My Sports Drink: Apple Clif Shot

All right, let's get this blog movin'. We'll start with something simple and ubiquitous in my life: 

Clif Shot Crisp Apple sports drink (with caffeine!)

      This stuff is probably the only thing I can drink by the quart and not start hating the thought of after a couple weeks. It tastes like apple-flavored hard candy, but without the nasty high fructose corn syrup aftertaste, because it's made with normal sugar. As is typical for Clif, the ingredients are mostly organic, and it's been thoroughly researched and field-tested.

      Then there's the fact that it comes in powdered form, so it's easy to decide how strong you want it. That also means you're not wasting plastic bottles; instead, you have sturdy tubs you can reuse for storing paint or something. (They do sell it in packets, but I go through it too fast for that!)

      Initially, I thought the caffeine idea was stupid; caffeine is a diuretic, so what kind of idiot would put it in a drink intended for hydration? Then came a morning where I was supposed to get up and go kayaking after a very long week . . . and suddenly, it all made sense. There's not enough caffeine in this stuff to pop your eyes open after an all-nighter, but it helps kick your alertness up a notch or two until you can get moving or get to the end of a long day.

      In short, if I have a water bottle with me, it's full of apple-flavored Clif Shot. 

      Oh, and my water bottle is super fun: purple wide-mouth Nalgene with black cap and mac-and-cheese orange silicone splash guard. Best water bottle colors ever, and perfect for a drink that tastes like candy!