RecPak Meal Replacement Review: Performance and Convenience

September 2, 2025 David Lottmann Uncategorized diet, Fitness, food, health, nutrition

RecPak Performance Meal Replacement Review

The last few months I have been testing an ultralight meal replacement product called “RecPak“. I’ll be honest and start by saying I am not a big “protein shake” guy. My all time favorite food to carry on my mountain adventures has always been some pie from the Flatbread Company. I understand there is a place for function over flavor. Weight savings are valued over texture. Performance is prioritized over the aesthetics of leftover pizza.

That place is filled by RecPak, a veteran owned small company that a former Marine (Semper Fi brother!), Reed, started when he couldn’t find a meal replacement solution that fit his needs. I like supporting our Veterans, American made products, and a company that belongs to 1% For The Planet. The company also joins me in supporting the Conservation Alliance, The Access Fund, and the American Alpine Club. So when a media sample was sent to me to review I was willing to set aside my personal indifference around “protein shakes” and give RecPak a fair try.

I received ten each of the Chocolate and Vanilla Chai flavors. Since I work with a mountain guide service that has guides adventuring all over North America and beyond I distributed some of the media samples to my colleagues to get their feedback as well.

Taste

I am not a true expert in meal replacement or protein shakes. I can’t speak much on the flavor of either the chocolate or the vanilla chai. My palate would place both of these flavors in the “fine” category. They taste like most other protein shakes I’ve tried. I don’t think people really fuss much over the flavor of such a practical item, do they? The other testers agreed the flavor is on par with similar products they have tried.

Texture

This, for me, is more important than flavor when it comes to nutritional supplemental shakes. I have tried some brands whose solubility was just not up to the task of being drinkable. RecPak however, with one important caveat, has great solubility. After adding some cool water to my first RecPak, a chocolate flavored pouch, I took my first sip. I was greeted with some peanut butter like paste. Cap back on, a minute of very vigorous shaking, then another sip. Better, but still not where I wanted it to be. I check the instructions on the back a little closer.

“For best consistency, let settle for a few minutes after shaking”

I stuffed the pouch back in the top of my pack and covered another 1/4 mile above tree-line before stopping at a nice view of the Southern Presidential’s and took my third sip. Now the mix had fully dissolved into a smooth consistency that was pleasant to drink. I drank about a third of the pouch and put it back in my pack before continuing up to the summit of Mount Pierce.

Nutrition

I am not a nutritionist. Many of my readers probably have more education on performance nutrition than I do. After a sunrise summit of Mount Chocurua, I read the ingredients to my hiking companion.

He is a nutritionally educated personal trainer. He nodded his head at each ingredient. He was impressed. Nothing was added that would reduce the value of the mix. He noted the 42 grams of protein is especially welcome considering the requirements of weight training.

Performance

Designed specifically to replace calories depleted during endurance sports RecPak hits the mark. Seven hundred properly balanced calories in a package that weighs just over 6 ounces (175 grams) is impressive. I definitely felt re-fueled after consuming just half of a package.

RecPak for Preppers & Thru-Hikers

I’ve recently started shifting my mindset to adapt a bit more of what is often referred to as a “Prepper” mindset. I’m not digging any bunkers in the backyard but I have adopted the practice of having a “Get Home” bag packed in my car as I travel pretty far from home in very rural areas almost daily. It’s comforting to know I have everything in my car that I would need to travel by foot for 2-3 days if I ever needed to. For that reason two of these RecPak’s now live in my Get-Home-Bag. A huge bonus is these bags are reusable and compatible with the Sawyer Mini Filter which is also in my Get-Home-Bag. Extra treated water storage is great for everything from SHTF type events, vehicle breakdowns, or long distance Thru-Hiking.

