel and designed to excel over long distances and years of heavy use in the wilderness.

The Flip Straw model features CamelBak's 'EasyFlow' valve, which can be easily flipped and closed for simple, on-the-go drinking.

The Chug bottle is designed for equally easy hydration with its new spout cap, which simply flips into position, where it stays until it's flipped back and closed.

Both bottles are available in a wide range of colors in 42fl oz (1.2l), 25fl oz (1l), and 26fl oz (750ml) sizes. You can also get your hands on a translucent Tritan Renew version of the Flip Straw bottle, which contains certified recycled plastic.

Both bottles are available on the CamelBak website.

• The best hydration packs: on-the-go refuelling for your runs
• The best water purifiers and filters: clever devices for supplying safe drinking water on the trail and in camp

You can now take a gulp from your favorite Yeti drinkware in two new vibrant spring colorways.

From Tuesday (February 18), you can sip from the latest Yeti Rambler tumblers, bottles, travel mugs, and more in the vivid Firefly and Big Sky Blue colorways.

Firefly is inspired by nature's nightlights, like the Aurora Borealis, which lights up parts of the Northern Hemisphere with a powerful florescent glow.

The Big Sky Blue colorway takes its cue from Montana's 'great wide open', the expansive wilderness home to hundreds of miles of rugged mountains and dazzling blue lakes.

Alongside drinkware, you can snag Yeti's signature collection of coolers, buckets, backpacks, and more in the two new colorways from the Yeti website.

Yeti began in 2006 when brothers Roy and Ryan Seiders set out to make a cooler suitable and sturdy enough for outdoor enthusiasts like them.

They soon expanded to drinkware and shot to popularity, earning a stellar reputation in the camping world.

If you're after a bargain, there are great savings to be had on the Yeti Rescues website, which refurbishes and resells old Yeti products with big reductions in price.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails
• The best camping coolers: keep food and drinks delightfully chilled

Vango Thermo Bottle: First impressions

The 500ml Thermo Bottle from Vango was designed with the elements in mind. Made from double vacuum stainless steel, this reusable bottle can keep your liquids at the temperature you want while withstanding all the bruises and bumps that come with a good hike through the country, according to its creators.

Vango claims that the Thermo Bottle is capable of retaining heat for up to 24 hours and keeping your cold drinks chilled for up to 48.

Minimizing spillages, the sturdy slide lock is there to stop liquid from escaping while a simple button mechanism requires only one hand to open and close the Thermo Bottle.

For the past month, I’ve been putting the Vango Thermo Bottle through its paces, bringing it along for hikes and even the odd run to see how it fares in the elements.

Vango Thermo Bottle: in the field

Durability

Made from stainless steel, the Thermo Bottle has proven extremely durable in testing, keeping its shape despite several drops and bumps. The BPA-free plastic lid has also proven reliable. No part of the bottle has been dented or misshaped.

The paintwork isn’t quite as indestructible. After a month or so of use, several chips and scratches have become apparent on the body, especially the bottom of the bottle where plenty of stainless steel silver can be seen through the black paint. Damage of this kind is to be expected after rigorous testing, and perhaps is a testament to the number of times I dropped the Thermo Bottle rather than the quality of its paintwork. Still, it’s worth noting the bottle’s sleek black and orange exterior is susceptible to chipping.

Ease of use

The Thermo Bottle is super easy to use. Living up to its creator's claims, the simple button mechanism allows you to pick up and drink with one hand.

Locking is also very easy; with a quick slide of plastic, the bottle locks completely. Throughout testing, the Thermo Bottle’s lock has proved effective and reliable, not leaking a single drop in the backcountry.

The large spout is wide enough to comfortably fit a tea bag, so you can take a hot brew on the trails without the need to stuff your fingers down the spout.

While the stainless steel body is a durable, sustainable choice, the Thermo Bottle could’ve done with a little more in the way of grip. It’s not especially slippery, and unlikely to fall out of your hand, but a few rubber grips would’ve gone a long way to guaranteeing you can keep a hold of your bottle on long treks.

Sustainability

While it's not perfect, stainless steel is a relatively sustainable choice for outdoor hydration. Although its production can have a negative impact on the environment, durable, stainless steel bottles like this one eliminate the need for the harmful plastics found in disposable bottles.

The small amount of plastic featured on the bottle’s lid is BPA-free. This means the plastic is free from Bisphenol A, a chemical compound found in several plastics that’s been linked to various cardiovascular conditions. BPA-free plastics are also 100% recyclable.

Weight and capacity

Weighing 0.7lb / 0.3kg, the Thermo Bottle is light enough to hold without slipping out of your hand but can become annoying when full. Stainless steel bottles are typically heavier, and although you can certainly hike with the Thermo Bottle, its weight isn’t unnoticeable.

Throughout testing, I found myself sipping from my bottle more than I usually would in an attempt to lighten the load, and chucking the Thermo Bottle in my backpack to free my hands.

Added weight is par for the course when using a stainless steel bottle, and the Thermo Bottle is no exception, a disadvantage of the material rather than the product.

Insulation

Alongside durability, the Thermo Bottle's major selling point is insulation. According to its creators, this stainless steel bottle is capable of retaining heat for up to 24 hours and keeping drinks cold for up to 48. This depends heavily on the surrounding environment and outside temperature.

In a slightly chilly kitchen, the Thermo Bottle, which I'd filled with boiling hot water, began to lose heat after around 16 hours. Testing again after 20 hours, the once scorching water was barely tepid and had returned to room temperature by the 22nd hour.

The chilled water I used to test lasted roughly 38 hours before returning to room temperature.

Although it fell short of 24 hours of heat and 48 hours of chill in my test, the Thermo bottle would likely fare a lot better in more appropriate, warmer, and colder conditions.

Price

The biggest thing the Vango Thermo Bottle has going for it is price. At only $16.50 / £13, this stainless steel bottle is far cheaper than most of its well-rated competitors.

The FLSK drinking bottle, which is similarly durable and also boasts 500ml of capacity retails for $48.90 / £39-£54. Far cheaper and better rated in several areas, the Thermo Bottle is a reliable, affordable alternative, providing a good amount of bang for your buck.

• The best hiking water bottles 2025 stay hydrated at camp and on the trails
• The best running water bottles 2025 convenient hydration for mid-length runs
• How Advnture tests products

A leading drinkware company has launched a massive recall of two popular travel mugs due to a design flaw that has resulted in dozens of burn injuries.

According to a December 12 alert by the United States Consumer Product Safety Commission (USCPSC), the Seattle-based company has issued a recall of the mugs after receiving 91 complaints.

"These mug's lid threads can shrink when exposed to heat and torque, causing the lid to detach during use, posing a burn hazard," states the recall.

This has caused 38 burn injuries worldwide, including two in the U.S., with 11 consumers worldwide requiring medical attention.

The recall involves all Stanley Switchback and Stanley Trigger Action stainless steel travel mugs sold in the US since 2016. The double-walled mugs were sold in a variety of colors and in 12 oz, 16 oz and 20 oz sizes with a polypropylene lid. The Stanley logo appears on the front and bottom of the mug. Approximately 2.6 million of these mugs have been sold at Amazon, Walmart, Dick’s Sporting Goods, Target and other outlets between June 2016 and December 2024.

If you're not sure if your mug has been recalled, you can check the product identification numbers on your mug with those listed on the USCPSC page.

If you believe you own either of these products, you should immediately stop using it and contact Stanley to receive a free replacement lid, including shipping. If you want to try a different mug, read our expert guide to the best camping mugs for our favorite picks.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Shopping for Black Friday camping deals doesn't always mean big ticket items like tents and sleeping bags – sometimes you just want to upgrade your essential kit or find some gifts for your outdoorsy loved ones and if so, there are some amazing offers out there for you. Right now, you can pick up the robust Hydro Flask 40 oz Wide Mouth Chug Cap water bottle for just $29.97 at Amazon. That's a hefty saving of 40% off the regular list price for this item, and its lowest price ever on Amazon.

Amazon customers give this product an average of 4.6 stars with one commenting, "It’s better than my Stanley!" – and substantially cheaper at this price, too.

I've been using my Hydro Flask water bottle for years and I love how easy it is to grab and go with its carrying handle. It's super sturdy, dishwasher safe, keeps drinks cold for 24 hours and doesn't flavor your drinks with a metallic taste.

This deal applies to the 40 z version in Indigo Blue, Moonshadow Purple, Trillium Pink and White colorways. If you're in the market for drinkware, check out the sale prices on Yeti's "King Crab" colorway happening now, and if you're shopping for those big ticket items we mentioned, we're keeping you up-to-date on all the best Black Friday camping deals this week.

Not in the US? Scroll down to the bottom of this article for today's best deals on the Hydro Flask water bottles near you.

Say goodbye to leaky water bottles with The Flex Chug Cap which is leakproof when closed. Toss it into your bag without worry. The wide mouth opening fits ice cubes, and the narrow chug drinking spout provides for a convenient, controlled sip.

If you're not in the US, here are today's best deals on the Hydro Flask water bottles where you are:

More great Black Friday deals

• The North Face: big reductions available on jackets, hoodies and other essentials
• Camping: keep cozy with great savings on tents, sleeping bags and other gear
• Hiking: the best deals from big-name brands
• Yeti: great deals on drink-ware
• Patagonia: Big savings available on base layers and waterproofs
• Arc'teryx: prices slashed for stylish winter jackets and softshells
• Garmin: Great savings on top notch Garmin sports watches

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Amazon's Holiday Deals are here even though Black Friday is still weeks away and anyone who loves backcountry adventures is in luck. Right now, you can pick up a 5-pack of LifeStraw Personal Water Filters for just $45.50 at Amazon. That breaks down to only $9 per filter and is a massive 43% savings off the regular list price for this tiny piece of kit that could save your life in the wild.

I never go hiking, camping or trail running without my LifeStraw. Even though I always fill up my water bottle or hydration bladder for any outdoor adventure, I've been caught out more than once in hot weather when my adventure has run longer than planned and I've run out of water.

As long as there's a stream or lake nearby, that's no problem thanks to my LifeStraw, which means I can drink straight from the source in an emergency without worrying about bacteria or parasites.

Weighing just 1.6 ounces and about the size of a magic marker, there's never any reason not to pop this water filter in my backpack or any pocket, and over the last couple of years, I've bought them for several of my loved ones as a gift, too.

If you're shopping for deals on outdoor gear, we'll be all over the best Black Friday camping deals as they roll in, and we've already laid out the best deals in REI's big winter sale happening now.

Not in the US? scroll down to the bottom of this article for today's best deals on LifeStraw water filters where you are.

This deal applies to the 5-pack of filters in blue, but if you don't think you need that many you can also save 48% off a 3-pack for a per-filter price of $11.

If you're not in the US, here are today's best offers on LifeStraw water filters near you:

• The best water purifiers and filters

Clif Bars: first impressions

I was beginning to think that a product like the Clif Bar was a fool’s dream. Like most people who enjoy long-distance outdoor pursuits, from ultra running and thru-hiking to fastpacking and bikepacking, I’ve been on a quest to find energy giving products that don’t taste like the bottom of an angry cockatoo’s cage for what seems like an age.

Personally, I don’t think a banana can be beaten for providing a kick of pretty much everything I need when I’m close to experiencing a hunger flat out on the trail. Sadly, however, owing to serious design flaws, fruits tend to turn to mush when you shove them in the pocket of a hydration vest or small backpack and then violently jig them up and down for hours on end. (I’ve ruined several such packs by accidentally leaving the remnants of squished bananas, satsumas and apples in pockets, until they start smelling like a prison distillery.)

As much as I love food (and I really love food), I find it hard to stomach a lot of processed energy products mid-activity. When I’m running, my body can handle energy gels, and they do keep me going, but the hit delivered by a squeeze of syrup (no matter how scientific it’s been made to sound) only lasts for a short time, and if you have too many, they seem to gang up and do truly evil things to your insides. Some drink supplements are easy to get down, and effective for replacing much-needed carbs and salts, but they do little to sate hunger pangs.

Suffice to say, I’m always on the look out for new ways of keeping fuelled up while out on the trails, especially if they appear to resemble, or at least contain, real food. And, to be fair, there’s a much better range of nutritional bars, gels and drinks available now than when I first started doing outdoor endurance sport.

Clif Bars, which are plant based and naturally flavored, have actually been around for decades, but for some reason they’ve slipped under my radar until now. So I was excited to give them a proper go, to see how they compare to other energy products on the market.

Clif Bars: background, ingredients and flavors

Clif Bars were invented during the 1990s by an endurance cyclist called Gary Erickson, who decided – while he was out on a 175-mile bike ride – that he was well and truly sick of putting up with the tasteless energy supplements he was chowing down on in order to keep up such big mileage. I’m sure we’ve all been there – I certainly have – but Gary went home, got in the kitchen and did something about it, ultimately coming up with a recipe for a far more flavorsome bar that still contains the carbs required to provide plenty of energy, plus protein and fiber for good measure. The result, several decades later, is a range of Clif Bars and subsidiary products, including energy Bloks (covered in our guide to the best active nutrition on the market).

And if you’re wondering why they’re not called Gary Bars, it’s because Erickson dedicated his original product to his dad, Clifford, who introduced him to the outdoors, and the name stuck. (Probably a good thing – Clif definitely works better with the rock climbing logo.)

Clif Bars are available in two sizes – the standard 68g bar, and a smaller 28g snack-size biscuit – across an increasingly wide range of flavors, primarily involving chocolate of various hues, nuts (macadamia, almond, peanuts) and peanut butter.

Made with 70% organic ingredients, they all contain rolled oats, roasted soybeans, elements of rice and tapioca, plus cane sugar and things like chicory root. The bars with the most peanut butter pack the biggest protein and energy punch, but they all box well above their weight in those categories. I wouldn’t recommend eating them with a cuppa on your tea break (unless you’re planning on going for a long run at lunchtime, or happily aiming for that late-era Elvis look), but when you’re working hard in the outdoors, this sort of condensed high-calorie energy fodder is exactly what you need.

Meet the reviewer

Clif Bars: in the field

I’ve been experimenting with near-enough every flavor of Clif Bar available over the last couple of months (as well as the Bloks) while speed hiking, fastpacking, trail running, bikepacking, backpacking, trekking, climbing and just plain old walking. I find the bars satisfyingly dense – consuming a 68g bar feels like having a small meal, and they can really sate your hunger when you’ve been busy burning calories in the hills.

In terms of pure flavor, I’ve been pretty impressed, although I’d quite like to see / taste a bit more fruit alongside the chocolate and nuts – I reckon a citrus or appley tang would make them extra enjoyable, but I don’t know how easy this kind of thing is to incorporate. Regardless, I’ve found the Clif Bars to be much tastier and more satisfying than any comparable products on the market.

While they’re excellent during hiking, fastpacking and cycling adventures, however, I do find the 68g bars too heavy to use while trail running – not so much in terms of carry weight, but in the way they sit in my gut and demand fluids in order to digest. They are, however, an excellent way to load up on energy when you’re traveling to an event (get them down an hour or so before the start). While I’m actually running, I tend to stick to the Bloks, which give you everything a gel can deliver, but in a slightly more palatable form (they basically melt in your mouth, like a cube of jelly, which is essentially what they are).

• How Advnture tests products

Galen Reynolds has run some of the most iconic ultras in the world, including the UTMB and Tor des Géants. He broke Marcus Scotney’s Dragon’s Back course record in 2019 and won the Montane Cheviot Goat.

Originally from Canada, with a background in ice hockey, he puts his success down to a mixture of dedication and an upbeat attitude – combined with a sensible and strategic approach to fueling for long mountain ultras. Advnture caught up with him amid a hectic schedule to get the low-down on just what fuels his epic runs.

What does your nutrition strategy look like in the week leading up to an ultra?
With the race on Saturday, I will usually cut out vegetables on Tuesday and gradually make the meals basic and plain – keeping the protein and carbs coming in. I’m not increasing either early in the week as I will also be tapering, pushing the caloric output down.

I’ll be quite careful with what I eat, and I’ll only eat things that agree with my stomach – no gluten or dairy during race week.

How has that routine changed over the years?

My strategy has changed significantly since I first started. [Then] it included fasting for 36 hours to try to lose weight and eating a lot of carbs for dinner and breakfast before the race. My pre-dinner and breakfast aren’t large, but the week is steady, with sports drinks coming in later in the week to stockpile carbs.

What’s your go-to meal the night before a race and your breakfast on race day? Are there any foods you avoid in order to prevent issues during the race?

Hmmm. My ‘go-to’ pre-race meals start the day before a race with breakfast and they’re all similar in their boringness! One great aspect having this routine is I don’t have to think about it during race week, when there’s usually lots of other logistics to worry about.

The day before the race it’s:

· Breakfast: oats, blueberries and maple syrup.

· Lunch: two egg wraps with salsa and plain tortilla chips.

· Dinner: white rice and chicken breast

I’ll be sipping on sugary sports drink throughout the day and will snack on plain tortilla chips but they’re so plain I don’t snack much!

On race day it’s:

· Breakfast of oats and maple syrup

· Sipping on sugary sports drink throughout the morning

I avoid anything with very high amounts of fiber and all vegetables as this can lead to bloating and needing to use the bathroom during the race.

What kind of snacks do you prefer to carry with you during an ultra marathon? Do you favor whole foods, energy gels, or a mix of both?

After 10 years in the sport, I’ve tried hundreds of bars and haven’t come up with one that works. I put this down to always being at some level of dehydration and then eating solid food, which feels like trying to eat a cup full of cinnamon.

During shorter events – up to 14 hours – I rely solely on sugary sports drinks and gels. I’ve been using the product range at Precision Fuel & Hydration – they make a great carb drink where each scoop is 15g of carbs.

I’m making one of my 500ml flasks a 90g carb drink, good for one hour of hard racing. The 90g big gel that Precision makes works really well, and through training, I’m able to eat the whole thing in one go and not have to worry about nutrition for the next hour.

The longer events, up to several days, are a work in progress. I come in with a nutrition plan for every race, and the only thing I know is that the plan will not survive without several reworks.

I incorporate as much hard food as possible. Hard food is only hard in comparison to gels. The hard food needs to be soft and mushy – like feeding a baby. A cup of noodles, rice with soup poured over it and polenta with anything ‘liquidy’ as polenta can be deceivingly hard to eat on its own.

How do you balance hydration and electrolyte intake during long races? Do you have a favorite sports drink or electrolyte supplement?

I upgraded my hydration game when I went for a sweat test to determine my sodium loss per liter of sweat. Now I’m able to fine-tune my electrolytes instead of guessing how much I should take.

I like to take salt pills; I use Salt Stick because I want to know exactly how much sodium I’m taking instead of trying to estimate in a drink in case I don’t finish the drink, mix it wrong, or spill some.

During long events, particularly the 200-milers, I go more by feel – the feel of cramps. If I notice them coming on, I’ll take a huge amount of electrolytes – up to 1,500mg of sodium – think happy thoughts, and see what happens.*

Post-race or big training days, I enjoy the Precision Fuel and Hydration tabs. It helps recovery and is so much sodium that it sorts me for the rest of the day. It helps avoid lightheadedness and general feelings of awfulness.

What are your immediate post-race recovery meals like? After a gruelling run, how do you ensure you get enough protein, carbs, and other nutrients?

After finishing races, I will usually eat as much as I can, mostly clean good food, lots of carbs and protein-focused for a day or two before getting my life together and back to normal diet.

After long training runs, I focus a lot on eating quickly after the run and will supplement with protein bars if I’m not close to eating. I make sure to have lots of water and food in the car after a long run in the mountains when I’ll have an hour’s drive home.

