Nourishing yourself before, during and after a hike - whether it's a quickie up Runyon Canyon or a day trek through the Angeles National Forest - is incredibly important. There is nothing worse than getting 3 miles into a 6 mile trail and suddenly feeling hunger pangs. Ooh - or how about those mornings after you hiked a hardcore incline - you're so sore you have to waddle like a penguin just to get to the bathroom to brush your teeth (can you tell I'm speaking from experience?).

Well, we've gone ahead an compiled a short list of snacks we love to turn to for pre, mid and post-hike fuel. Enjoy!

Pre-hike - Lucky Jack Nitro Cold Brew Coffee

Okay, first of all, if you know me at all, you know I live for just a couple things: coffee, design, wine and hiking…
but mostly coffee.

Seriously. My day does not officially commence until I have a big mug full of straight up black coffee in my hands. In the Hikeology household we usually use our lovely bodem french press, but lately, to cut cost and time, we’ve been all about the instant stuff. So you can understand my excitement when I came across Lucky Jack’s Organic Nitro Cold Brew Coffee.

Perfect for the upcoming warmer months, their iced coffee is a nice pick-me-up to have on-hand for an early morning hike! Not only that, I did the Whole30 nutrition plan back in February, which has very strict regulations of added sugar, dairy, legume and gluten intake. I continue to try to stick to the plan as closely to it as possible, and guess what, Lucky Jack products make it super easy. The majority of their brews are sugar free, gluten free, dairy free, nut free and organic (insert prayer hands emoji here).

Personally, I've only tried the Old School and Lean Bean flavors (we're saving the Double Black we have for a camping trip in a couple weeks) but I have a sneaking suspicion the rest are delicious too. Of course, Old School is my favorite, because that’s how I roll, but they have even more flavors left for us to try, like Sweet Thing, Slow Brew and the one I am most curious about, Mary Jane. Yum!

Mid-hike - Three Jerks Jerky

I know I've posted previously about my latest beef jerky addiction, but I just can’t help myself. Jerky was something I enjoyed snacking on immensely while I was doing Whole30, and I got hooked. While Three Jerks Jerky isn’t Whole30 compliant, it is gluten free and nitrate free. Plus, it isn’t made with any of that artificial junk, which is awesome! Packed with pure protein, it's an excellent snack for a mid-hike fuel up.

All of their jerkies have an amazing amount of flavor too. They aren’t too dry, or too moist (I’m a texture person, so this is really important to me). What make’s their jerky so tender is the fact that they’re made from the tenderloin of the cow (filet mignon) which so happens to be my favorite cut of steak - so I guess it makes sense that I love this jerky so much.

Post-hike - Barnana

Even more important than your pre and mid hike fuel is your post hike recovery fuel. Foods that are high in potassium are popular for recovery because potassium works with sodium to balance your fluids and electrolyte levels. Steady fluid levels help regulate your heartbeat and prevent your muscles from cramping up and being super sore the next day. This is where Barnana comes in handy! They're the greatest little bite-sized, potassium-packed snacks that ever did exist!

As if I didn’t love bananas enough on their own, Barnana had to go and cover them in chocolate, coconut, peanut butter, apple cinnamon and of course coffee (can you take a wild guess which flavor is my favorite?).

Not only will your body thank you for choosing Barnana as your post-hike snackage, but the environment will too. Barnana’s mission is to eliminate excessive food waste, which is a HUGE issue, especially in the United States. When bananas aren’t perfect they get rejected for export, leaving tons of perfectly edible bananas behind to rot! So what does Barnana do? They take those “imperfect” organic bananas and turn them into these little potassium packed sweet treats instead of letting them go to waste. Ah-mahz-ing.

You can find most of these snacks at your local health foods store and other boutique locations. For more information visit their websites!