Expect a post soon detailing the contents of my Get-Home-Bag

Summary

RecPak has caused me to return to the meal replacement/protein shake space after a pretty long hiatus. I won’t rave about the flavor of any protein shake anytime soon. However, the convenience of quick healthy calorie replacement is impressive. I found the serving size to be a little large. One of the other testers agreed. It felt can feel over-sized when you are still moving quickly on your adventure. His exact words were “I can’t consume 700 calories at once”. In cooler temps after mixing you have a couple days to finish consuming the drink. This timing works for me. On my hikes, I would start a pouch around lunch time. I would finish it at the end of the day. I appreciated how small the packaging was after finishing for easy packing out.

If you are a mountain athlete who has tried to cut back on pack weight but still have what you need to complete the mission take a look at RecPak. In my opinion it is a solid product made by a company with great ethics and global responsibility that I can align with. I will continue to carry one on my hiking and climbing adventures while two will live in my Get-Home-Bag. Once I start to get low in supply I’ll be placing an order for the new Coffee flavor that 150mg of caffeine!

BUY NOW

Readers! Have you tried RecPak yet? Are you into “meal replacement” or protein shakes? Nothing beats left over Flatbread pizza but that’s not always practical! Share your thoughts, comments, questions below!

See you in the mountains,

Northeast Alpine Start

Disclaimer: Media samples were sent to the author for purpose of review. Affiliate links above support the content created here. Making a purchase after using one of these links earns the author a small commission at no additional cost to you. Thank you!

Staying Healthy While Staying Home

April 27, 2020April 27, 2020 David Lottmann adventure travel, Deals on gear!, hiking, Travel Guide, Trip Reports Emergency Preparedness, healthy eating, healthy habits, healthy living, nutrition, stay home

I thought I’d share what our family has been doing to stay healthy during these challenging days. I’m in no way an expert on nutrition and holistic living but I’ve noticed we’ve been doing some pretty positive things since the stay at home order.

Outside Time

staying healthy during #stayhome Covid-19 pandemic — One hour a day of outside time

First is getting the whole family outside for a minimum of an hour every day. Following an injury at the start of March I haven’t been able to go on strenuous hikes so to be honest these short nature walks with the family have been great. We walk our dirt road neighborhood or drive a couple miles to a relative’s paved neighborhood so the kids can ride their bikes. We’ve also started going to the Fryeburg Fairgrounds once a week which is a fantastic spot to ride bikes and play some frisbee as it has so much open space the dozen or so families there are easily able to stay distanced. One thing I’ve changed is I’ve started carrying my first aid kit 100% of the time, even for just short walks. While we are practicing very low risk outdoor activities we should still be prepared to handle unexpected scrapes and minor injuries!

PSA: The White Mountain National Forest is for the most part, “closed”. Details here.

Healthy Eating

I used to think my career as a climbing guide would keep me active enough I could eat whatever I wanted as I was getting plenty of exercise. Having crested 40 reality has caught up and following a period of inactivity post injury I’ve really cut out some of my favorite indulgences. We, like many, are cooking more at home then we ever have. We do take-out about once every two weeks both to give us a break from cooking and to support some of our favorite local restaurants.

The one food we’ve been eating a ton of lately is avocado. It’s on toast for breakfast in the morning and often in what ever veggie or turkey sandwich we make for lunch. I have to thank Absolutely Mindy for the tip about “Everything But The Bagel” seasoning… It is amazing on avocado and eggs! Most recently it was the serving vessel for some lobster salad we made with left-over lobster meat.

Nutritional Supplements

We’ve been drinking a lot of orange juice and taking our daily vitamins. I also put in for another order of Gnarly Nutrition, this time adding the Performance Greens to our pantry. This stuff is so delicious and packed with so much goodness! You can see my full review of a lot of their product line here!

Culling clothes, toys, and gear

We’ve spent a lot of time going through the kids clothes, toys, and gear. We’ve been able to donate outgrown clothes and toys through our local COVID-19 barter/trade Facebook group and it’s been great freeing up space and decluttering our living spaces.

So that’s it! Anything you’ve been doing more (or less) of during these strange days?

Stay healthy and see you in the mountains when they re-open!