I’m looking at getting in 40-60g of protein after those massive eight-hour training days in the mountains. I’ve also been experimenting with ketones after long training runs for the recovery benefits, I’m not completely sold on this yet though.

How does your nutrition change in the days following a race to promote muscle recovery and reduce soreness? Are there any superfoods or supplements you rely on?

In the days following a race, I’m focused on staying very hydrated and eating a lot of carbs and protein. In addition to the typical magnesium and omega supplements, I’ll be taking turmeric, ginger, black pepper and ashwagandha. And to really add jet fuel to the recovery process, I try my best for additional sleep.

Do you follow any specific diet, such as plant-based, keto or paleo, for training and racing? How has it impacted your performance and recovery?

Before having kids, I was all over the diet fads. I tried keto, primal, paleo and plant-based. A strong devotee of each for a year or so. But by the time we had kid number two, I didn’t have the time and energy to have a separate diet!

We eat a large variety of foods now but don’t stick to any specific diet apart from generally healthy food. Lots of vegetables, protein and some carbs for dinner. If there was a diet I followed, now it’s a human ‘garberator’ (garbage disposal), as I’m usually in charge of eating what my kids don’t like!

What’s the most important piece of nutrition advice you would give to someone preparing for their first ultra?

Be a “triatarian”. Try, record, adjust. In the beginning, we have to start somewhere; listening to a professional trail runner’s nutrition can be a starting point but most likely won’t work for others. I believe nutrition is even more individualistic than training. I’ve tried a silly amount of nutrition strategies, even trying to stick with only full meals during multiday efforts, as I observed some of my mountain-hardened competitors do.

I write down what works in each situation and what doesn’t, rework the plan and try again. Try lots of different products and home-cooked experiments, and maybe you’ll be the lucky one with a stomach of steel who can eat a full roast while out running.

Galen Reynolds is a Montane athlete.

*The American Heart Association recommends a safe upper limit of 2,300mg of sodium per day, with the ideal upper limit being 1,500mg, so bear that mind if you’re not sweating much, and also in day-to-day life.

Water that's safe to drink is the single most important thing you need when you’re out and about adventuring, and that means finding the best water purifier or filter. While we are typically surrounded by H2O from one source or another, it can be contaminated, and it's not always possible to carry your hydration requirements on long adventures and multi-day trips – water is heavy and even carting a liter in the best hiking water bottles or hydration packs can impact your enjoyment.

Using a good camping stove you can boil water for several minutes in order to kill most waterborne bacterial and viral pathogens, plus pesky protozoa (tiny, single-cell creatures that can be parasitic and cause diseases). But, in reality, it’s not always possible or practical to pull out your camp cooking kit, and even if you do have a stove to hand, you're going to have to wait for the water to cool. Similarly, while there are purification tablets and chemical treatments on the market, such as iodine drops and chlorine and silver tablets, these can affect the taste of the water and often take time to work.

Fortunately, numerous clever solutions to this problem have been created over the years, with the development of water filters and purifiers designed specifically for hikers, climbers, campers, kayakers, international travelers and outdoor explorers. Before we take a look at some the best water purifiers and filters on the market, it’s important to point out that there is a crucial difference between a water filter (which will remove most waterborne bacteria and protozoa) and a water purifier – typically a more comprehensive piece of kit that will also remove waterborne viruses (as well as bacteria and harmful protozoa).

The quick list

This is the quick list, a snapshot of the best water purifiers and filters available in 2026. To delve deeper into the features and qualities of each one, see our more detailed reviews further down the page.

The best water purifiers and water filters 2026

The best press-action water purifier

This press-based purification system comprehensively catches a massive range of waterborne nasties, including virus threats that the more lightweight filters can’t deal with.

Extremely simple to use, but requiring a little bit of muscle power (or at least weight), you just fill the outer section of bottle with water from your source, and then – after opening the top valve half a turn to allow air to escape – push the inside section down, forcing the water through the filter. In this way it’s possible to prepare 500ml of drinking water in 10 seconds flat.

Drink straight from the spout, or decant the clean water into another container and press again.

The whole system fits in the bottle pocket of any backpack, and the cup holder of most vehicles.

Grayl have recently added a silicone one-way valve to the UltraPress, which prevents liquids from flowing back into the cartridge, so you can safely add electrolytes and other drink mixes to your purified water in the bottle, without compromising the filter.

It’s a little heavier than other systems, but you can carry the UltraPress empty and fill it as you go, instead of carting water around with you. This super safe system catches viruses, bacteria and protozoa, as well as particulates such as microplastics and sediment, chemicals such as chlorine, and heavy metals including lead. You can perform 300 presses before it’s necessary to replace the purifier cartridge (pressing becomes harder as the filter gets older – when it takes 25 seconds to press, it’s time for a new cartridge).

The best long-lasting purifier

This stable, standup, pump-powered purifier features two hoses: a scavenger hose for dipping into the water source (which comes with an adjustable float collar, so you can prevent the input dragging on the silty floor) and an output hose for decanting the clean water into a bottle.

Once you have the hoses in place, flip the blue handle up and start pumping. The water goes through a double filtration process, first passing through an ultrafiltration cartridge that catches bacteria, viruses, cysts, microplastics and other particulate and protozoa larger than 0.015 microns. It then goes through an activated carbon disc, which reduces heavy metals and chemicals, and improves the taste and smell of the water.

The ultrafiltration cartridge on this model is capable of filtering 5,000 liters (the most of any system on test) before requiring replacement (and once the filter has gone beyond its useful life, no water will pass through, providing a failsafe system). The activated carbon disc needs to be renewed after every 100 liters (but the purifier works perfectly well without it).

You do need a stable surface to operate this system, and the pump requires a little bit of elbow grease. Plus, it’s heavier and more bulky than a filter, so you might think twice if you’re planning on carrying it while backpacking (although it is much lighter than carting lots of water, and you can purify from sources as you go). But it’s been thoroughly tested (exceeding NSF/ANSI P231 requirements) and so you can rest assured that it will provide properly purified water when you’re camping for long periods, going on a road trip or travelling in places where potable water is hard to source.

Be careful not to lose the dust cap for the clean outflow, and make sure you purge the water completely after use. On test, we did notice air pockets forming, which made it difficult to put the pump handle back into the storage position and resulted in water occasionally being ejected explosively from the out valve.

The best pump-action purifier

The Liberty from LifeSaver is a compact and comprehensive purifying system for campers that’s capable of dealing with viruses as well as waterborne bacteria, particles and protozoa.

There are two ways of using it: you can either unscrew and remove the bottom section and scoop up a load of water, before reassembling the unit, or you can attach and dangle the supplied scavenger hose into the source (the hose comes complete with a little float, so you can prevent it touching the bottom and getting silt-clogged).

Once the unit is full of water, or the hose is in position, you use the pump on the base to pressurize the inside and force the water through the filter. When you’re ready to drink or decant the purified water into another container, open the top section and flip the white lever into the upright position. Be prepared, because the pressurized water will spurt fountain-like from the top of the unit at first.

The filter is good for around 528 gallons / 2,000 liters (after which time you can replace it), and the failsafe system means it stops working altogether once it’s maxed out, so you can’t accidentally drink non-filtered water.

Besides the microfilter, an activated carbon disc deals with heavy metals and improves the taste and odor of the water (and we can testify that it really does make it taste sweeter, no matter how mucky the source); this disc needs to be replaced after about 26 gallons / 100 liters, but the unit can be used without it.

The system fits into a backpack pocket, and can be carried full, but it only takes 13.5floz / 400ml – it’s best suited for use in camp when you’re set up for a few days, or during canoe trips (a loop on the lid enables you to secure it).

The best compact water filter

An ultralight and super-small water filtering system that’s perfect for weight-conscious backpackers, bikepackers and fastpackers, the LifeStraw Peak Series Solo unit is even more compact than LifeStraw’s Personal Water Filter Straw – it literally fits into the pocket of any daypack, backpack, bike bag, coat or hiking pants.

It’s ridiculously easy and quick to use – you simply pop the top cap off, unscrew the bottom cover, dip the end in the water source and suck. Alternatively, you can fill a standard disposable bottle full of water, screw the unit onto the top, invert it and either drink the filtered water straight from the Solo unit, or decant it into another container. It’s possible to fill a 0.25 gallon / 1L bottle with filtered water in 20 seconds.

The big drawback to this system – as with all water filters – is that while it does an excellent job of removing bacteria and particulates, it doesn’t catch waterborne viruses. You also need to be careful not to lose the bottom cover, which unlike the top cap, isn’t attached to the unit.

The filter should last for about 528 gallons / 2,000L (the unit stops allowing water through once it’s no longer effective), but while the Solo is available for a very accessible price compared to some systems – especially purifiers – when the filter is maxed out you need to replace the whole unit.

As the name suggests, the Solo doesn’t come with a bottle, but these are all too easy to source because the thread connects to most screwtop bottlenecks. Alternatively, for a slightly larger outlay you can purchase the LifeStraw Peak Series Squeeze Bottle with Filter, which is exactly the same system built into the top of a soft bottle. Both versions come with a backwashing syringe for cleaning the filter out.

It’s worth noting that, with each purchase, LifeStraw provides clean water for a child in need in the developing world.

The best water filter for small groups

Easy to assemble and use, the LifeStraw Flex with gravity bag system can provide plentiful filtered drinking water for small groups of campers, such as families. Simply fill the 1gal (3.7L) bag from the water source and then hang it from a tree or other structure in camp, using the strap and clip (included).

Gravity feeds the water through a hose to the LifeStraw Flex filter unit, from which you can fill cups, glasses, water bottles or hydration bladders – or just put your mouth underneath it and drink.

As well as a hollow-fiber membrane microfilter, which removes bacteria, parasites and microplastics, this system also has an activated carbon fiber capsule that reduces chlorine and heavy metals (including lead) and improves the taste of the water.

The hollow-fiber membrane is effective for 2,000L (500 gallons), and stops letting water through once it’s ceased working, at which point you can replace it. The carbon fiber capsule needs to be replaced after you’ve filtered around 100L (25 gallons) of water. Aside from working with the hang-bag, the Flex Filter unit can be used with a plastic water bottle (a threaded valve attaches it to a standard soft bottle in place of the lid); a hydration pack (this requires cutting the hydration pack’s hose and attaching the filter unit the right way around); or even as a stand-alone straw.

The kit comes with a backwashing syringe that should be used regularly to flush water through the filter, which will extend the product’s life.

The best squeeze filter

This simple water filtering system is light and highly packable, as well as being extremely easy to use – making it ideal for trekking, backpacking and other trips where weight is a big factor.

Simply fill the supplied 1L Platy bottle (clearly marked ‘dirty’ to avoid confusion) from the water source, attach the QuickDraw unit (also marked, with a ‘dirty’ and a ’clean’ end) and then squeeze the water through.

With the cap of the unit flipped open, you can drink straight from the ‘clean’ end of the straw (which has a spout), or decant the filtered water into another bottle.

While it isn’t effective against viruses, the QuickDraw will catch pretty much all waterborne bacteria and protozoa. The collection reservoir is double layered, to make it durable and taste-free, but you can use other water bottles if you so desire.

To clean the system, just backwash it by shaking it. While you can keep using the bottle forever, the filter unit has to be replaced after processing about 264 liters / 1,000 liters.

The best portable pump-action filter

Lightweight, compact and easy to carry in a backpack, hydration pack or even the pocket of a jacket or hiking pants, the Trailshot is from excellent outdoor brand MSR (Mountain Safety Research). It can be operated with one hand, to fill a water bottle or bladder, or even filter water directly into your mouth.

It’s a pump system, so you place the hose into the water source and squeeze a bulb section several times to draw the liquid through the filter, before decanting it into your vessel of choice, or sipping it directly from the spout. Capable of filtering a liter of water in 60 seconds, this system removes the vast majority of bacteria (such as E.coli and Salmonella) and protozoa (such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium), but like all filters, it isn’t effective against viral pathogens such as norovirus.

The Trailshot will process about 528 gallons / 2,000 liters of water before the filter needs to be changed (it becomes clear when you’re approaching this point when the rate drops below 8.5 oz / 250ml per minute). On test, the hand-squeeze pump – while nice and light – wasn’t as efficient at drawing water through the system as some other pumps featured here.

The best filter for travelling

The latest water filtering offering from LifeStraw is a skinny straw primarily designed for use by travelers concerned about picking up bugs from water and ice supplied in drinks, and is styled to be discreet when used in cafes, bars and restaurants in holiday destinations.

However, it essentially contains the same tech as featured in the Peak Series Straw, and can be used as a lightweight and easy-to-carry device to filter stream water while you’re on the trails, at home or abroad. Longer than the Solo, it can be used to reach stream water from the bank without getting your feet wet, but there’s no option to attach a bottle, so the only way to use it is by sucking water as you go (you can’t decant filtered water into another container).

As with all filters, it will catch the vast majority of bacteria and particulates, but not waterborne viruses, chemicals or heavy metals – to remove these you need a purifier. The membrane-based microfilter can process about 264 gallons / 1,000 liters over its life span, and it stops letting water through when it’s no longer effective, so you can’t accidentally drink unfiltered water. Once it’s spent, the entire unit needs to be replaced.

The Sip comes in a variety of colors, and with a matching carry case that keeps the straw nice and clean.

The best water purifiers and filters comparison table

Meet the expert

How we test the best water purifiers and filters

Our reviewer took all these water purifiers and filters out in the field on various types of adventures – from short hikes to multi-day treks, alone and in groups – to test their strengths and weaknesses. And yes, he really did use that straw in a stream.

How to choose the best water filters and purifiers

There are lots of water filters and purifiers on the market for backcountry hikers, bikers, backpackers, campers, climbers, paddlers and travellers, and it’s important to get the right system for your requirements. Preventing illness and keeping yourself hydrated are extremely important considerations, so you need to know what the system you are considering getting can (and can’t) protect you from.

Filter or purifier?

There is a crucial difference between water filters and water purifiers: filters will catch and remove the vast majority of waterborne bacteria (such as E.coli, salmonella and other dysentery-causing nasties) plus particulates (microplastics, sediment, silt) and protozoa (such as giardia, cryptosporidium, cysts, amoebae). However, they will not catch waterborne viruses, including rotavirus, norovirus and hepatitis A.

To get the bacteria, particulates, protozoa and the viruses, you need a water purifier, which is more comprehensive system with a smaller microbiological pore size (0.015 microns). Many of these purifiers (such as the Grayl UltraPress and the LifeSaver Wayfarer) will also remove chemicals and heavy metals (eg. lead) and the ones with an activated carbon disc even make the water smell and taste sweeter.

The downside is that purifying systems are heavier, bulkier and more expensive than filter systems. Do you really need a system that removes waterborne viruses? If you’re drinking from mountain streams, fairly close to the source, then possibly not, but it’s worth noting that people have been suffering symptoms of norovirus after swimming in UK waterways recently.

What about weight?

While some of these systems, especially the more comprehensive purifiers, can seem a bit heavy to take on backpacking escapades, they’re all significantly lighter than carting liters of water around on the trails, whether you use a bottle or backpack hydration system.

For reference, 17 fl oz / 500ml of water weighs 17.6oz / 500g, which is considerably more than even the heaviest purifying system included here. If you know you’re going to be crossing and camping near reliable water sources, it’s more weight-effective to carry a purifier.

Be careful – just because a stream is marked on a map, that doesn’t mean it will be flowing when you reach it. A purifier that allows you to transport some water along the trail is the best belt-and-braces approach.

Longevity

The filters and purifiers featured here are capable of cleaning between 264 and 1,320 gallons / 1,000 and 5,000 liters of water before parts need replacing, which means even the ones at the lower end of that scale could be used daily for a whole year (assuming you drink about three liters per day) before the filter becomes maxed out – not bad compared to the price of buying bottled water in equivalent quantities, and with a fraction of the environmental cost.

Top tips for using your filter or purifier

Like any piece of kit, a water filter or purifier will work better and for longer if you take care of it.

Prime your purifier and purge your filter

Some products (typically the purifiers) stress the importance of this more than others, but it’s always worth priming your water filter or purifier before you start using it for real. It’s a simple process that just involves operating the device with clean water, putting a few liters through the system. This gets the filter working better, and it’s a good idea to figure out how to use the kit and iron out any doubts or problems before you hit the trail.

Once you have used the filter or purifier properly with ‘dirty water’, it’s a good idea to purge the system afterwards with clean water.

Use the best, clearest water possible

When you’re collecting water from the source, try and get the clearest water you can. Running water is always better than still (potentially stagnant) water, and avoiding silt and dirt where possible will mean the filter works for longer. Devices with a scavenger hose should come equipped with a floating collar that you can put around the hose to avoid the collection bulb at the end dragging in the muck and silt at the bottom of a stream or river.

Radix Nutrition backpacking meals: first impressions

I’d heard and read really good things about the Radix Nutrition range of freeze-dried camping meals for backpackers and bikepackers, so I was excited to get stuck into the large menu of tasty sounding dishes offered by the Kiwi company.

In the outdoor world, many people (myself included) have a love-hate relationship with pre-prepared camping foods. Everyone has had a few bad experiences (generally involving disappointment rather than anything more serious) and – similar to the way runners regard gels and nutrition bars – these sachet servings are often considered a necessary evil by backpackers, fastpackers and bikepackers, who use them not for their delicious taste, but because they’re a quick way of refueling when you most need it.

Shoving a few securely sealed sachets of balanced nutrition in your hiking backpack, running pack or frame bag is an awful lot easier than the alternative: making your own easy-to-carry meals. Dehydrated and freeze-dried food products are very quick and simple to prepare once you’ve pitched your tent and rolled out your camping mat and sleeping bag: just spark up your camping stove, boil some water, add it to the mix then wait for a few minutes and… boom! It’s dinnertime.

There are drawbacks, of course. A big one is price. Convenience comes at a cost, and these ready-made meals will set you back 10 or 20 times as much as you could get away with spending if you bought your own lightweight-but-carb-loaded base ingredient (pasta, lentils, polenta, couscous, tapioca) and threw in enough morsels to bring vitamins and protein to the party. But to make something that truly serves your nutrition needs and offers reasonable amounts of flavor, while remaining lightweight enough to cart around out on the trail, you would have to invest quite a bit of thought and planning time.

Suffice to say, it’s always worth having a stash of pre-prepared sachets somewhere you can grab them, for when you next want to hit the trail and go on an adventure. But only if they’re tasty and nutritious. Would the Radix Nutrition meals hit the spot, and how do they compare to the best freeze-dried food on the market? There was only one way to find out.

Radix Nutrition backpacking meals: ingredients and portions

Radix Nutrition offer an extremely eclectic selection, ranging from Mixed Berry and Apple & Cinnamon breakfasts, through to main meals such as Indian Curry, Mexican Chilli and Turkish Falafel, and include sweet options too. There are a few common denominators, though: they are all entirely plant based – so vegans and vegetarians can tuck into all of the products without worrying – and they are all gluten free. Most of the mains also contain goodness such as omega-3 and omega-6, and at least two of your recommended five-a-day portions of vegetables or fruit.

Instead of claiming to be large enough for one or two servings, like some other camping foods do, the Radix Nutrition meals come in three sizes: 400, 600 and 800. The numbers relate to the amount of calories the content contains, with the 400 range representing a light breakfast or lunch, the 600 ‘Original’ range being a standard-portion main meal, and the 800 ‘Ultra’ range aimed at people engaged in high-intensity adventures such as long-distance multi-day hikes, demanding bikepacking escapades and mountaineering expeditions.

Meet the reviewer

Radix Nutrition backpacking meals: on the trails

I’ve been tucking into Radix Nutrition meals across much of the summer and into fall, during all sorts of backpacking and bikepacking trips. The first thing to say is that the sachets are very easy to pack and carry – but that is pretty much true of all dehydrated and freeze-dried meals designed for backpackers; it’s literally the main reason they exist, so I was looking for a lot more than that.

I am a notoriously hungry man, and have often been left deeply unsatisfied by other camping meals that have claimed to be big enough for one person (pah!) or when sharing those supposedly sufficient for two (cue tent tantrums!). I much prefer the way Radix Nutrition have classified their portion sizes by the calorie payload, and I’ve found they accurately reflect what I need in terms of intake. A meal from the 600 range has been adequate after a couple of hours’ hiking or biking, whereas I have required a bigger serving from the 800 range after spending a really big day trekking trails, climbing peaks or pedalling lumpy off-road routes. After each, I’ve felt full, and been adequately fuelled-up to face another day of adventuring.

When you look at the back of the packet, the list of ingredients on all of the Radix Nutrition main meals reads like a James Joyce novel, but pleasingly, it all sounds like real food – not numbers representing colorings and additives. As a direct consequence, the flavors are the best and most natural I’ve ever experienced from eating freeze-dried food. With other brands’ meals, I’ve resorted to carrying extra condiments (sachets of soy sauce, ginger, mustard or ketchup – I’ve even trekked with bottles of Tabasco), but these meals don’t need to be pimped.

As a veggie, I’m bit biased, but I don’t think even the most committed carnivore will whine too much about missing out on some scraps of reconstituted meat once they realize more flavorsome ingredients have been included instead.

As mentioned above, Radix say each of the main meals contains two of your recommended five-a-day doses of vegetables or fruit, and I do think there’s more vitamin goodness and fiber content in these meals than I’ve found in other brands’ offerings. I once spent an entire week eating only dehydrated/freeze-dried foods, designed for backpacking, and that can do terrible things to your system – trust me… Suffice to say, it’s usually a very good idea to supplement them with some real fruits and other high-fiber foodstuffs, but here I felt I was getting pretty much what I needed.

The design of the packaging is very smart too, and cuts down on the need to carry much in the way of camping utensils if you’re really trying to save weight and space. You rip the top strip off to open the sachet, add the requisite (or desired) amount of water and then seal the packet until the moisture has soaked in. Then – and this is the innovative bit – you can tear another section off to end up with a bowl that you can easily eat the food directly from with a standard spork, without getting the sleeves of your base layer, fleece or puffer jacket covered in food. Brilliant.

I’ve tried almost the entire range now, and I genuinely don’t have many grumbles. The problem with most dehydrated and freeze-dried foods is that, once you rehydrate them, they look like something a cat has brought up. Sadly, this is still the case with the Radix Nutrition meals, but that’s hardly a valid criticism – I don’t think there’s any way you could make pre-prepared camping food look appealing, and presentation is right at the bottom of the priority and importance list.

One consideration is that the meals are all made in New Zealand, which is rather a long way from almost everywhere, so there is a carbon footprint involved in transporting this product. That said, there are distributors in the US, the UK, Europe and elsewhere, and the shelf life of freeze-dried food can be counted in decades, so the meals are shipped in bulk – they’re not flown around the world in small batches when you buy them.

Lastly, while the packaging isn’t recycled curbside (and the relevant website printed on the products relates to New Zealand only), you can clean and dispose of the empty sachets in soft-plastic recycling areas in places like supermarkets.

• How Advnture tests products

I’d long been aware of processed food and knew that it wasn’t great. I knew that adding chorizo to my pasta wasn’t as good as having chicken. I was aware that a ready-meal lasagne, although convenient, wasn’t as nutritious as a home-cooked one, and that an even better option was a veggie one. I’d pretty much always get my ‘5 fruit and veg a day’ and I kept on top of my hydration. I generally considered myself to be a relatively healthy eater.

However, it was only when I read physician Chris van Tulleken’s 2023 book Ultra Processed People: Why Do We All Eat Stuff That Isn’t Food… and Why Can’t We Stop? that my whole appreciation of what UPF actually is, and of the harm that it does, made me realize that a dramatic shift was in order.

I’ve since made several major changes to my diet, which I’ll come to in due course. These changes appear to have had a noticeable impact on my energy levels, which was particularly noticeable during my increasingly easy and enjoyable training runs. More than ever, I couldn't wait to lace up my trail running shoes and get out on long runs. Here's what I found...

The effect cutting of UPF on my running performance

Merely a few weeks into my bid to cleanse my diet of UPF, I started to notice markedly less fatigue during training runs. This was particularly noticeable on my longer weekend run and when running hills.

On my longer run, I’d usually be fairly glad to get to the end, having pushed my capacity appropriately. Recently, I’ve not only been arriving home feeling like I could easily go again but I’ve even started adding reps of the local hill to finish things off.

Then, there’s the improvement I've felt on the hills themselves. I’m lucky enough to live near some great trails in Bristol’s Blaise Castle Estate, which is adorned by modest hills on either side of a minor gorge. (I wrote about these trails in our My Favourite Run series). I’d often set out to do a run involving ascents to significant high points above the gorge: Castle Hill, Goram’s Chair and Kings Weston Hill, jokingly calling it Tre Cime di Blaise, a tongue-in-cheek reference to the famous and somewhat mightier three peaks of Tre Cime di Lavaredo in the Italian Dolomites.

Usually, having already ascended to Castle Hill and Goram’s Chair, my legs would give in on the steeper ascent to Kings Weston Hill, unable to provide the power needed. To ease to discomfort, I’d walk the second half of the ascent. It wasn’t something I berated myself about, I’m more than used to walking uphill sections when running in the mountains. However, recently, I’ve been finding this uphill push no problem at all, while still feeling like I’ve got plenty more in the tank at the top. This has led to me pushing on and running yet more hill reps in a single run.

Whether or not this improvement continues to develop over several months is yet to be seen. Perhaps I’ll reach a new plateau, a little higher and faster than the last, but a plateau nonetheless. Or maybe quitting UPF is the first step in my journey towards real competitiveness in races. Time will tell, but with races in the pipeline and hundreds of training runs to come, watch this space.

What is UPF?

• UPFs are industrially produced edible substances containing little or no whole foods
• They contain additives that you wouldn’t typically find in a home kitchen
• The modern definition was coined by Brazilian Carlos Monteiro in 2009
• Consumption of UPF is rife across many nations, with the US and UK among the worst offenders

Ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are formulations of ingredients into edible substances that are made industrially, usually requiring sophisticated equipment and technology. Often containing little or no whole foods, UPFs tend to be ready-to-eat or quick to heat up and are often high in salt, sugar and fat. They also contain industrial additives and are made with processes that you wouldn’t typically find in a home kitchen.

Another way of thinking of UPFs, suggested by van Tulleken, is as edible substances that have been designed to make money, rather than provide nutrition for the person that consumes them. Notice the phrase ‘edible substances’, a nod to the fact that UPFs shouldn’t really be thought of as food.  

It’s often the case that UPF packaging makes health claims to make people think what they are buying is good for them. Classic examples are no added sugar or high in vitamins. Many products that people have long thought of as being healthy (or at least not bad for you), such as Tropicana Orange Juice or Diet Coke, simply are not. UPFs are designed to be hyperpalatable – in other words, really tasty – and highly addictive. 

The modern definition of UPF was coined by Brazilian nutrition and health researcher Professor Carlos Monteiro and his colleagues, who separated foods into four distinct groups a 2009 scientific paper. This classification, named the Nova system, has been widely used since when defining what exactly constitutes UPF, though critics point out that the definition isn’t clear cut.

I’m not going to get into the nuts and bolts of how UPFs are created here, though I’d urge you to read further into it for yourself if you haven’t already. However, consumption is rife in many of the world’s countries. Findings from the National Institutes of Health assert that UPFs contribute to over half the total calories consumed in the US. Data from the UK National Diet and Nutrition Survey in July 2024 found that adolescents in the UK consume around two-thirds of their daily calories from UPF. It’s often the case that those from poorer backgrounds are worst affected, as UPF is cheap and convenient, making it an affordable, time saving option.

Why is UPF bad for you?

• UPFs are designed to make money, rather than nourish the one who consumes them
• They contain many additives to make them last longer, survive transportation and achieve hyperpalatability
• Research shows strong links between UPF and a wide range of health conditions, including obesity, heart disease and cancer

UPFs are designed to make money, therefore the scientists that have formulated these ‘edible substances’ have altered their make-up to achieve this. They need to be cheap to produce, so often use the most cost-effective available ingredients as substitutes for healthier ones. They need to be easy to store and transport, with substances added to increase their shelf-life way beyond the whole food equivalent. Convenience is another factor – thanks to their lack of perishability, they’re often ready-to-consume, which is very attractive to many people in today’s busy world.

It’s the additional flavorings that make UPFs hyperpalatable, while other substances are added to provide pleasing textures and a pleasant mouthfeel. However, the nutritional value of the resulting product can be vanishingly low. It’s these additional flavourings that provide the taste, not the actual substance that you’re eating. The product is typically calorie dense and high in sugar, salt and fat.

Substances added to UPF to achieve all the above range from emulsifiers, preservatives, gums, flavor enhancers, colouring and artificial sweeteners, as well as bulking, foaming, gelling, glazing, anti-foaming and carbonating agents. Our bodies simply haven’t evolved to process (ironically) these novel substances, which is one of the many reasons UPFs are no good for us. 

Ultimately, current research shows that excessive consumption of UPF raises the risk of high blood pressure, cardiovascular issues and strokes. There are also consistent links between UPF and obesity, cancer, depression, dementia and type 2 diabetes. In short, it ain’t good.

There’s a growing sense that the relatively easy ride UPF manufacturers have enjoyed over the decades is coming to an end, as people become more and more aware of its harms and the damage it does to society. Some nations already strongly advise children under two and pregnant women against consuming UPF.

Nevertheless, it’s thought that we’re due to be the first generation in the modern era that’s set for poorer health than our parents. This is coupled with the inevitable changes we’ll all have to make in our diets in order to save the planet from climate catastrophe – beef, your days are numbered. The future of food is one of whole foods, personalized nutrition, alternative sources of protein, genetic modification and fermentation. UPFs and livestock farming are unsustainable in their current form.

Meet the runner

What major changes have I made?

First of all, in the spirit of honesty, I haven’t totally cut out every single instance of UPF. Doing so is remarkably difficult, we’re surrounded by the stuff, though I suspect doing so may become easier as attitudes shift in the coming decades. Nonetheless, I’ve still been occasionally using Sriracha Sauce (UPF!) to liven up a roasted veg salad or adding a cream cheese (UPF!) and lemon sauce to a salmon tray bake. I hope, dear reader, you’ll forgive these indiscretions.

The biggest gains have been made where I used to habitually consume UPF. I’ve swapped these for healthier alternatives.

Breakfast

• Swapped cereal for yoghurt with fruit or porridge

I’ve long been a fan of Fruit 'n Fibre cereal. It’s delicious and it sounds healthy. I knew it contained quite a bit of sugar but I was hardly guzzling Frosties down every morning. (Although this is what my parents gave me as an infant, while Kellogg's execs were laughing at their near monopoly on breakfast cereals.)

Fruit 'n Fibre is a UPF, containing additional barley malt extract, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine, folic acid and vitamin B6, vitamin D and vitamin B12. And before you say it, some scientists – including epidemiologist and ZOE co-founder Tim Spector – are sceptical whether vitamin supplements have any benefits at all. 

I’ve swapped Fruit 'n Fibre for either a hearty bowl of porridge with ground cinnamon or berries, or whole Greek style yoghurt with a range of chopped fruit. Do I miss the crunch, mouthfeel and sugar hit of my daily Fruit and Fibre? A little bit. Am I glad of the change? Absolutely.

Morning snacks and lunch

• Swapped supermarket bought bread for sourdough
• Rarely have a sandwich, instead making a roasted vegetable salad or similar

I used to buy supermarket bread, crumpets, bagels, muffins, part-baked rolls, the lot. I usually work from home and I’d often have a couple of slices of toast at around 11am with my mid-morning brew. Of all the things I’ve cut out, supermarket bread may have had the biggest impact. Even a healthy seeming seeded batch loaf contains rapeseed oil, palm oil, extra sugar, extra salt, wheat gluten, soya flour, emulsifiers, preservatives and flour treatment agents.

These days, I buy sourdough from a local bakery, though I fully intend to start making it myself too. Now, when I have soup, or on the rare occasion I have a sandwich, it’s sourdough all the way. Oh, and I use butter in its purest form, rather than the spreadable stuff, which contains additives to make it so.

Generally, I’ve moved away from the lunchtime sandwich, experimenting instead with roasting a variety of vegetables, mixing them up with spinach, rocket and other salad leaves and liberally adding cashew or walnut halves. This cornucopia of plant-based whole foods is usually delicious and leaves me feeling better about myself.

Evening meal and post-meal treat

• We tend to cook with whole foods, avoiding microwave meals and the like
• We've stopped having cookies as an evening treat every night

Dinner was probably the meal I was already doing a pretty good job of, especially as I was cooking it as my two-year-old daughter’s main meal too. However, my wife and I were not averse to an oven pizza on a Friday or a macaroni and cheese ready meal. Sometimes we’d really go wild with a Korean takeaway on a Saturday night. Since cutting back on UPF, these occurrences are much more rare and we generally cook with whole ingredients, mindful to have a few days without fish or meat.

We admittedly still occasionally have a pizza – it’s a delicious and an easy treat at the end of the working week. No one is perfect and I don’t berate myself for this in the slightest.

Another habit we’ve shifted is the chocolate cookies we’d eat pretty much every night, with a cup of tea, while watching Netflix (other streaming services are available). It had definitely become an unhealthy habit and moving away from it was undoubtedly beneficial. Of course, the occasional cookie won’t do too much harm, but two a night, every night was a bit excessive. Especially when they contain added sugar, mango fats, palm fat, shea fat, sal fat, emulsifiers, whey powder, lactose, butter oil, flavouring, partially inverted sugar syrup (what now?), glucose syrup, molasses, raising agents, ammonium carbonates, sodium carbonates and diphosphates. I mean… what have I been eating all this time?

Could my improvement be down to something else?

It’s hard to measure the exact impact of changing your diet when there are so many other variables that may also have a bearing on wellbeing and athletic performance. These include things like the amount of sleep you’ve managed to get, your stress levels and the quality of training leading up to the change. This is a problem that is alluded to a few times in van Tulleken’s Ultra Processed People.

During my adult life, my weight has tended to fluctuate between around 74 and 78kg. Around the time of my improved performance, I weighed myself and was surprised to see just 72kg register on the scales. There’s no doubt that carrying a few kilograms less would be beneficial when taking on hills and longer runs. However, there's a good chance this weight loss is directly linked to my UPF avoidance, or at least the specific UPFs that I no longer habitually consume.

My training leading up to the improvement was going well, though it had been interspersed with a few strenuous hiking trips too. Both of these factors could account for both my weight loss and improved performance. It’s possible that I’d managed to enhance my capacity for the extra miles and the additional vert. However, the improvement was so sudden that I’m not convinced this was the case. 

I’d also been sleeping pretty well and my professional life at the time wasn’t particularly stressful. On balance, I suspect that my recent improved running form is down to a combination of the above. However, I strongly suspect it’s cutting UPF that has been the major contributing factor in bringing it all together. It’s the one variable that was markedly different to other periods of solid training I've had over recent years. On those other occasions, I hadn’t felt such a tangible improvement.

In conclusion

This "experiment" wasn't conducted under scientific conditions, so it's impossible to come to any definitive conclusions. But, regardless of other potential causes for improvements in athletic performance, I’m absolutely convinced that ditching UPF is a hugely positive move both for my own health, society (less money going to multinational food giants) and the planet. More than anything, I now have a much greater interest in where my food comes from and how healthy it is, while my determination to prepare healthier food for my family has led to a revolution in the kitchen.

This newfound curiosity has led me to read up more about the gut microbiome and personalized nutrition. I’m currently working my way through epidemiologist Tim Spector’s 2022 book Food for Life, which reveals the idea that we all have a unique response to different foods and the concept of individualised nutrition, as well as detailing the current health research on pretty much every kind of whole food imaginable.

I’m excited about the potential gains to be made from this culinary reawakening. I just hope the word spreads faster than the processed food giants' attempts to skew research and get public health messaging back in their favor, leaving us all in the dark.

Amazon Prime Day is upon us, so we've rounded up the best Yeti bundles. These bundles allow customers to purchase multiple Yeti products at once, and save big on all of them. 

This year's Amazon Prime Big Deals Days are on October 8 and 9, starting at 3 a.m. EDT on the first day in the US, and 12 a.m. BST in the UK. The deals will run for 48 hours.

To get these deals, you'll need to be an Amazon Prime member. You can join Amazon Prime for $14.99 per month in the US, or £8.99 per month in the UK. If you've not signed up for Prime before, you can get a 30-day free trial that will see you through the Prime Big Deals Days, which you can cancel later if you decide not to continue.

Quick links

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti bundles

Although we can't yet find any UK deals, UK customers can get 15% off Yeti gear on the Yeti website through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

US deals

Amazon: deals on Yeti gear updated daily
Bass Pro Shops: up to 25% off clearance deals
Dick's Sporting Goods: deals on cups and coolers
Yeti Rescues: refurbished coolers and bags

Best Yeti deals

Although we couldn't find any deals for UK customers, watch this space before and during the Prime Big Deals Days to catch the best reductions. 

UK customers can get 15% off  Yeti through the emergency services discount, which is open to all emergency service personnel including NHS staff, firefighters and members of the armed forces. 

More deals

If you need a Yeti cooler, bottle or mug right now, here are today's best prices for a wide range of gear, updated daily. We're always adding products to our price checker, so check back often to see what's new.

FAQ

Amazon Prime Day is underway, and right now you can pick up the beefy Stanley IceFlow Bottle with Cap and Carry+ Lid 50oz for just $41.25 at Amazon. That's a healthy saving of 25% off the list price for this eco friendly water bottle that keeps drinks cold for 15 hours.

With the IceFlow, Stanley combines a sleek design with featherweight technology for on-the-go transport, while the rotating Cap and Carry Lid means drinking your ice-cold water takes just a few light twists. It's designed for easy hydration whether you're hiking or at the office.

The IceFlow has a soft grip for carrying comfort and is made from 90% recycled stainless steel. This deal applies to the Fog Glimmer, Lavender, Lapis, New Alpine, Black Glimmer, Pool, Cream Glimmer and Lapis Glimmer colorways only.

If the 50oz sounds a little too unwieldy for the types of adventures you like to take, you can also grab 25% off the 36oz version, for a sale price of just $33.75.

We'll be keeping you updated on all the best Amazon Prime Day camping deals, so keep checking back for great discounts on all your favorite gear.

Not in the US? Scroll down to the bottom of this page for today's best deals on the Stanley IceFlow Bottle where you are.

Not in the US? Here are today's best deals on Stanley IceFlow Bottle near you.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Amazon Prime Big Deals Day is underway, and right now you can pick up the highly sought-after Yeti Rambler 46oz water bottle with chug cap for $44 on Amazon. That's 20% off the regular list price for this hefty chugger, from a company that rarely discounts its products.

Yeti’s reputation for building robust, practically bulletproof drinkware continues with the Rambler series. Made with stainless steel, this double-wall vacuum water bottle keeps your drinks hot or cold. 

The screw lid has a convenient carrying handle (though if you drop it, it probably won’t dent), and under the lid is a screw-on plastic chug cap, which is basically a drinking spout which makes it easy to drink out of this without dumping water on your face.