Northeast Alpine Start

Affiliate links help support this blog.

Review- Gnarly Nutrition (and Giveaway)

June 11, 2019June 11, 2019 David Lottmann adventure travel, backpacking, Gear Reviews, hiking, Misc Reviews Amino Acids, BCAAs, Branch Amino Acids, Exercise, Hydration Supplements, Muscle Recovery, nutrition, nutrition supplements, supplements, whey protein

I’ve never really been into nutritional supplements that much. In fact I’ve probably actively avoided them to some extent due to over ambitious creatine supporters during my military years (so long ago!). I am however a big fan of hydration supplements and when I heard of a pro-deal opportunity from Gnarly Nutrition through my membership in the AMGA for some powdered sports drink mix I decided to place an order. I was so impressed with the drink mix I decided to reach out to the company to see if I could sample some of their other products. A few days later my sample kit had arrived!

I’ve now been using these products for over 3 months and feel I can share my impressions of them. We will start with the first one I was introduced to…

Gnarly Hydrate – Everyday Hydration

Gnarly Nutrition Review — Gnarly Hydrate

Gnarly’s Hydrate sports drink mix is much more than another version of powdered Gatorade. Developed to replace what you lose in sweat I was attracted to the low sugar amount used in the mix, only 4 grams per serving. This low amount of sugar helps transport water across the gut, where-as higher sugar amounts can lead to gut distress. Packed with a full spectrum of B-vitamins (100% B6, 167% B12) and healthy amounts of Magnesium (23%), Niacin (34%), and Riboflavin (100%).

What’s not in the mix can be as important as what is in it. In this case Gnarly uses NO artificial colors (yay no red dye #40!), no artificial flavors or sweeteners (sugar is organic cane sugar), no GMO‘s, no gluten (got some friends who are happy about that!), no soy, and 100% vegan.

But how does it taste?

I’ve only tried the Ruby Red Grapefruit flavor but I find it to be quite balanced on the sweet vs tart scale. I typically use just under two scoops for my 32 ounce Nalgene. The flavor is good whether I drop some ice in there on hotter days or finish the last swig after the bottle has been sitting in the sun getting warm at the end of the climbing day. Finally the mixture has excellent solubility and the mix dissolves completely without much agitation.

But how much does it cost?

Retail price for the 400 grams (14.10 ounces) bag is $25.95. That’s enough for about 40 12-16 ounce servings. That comes out to $.64/serving. That’s $.06/serving cheaper than the Nuun tablets I was using before. I will be joining the monthly subscription plan which brings the price down to $20.76, or $.52/serving. This makes Gnarly’s Hydrate one of the best values in the category market-wide!

Gnarly BCAAs – Reduced soreness and recovery time

Now we get into the world of “Branch Chain Amino Acids” or BCAA’s for short. I admit I didn’t have a clue as to what these were but don’t worry, it’s not too complicated. The following is an explanation from http://www.healthline.com:

The branched-chain amino acids (BCAAs) are a group of three essential amino acids: leucine, isoleucine and valine. They are essential, meaning they can’t be produced by your body and must be obtained from food. BCAA supplements have been shown to build muscle, decrease muscle fatigue and alleviate muscle soreness. They have also successfully been used in a hospital setting to prevent or slow muscle loss and to improve symptoms of liver disease.

But how does it taste?

I’ve been using the caffeinated version of “Strawberry Lemonade” and like the Gnarly Pre-Workout option I found the flavor a bit on the tart side. This one however does not have the beta-alanine so it seemed to have 100% solubility. If you have an issue with any “texture” in your sport drink you might prefer this one over the Gnarly Pre-Workout.

But does it work?

Like the Gnarly Pre-Workout I definitely noticed an energy boost on days I used this vs days I went pure water/food. I marked noticeable reduced soreness after quite a few 7+ hour back-country ski days. After one particularly high mileage/elevation week towards the end of the winter I was almost surprised on my next day off when I felt like I could easily crush another day without taking a rest day.