If the 36oz sounds like a little bit too much for you to handle, the Yeti Rambler 30oz water bottle with chug cap is also down by 20%, to just $30.40.

This deal applies to the X colorway. We'll be keeping you updated on all the best Amazon Prime Day Yeti deals, so keep checking back for great discounts on all your favorite gear.

Not in the US? Scroll down to the bottom of this page for today's best deals on Yeti Rambler water bottles where you are.

Not in the US? Here are today's best deals on the on Yeti Rambler water bottles near you.

• The best hiking water bottles: stay hydrated at camp and on the trails

Step aside pumpkin spice lattes – there's a new drink in town for fall and it's perfect for those of you who spend long days on the trail. Next time you're lacing up your best trail running shoes for an extended adventure, you can fill your water bottle with Skratch Labs limited-edition apple cider flavored hydration mix.

This seasonal offering from the Boulder-based nutrition brand can be taken hot or cold, and the brand jokes on Instagram that they've brought it back due to "peer pressure" from fans.

The brand says the flavor is ideal for "crisp fall morning rides and runs, and chilly winter adventures" and like all of its flavors, it's designed to help you hydrate faster when you're sweating buckets thanks to glucose, sodium, potassium, calcium and magnesium that's easy on your gut.

Joking or not, their followers are clearly happy about the news, with one writing that they had already ordered three bags and another begging, "Will you warn us when it’s about to stop selling for the season so we can access our stock?"

Skratch Labs Apple Cider hydration sports drink is available on Amazon where you can scoop up 20 servings for $21.95 for a limited time only. Not in the US? Here are the best deals on Skratch Labs hydration mixes near you: 

• The best active nutrition 2024: bars, gels and drinks to fuel your outdoor adventures

Amazon Prime Day may be over, but there are still huge savings on Yeti drinkware if you act quickly. We don't know how much longer these offers will last, but all were still available when we checked on Friday morning (July 19).

We've rounded up a selection of the best deals below, but you can also browse the whole sale yourself if you prefer.

To get these deals, you'll need an Amazon Prime subscription. These start at $8.99 per month, but if you're not sure you want to commit, you can sign up for a 30-day free trial and cancel before the first payment if you decide it's not for you.

Today's best Yeti deals

• The best camping coolers: our top recommendations for summer adventures

I set my best ever time at the Manchester Marathon earlier this year fuelled by KMC NRG gels, and I'm going to be stocking up on plenty more because they're going cheap for Amazon Prime Day. Here I've put together a list of all the best options, but you can also browse the full KMC sale yourself if you prefer.

KMC (or Kendal Mint Company) products are all variations on a theme of mint, which makes them refreshingly cooling on a hot day, and less sickly sweet than many other gels, which can sometimes be overwhelming. My personal favourite is Raspberry Mint, which sounds strange but is absolutely delicious. 

You can buy a multipack of individual gel sachets, which is convenient, or pick up a large multi-serving pouch to decant into soft reusable flasks, which makes less waste. I chose the latter for Manchester and it worked brilliantly, though I recommend the type of flask with a bite valve rather than a twist cap to avoid potential spillage.

• We've hand-picked the best Amazon Prime Day Garmin deals

Are you an endurance athlete curious about veganism? Here's a little story for you.

In 2013, Merrell Athlete Harry Jones moved to Thailand where he discovered a love for trail running around the mountains of Chiang Mai. At the same time, after years as a vegetarian, he became fully vegan, eschewing dairy and eggs for a whole food, plant-based diet. 

What followed wasn’t a period of energetic deficit and performance decline. Instead, the athlete started winning races in his trail running shoes. Long ones. There was a 100km race in Pong Yaeng, Thailand in 2016 followed by two 100km wins in Thailand in Hong Kong the following year. Over the past decade, the 35-year-old has chalked up nearly 20 podium wins and made team GB in 2022, all on plant-based fuelling.

Though Jones is quick to clarify that he doesn’t have a soapbox to stand on when it comes to his choice (“I'm quite comfortable with the decision I've made, but I never want to push it on other people”) he was happy to sit down and chat with us at Advnture about his own journey with ultra running and veganism, and offer some tips and advice for those of you who are considering switching to plants.

1. It doesn’t have to affect your performance

If Jones’ tale is anything to go by, it’s possible to remove meat and dairy from your diet and still run long distances and he’s not the only vegan ultra runner out there by a long shot. American ultra running legend Scott Jurek is probably one of the best-known vegan ultra runners, having won the Hardrock 100, the Badwater Ultramarathon (twice), and the Western States 100 all on a vegan diet.

“Some people might feel like it would hinder your performance, perhaps, and I think that just stems from long-held beliefs before people really understood it all and before there was enough examples of people doing it, who were successful,” muses Jones.

Outside of ultra running, there are plenty of world-class athletes proving that plants and performance can go hand-in-hand: the NFL’s Cam Newton, the NBA’s Chris Paul and tennis legends Venus Williams and Novak Djokovic are just a few names who don’t seem to be hindered by the prevailing belief that a vegan diet cannot provide enough protein.

“I've never really stressed about the protein side of it mainly because I'm a runner. I'm not trying to build massive muscles. Obviously, there's a lot of muscle damage that goes on with these ultras when you’re running for twelve or 24 hours but I've never found recovery to be a problem,” says Jones, who points to the fact that even gym-goers often reach for a vegan protein supplement like a shake that uses pea or whey protein.

“There’s nothing that's a barrier really, for anyone, especially these days. It’s so easy. I think the knowledge is out there, it’s completely doable.” 

2. You can have plenty of energy to train

One of the biggest concerns among athletes pondering veganism is whether or not they’ll have enough energy without meat, and it’s an area where Jones says he’s never experienced any issues.

“From a physical standpoint, my energy is always really good. I'm always ready to train, to play with my toddler and my recovery from racing has always been pretty good. So there's seemingly no downside for myself and it seems to be a win-win.”

Those of us with young children shiver at the thought of sleepless nights on not enough calories, but Jones describes it as merely “extra training.” It didn’t keep him from the podium this spring at the tough 50km Ultra-Trail Snowdonia by UTMB.

There are however some adjustments to be made. Primarily, he says, when he first went fully vegan, the first lesson he learned was that he had to eat a lot more.

“If you aren’t having meat or cheese, they're all very dense calorie foods so if you're suddenly cutting out all these major sources of fats, you need to make sure you get it from elsewhere.”

That elsewhere, for Jones, meant a lot more peanut butter, nuts and seeds and avocado, and, well, just more of everything.

“Just eat more volume to make sure that you're never gonna get hungry. That's always my number one rule. And make sure you get those healthy fats from elsewhere.”

As for using supplements, Jones says the only one he takes consistently is vitamin B12, which helps your body make red and white blood cells and platelets and is largely found in non-vegan sources of food, like meat and dairy.

3. It can be great for your conscience

You may have noticed that, just like rock climbers, veganism isn’t exactly uncommon among trail runners. The reason for this, Harris speculates, is pretty simple: those of us who love the trail love the outdoors and when you spend time in nature, you can’t help but start caring about it.

“I think there's probably overlapping values of people spending a lot of time in these amazing, beautiful places, and then starting to really think about their connection with the world as a whole.”

Obviously, veganism isn’t the only way to reduce your footprint – you can think about if and how you travel to races, where you spend your money and be conscientious about maintaining and recycling your used gear – but for Jones, it’s a straightforward way to show respect and care for the planet.

“No one's perfect. We're all obviously gonna have a footprint on this planet, but it’s an aspect that you can control quite easily. And it's only ever made me feel good,” says Jones, who says he also chooses vegan-friendly footwear and gear (he’s currently racing in the Merrell Agility Peak 5 and the Merrell Matryx Long Sky 2 Matryx if you’re wondering). 

4. It doesn’t have to be complicated

If you’re not accustomed to preparing plant-based meals and you’re worried about getting enough nutrition, you might think there’s going to be a steep learning curve and you’re suddenly going to have to hollow out extra hours in the day to make sure you get what you need. Not so, says Jones, who says his training and race day fuelling is the same as everyone else’s.

“When I'm training, in terms of long runs or sessions, a lot of the foods I’m consuming are very similar to everyone else,” says Jones, who uses the same sports drinks and running gels as you, since these are usually vegan anyway. 

“It's essentially just sugar in different forms.”

He makes a point to eat a lot of fresh fruit to gain plenty of minerals, but other than that his daily diet doesn’t sound too foreign: oatmeal with almond milk and peanut butter for breakfast, wraps with avocado and chickpeas for lunch and dishes like baked potatoes and vegetable curries for dinner. 

“It's mostly, I guess, just standard meals that everyone would have. You're just taking the meat out or the dairy, and throwing in some beans and lentils and tofu.”

“None of it's complicated. I don't have time to make it complicated or fancy,” says Jones, who’s currently fuelling up for the 100km CCC race at the UTMB at the end of August and needs to squeeze in a 50km before then as a “tune up.”

If you’re vegan-curious but accustomed to a straight meat and potatoes diet and all this really does sound complicated? Jones suggests going vegan one or two days a week to ease in and see how it feels. 

5. It opens up a whole new world of food

“I think a lot of people feel like if you're going down the vegan route, it's almost narrowing your world of what you can eat,” says Jones.

After all, if you go vegan you are saying goodbye to bacon, burgers, cheese and omelets, just to name a few things. However, Jones found that the shift made him get more creative in the kitchen.

“I felt like it kind of opened up my eyes to all these different ways that you can eat, all these different meals, as well as cultures that naturally are perhaps almost vegan. It’s showed me that there's so many more different foods in the world than if you just stay with your meat and potatoes.”

And if you want to stick with good old meat and potatoes? You won’t get any argument from Jones.

“So there's never any judgment from me, obviously people can do as they wish. And for a long time, I did eat meat.”

• The best vegan footwear: cruelty-free boots that look great and feel good

Yeti is discontinuing its seasonal Camp Green colorway, and is selling off remaining stock at a 20% discount. The sale was originally set to end a few days ago, but the company has decided to extend it, giving you a little longer to grab a Rambler cup or a set of Magsliders at a bargain price.

Many of the sale items have now sold out, but below we've rounded up our top pick of those still available. Alternatively, you can browse the whole sale yourself.

If you can't see what you're looking for, never fear. We'll be rounding up all of this year's best Amazon Prime Day Yeti deals as soon as they land later this month.

Yeti is known for its super tough outdoor gear, which carries a premium price tag and rarely goes on sale. The official store occasionally knocks down the price of a colorway that is being discontinued, or offers free customization on drinkware for a limited period, but you won't see deep discounts on a regular basis.

The company doesn't even hold a Black Friday sale in the traditional sense; last year it offered two free water bottles with purchases above a certain amount, but no price cuts. However, in November it does something arguable even better for fans of the cult brand, rolling up the door to its Gear Garage for an annual extravaganza of all things outdoors.

What is the Yeti Gear Garage?

The Yeti Gear Garage is an opportunity to grab coolers, drinkware, and other gear in rare, discontinued colors, special edition shades, and re-releases of old favorites. You might also see discontinued products making a comeback for a limited time, or even something brand new.

The event typically lasts a week, with a new drop landing each day. Stock of each item is limited and once it's gone, it's gone. At the end of the week, that's it – unsold items are put back into storage for a future event.

When does the Gear Garage open?

The Gear Garage typically opens the week of Black Friday, and last year's event started on Tuesday November 21. The date for the 2024 Gear Garage event has yet to be announced, but it could well open on November 26.

What were last year's drops?

Some of last year's drops included drinkware in two new textured finishes (Black Stone and White Stone), a re-release of King Crab Orange, and a new ice cube tray for the branded ice you didn't know you needed.

We also saw a return of Chartreuse (an acid yellow-green that's usually hard to find, but always hard to miss) and hard-sided Tundra coolers in Coral.

• Amazon Prime Day Yeti deals: all the best offers in one place

Just in time for Father's Day, Yeti has unveiled two new additions to its growing range of barware: a pocket-sized hip flask and a set of shot glasses so your dad can enjoy his favorite tipple out and about.

Unlike most Yeti drinkware, the flask isn't insulated, so it's not recommended for hot beverages (for that, stick to your trusty Rambler). Instead it's made from a single layer of kitchen-grade stainless steel, making it light to carry and dishwasher-friendly. It's available for $50 direct from Yeti.

The new shot glasses are $50 for a set of four, and come with their own matching carrying case to keep them neat and clean. They are also made using food-grade stainless steel, and are puncture- and rust-resistant.

The shot glasses are double-wall insulated, but unsurprisingly there are no lids available, and they aren't spill-proof.

Both the shot glasses and flask are available in six core colors: black, white, stainless steel, navy, Rescue Red (shown above), and the new Tropical Pink shade that landed last month, ready for summer.

There are no customization options available yet, but if you've got a specific design in mind, Yeti says "stay tuned".

• Why is Yeti gear so expensive? Unravelling the reasons behind the price tags

If you're training for a marathon or an ultra this summer, you might be pleased to hear that Courtney Dauwalter's summery flavor of sports drink is back on the market.

Last summer, Durango-based Tailwind Nutrition made a splash when they announced a limited edition "Dauwaltermelon and lime" flavor of their endurance fuel, named for the runner in the same year she became the first person in history to win the triple of Western States 100, Hardrock 100 and UTMB in a single year. 

The powder mixes with water to provide you with calories, sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium on a long run, and Dauwalter has said she discovered it in 2017 after competing in Steamboat Springs' Run Rabbit Run 100-mile race.

"I have been training and racing with Tailwind for six years. Six years! The Limited Edition flavors always got my brain spinning on what flavor I would add to the lineup and I was so pumped when Tailwind asked me to help develop one,” says Dauwalter.

In the end, she settled on the refreshing blend of watermelon and lime after imaging what would be the most thirst-quenching during the long, hot races she's become known for dominating, like the Transgrancanaria. The flavor was an instant hit among runners, selling out soon after (though savvy UK runners will have noted they can still buy it as part of the brand's Starter Set on Amazon).

Yesterday, however, the company announced they're bringing the flavor back, and it will now be part of their permanent lineup of flavors.

"I can finally use up my secret stash! Wife will be so happy to get her garage spot back," writes one Instagram user, while another simply responded: "Best flavor ever."

Dauwaltermelon with lime-flavored endurance fuel is now on sale at Tailwind's website and costs $39.99 for 50 servings.

• The best trail running shoes: grip and speed

Oregon-based drinkware brand Hydro Flask made a splash in early 2024, unveiling its first French press (or cafetière, as it’s known in Britain) coffee makers. Making use of the same double-wall insulation used in its insulated bottles and mugs, this is a French press that’ll keep that steaming hot coffee piping for longer.

As something of a coffee addict, I was full of beans at the prospect of testing the French Press. I’ve enjoyed making countless fine brews from this great coffee maker – I even had the Hydro Flask 12 oz Insulated Coffee Mug to sup them from.

Meet the expert

Hydro Flask 32oz Insulated French Press: first impressions

I’m already a big fan of Hydro Flask’s minimalist and colorful stylings. The French Press boasts the same aesthetics as the brand’s other insulated drinkware, immediately looking the business whether enhancing a modern kitchen or out on an ancient trail.

I’ve used a standard French press countless times, so there wasn’t exactly a learning curve involved in putting this one to use. It works in exactly the same way as most and the brewing process was straightforward. As expected, the coffee was lovely, but no better than from other quality cafetières. I was looking forward to seeing (or should that be tasting?) the benefits of its insulation…

Hydro Flask 32oz Insulated French Press: features

Undoubtedly the standout feature, and the one that sets Hydro Flask’s French Press aside from most, is the fact that it’s insulated. It features the same TempShield double-wall vacuum insulation design as Hydro Flask’s insulated mugs and bottles, which means hot liquids should stay hot for an extended period. The same is true for freezing cold liquids, which makes creating a sumptuous cold brew a possibility too. 

The main body is made from 18/8 pro-grade stainless steel. The 18/8 means that it’s an alloy with 18% chromium and 8% nickel, a widely used form that is highly durable and resistant to corrosion. Crucially, its neutral in terms of taste, meaning there’s no flavor transfer from the French press to the coffee inside.

The plastic press-in lid is pretty standard for a cafetière. It’s splash resistant and non-directional, meaning it doesn’t matter which way around it is when it comes to pouring your joe. The connected mesh filter is also constructed from standard French press components, with the usual gauze filter sandwiched between the holey upper and lower metallic disks. A polypropylene handle, with TPU overmold for grip, completes the feature set. Oh and it’s also totally dishwasher safe too.

It currently only comes in one color, Birch. However, knowing Hydro Flask, if the product goes on to enjoy success, I’d wager there’ll be new colors on the horizon.

Hydro Flask 32oz Insulated French Press: taste testing

My go-to for everyday coffee is usually an AeroPress, which creates a wonderfully smooth brew. When we have guests, I’ll switch to a French press, as brewing once is obviously much more efficient than three or four times with the AeroPress. I find coffee brewed in this way is a little richer, a little earthier but not as smooth, as the finer particles aren’t fully filtered out as they are with the AeroPress.

The same is true for coffee brewed in the Hydro Flask French Press and there’s no sign of any flavor transfer from the stainless steel interior. The coffee is rich, earthy and delicious, though I’d be lying if I said it tasted any better than from my standard cafetière, which is available at about a third of the price. As well as this, the filter lets through around the average amount of sediment for a french press. So, for Hydro Flask’s creation to really warrant the extra investment, I was interested to see how its insulating qualities would keep my brew hotter for longer.

“Does anyone want to finish this coffee in the cafetière?” I often find myself asking this and there’s no doubt that people are less tempted than they are when the joe is fresh and, therefore, hot as hell. Personally, I think coffee is at its best when it’s too hot to gulp down but not too much that you can’t sup away at it. Once it’s warm, forget about it – it’s just a case of diminishing returns. So, if the Hydro Flask French Press meant that a second helping managed to maintain that lovely perfect heat, I’d be sold!

The good news is that, for that post-breakfast top up, often around half an hour after the first mug, the French Press excels in keeping the java akin to lava, ie hot. Mission accomplished! It’s not a miracle worker though, I wasn’t able to brew up at 9am and return to it at noon and expect really hot coffee. I’d guess the open spout is always going to be an insulation weak spot. Returning to the last half-mug’s worth after a few hours, I found the liquid was lukewarm. In essence, it’s great for refills, not ideal if you expect a piping hot coffee several hours after brewing.

Well, that’s all that sorted, but what’s the French Press like to brew up with, to hold and to pour? Well, the press lid is smooth, but certainly not remarkable – a close inspection reveals the sort of individual components you see in most cafetières, which is perhaps disappointing considering the price point. The handle is made from a soft-touch and grippy material, which makes it very comfortable to hold. 

Finally, the pour is smooth to begin with but it can start to pulse if I try to pour too quickly. The knack here is to pour slowly. This is because the opening at the spout is relatively small in order to maximize the insulation. This means that air has difficulty getting in to replace the volume of coffee that's coming out. If there's no air gap, the liquid leaving the spout starts to pulse, as air surges in. Pulsing hot liquid isn't ideal and can be a bit messy, so pour slowly. However, I like that the filter is non-directional, which means I don’t have to faff about trying to line it up with the spout.

In summary, the French Press is a super product that certainly delivers above average joe in terms of heat retention. It’s a bit of an investment but it’s durable materials should mean you’ll be brewing up for years.

• How Advnture tests products

Yeti has just launched its third new color of 2024: a warm, rosy shade called Tropical Pink. Unlike this year's other two new hues, Agave Teal and Big Wave Blue, Tropical Pink is exclusively for drinkware. There are no hard or soft coolers in the color.

You'll find the whole range of Rambler and Yonder drinkware in the new shade, including the new Yeti French press, which comes in 34oz and 64oz versions. This tough cafetière is designed for making coffee outdoors, with double-wall vacuum insulation, a GroundsControl filter to stop your coffee stewing once it's done brewing, and a twist-to-lock lid. It's also dishwasher safe, you can can toss it in your bag and clean it up easily when you get home.

Other products include the ever popular 12oz Colster can cooler, perfect for keeping cold drinks chilled on summer days, and the dependable 12oz Hotshot bottle to ensure your coffee stays hot until you're ready to enjoy it.

Right now, there's also free shipping for Mother's Day on orders over $40  (excluding customized items and orders weighing over 500lb). Orders must be placed between May 5, 2024 5:00am CT and May 8, 2024 12:00pm CT for free shipping.

• Yeti vs Igloo: which brand is the coolest?

Always run on an empty stomach. Eat protein immediately after a workout. Avoid sugar at all costs. Lose weight to go faster. Nutritional beliefs like these are incredibly common, often contradictory, and somehow they’ve become inextricably interwoven with exercise science. 

As an athlete, you probably know that what you put into your body is even more important than details like whether or not your trail running shoes have carbon plates. When it comes to what’s on your plate, you know want to avoid energy deficiency and perform at your best – but it can be difficult to know where to begin and even with the best intentions and a lot of science, some of your nutritional beliefs could be holding you back.

Despite surging interest in sports nutrition, a recent survey conducted by Zing, an AI coaching app, found that there’s still a lot of confusion out there about what to eat. For example, despite its essential role in general health, nearly a third of people still believe that a low-fat diet is a healthier one. For Zing co-founder and Chief Wellness Officer Walter Gjergja, the evidence that there is lingering confusion surrounding nutrition isn’t a big surprise, and it’s in part down to the fact that what we know about food is constantly changing.

“Science is a process. The scientific process is one of trial and error and testing and sometimes we forget that when there is a scientific finding, we take it as the gold standard when in fact science is a constant evolutionary process.”

Take eggs, for example. If you’re a runner or rock climber today, you may very well eat three eggs a day, but back in 1968, the American Heart Association announced a dietary recommendation that individuals consume no more than three eggs per week to keep their cholesterol levels in check.

“Eggs were brilliant and then suddenly they were hyper-demonized, they were the cholesterol machine,” recalls Gjergja.  

“Then we discover that bad cholesterol is mostly a genetic factor and not actually caused by what we eat. The positive nutrients in eggs far outweigh the very minute impact that they may have on cholesterol and now we can eat practically as many eggs as we want.”

In that case, science was the problem, and had scientists not continued their line of questioning into dietary cholesterol, today you might be trying to train without one of your best food groups. Fortunately, scientific inquiry into dietetics and shows no signs of abating, and the increasing attention on nutrition is something that Gjergja says makes him feel optimistic about the future. 

“On one hand, people are more and more unhealthy in terms of what they are eating, but at the same time there is a growing awareness on food quality and macro-nutrient awareness so hopefully we’re at a moment of shift.”

Originally from the Alps, Gjergja spent years training in Kung Fu in China, where he became a Shaolin monk and says he developed a strong connection to the outdoors while training his body and mind in nature. He later returned to Europe where he says he took it upon himself to repackage his wellness knowledge and make it accessible for Westerners. In his work with Zing, he takes a holistic approach to fitness where he’s able to apply some of the principles of Shaolin, such as eating closer to nature and avoiding what he calls the “shortcut” of processed food.

“What you consume should be as natural as possible. The less processed it is, the better it is. It tastes better, it’s healthier for you and it’s more ethical.”

It sounds sensible, and it is, but still, we find ourselves scratching our heads around what to eat and when, so Gjergja talks us through some common nutritional myths that still prevail among athletes, and how to take a more balanced approach to fueling for sport.

“Don’t associate eating fat with getting fat”

One in five people still subscribes to the idea that eating fat makes you fat, and while Gjergja knows that most athletes tend to be very scientifically minded, an idea like this can pose a major problem for performance, especially if you replace fats with too many refined carbs to get energy. 

“Fats in general are better for us than carbs, especially those carbs that are derived from highly refined white flour, which immediately becomes sugars and can trigger a lot of inflammation.”

These days, the AHA has updated its guidelines to drop dietary cholesterol restrictions and now advises that healthy fats, such as those you’ll find in vegetable oils, fish and nuts, are essential for energy, to support cell function, to protect your organs, absorb some nutrients and produce important hormones.

“Don’t be afraid of fat and don’t associate eating fat with getting fat,” says Gjergj, who explains that weight gain is the result of a surplus of unused resources and those resources can come from anywhere.

“The moment you don't create the surplus and you are within your correct caloric range then it’s better to get more of those calories from fat.”

Sugar, meanwhile, another food source that’s demonized in the wellness world, also has its place for athletes. Though it can be addictive and taken in excess, Gjergja says that for an athlete, a sugar-packed snack like a running gel is the fastest way to trigger an energy response in the body when you’re in the middle of a long race.

“More protein, more muscle repair”

By now we all know that protein is essential for muscle repair, but confusion remains around how much is needed, when to eat it and in what form. Case in point: a third of people believe protein shakes are necessary to build muscle, while two in three believe that too much protein is a bad thing.

For athletes, Gjergja sticks to the simple formula of one gram of protein per pound of body weight per day. More, however, is not a problem. Though it’s been widely reported that eating too much protein can damage your kidneys, current research has found no scientific evidence of detrimental effects on the renal system from a high-protein diet. 

“The more protein, the more muscle repair, the better cognitive function,” says Gjergja, adding that he’s a fan of protein for athletes because of its high satiety index. If you eat a small quantity of fish, you’ll feel full faster than if you eat the equivalent caloric quantity of pasta, and your body will have less digestion to do.

“If we can give our body tricks to reduce the overall caloric intake, it's very useful.”

However, the idea that you need that protein shake or fillet of salmon immediately after a run or workout is just plain wrong. Muscle repair takes several days, which is why you sometimes experience DOMS for three or four days after a long run, and as long as you get adequate protein (meaning grams per pound of body weight) during those days, your body can do its job. 

“As long as in the 24 hours after training you get the right amount of protein, whether you get it all immediately or you get it 10 hours later has very little impact.”

“Don’t be afraid to gain muscle”

Another common belief among runners as well as athletes like rock climbers and cyclists that might be holding you back is the idea that the lighter you are, the faster and more efficient you will be.

The glorification of a leaner look is driven in part by aesthetics, but Gjergja says this is another area where the science may actually be misleading some of us. Some athletes believe that their VO2 max will be higher if they lose weight because they’re using the same amount of oxygen capacity on a smaller body, so they'll restrict calories, but that’s not the case. 

“As you get lighter, your VO2 is not automatically improving and the side effect of that is that you sometimes start controlling your weight too much,” says Gjergja.

Too much can look like developing an intentional or unintentional eating disorder or some malnourishment which will then compromise your performance.

“You simply don't have the fuel in the muscle power and the fuel reserves in terms of body fat to be able to sustain that prolonged effort.”

Don’t be afraid of body fat, which can give your organs a vital layer of insulation during cold weather expeditions and overnight trail races, and don’t be afraid that muscle will weigh you down and make you too bulky to move.

“I’ve met a lot of endurance athletes who thought that if you get heavier it’s a problem, and all of the ones who gained lean mass, even substantial weight in some cases, actually improved their endurance, their power outage and strength across whatever the discipline they were doing.”

As Gjergja puts it, don’t assume that your only choice as an athlete is to be super skinny or supersized.

“Between marathon runner and Mr Olympia there is a healthy range of very athletic people that are not so muscular that it starts being a detriment to their performance.”

• The best active nutrition: gels, bars and drinks tested

Meet the reviewer

Yeti Yonder 25oz water bottle: first impressions 

Yeti, the brand known for its big, burly and bulletproof coolers and water bottles has finally shed some pounds with the Yeti Yonder. This hiking water bottle is made using shatterproof, BPA-free plastic which is friendlier on the planet as well as on rough trails. A streamlined cylindrical design is easy to hold in one hand and slide into a backpack, and while it's not the lightest water bottle we've tested, we wouldn't think twice about bringing this on a hike.

A two-part screw cap lets you unscrew it totally for cleaning and filling, then screw it back on without worrying that it's going to spill inside your backpack. When you're thirsty, just quickly unscrew the spout and chug without pouring water down your shirt. It's easy to carry in one hand and throw in the dishwasher when it's time to clean it.

This is a straightforward water bottle that carries water without spilling it, and does it well, but won't keep your drinks hot or cold, which might make you question the high price (though it won't if you're already familiar with how expensive Yeti is). It is great quality, however, and with no plastic taste and some recycled materials, we were more than happy with its performance in the field, and with the fact that it fits in our cup holders.

Screw tops are always a bit more fiddly but this one operates well and while we'd like to see more recycled content, there's really not a lot to grip about as long as you're not looking for a vessel to carry hot drinks.

Yeti Yonder 25oz water bottle: in the field

Like a lot of hikers, I want to find a great water bottle and just use it for the rest of my life. My previous test of a Yeti bottle was with the Rambler 26 oz and as soon as I got it, I knew it would be far too heavy for hiking. For about a year, I've been carting my Contigo Cortland Autoseal water bottle around with zero complaints, but I must say that in the Yonder, I've found a worthy opponent for it. I first took it away with me on a city break to Lisbon, and since returning home I've had it up a Munro, a Yorkshire Peak and on a few country walks.

Here’s how it performed:

Ease of use

Water bottles should all be easy to use, but this isn't always the case, so I was glad to see this is super straightforward. Just unscrew the lid entirely to fill or clean, and unscrew the spout to drink. I don't love screw tops because they can be a bit fiddly (and leak) but this one is as easy to get and I can carry and drink from it one-handed, though the lid sometimes knocks against my face when I do so, which is mildly annoying.

Sustainability

The most sustainable option is definitely a glass or stainless steel bottle, but I was pleased to see this uses 50 percent recycled plastic in the body of the bottle and is 100 percent BPA-free. I'd like to see it fully recycled and recyclable for full marks here, however.

Weight and capacity

The light weight of this bottle is the big story here and it isn't as light as comparable plastic bottles we've tested, but it is substantially lighter than Yeti's typical bottles and definitely appropriate for hiking. It easily fits in the side pockets of all my hiking backpacks and the cylindrical design makes it easy to slide into the main compartment or lie sideways.

Desired capacity is quite a subjective factor, but 25 ounces is as much as I ever want to carry in one go, since more than that starts to get too heavy.

Taste and cleaning

I have no time for water bottles that taste of plastic and luckily, this one doesn't. It's also easy to clean, with an opening that doesn't trap grime and of course, it goes in the dishwasher because I also have no time for hand washing bottles.

Durability and versatility

Because this bottle doesn't have any insulating properties, it's not the most versatile and you can really only use it for cold, uncarbonated beverages, so it's not the most versatile (but I have a flask for hot drinks anyway).

It's a robust, hard-wearing piece of gear which I've confirmed by dropping it on a few rock surfaces and crossingmy fingers tightly. So far, it's survived without any dents or cracks and I can see this holding up and looking brand new for a long time.

Yeti Yonder 25oz water bottle: the bottom line

If you're already a Yeti devotee, you won't need much persuading to buy this bottle, and its practical, durable and lightweight design makes it a solid contender for anyone seeking an everyday water bottle that works well for hiking and travel too. The Contigo Cortland Autoseal is a similar design with a slightly more user-friendly spout (which does trap dirt) at a lower price, while a Nalgene delivers a BPA-free bottle that can hold hot liquids for half the price.

• How Advnture tests products

Right now, Yeti is offering free customization on drinkware, including bottles, mugs, and even wine chillers and buckets. The offer runs until 11:59pm on Wednesday March 13, so you've only got a couple of days to place your order.

There are lots of options to choose from, including Rambler travel mugs, water bottles, and water jugs, Colster can coolers, and even Boomer dog bowls to give your good boy or girl a special treat. There are also lots of colors to choose from, such as fan favorite King Crab orange, and new Agave teal.

You can pick a design from Yeti's gallery, with options including nature and landscapes, animals, and National Parks, then add your own text for a more personal touch.

Alternatively, you can upload your own image in PNG, JPG, GIF, SVG, WEBP, or BMP format. Yeti is waiving its usual setup fees, so there's no extra hidden cost. The only rules are that the image must be at least 300 pixels wide or high, it mustn't be a photo, and there must be no copyright or trademark infringement. Check out the custom designs FAQ for more details.

• The best camping coolers: options from Yeti, Igloo and more tested

Meet the reviewer

Hydro Flask 12 oz Insulated Coffee Mug: first impressions 

If you're a coffee drinker, your mug matters. When you go camping, you can bring along the best camping coffee maker in the world to ensure the perfect brew when you wake up, but none of it matters if you have to sip it out of your battered old enamel mug that burns your hand every time you pick it up. Enter the Hydro Flask 12oz coffee mug.

Built for campers and anyone on the go who wants that tactile feel of a soft, weighty mug in the palm, this mug combines double-wall vacuum-insulation with Hydro Flask's soft touch finish for a mug that keeps your brew warm in the wild and feels like home. A functional handle makes it easy to tote around, while it's not too large to wrap your hands around.

Just fill it with your favorite warm (or cold) beverage to the fill line and press down the lid for a secure fit. The lid has a slider that makes it easy enough to sip from, though as always, you'll want to take care with very hot drinks. When it's closed, you can gesticulate wildly around the campfire without worrying about too much splashed.

This mug may not have the insulating power of Hydro Flask's water bottles like the 32oz Vacuum Insulated Stainless Steel which can keep drinks warm for eight hours, but if you're a true coffee lover you don't want to be sipping from the same drink all day anyway. It keeps your drink hot or cold for as long as you'd reasonably want it to be warm or cold and it's dishwasher safe for easy maintenance. 

Compared to other camping mugs, its on the weighty side but it's about the same as a ceramic mug at home. It doesn't fit in a cup holder, but it's great for car camping and stable on wobbly picnic tables and rocks. It's priced for those who want to the best, but if you're looking for something designed for heavy use, this will hold up.

Hydro Flask 12 oz Insulated Coffee Mug: in the field

I enjoy a great cup of coffee and bringing my AeroPress Go and camping stove along with me on an outing is a great way to ensure I start my day on the right foot. I often camp in my car to get an alpine start which means I can bring along some luxuries like my pillow from my bed and a proper mug for my morning jolt. I've been testing this travel mug out on my adventures since I received it a couple of months ago.

Here’s how it performed:

Insulation and leakproofing

Like all of Hydro Flask's mugs and bottles, this features double-wall vacuum insulation to keep hot drinks hot and cold drinks hold while the outer material doesn't get hot or build condensation so it's always comfortable to hold. This mug doesn't keep things hot for days, but in my field test I filled it with boiling water and when I checked it after three and a half hours it will still warm enough to drink. All it really needs to do is keep my coffee hot while I drink it, which only takes a few minutes, and it excels at that thanks to the insulation and lid.

Speaking of the lid, don't think you can fill this with coffee and throw it in your backpack by any means, but it does a fine job of preventing splashing if I'm in a clumsy mood and if it topples off the rock I've perched it on it won't spill too much before I save it. I love that it has a fill line on the inside so I don't over fill it.

Weight, size and portability

Compared to other camping mugs, this is on the heavy side, but it's about the same weight as my ceramic mugs which I use at home so in my mind, it's perfect for its intended use, which is car camping and not backpacking.

The capacity is probably perfect. I tend to like a couple of shots of espresso with milk so I don't need a massive vessel, but it's large enough that I can have a proper mug of tea or could even use it for soup.

It's also great for toting around, much more functional than the Yeti Rambler 14oz  with a really functional handle and it's not so big that I can't just wrap my hands around the mug. Obviously, the design doesn't work for the cup holders in my car and the handle makes it less packable than more streamlined cups, but for carrying in hand it's ideal.

Versatility and durability

I've only used this mug for coffee and tea, but as I've mentioned it's suitable for soup and can hold a beer, too. It doesn't hold onto odors or tastes either so you can use it for whatever you want really.

As for durability, this is one sturdy piece of kit. The soft outer material isn't just nice to hold, it's dent-proof so this doesn't end up taking a bashing like their bottles.

Hydro Flask 12 oz Insulated Coffee Mug: the bottom line

If you want your morning coffee at camp to feel just like it does at home without worrying about breaking your ceramic mugs, this travel mug delivers everything you need and feels fantastic in your hand. If you want a more streamlined mug that you can slide into a backpack, check out the slightly cheaper (and less nice to hold) Yeti Rambler 10oz Tumbler.

• How Advnture tests products

Stanley Quencher insulated camping cups are still in high demand, with the most popular colors selling out super fast, but REI has announced that new hues will be dropping at 9am PST today (February 13). Sadly the fuchsia color has sold out online (though you may be able to find it in your local REI store if you're lucky), but the store is promising something exciting to replace it. 

Stanley cups have rocketed in popularity over recent months, eclipsing the likes of Hydroflask and Yeti. Their appeal is down to various factors, including their good quality insulation, ability to fit in standard car cupholders, range of appealing colors, and vintage charm (Stanley itself is 111 years old).

Social media has also played a big part in the cups' success, particularly after Tiktok user Danielle Lettering posted a video of her burnt-out car, which was totally ruined with the exception of her Stanley Quencher cup. Not only was the cup intact after the blaze, it even had ice inside.

Two days after Lettering's video went viral, Stanley's media-savvy president Terence Reilly offered to send her some more cups, and replace her car. Reilly's video went viral, resulting in a huge publicity boost for the company and its products.

The standard cups sell for around $50, but rare and popular colors have fetched hundreds of dollars on the resale market. Last month, a 16-year-old made headlines after claiming her parents had spent $3,000 buying her every color on the market.

Check out REI's website to shop the new cups are soon as they drop.

• The best hiking water bottles: tested for insulation and durability

The number of vegans is increasing and there is plenty of evidence to show this, including data from Google Trends and a study that showed that between 2014 and 2019, the number of UK vegans quadrupled. In addition, it's reported that 63 per cent of Britain’s vegans have adopted the lifestyle in the past five years. 

In the US, consumer statistics show that around two per cent of people are vegan but many more are reducing their meat intake.

Although still limited, there is some data to show the number of runners who are vegan. It was noted in a study in 2022 that over the last decade there has been both a rise in the popularity of distance running alongside “expanding percentages of endurance athletes following vegan/vegetarian diets”. Indeed, it was noted that the percentages of the vegan and vegetarian diet among endurance runners was greater than the numbers in the general population.

Another piece of research in 2022 found an expanding prevalence of plant-based diets, notably among endurance runners and a study, albeit some eight years ago, also revealed around 10 per cent prevalence of vegan or vegetarian diets among marathon runners.

Some the most successful runners currently include those that are vegan, such as Damian Hall, who won the Montane Spine Race in 2023 and was second this year. Damian has also co-founded The Green Runners and one of the pillars of this community is “How You Eat”, which encourages people to reduce the consumption of meat because “meat production has a greater impact on the environment than the equivalent calories from a plant-based diet”.

Other vegan runners include American athlete Scott Jurek,  marathon runner Fiona Oakes, who won the 2013 North Pole Marathon, and ultra endurance athlete Rich Roll.

Across a range of sports there are increasing numbers of high-achieving vegan athletes, including champion tennis players Venus Williams and Novak Djokovic, footballer Christopher  Smalling, surfer Tia Blanco, FIFA Women’s World Cup champion and Olympic gold medalist Alex Morgan, plus Patrik Baboumia,  winner of the strongest man in Germany. 