But how much does it cost?

Retail price for the 368 grams (12.98 ounces) drum is $39.95. That’s enough for about 30 12-16 ounce servings. That comes out to $1.33/serving. The monthly subscription plan brings the price down to $30.36, or $1.07/serving.

Gnarly Nutrition — Gnarly BCAAs Supplement Facts

Gnarly Pre-Workout – Get primed for performance

The Gnarly Pre-Workout has the recovery benefits of BCAAs plus beta-alanine to help with muscular endurance (by buffering acid), citrulline malate to increase blood flow to and from working muscles AND caffeine/ginseng for that extra energy boost. If you want to read up more on how these things work take a look at this article. With only 6 ingredients the advantage of Gnarly’s BCAA mix you know everything going into your body. Some competitors have “proprietary” blends so they don’t disclose the full ingredient list.

But how does it taste?

This one only comes in a “Strawberry Lemonade” caffeinated or decaffeinated version. I’ve been testing the caffeinated version. I found the flavor a bit on the tart side. Not crazy pucker your face tart but tart. It is a “lemonade” flavor after all so that can be expected. One thing I noticed is the mix is not 100% soluble. The beta-alanine is “extended release” which means you will still have some texture in the drink and some settling will occur. Best practice is to do a little swirl when you’re getting to the bottom so you don’t miss out on any of those non-essential amino acids!

But does it work?

I definitely noticed an energy boost on days I used this vs days I went pure water/food. That shouldn’t be a surprise as it has caffeine, ginger-root, and all the BCAA’s previously mentioned! Gnarly has won over a skeptic in the supplement arena!

But how much does it cost?

Retail price for the 420 grams (14.82 ounces) drum is $37.95. That’s enough for about 30 12-16 ounce servings. That comes out to $1.265/serving. The monthly subscription plan brings the price down to $30.36, or $1.01/serving.

Gnarly Whey – Protein Supplement

Last but not least is Gnarly’s flagship protein supplement, Whey. Not all Whey proteins are created equal. Gnarly makes its whey from the milk of grass fed New Zealand cows, free of GMOs and hormones. Packed with digestive enzymes and probiotics that help break down protein and increases assimilation this mix definitely has helped my digestive system. Lactase is used which helps break down lactose, and while I’ve never felt lactose intolerant I can see this being helpful for most consumers.

But how does it taste?

I recalled trying a Whey shake many years ago and finding the texture to be close to water-logged cardboard. This stuff is so different from that memory. With almost 100% solubility I’ve been making smooth morning chocolate banana shakes a couple times a week and they are so yum! Both my 7 year old son and 3 year old daughter find the flavor to be excellent!

But does it work?

There is no doubt here, that’s a hard yes! Whey is one of the most researched and published supplements out there. I’ve definitely been feeling the benefits over the last few months and have become a believer. If you want to do some reading on how it works and link to many medical and factual studies check out this article from Healthline.com

But how much does it cost?

Retail price for the 900 grams (32 ounces) drum is $59.95. That’s enough for about 20 8-12 ounce servings. That comes out to $2.99/serving. The monthly subscription plan brings the price down to $47.96, or $2.40/serving.

Summary

I’m really happy I put my skepticism aside and went all in to test these nutritional supplements. While at the end of the day a healthy diet and regular exercise keep me relatively healthy I can feel that these products are making a difference in both my energy level, and, to a greater extent, my recovery time after long days in the mountains. If you’re a supplement person already you’re probably not surprised. Maybe you’ve been with one brand for awhile and would like to try something new? If you’re new to using supplements here is an awesome place to start! Gnarly has put together an excellent article to help you decide which supplement is right for you! Check it out here!

Giveaway!

Here’s your chance to try almost all the Gnarly products for free! Just click the RaffleCopter link below to enter!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

See you in the mountains!

Northeast Alpine Start

Affiliate links support this blog at no cost to you! Thank you!