A vegan diet and running

It used to be suggested by observers that vegan diets do not provide enough nutrients, especially protein, to build and maintain the necessary amount of muscles to be a strong athlete. However, while vegans do need to pay greater attention to a balanced diet, this dated theory is easily disproved in the modern world.

In fact, a good vegan diet can include high levels of protein. Vegan sources of protein include beans, tofu, nuts, seeds, tempeh, chickpeas, broccoli, quinoa, lentils, tahini and mushrooms, to name a few. 

Runners also require a diet rich in carbohydrates. Carbs are critical for energy, speed, stamina, concentration, recovery and better fluid balance. Fortunately, the main sources of carbs are  plant foods, such as cereal grains, vegetables and fruit. 

In fact, a study in 2022 found that vegan runners ate more carbohydrates, such as beans, seeds, fruit and vegetables, than omnivores. 

Another study of endurance runners reveals that being vegan might reap benefits in relation to healthier food choices. The analysis looked at differences in the dietary intake between vegan, vegetarian and omnivorous (meat eating) runners.

It was found that vegan runners had a lower consumption of refined grains and oils along with a higher consumption of beans and seeds, fruit and vegetables and dairy alternatives, compared to vegetarians and omnivores. It was concluded in these findings that vegans have a higher tendency toward consumption of healthier foods,  for example, high-fibre foods. 

A further study that compared vegetarians, vegans and omnivores concluded the same, that vegans made “healthier” food choices. This analysis also  discovered that the vegetarians and vegans in the research weighed significantly less on average than omnivores, which was also considered to be healthier.

Potential negatives for vegan runners

One potential issue to consider if you are a vegan runner is volume, both in terms of diet and training. Plant-based and vegan diets are often high fibre and some people might find it difficult to consume enough energy rich foods for the required performance levels for training.

Higher protein consumption can also be a challenge to meet in a vegan diet, which means some runners take protein supplements, such as pea or soya protein powders.

Previous reviews have indicated that vegetarians and vegans may risk 

In addition, vegans may lack some micronutrients, such as vitamin B12, vitamin D, iron, zinc and calcium because these micronutrients can mostly be found in animal foods or have a lower bioavailability in plant foods. For this reasons, vegans will often take vitamin supplements.

Are vegans better at running?

Although fairly limited, there has been a growing number of academic studies to assess whether a vegan diet is better for runners and athletes generally. The results reveal somewhat opposing conclusions and most studies call for further research on the topic.

One important finding from a study in 2016 is that vegetarians and vegans have lower body weight on average, which results in lower Body Mass Index (BMI) – and BMI is known to be a key factor for running performance. A lower BMI can positively affect running performance, although it is important to note that having a BMI that is too low can also negatively affect athleticism. 

Another piece of research in 2021 looked at the impact of vegan and vegetarian diets on physical performance. The results found some potential advantages of the vegan and vegetarian diet for endurance performance. However, it was also noted that a vegan and vegetarian diet may have potentially disadvantageous properties for strength performance. Thus, it was concluded that more research needed to be done.

A systematic review and meta-analysis in 2023 found that plant-based diets have a moderate but positive effect on aerobic performance and do not adversely affect strength and power performance. 

Then again, another study published in the Nutrients Journal showed that the performance of recreational athletes in half-marathon and marathon races was not significantly affected by their diet, either omnivorous, vegetarian, or vegan.

The general consensus appears to be that choosing a vegan – or vegetarian – diet should not adversely affect running performances so long as runners maintain a healthy and balanced food intake.

• The best trail running shoes: tested for grip, stability and protection

Yeti launched its annual holiday deal on Black Friday, and it's still running, giving you the chance to pick up two free 750ml Yonder water bottles worth a total of $50 when you spend $200 in the online store. The deal will continue until the end of December, but if you order now, you can get your order in time for Christmas.

To get your free bottles, just add at least $200 of gear to your shopping cart and a box will appear asking you to choose which colors you would like. Each bottle is BPA-free, made with 50% recycled plastic, and is 100% leakproof. They'd make great additions to your own hiking and camping gear, or Christmas gifts for loved ones.

If you're not in the US, scroll to the bottom of this page for today's best deals on Yeti gear where you are.

You can still get your order delivered in time for Christmas if you move fast. For non-customized orders (no special printed designs), your order should be placed no later than December 19 at 12pm CT for delivery by Christmas Eve. If you're sending your order to someone else, you'll have the option to include a gift message during checkout.

Sadly the last posting date for custom orders has now passed. It's also worth noting that dates are subject to changed, and Yeti urges you to place your order as soon as possible to make sure you're not disappointed.

"All holiday shipping cut offs, delivery timelines, or estimated delivery dates are only estimates, are subject to change and may have certain limitations or exclusions listed in our terms & conditions and shipping policy," the company says in its shipping and returns policy.

If you're not in the US, here are today's best deals on Yeti coolers, lunchboxes and bottles near you:

• The best hiking water bottles: tested, rated and recommended by experts

Few things bring me more pleasure than my morning cup of coffee at camp. When my campmates are still snug in their sleeping bags and the sun hasn’t burned off the morning chill yet, I love gazing out over a peaceful valley with my hands wrapped around my steaming camping mug, breathing in the bittersweet aroma of coffee.

Whether I’m car camping or backpacking, I rarely go camping without a coffee maker. If I want to travel light, I bring my GSI Outdoors Coffee Rocket for a low maintenance morning fix. For the best coffee, it’s always my AeroPress Go and if I’m feeling fancy, my GSI Outdoors MiniEspresso Set delivers barista-level espresso in the wild.

If you’re anything like me, following your morning java jolt, you’ll be hit with a bit of a conundrum – how do you dispose of your coffee grounds when you’re camping?

Can you dump coffee grounds at camp? 

Many of us probably assume that, because coffee grounds are natural and biodegradable, it’s okay to dump them in the nearby undergrowth. People also assume this about those orange peels they toss over their shoulder while hiking, and in both cases, this is incorrect. First of all, unless you’re camping in Sumatra or Yemen, coffee is not native to the place where you are pitching your tent. 

Furthermore, used (or spent) coffee grounds are food matter, and as such they will attract insects and other animals to your campsite. Used grounds still contain caffeine according to Two Chimps Coffee, which is unlikely to be helpful for the local coyote population. Basically, spent coffee grounds are certainly not the native food of any wildlife you’re likely to encounter, nor do you want to be attracting ants, raccoons or bears to your pitch.

Now you might be thinking here that you compost coffee grounds at home, which is great, since it provides a small amount of nutrition to plants, improves soil quality and kills slugs, but you don’t want to go killing off all the slugs in nature and honestly, it’s really not your job to go fertilizing the land in the backcountry.

Your job is to leave the backcountry exactly as you found it, as in Leave No Trace. One Reddit user put this really well in a thread on the topic of what to do with coffee grounds:

“Was the campsite covered in coffee grounds when you got there? No? Well… let’s keep it that way. Can you imagine a scenario where you would want someone else’s food scraps in your campsite when you got there? No? Then don’t do it to the people who camp there after you!”

Can you burn coffee grounds at camp?

Okay, so no dumping your grounds in the long grass – what about throwing them in the campfire? This is a common method of repelling mosquitoes, after all, though the science is shaky on the method and a 2015 study suggests this may only apply to pregnant females, and it’s generally thought that the grounds need to be dried before burning anyway. 

Burning grounds is a common means of disposal at camp, but whether or not it’s harmful to the environment or to humans is still up for debate. Research such as a 2020 study shows that commercial roasting of coffee beans can negatively impact the respiratory health of workers, causing bronchiolitis. Whether burning spent grounds has the same effect isn’t known, but it’s important to note that if and when you’re having a campfire, you want to use fuel that’s as clean as possible, such as seasoned wood or coffee ground logs.

Wait, coffee ground logs? If coffee ground logs, such as these ones by Pine Mountain, use recycled coffee grounds to start a fire, why can’t you just go directly from cup to fire pit and cut out the middle man? Coffee ground logs are a great, eco-friendly kindling source, but in this case the grounds have been dried and processed first, making excellent, clean-burning fuel. Your soggy grounds won’t make great fuel, and most likely remnants will remain in the firepit after you pack up and leave.

In addition, I don’t know about you but in most cases, I’m quite unlikely to have a campfire in the morning. It’s not unheard of, but even if I’m not backpacking and moving on after breakfast, I tend to save the fire for evening time. Even if I’m going to be away hiking all day and returning to the same campsite that night, I wouldn’t want to leave my coffee grounds out in case they attract insects or animals.

So how do you deal with coffee grounds at camp? 

If I make a pot of coffee at camp, I’m left with at least a scoop of wet grounds. How do I dispose of them? I adhere to the principles of Leave No Trace and pack them out, of course. If you’re attached to drinking freshly brewed coffee at camp, your best means of disposal is to either leave them in the pot if you’re just having one pour, or transport them carefully into a sealable plastic bag, bring them home with you and put them in the compost.

If this is all sounding like an awful lot of work and you’re really wishing I had come up with a better solution, there actually is one more possibility – try instant coffee for camping and do away with grounds altogether.

I know, I know. If you’re a coffee snob, you’re wrinkling your nose in disgust here, but from one snob to another, trust me: instant coffee has come a long way since the 1980s. There are loads of great brands out there that are built for campers such as Waka Premium Instant Coffee, which comes in single serve packets and a choice of light, medium and dark roast. You get a morning jolt of java that’s pretty tasty to boot, the local wildlife population remains in its natural, uncaffeinated state, and the next campers to this site don’t arrive to a clean spot to lay their head.

• How to get the nasty taste out of your silicone coffee cup – and stop it getting gross in the first place

Silicone is a great material for coffee cups: it's soft enough to fold down flat, it's long-lasting, it's heat-resistant, and it's (usually) dishwasher safe. Unfortunately, it also has a nasty tendency to pick up flavors, which can really spoil your carefully brewed cup of coffee. The taste can come from strong drinks or the detergent used to wash your cup, and either way it's nasty.

The problem isn't exclusive to camping cups. Silicone ice cube trays, freezer bags, spatulas, and even the seals on appliances like blenders can all suffer the same fate. Go on, give your blender's seal a sniff. I dare you.

One of the best ways to prevent it happening is to wash your collapsible coffee cup by hand. It doesn't take all that long, and it means the cup isn't marinating in scalding hot detergent, soaking up the taste like brisket in BBQ sauce.

You should also never wash your items using a soap containing oils (such as jojoba or fruit oils). These tend to leave a fine film on your silicone items, which you'll taste next time you use them. Stick to unscented detergents.

Some stinks are particularly hard to shift, including onion and garlic. If you're particularly fond of soup, you might prefer to keep one cup specifically for that, and get a second one for hot beverages.

De-stink your coffee cup

One way to get nasty tastes out of silicone drinkware is to heat it up in an oven, as described by Marguerite Preston in Wirecutter. Preston recommends baking clean silicone items at 250ºF for 20 minutes, then giving them a sniff to see if any funk remains. If so, put them back in for a little longer.

You'll need to make sure that your cup can withstand that kind of heat though, and remember to remove any hard plastic parts like lids and sleeves. The silicone will be fine, but if you can't remove any plastic parts, don't try it. They will melt.

Stojo, one of the biggest names in squashable silicone drinkware, recommends taking a more gentle approach and soaking your cup in a mix of hot water, white vinegar, and baking soda overnight to get rid of any lingering aromas.

However, the baking soda only serves to neutralize the vinegar (once the initial fizz has stopped, your cup will just spend the night sitting in a salty solution) and I've found that you can get good results by leaving it out. Just make sure you give the cup a good hand wash afterwards.  It's a similar principle to getting the plastic taste out of a water bladder.

• The best camping coffee makers: our top recommendations

For a limited time, you can get free customization with any drinkware ordered from Yeti.com, including water bottles, buckets, tumblers, and even the new stacking cups.

Pick your product, then choose a color and get creative. You can add your own text, choose an image from the various categories available (including nature and landscapes, and zodiac signs), create a monogram, or even upload your own design.

Customization normally costs $6 per side, plus an extra $10 setup fee if you upload your own image, but it's all totally free until October 14 at 11:59pm CT.

The deal doesn't apply in the UK, but you don't have to miss out. Amazon is currently running a rare deal on the Yeti Hopper Flip 8 cooler in three colors: Camp Green, Navy Blue, and Cosmic Lilac.

• The best camping coolers: our top recommendations tested in the field

LifeStraw Peak Series Squeeze Bottle with Filter: first impressions

Since 1999, LifeStraw’s water filtration products have been battling water-borne scourges across the globe, such as Guinea worm disease. To date, the company have provided more than 39 million filters to tackle this disease alone. They are a business that pride themselves on being a humanitarian company that gives back to the planet and takes positive action when faced with disasters.

Their water purification products are also ideal for backcountry adventure. Whether you are setting out on a wilderness expedition or lacing up your trail running shoes to take part in an adventure race. In 2022, LifeStraw unveiled the Peak Series, their latest range of highly effective water filters.

On the face of it, the Squeeze is a beautifully simple product, comprising a squeezy soft flask with a screw on lid and filter. The combination of small size, low weight and the flask’s collapsible properties immediately suggest portability. On wilderness missions, it could be the only water bottle you need.

Not only is it portable, it’s also hugely versatile. You can drink from the bottle system directly, use the filter as a straw or squeeze the flask to transfer your water into another bottle through the filter. The filter is also compatible with other Peak Series products and its screw threads are designed to fit standard water bottles too. In essence, whether drinking or stocking up, the Squeeze has a solution for your needs.

Its uses are wide ranging: from adventure races and day hikes to wild camping expeditions and remote travel. It’s 650ml capacity is ideal for fast and light adventures, while thru-hikers may prefer to opt for the larger 1L version. The lid has a little hook to enable you to attach it to your back with mini carabiner.

Ready for lots of 9s? Here we go! According to LifeStraw, their Peak Series Membrane Microfilter protects against an impressive 99.999999% of bacteria, 99.999% of parasites and 99.999% of microplastics, silt and sand. It does this using hollow fiber membrane technology, which is basically an advanced, 0.2 micron filter that blocks all nasties listed above. In terms of the filter’s longevity, LifeStraw say it will process up to 2,000L before water stops flowing through it. When this happens you know it has come to the end of its lifetime.

Because it's a water filter and not a water purifier, users should be aware that this product does not catch waterborne viruses, including norovirus, which can be present in some rivers and even streams on some trails. 

LifeStraw Peak Series Squeeze Bottle with Filter: on the trails

I tested the Squeeze on a couple of day hikes and on a long-distance trail run, where it really came into its own. It sat happily in my pack, taking up minimal room and weighing very little. 

It’s time to shine came as soon as I came across a body or flow of wild water. Unscrewing the filter and separating it from the squeeze bottle was straightforward enough and, before I knew it, I was balanced on a couple of rocks ready to dunk.

Many vessels designed for water collection come with a little handle, designed so that your hand has less chance of getting wet and also ensuring the current doesn't sweep your bottle away. The lack of one here is my main criticism of the Squeeze. To eliminate the chance of losing the bottle to the current, the lid's little plastic hook could be tethered to something, but it's not big enough to act as a handle.

It’s not so much of an issue in the warmer months but if I was heading out on a winter camp, I would be tempted to go for my Platypus Quickdraw, as its collection bladder boasts such a handle. 

Handle or not, after moving the collapsible bottle through the water a few times, it was just about full and it was time for the filtration to begin. This is where the Squeeze’s versatility gives you a choice. I found myself quenching my thirst by first drinking directly and then I got down to the business of refilling my hydration pack’s soft flasks.

The flow rate is pretty quick – I managed to fill a 500ml soft flask in about twenty seconds. Two flasks and an in-situ guzzle meant three visits to the stream and it was therefore a few minutes before I was back on to running the trails.

However, using the Squeeze to refill a few times during the run meant that I was able to set out with just 1L of water. I must have drank upwards of 4L during the run, so the weight saving was substantial. A lighter runner is a happier runner, particularly when covering huge distances.

The Squeeze comes bundled with a backflush syringe, which is used to keep the filter working effectively and to maintain the optimal flow rate. Maintenance is relatively quick and easy. All you have to do is disconnect the filter from the bottle, screw on the syringe and submerge in clean water. Then, use the syringe to draw water through the filter.

Where I tested the LifeStraw Peak Series Squeeze Bottle

I set out on a 30-mile run across the length of Dartmoor National Park, carrying an initial 1L of water. I knew that I’d need to resupply several times through the day and also knew there were plenty of river and stream crossings where this could happen. This gave me the perfect opportunity to test both drinking straight from the Squeeze and using it to replenish my soft flasks.

Yeti Rambler 10oz Tumbler: first impressions

At this point, Yeti needs no introductions and when we see a camping mug from them, we largely assume it’s going to do the job. That said, we’ve found some Yeti items too bulky and unwieldy in the past, so we were thrilled to get our hands on this more streamlined mug that carries the perfect amount of coffee for cold mornings at camp. Double-wall vacuum insulation means it keeps beverages both hot and cold, though like many Yeti products, it doesn’t do so for more than an hour. That said, if it takes you more than an hour to drink 10 ounces of coffee you might be looking for a flask anyway. 

With a slim design and no handle, it’s pleasant to hold and easily slides into the mesh pockets of your backpack. The mag slider lid is secure, letting out only a few drops when we turn it upside down, so it’s not totally leakproof (and they don’t say it is) but there’s no reason to worry about spillage if you knock it over while playing cards. Like all Yeti products, it’s a tough piece of gear and we love that it can be thrown in the dishwasher. It’s not even eye-wateringly expensive, so if you want a high quality travel mug, it's worth a look.

Yeti Rambler 10oz Tumbler: in the field 

Obviously, Yeti’s reputation precedes its coolers and camping mugs and, having lived in Colorado, I’m well familiar with the brand and have coveted many a life-changing cooler from them over the years. That said, when it comes to their camping mugs and water bottles. I’ve often been left a little disappointed. However, I still know better than to turn down a chance to test out a Yeti product and was pleased to get my hands on the Rambler 10oz Tumbler when I was in Chamonix for the Arc’teryx Alpine Academy this year.

Here’s how it performed:  

Insulation and leak proofing

When you’re buying a double-wall vacuum insulated mug, it’s presumably because you want something that keeps hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold. If I fill this mug with hot tea or coffee then drink it straight away at my normal pace, it stays hot as long as I need it. 

If, as I did last week, I fill it with hot tea, sip on it during my half hour drive to the trailhead and run for an hour, it’s warm by the time I’m finished running, but not hot. This is definitely an area where some people complain about Yeti and I wonder if they’ve set the bar too high for themselves with their amazing coolers. Ultimately I think if you’re looking for something that keeps your drink piping hot (or icy cold) for hours and hours, then this isn’t the right product for you. But if, like me, you just want a good quality camping mug for drinking freshly made hot beverages, it’s ample.

The mag slider lid isn’t totally leakproof, but it’s pretty secure. I’ve lab tested it by filling it with hot and cold drinks and shaking it upside down over my sink. A few dribbles do escape, but when I’m thrown it in the mesh panel of my backpack to ride my bike down to the climbing wall, it’s no issue, so again it probably depends whether you want something for regular use or to use while you’re on a trapeze.

Weight and portability

Yeti gear is rugged, and that means heavy, so larger mugs and water bottles from them that I’ve tested in the past weigh a ton by the time they’re filled. Because this is smaller, it’s lighter and while I wouldn’t take it backpacking, it’s feasible for camping trips and great for commuting. 

The streamlined (no handle) design makes it easy to pack and pleasant to hold.

Versatility and durability

Some camping mugs double as bowls with wide mouths and while it’s not impossible that you could drink soup out of this, it’s basically got two functions – hot drinks and cold drinks.

It’s sturdy enough to take a few drops on hard surfaces without showing much more than the odd dent or scratch, and if you take care of yours it will look new for ages, even after being run through the dishwasher like mine.

• How Advnture tests products

Mashed potatoes are the sort of food you dream of when you’re backpacking. You’ve been walking all day, you have a gnawing hunger in the pit of your stomach and for the last few miles all you can think about is spooning heaps of creamy, buttery mash into your mouth.

So at your next refuel stop, it makes sense that you pick up a few packets of instant mashed potatoes. When you get to camp that night and fire up your camping stove, however, you realize you’re missing the key ingredients that make mashed potatoes so excellent: butter and milk. They’re palatable and they’ll fill you up, but the reality definitely doesn’t match the fantasy.

Don’t worry – many hikers before you have fallen into this trap. Back in 2001, my friend Shawn was hiking the Appalachian Trail and a bear stole his food supply (which had been responsibly hung up in a tree in a bear bag). Rather irresponsibly, he tried to get it back and failed, leaving him with no food and several days till his next refuel point.

Luckily, this was the AT and other hikers were happy to help out. Along the way, upon hearing of his woes, other hikers plied him with their precious food so that he might not starve. What did he get? Exclusively instant mashed potatoes. Packets and packets of them. Everybody had them, nobody wanted them.

Are instant mashed potatoes the best backpacking food ever? After all, everyone on the world’s most famous distance trail carries so much they have extra. But why is everyone so keen to give theirs away? And more importantly, if you’re heading out on a backpacking trip or thru-hike, should you stock up on instant mashed potatoes, or will they just take up room in your backpack? Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of instant mashed potatoes for backpacking. 

Instant mashed potatoes for backpacking: the pros 

Easy cooking

Like pretty much any dehydrated backpacking food, instant mashed potatoes are super easy to make. At home, you’d cook them up with water, milk and butter but of course on the trail, you most likely won’t be carrying any dairy products. That said, you can still use other ingredients to bring them to life, such as dried herbs and spices and salami, or mix it up with a freeze-dried camping meal.

Compared to rice and pasta, other carbohydrates which take more cooking, instant mashed potatoes are quicker and use less fuel.

Tummy filling 

Potatoes, even dehydrated ones, are usually pretty filling, and at the end of a long day of walking with a heavy pack, mostly what you want is for the rumbling in your tummy to go away. Though some campers like to make their instant mash the main event, by dressing it up with some chorizo or jerky, the most filling option is to mix your mash with another backpacking meal, while many argue that pasta is more filling. 

Good source of carbohydrates and fiber 

A packet of Betty Crocker Creamy Butter Mashed Potatoes claims to contain 4.5 servings, but let's be honest, you could eat the whole packet. For argument’s sake though, let’s say you decide to ration it out and prepare half a packet at once, which is the equivalent of just over two servings. That gets you over 15 percent of your daily recommended carbohydrates as well as 11 percent of your daily fiber, something that can be hard to get enough of on the trail which is why you're always constipated. You’ll get a similar amount of carbs from two servings of rice, but instant mash weighs less and offers more fiber and potassium, great for those calf cramps.

So for backpacking, the nutritional benefits are more persuasive than other carbohydrates, but do keep reading till the end because these pouches also pack a lot of sodium.

Versatile 

Instant mashed potatoes don’t exactly make a whole meal, but they are pretty versatile, even on the trail. You can eat them plain or with dehydrated cheese or meat. You can mix them in with a freeze dried chili, stew or curry for dinner. Are they more versatile than rice, pasta or noodles? Not really, but basically you can lump them in with whatever you want. 

Cheap 

Finally, as far as prepackaged food goes, instant mashed potatoes are pretty cheap. Most of the brands available on Amazon come in at around $1.19 per packet, and again we’re assuming that each packet might last you two meals. For a 5 - 7 night backpacking trip, you might not bat an eye at picking up a few packets. Compared to buying a sack of rice and portioning it out, instant mash isn’t the cheapest option, but it’s a lot cheaper than a lot of other dehydrated camping meals (though again, it doesn’t really make a meal in itself). Remember that you’ll use less fuel cooking potatoes than pasta or rice, so you’ll save more money there too. 

Instant mashed potatoes for backpacking: the cons 

They don’t have a ton of calories 

When you’re covering huge distances each day, you want a lot of calories and food doesn’t just have to be light, it needs to keep you fueled. These Idahoan Mashed Potatoes are pretty standard, with 100 calories per serving. If you eat two servings at a time then you’re doing alright, but you’ll get more calories per bite from rice and pasta. 

They're high in sodium 

One place to watch out for when relying heavily on instant mashed potatoes for your carb fix is that these preparations usually contain a lot of sodium. Even though you do need to replace sodium lost through sweat on the trail, each time you eat a half packet you’re usually getting about 40 percent of your daily recommended sodium intake. Add to that the fact that you’ll be mixing it with other foods that probably also contain salt and eating two other meals plus salty snacks all day and you could be going overboard. Rice and pasta, on the other hand, have virtually no sodium between them, which means you can really load up on them without worrying. 

They’re boring 

Let’s be honest, the main reason the AT hikers couldn’t wait to offload their instant mash was because they’re bland, especially when you don’t have cheese and chives on hand. Sure, mashed potatoes on the trail sounds like a good idea, and you probably have lofty goals of combining yours with a dehydrated stew to make a backcountry Shepherd’s Pie, but in reality it’s just a load of mush. As the days and weeks go on, the last thing you want is another serving of reconstituted mashed potatoes and before you know it, you’re dishing yours out to unfortunate hikers who have lost their daily rations to a hungry bear. 

Are instant mashed potatoes good for backpacking? 

As you can see, there are lots of benefits to instant mashed potatoes for backpacking. Namely, they’re cheap, light, easy to prepare and reasonably versatile, and they are a great source of fiber. Other sources of carbs that you might take with you, such as rice and pasta, do deliver more calories per serving, and are a bit more filling, but they take a bit more fuel and time to prepare. Then again, you’ve also got that high sodium factor to take into account. 

The best option for a long backpacking trip is probably to take a variety of carbs – potatoes, rice, couscous and pasta – so you can mix things up and not go crazy, and try not to go overboard on the salt.

• Best camping coffee makers

BACX Performance Fuel: first impressions

If you’ve seen any of the promotional material for BACX Performance Fuel – a plant-based energy drink new to the active nutrition market – you’ll know the mix has been loudly championed by F1 driver Sebastian Vettel, who became a major investor in the company/product after using BACX exclusively while racing for Aston Martin during the 2022 season.

Available in 70ml sachets, BACX Performance Fuel is designed to be mixed with water and consumed prior to and/or during exercise. BACX makes a big deal about the fuel’s natural and non-animal-product ingredients, which is presumably what originally appealed to Vettel, who once spent some time experimenting with a vegan diet suggested by fellow driver Lewis Hamilton.

Unlike Hamilton, Vettel is no longer a vegan, but he does claim BACX is the only supplement he’s ever used that supplied the requisite energy to get him through a Grand Prix race without giving him stomach problems (which suggests his poor pit crew may have had more to deal with than quick tire changes over the years).

The drink supplement, which emanates from Oxford University and claims to have been subjected to thousands of hours of laboratory scrutiny, is also enthusiastically endorsed by other sportsfolk and athletes, including Team GB track cyclist and Commonwealth medalist Joe Truman.

But, while all this backing for BACX by well-known sporty types is impressive, we’re not, of course, simply going to take their word for how good it is. To assess it for ourselves, and to see whether it should be included in our guide to the best active nutrition, I’ve been swigging on the elixir before and during a number of active days out on the trails. Here’s what I found out.

BACX Performance Fuel: in the field

A lot of the press around this product is about what the syrup hasn’t got in it (there are no artificial preservatives, colors and flavors, nor so much as a whiff of caffeine or maltodextrin), which is all well and good. Personally I always avoid running gels and drinks with caffeine in them before a taking on a demanding activity, such as running or bike riding, because I find it can irritate my stomach and cause dehydration, and maltodextrin has a bad name as quick-burning carb that can cause or exacerbate allergies (see also what to eat while running for how eating and drinking at the right time can improve your runs).

But I was just as pleased to see what does feature in the ingredients, not least because I’m borderline addicted to oranges and sweet potatoes. There are only two flavors available at the moment: orange and berry. Some more options would be good, but it’s early days for BACX, and these may well be forthcoming at some point.

There’s a lot going on beyond the taste, though. Containing a complex cocktail of mostly natural foodstuffs, each 70ml serving of the syrupy concoction imparts 20g of carbohydrates, along with 1,200mg of vegan aminos and a 680mg burst of electrolytes.

Naturally, when it came to testing this elixir, I gravitated to the orange-flavored option, and once mixed with water, I found the taste very pleasant. The packaging recommends combining one sachet of BACX with a minimum of 200ml of water, but I found 500ml to be a good mix, especially for ingestion during exercise. These measures preserve the taste, while not making it overwhelming, and I found it easy and enjoyable to sip or gulp down when blended at this ratio.

Over the last few months, I’ve consumed umpteen bottles of BACX before and during a range of outdoor and sporting pursuits, including an all-day Taekwondo competition and a very punishing 26-mile / 42km off–road running event, during which I really appreciated the energy injection the drink gave me.

I’ve also been swigging it while hiking, biking and kayaking, and I can report that the benefit from using the drink supplement was tangible, and my post-exercise recovery was rapid. The drink is heavy on carbs, while being gentle on your stomach, and I suffered none of the nasty side effects that I have previously experienced with some gels – details of which I will spare you.

BACX nutrition proudly proclaim their sachet packaging is recyclable, which it technically is, but being made of polypropylene, you can’t just chuck it in your green bin – you need to check with your local authority about how to recycle it.

• How Advnture tests products

Right now, you can pick up a Yeti Rambler 14oz mug for just $24, with free custom printing available to make it your own. That's a saving of 20% off the list price, and stock is limited so you'll need to move fast to grab your favorite color before it sells out (Alpine Yellow is already gone).

This is a really generously sized mug, and big enough to do double duty as a camping bowl for your chilli or oatmeal (just don't try to heat it over your camping stove). Its thickly insulated walls and lid will keep your coffee or meal hot while protecting your hands, and prevent accidental spills in your tent.

We're always particularly impressed by how well Yeti mugs and bottles resist leaks, and the company's Magslider lids always stay securely in place.

The 20% off deal will continue until stock runs out, but the free custom printing deal ends on 19 July, so you'll need to act quickly if you want to give your mug a personal touch.

• The best hiking water bottles: tested and rated on the trails

Right now, you can save up to 30% off Hydro Flask bottles for Amazon Prime Day. There are various designs and sizes available, so you're sure to find something to suit you. Here we've picked out a selection of the best offers for you, but you can also browse the sale yourself if you're looking for something different.

Here at Advnture we'd big fans of Hydro Flask. In fact, the company's Wide Mouth design has long held a place in our roundup of the best water bottles thanks to its tough build that'll shrug off knocks and drops, great insulation, and easily refillable design. The only downside is usually the price, but with these Prime Day deals, that's no longer an issue.

If you're not in the US, scroll down to the bottom of this article for the best Hydro Flask deals where you are. You should also take a look at our roundups of all the best Amazon Prime Day hiking deals and camping deals, where we're hand-picking the best offers on outdoor gear from brands you can trust.

If you're not in the US, here are the best deals on Hydro Flask bottles where you are:

• Yeti vs Hydro Flask: the battle of the bottle

If, like me, you spend a lot of time in your hiking boots, you’ve probably learned that it’s not always easy to stick to a healthy diet on the trail. I’m not just talking about backpacking and thru-hiking here either, although those adventures definitely compound the issue. Even on day hikes, the temptation to just grab a ham and cheese sandwich, a bag of chips and, let’s be honest, a Snickers bar, is all too easy. After all, it’s convenient and packed with calories – perfect when you’ve just had a long climb to the summit. That is, until I discovered the joys of the Thermos meal.

I’ve always been into healthy eating. What that means is different for different people, but for me it means following a primarily Ayurvedic diet – warm, freshly cooked meals, lots of fruit, vegetables, legumes and whole grains, and tons of digestive spices. You know, all the stuff that you can’t easily enjoy on a hike. Or so I thought anyway.

Back in 2012, when I was training to become an Ayurvedic Wellness Practitioner, one of the biggest challenges we had to learn to help clients with was juggling freshly prepared meals with a modern lifestyle. Long days at the office and hectic childcare schedules rarely lend themselves well to enjoying a fresh lentil dahl with rice and steamed veggies for lunch. There’s a reason why sandwiches wrapped in plastic are so appealing, and it’s not often the taste. The best solution I learned on the course, and one that has been beneficial for hundreds of my clients over the years, is the Thermos meal. 

The Thermos meal takes under 10 minutes to prepare, it’s super cheap, and as I quickly figured out, it’s not only for busy office workers. When you’re leaving the house at 6 a.m. to bag a peak before the afternoon thunderstorms roll in, you no longer have to rely on packaged, processed foods, or a salad that turns into limp, lukewarm lettuce that’s been bashed around in your backpack for hours.

To be clear, I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with grabbing the odd sandwich, and it’s definitely an easy way to get calories in, but if you hike as often as me, that way of eating can start to become a problem. You might even have found yourself wondering whether you’re off-setting some of the health benefits of hiking in the first place with your dependence on convenience foods. 

If that sounds like you, read on for how to make a Thermos meal. With this recipe, you can enjoy a freshly cooked (yes, really!), plant-based, protein-rich, affordable and hot meal on your next summit. 

What you’ll need for a Thermos meal  

For starters, you’ll need a flask that’s appropriate for food, meaning it has a wide neck for both pouring food into and eating out of. I’ve been hiking with my Thermos Stainless King Food Flask for years and I absolutely love it. It’s not so big that I can’t easily pack it into my hiking backpack (or even shove it in my hiking boot during transport), and it comes with its own folding spoon that packs away inside the lid that can also serve as a bowl. It’s genius.

Other than that, you’ll just want to make sure you always have rice and lentils in your pantry and a couple of vegetables in your fridge. If these are already staples of your diet, you won’t even have to make a special trip to the grocery store, and if you do, buy the pulses in bulk and save money.

How to make a Thermos meal for hiking 

Ingredients

• A dash of oil or ghee
• 1/4 cup red lentils (rinse well)
• 1/4 cup basmati rice (rinse well)
• 1 cup fresh vegetables (I like zucchini, carrots and peppers, all diced to a size that will fit into the thermos)
• Spices to taste (e.g. salt, pepper, cumin seeds, black mustard seeds, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, turmeric etc.)
• Some boiling water

Method

1. If you’re heading out on an early hike, I strongly recommend chopping your vegetables and soaking your pulses the night before to speed things up in the morning.
2. Boil the kettle.
3. In a small-to-medium sized pot, heat the oil and gently fry the spices for 30 seconds to release the aromas.
4. Add the lentils, rice and chopped vegetables and stir to coat them in spices.
5. Straight away, pour enough boiling water in to just cover the ingredients, then boil for five minutes (10 if you live at high altitude).
6. Immediately pour the mixture into your flask (you may need to use a spoon to help it go in more easily.) If there is space at the top, add a little more boiling water. Screw on the lid quickly, and leave the thermos closed for at least three hours. The meal inside will cook while you hike.

Goji berries, acai berries, spirulina, flaxseed, green tea, salmon, almonds, kale – what do they all have in common? Well according to some dietary experts, they’re all superfoods, along with a whole host of other whole foods in the fruit, vegetable, fish, nuts and legumes departments. 

Almost all of us have heard the term “superfoods” by now. If you’re an athlete – and by that I mean anything from an ultra runner to someone who likes to get out in their hiking boots regularly – you might be especially interested in the idea of a food that has exceptional nutritional value and might promote your performance. When it comes to superfoods, what that value might be and how they’re defined, is all a little more vague, however.

So what are superfoods, anyway? And are superfoods real? I’m a yoga teacher and generally inclined to want to eat healthily. I’m also an Ayurvedic practitioner, which is a form of holistic medicine that focuses mainly on diet and lifestyle, and even I had these questions, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you have them too. To help get to the bottom of the matter of superfoods, I recently sought out the wisdom of Dr Keith Wallace, the Chairman of the Department of Physiology and Health at Maharishi International University and the author of the new book 16 Super Biohacks for Longevity. 

What is the definition of a superfood?

If you listen to those who strongly champion the idea, superfoods are ones that bestow the Aztecs of ancient times and the astronauts of today with energy and vitality, but when it comes down to scientific questions, I like to get a more straightforward answer.

I know, it’s a little old fashioned, but the first place you should really look if you’re seeking a definition is the dictionary, so before speaking to Wallace, I do just that. Believe it or not, the term “superfood” has become so common that it is now included in the Merriam-Webster dictionary. The definition is as follows:

“A food (such as salmon, broccoli, or blueberries) that is rich in compounds (such as antioxidants, fiber, or fatty acids) considered beneficial to a person's health.”

So it seems clear that a superfood is one that has more than an average amount of nutritional components, and this is what Wallace confirms.

“Superfoods are the ones that are nutrient packed to the point that they stand out from others.”

As an example, all vegetables have some nutritional value, but dark leafy greens like spinach, kale and chard have vitamin A, C, K, folate (which your body needs to make DNA) and minerals like iron, magnesium and potassium. So they are regarded by some as superfoods.

But wait, the story doesn’t end there. Because according to Harvard School of Public Health, and Wallace, there actually isn’t any scientific definition or regulation of what a superfood is. 

Are superfoods real?

So if there’s no scientifically based definition of a superfood, is it a real thing? Well, no, according to Wallace.

“Superfood is a totally commercial idea. The notion of a science-based superfood just isn't there. Science can support that there are values to these foods, but this is all modern marketing going crazy. You get a lot of hype with super foods without a lot of research because people are trying to sell it.”

“Modern society has kind of looked at these foods that are super rich in vitamins and minerals and antioxidants and tried to promote them as being superfoods mostly for commercial reasons, but there is some serious research which shows that some of them have some good properties to help people's health.”

So the foods that are being touted as super might indeed be just that, but the label itself is a marketing ploy. However, as Wallace points out, the foods themselves have great nutritional value – so should we all be gorging ourselves on goji berries? Feasting on flax? Well, it depends on various factors, like your digestive system, quantity and timing.

“You have to go back to the ancients where food is medicine, so in some sense all food is superfood. It’s just depending on what is right for the individual at a certain time,” says Wallace. 

One of Wallace’s chief areas of study in recent years is on the microbiome – that commune of trillions of microorganisms that lives in your gut and affects everything from daily digestion to your athletic performance. He explains that basically, each person has a different microbiome and as a result has unique digestive strengths and sensitivities, so every person eating the same foods just won’t work.

“For a certain individual broccoli or cauliflower could produce a chemical that can prevent cancer, so that’s pretty good. But for somebody else it may produce gas,” explains Wallace.

Similarly, you could say that bread packed with seeds is a superfood, but not if you’re gluten intolerant. Juices and smoothies are often loaded with ingredients that are claimed as superfoods, but they can also have a ton of free sugar, which can be too much for some people. So what’s a superfood for one person may not be for another.

Finally, you’ve got the very modern issue of how food is grown in a mass-industrial age, and whether that may alter the nutritional value of the comestibles that line the shelves of Whole Foods.

“Is it a superfood if it’s not organic? If the soil’s been depleted, does it have the same minerals? It’s a very delicate, commercial categorization because you’d have to really analyze it more carefully.”

So superfoods might not be an official designation, even if they’re in the dictionary, but does that mean they don’t have any value? According to Wallace, the term may actually have some benefits for people today.

“It was created for commercial reasons, but actually it’s just kind of uplifting the value of a lot of foods like vegetables and fruits. Calling them superfoods might get people to eat them more, so there might be some value there. It’s highlighting that food is medicine.”

What are some examples of superfoods?

Superfoods now encompass a really wide range of foods that mostly come under the umbrella of fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, fish, oils, whole grains, legumes and yogurt. According to Wallace, berries ranging from the household blueberry, strawberry and raspberry variety to the exotic strains of goji and acai are probably the biggest super food around, mostly because of the antioxidants they contain that combat free radicals in the body that cause aging and damage. 

“Antioxidants are not a solution to living longer but they do keep us healthier, so these things are very valuable.”

Next up, you’ve got those omega-3 fatty acids that you’ll find in oily fish, flaxseed oil, walnuts and edamame. Omega-3s affect cellular function, hormone production and support heart health.

“Whether you call them a superfood or whether you call it a preventative of disease there’s good research showing that they do reduce inflammation and lower risk for heart attacks so you could say that those foods are superfoods.”

One of the wildest superfoods on the market is one which I spent quite a bit of my 20s as a young yoga teacher gagging on – spirulina, an algae which claims to be a miracle for immune health. The taste is absolutely foul and cannot be disguised  by your coconut water/banana/avocado smoothie (it just ruins the smoothie) so I soon gave up, but in the meantime, NASA astronauts have actually started using it for immunity, so maybe it really is a superfood after all?

“It is pretty amazing. It’s a powerful antioxidant, it’s anti-inflammatory, people have done research showing it improved plasma lipid levels reducing bad cholesterol, blood pressure and fasting blood sugar levels in people with type two diabetes,” explains Wallace.

And, finally, because I know you’re going to ask about it, what about wine? If superfoods were real, would wine be a superfood? Red wine doesn’t usually make an appearance on the lists of superfoods, but it is often trumpeted for having incredible antioxidant benefits. One such antioxidant is resveratrol, which is thought to help your body combat hay fever and support weight loss. Sadly, but predictably, you’d have to drink so much wine to get the benefits of resveratrol that you’d end up doing more damage than good, and alcohol and running really don't go together, so Wallace recommends the less fun option – taking it as a supplement.

Wine aside, it definitely seems as though the concept of what can be a superfood is rather broad, but ultimately, as Wallace points out, it can pretty simplistically be boiled down to the effect on your microbiome.

“A food is only a superfood if it benefits the microbiome. If it can hurt the microbiome, it’s not much of a superfood.”

Are there any superfoods that are best for athletes?

Setting aside the complicating factor that superfoods are more of a marketing ploy than a scientific category, most so-called superfoods certainly are nutritional and I want to know if those of us who like rigorous outdoor adventures should be focusing on any of these foods in particular.

Wallace says that in addition to the foods we tend to be drawn to for performance – protein, fat, and slow release carbs like quinoa and vegetables – he recommends fiber. Fiber, found in whole grains, fruits, nuts and seeds, isn’t a food category that makes the usual lists of superfoods, but Wallace says he’d even include that because of how it benefits the microbiome.

“The microbiome absolutely loves fiber. It lives on fiber, so if you want to make your microbiome strong, eat fiber.”

As we mentioned earlier, a healthy microbiome can affect your dopamine production, which influences your motivation and therefore performance,  so should you start loading up on chickpeas, lentils, split peas, oats, apples, pears, almonds, chia seeds, brussels sprouts, and avocado with every meal? 

“You need a well-rounded diet and in the end you have to realize that it's not just the food but it's also how you digest the food. You can eat wonderful food but if your digestive system isn't working well, those superfoods are useless to you.”

For a lot of us, pitching a tent in the woods and huddling around the campfire late into the night is a true exercise in nostalgia, reminding us of summers spent at camp and on family holidays in National Parks before they got crazy busy. Sure, our camping tents back then took an age to pitch and always sagged in the middle and our bodies ached from sleeping on thin foam mats instead of the plush inflatable sleeping pads of today, but we were happy.

Those of us that feel especially romantic about the camping adventures of yore might be tempted to relive some of those early, sepia-tinted memories. Perhaps you cook your camping meals in a Dutch oven instead of over a lightweight camping stove or keep using your flannel sleeping bag instead of upgrading to a compressible down sleeping bag. But when it comes time to gather round the fire and sip on hot chocolate with marshmallows, do you embrace the modern trend of lightweight camping mugs and clutch a featherlight, collapsible Stojo that can tuck away neatly in your backpack? Enjoy the reassuring weight of a meaty beverage tote like the Yeti Rambler 14oz mug which keeps your drinks both hot and cold? Or do you prefer the traditional familiarity of a good old fashioned enamel camping mug?

Enamel camping mugs are an iconic piece of camping gear. Their design is simple – a steel mug with a practical handle that’s been sprayed or dipped in powdered glass then fired at a high heat to secure a hard, smooth glaze. They can come in any color or design, but the most classic look is white with a dark blue rim. In fact, even if you didn’t realize it was enamel, if you look in your kitchen cupboard right now you probably have at least one, and if you don’t, loads of great companies are still churning them out today, like the Coleman 12 Ounce Enamelware Coffee Mug and Mountain Summit Gear Enamel Mug.

They’re definitely old school, so do these retro camping mugs have a place amongst your camping gear, or should you retire yours to the kitchen and upgrade to a sleek, modern vessel made of stainless steel, titanium or silicone? In this article, we take a look at the pros and cons of enamel camping mugs to see if they’re actually any good for camping, or whether you should send yours down the river with your leather water canteen and safari hat.

Pros of enamel mugs for camping 

1. Durable

Truly the main argument for using any type of enamel kitchenware for any type of activity is that it lasts a lifetime, and then some. If you root around in your kitchen, the chances are that you have a beautiful old enamel pie dish that you inherited from your great auntie Elsie that’s a hundred years old and looks as good as new. 

Enamel cookware is made by fusing powdered glass onto steel in an 800-degree kiln, which makes it nearly bombproof and means it won’t rust. That means if your camping mug tends to get dropped, kicked and clumsily tossed into a disorganized camping bin between trips, you don’t have to worry about it getting scratched, breaking down over time the way plasticware does, or shattering.

2. Eco-friendly

Because enamel is so long lasting, it’s highly unlikely you’ll need to replace it in your lifetime. That not only saves you money, it means less plastic in the landfills and fewer mugs getting made in the first place. Of course, the same goes for stainless steel mugs, but if you’re looking for an environmentally friendly option that doesn’t have any coating that sheds into our water systems, enamel is a good option.

3. No unwanted taste or odor

A common complaint with plastic camping mugs is that the materials retain the taste of whatever you put in them, so once a camping mug has had a coffee in it, it will always taste of coffee. My boyfriend and I have two insulated plastic mugs which we recently took with us on a road trip. His happened to taste of coffee even though both were filled with tea, and he hates coffee, which made for a grumpy driver. 

Flavors and smells don’t cling to enamel, so you can even eat some spaghetti out of your camping mug in the evening, wash it out, and drink coffee out of it the next morning without wrinkling your nose.

4. Easy to clean and care for

Unlike some of the more technical double walled vacuum sealed camping mugs, an enamel camping mug can just be thrown in the dishwasher to clean it, which is always a bonus.

5. Lightweight

Though glass fused to steel might not sound like it would be particularly lightweight, enamel camping mugs are actually among the lighter on the market, beat out only by titanium mugs. At just 3.5 ounces, I actually often just attach my enamel camping mug from Fjällräven to a loop on my backpack using a carabiner.

6. Not insulated

Enamel is a conductor of heat and this might sound like a con, which it can be, but we’ll get to that in a minute. In terms of pros, enamel being not insulated means that when you put a warm drink in it, it gets warm. That means that on a chilly morning when you’re sitting outside your tent watching the sun rise, you can warm your hands on your enamel mug while sipping tea.

7. Classic look

Obviously, we can’t account for differences in taste, but the enamel camping mug has a classic appeal that a lot of campers really love, especially when compared to chunky, modern and brightly colored plastic versions.

Cons of enamel mugs for camping

1. Less technical

Generally speaking, enamel camping mugs mostly look the same. They’re mugs with handles and no lids. A lot of the more modern camping mugs are a bit more technical, meaning they might have more of a streamlined design to be more packable, have leakproof lids or be insulated to keep hot drinks hot and cold drinks cold. Enamel camping mugs therefore might not be as versatile or high performing as other options.

2. Somewhat prone to chipping

Yes, we said that enamel is nearly bombproof, but is prone to chipping if you drop it at the right angle on a hard surface like concrete, which I’ve learned the hard way. Glass fused to steel honestly isn’t as fragile as it sounds, but under the right circumstances it could chip, which doesn’t mean you can’t keep using it, but it won’t be as pretty. If you’re just using yours for camping, where the only type of surface you’re likely to drop it on is a soft forest floor, this really won’t be an issue, but in the interests of objectivity we feel we must mention that chipping is a possibility.

3. Not insulated

Enamel conducts heat, which means that you can warm your hands on a camping mug filled with soup, but it also means you can burn your hands if the liquid inside is too hot, and that your hot food and drinks won’t stay as hot for as long as they will in an insulated mug. If you’re the type who wants to cart around the same cup for coffee all day long, enamel is definitely not for you.

Are enamel mugs good for camping?

As you can see, there are definitely more pros than cons when it comes to enamel camping mugs, however when you consider the additional features of more modern styles, we definitely concede that choosing one may be a bit of a nostalgic choice. 

That said, whether or not you go for enamel all depends on what type of camper you are. If you like warming your hands under a starry sky and take a no-frills approach to camping, or just prefer the vintage vibe, you’ll love your enamel camping mug. For those who like a high tech mug that keeps your beverage warm all day without burning your hands, an enamel camping mug will feel a bit archaic.

Contigo Cortland Autoseal Water Bottle 720ml: first impressions

Hiking water bottles really don’t seem like they should be a particularly complex piece of kit and yet it’s amazing how many problems you end up with if you pick the wrong one. Contigo has pulled out all the stops with the Cortland Autoseal to develop a water bottle that is hassle-free whether you’re hiking or hanging out at the crag.

This BPA-free plastic water bottle is lightweight and ergonomic, meaning you can easily drink from it one-handed, making it ideal for outdoor adventures when you don’t want to add a lot of weight and need to be able to take a slug without breaking your stride. 

The best features of this water bottle, however, are that it seems to be completely leak proof and the spout is controlled by an on/off button. When it is turned off, there is no possibility of water spilling out and drenching the contents of your backpack, but when it’s on, water gushes into your mouth to quench your thirst in the most satisfying way possible.

It’s just small enough in circumference that you can comfortably carry it in one hand, with a clip on handle for easy on-the-go transport as well. When it’s time to give it a clean, this bottle is dishwasher safe and the top is wide enough that you can easily and quickly wash it by hand too. We like it too much to take an axe to it but as far as we can tell, it is a really durable piece of gear – at least we hope so because we want to be using it for years to come. At a great price, we can’t really think of any reason not to treat yourself to one of these unless you’re serious about owning an insulated bottle.

Contigo Cortland Autoseal Water Bottle 720ml: in the field

I’m not going to say that I have fallen in love with this water bottle, because that would be weird, but I will say that I’ve been using it for hiking for the past month, and it definitely makes me feel feelings

Here’s how it performs on the trail: 

Ease of use 

This water bottle is super easy to use, as soon as you figure out how. Just unscrew the top and fill it up through a nice wide opening. Screw the top back on and if the on/off switch is turned off, throw it in your bag with no worries of leakage. When it came time to take my first slug, I definitely thought it was broken at first until I discovered the switch. Once I turned it on, I was really pleased with the way it pours water into my mouth about having to suck, and there’s no danger of it pouring down my shirt. It’s also easy to hold in one hand. 

Sustainability 

Now, environmentally speaking, I prefer a stainless steel or glass bottle, there’s no question about that. But the BPA-free Tritan plastic that goes into this bottle is made using recycled materials and is also recyclable (it’s the same type used in Nalgene bottles), which is a bonus.

Weight and capacity 

The light weight of a plastic bottle is certainly persuasive. Even when it is full, it doesn’t add tons of weight to my pack and with a 720ml capacity. It holds a good amount of water for a day hike without being totally ridiculous. That said, it is a streamlined enough shape that it is still pretty easy to stuff into a full backpack, another thing I tend to struggle with when it comes to giant cylindrical vessels.

Taste and cleaning

There is no gross plastic taste from this water bottle even when it’s brand new which is awesome.

When it needs a scrub, once you unscrew the lid, the opening is quite wide, so it’s really easy to clean this with a brush and it’s dishwasher safe. The drinking spout isn’t too complicated as it doesn’t have a straw that can collect loads of dirt so I’ve just given it a quip wipe with a sponge and some soap.

Durability

Obviously, plastic will never have the durability of stainless steel, but it also doesn’t dent and frankly, for as much as I drop my water bottles that’s a good thing. This plastic is pretty sturdy and I can see it holding up for a few years. The drinking spout is a little high tech, so that’s the only mechanism that I can imagine could potentially cause trouble would be if the on/off switch stopped working.

Versatility

Obviously, this isn’t a flask that keeps beverages hot and cold. It’s just for carrying water, or I suppose sports drinks if they are your cup of tea, proverbially speaking. Certainly not a problem for me as I’m quite happy to use my flask for hot drinks, but if you are looking for a two-in-one drinking vessel, this one isn’t for you.

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Yeti Rambler 12oz Bottle with Hotshot Cap: first impressions

The Yeti Rambler bottle is a seriously tough double-walled insulated water bottle, which will keep drinks hot or cold for hours and hours, and enjoy it with a minimum of fuss on the move. This 12oz version is just the right size for one generous serving of coffee, and fits nicely in most cupholders.

The ingenious Hotshot design means there's no need to carry a separate camping mug. Just twist the recessed handle in the top of the lid and you can drink straight through the cap from any angle.There's also an 18oz version available for longer trips, or you can buy the Hotshot Cap separately for your existing Yeti Rambler bottle.

Like all Yeti drinkware, the Rambler Bottle with Hotshot Cap comes in a wide array of colors, with special editions and seasonal shades released every now and then. My review sample is navy, and there are seven other options available at the time of writing, including Canopy Green, which was released for spring 2023.

It's solidly made, and my review sample has so far shrugged off a couple of drops from the side pocket of my backpack with no ill effects.

This is a premium insulated bottle, but at $30 / £25, it's not wildly expensive, and well worth the investment if you want to guarantee that your drink will stay at the right temperature on the trail or at camp.

Yeti Rambler 12oz Bottle with Hotshot Cap: in the field

I took the Yeti Rambler Bottle with Hotshot Cap on a week-long camping and hiking expedition near Sherwood Forest, UK, and was very impressed by its performance. Tea or coffee brewed in the morning was piping hot at lunchtime, and still drinkably warm by the evening. Holding the bottle, you can feel just how little heat is escaping. I was even able to boil water last thing at night, store it in the flask, and use it to make tea the following morning.

The bottle is dishwasher-safe, which is a real plus when you get home from camp, but it's also easy to clean by hand when you're off-grid. Its stainless steel interior isn't easily tainted by strong flavors either, so you don't need to worry about your water tasting of last week's coffee or your dishwasher detergent.

The Hotshot cap is an excellent piece of engineering, too. You don't need to remove it to drink, it avoids the need to drink directly from the bottle's metal lip, and it's harder to spill. I have a Stay Sixty water bottle that works in a similar way, but Yeti's design is superior, with a smooth mechanism that closes tightly between uses.

The only downside, which is mentioned in the enclosed leaflet, is the need to occasionally loosen the lid a little to release pressure when using the Hotshot Bottle to carry hot drinks. If you don't, there's a chance some liquid might ooze out when you want to take a drink, which isn't ideal. You also need to take care to screw on the cap with the Hotshot Lid open to allow air to escape, otherwise you could wind up with fresh coffee on your best hiking pants.

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Hiking and camping in the wild provides a fantastic exercise in living off the land, creative thinking and problem solving that isn’t available to us when we remain in our convenient concrete cocoons. In the city, many problems have been solved for us already, such as that clear, cold, safe drinking water that pours out of the tap whenever you want it. But despite there often being abundant rivers and streams in the wild, life out there isn’t quite so simple. 

When you’re drinking water in the wild, especially in the US, it’s important to purify it first to avoid nasty tummy troubles that can severely cube your backpacking fun in the short term, and even lead to long term health problems. An increasingly popular method of purifying water in the wild among hikers and campers is to simply drop a tablet into the water and let it dissolve, but if you haven’t tried this method before, it’s understandable that you might be a little hesitant. Do water purification tablets really work? And are they safe? 

In this article, we take a look at the hows, pros and cons of using water purification tablets on your next wilderness adventure.

How do water purification tablets work? 

Water purification tablets contain an active ingredient such as chlorine, chlorine dioxide or iodine that works to neutralize pathogens such as bacteria, viruses and parasites frequently found in water that can be harmful to human health. When you’re backpacking or camping and you run out of water, you fill your water bottle at a stream, river or even a freshwater lake and add a tablet (typically one tablet treats one or two liters of water) which dissolves in the water and makes it safe to drink. 

How long does it take for water purification tablets to work? 

It’s important to note that water purification tablets don’t work instantly. They typically take at least 30 minutes to be effective (read the instructions on your tablets before using them), and you must wait that long before drinking. Consequently, it’s a good idea to plan ahead, especially in hot weather and have a little water left in your bottle or hydration bladder when you reach a water source. That way you can have a good drink to finish it off and that will tide you over while you wait. We recommend setting an alarm on your phone or watch to signal when 30 minutes are up, or busy yourself pitching your tent and getting a campfire going so you’re not just sitting there staring at your water bottle. 

What are the benefits of water purification tablets? 

The main benefits of water purification tablets are obviously in supporting your health, since they can deactivate microorganisms like Giardia, which is very common in US streams and water and results in nasty gastrointestinal symptoms. 

Obviously, there are other ways to purify water in the wild, such as filters, boiling and UV sterilization pens, but many campers and hikers like the tablets for how easy they are to use. There’s no operating a filter pump and keeping the filter clean by periodically backwashing it and there’s no setting up your camping stove and using precious fuel to boil water. You just drop the tablets in and then relax in your camping chair while they do their thing. In addition, water purification tablets are extremely lightweight and packable, which we backpackers love.

For this reason, water purification tablets are widely used by the military, governments and NGOs operating in regions of the world where there is no safe drinking water available to keep populations safe.

What are the disadvantages of water purification tablets? 

One of the reasons we often ask, ‘why isn’t there a magic pill for this?’ is because magic pills don’t exist outside of Jack and the Beanstalk. There are always drawbacks and that is true for water purification tablets. 

Even though water purification tablets do a good job of curtailing harmful pathogens, they won’t do anything about chemicals or sediment in your drinking water. If you’re hiking near farmland, you’ll want a filter such as the Lifestraw Peak Series Collapsible Squeeze 1L Water Bottle which filters out herbicides, pesticides, silt and sand as well as germs.

And whereas water filters won’t cause any harm to your health or wildlife, water purification tablets can cause some side effects, such as eye irritation, gastrointestinal distress and respiratory discomfort in humans, even though they have been approved for human consumption. They are especially harmful if they’re misused and are very toxic to aquatic life if dropped into a water source. They also won’t work properly if you don’t wait the required time, so in that regard they’re less convenient than a quick filter.

If you’re hiking in the backcountry and reliant on natural water sources, we think carrying a few water purification tablets in your first aid kit is the best solution, and recommend using them in addition to a water filter so you have all bases covered if something goes wrong with your filter.