Crag food can be cruxy. Go too light and you crash. Eat too much and you'll spend the next two hours digesting below your project. Consuming the wrong food can sabotage the perfect climbing day and throw you into an irreversible total tailspin. Performance snacking is the secret to sustained power on hard routes. Eating the right balance of nutrients allows you hike and climb all day in the elements, and get yourself to a restaurant before blacking out at the end of the day. Having experienced all of the above, it's all about the right ratio of protein, fat and hydration. It's also crucial to balance caffeine and sugar, two things that can easily kill a workout if you overdo it.

Crag food can be cruxy. Go too light and you'll crash. Eat too much and you'll be digesting for the next two hours below your project. Consuming the wrong food can quickly sabotage the perfect climbing day, and throw you into a total tailspin. Performance snacking is the secret to sustained power on hard routes. The right balance of nutrients will allow you to hike and climb all day in the elements, and get yourself to a restaurant before blacking out at the end of the day. Having experienced all of the above, I've found it's all about the right ratio of protein, fat and hydration. It's also crucial to balance caffeine and sugar, two things that can easily kill a workout if you overdo it, and it's pretty easy to overdo it. My favorite crag foods aren't too light or too heavy or too sweet. They all have a good mix of protein and fat, which minimizes crashing, prevents hunger and generally makes you more fun to be around. Here are my top three:

Navitas Naturals Goji, Cacao Nib and Cashew Trail Mix is like the Ferrari of GORP. Each bag holds four servings of delicious, raw, organic goodness that won't weigh you down, with 110 calories, 3 grams of protein, and 4.5 grams of fat. $5.99.

I sampled these yummy, sweet, protein-rich bites at the trade show this year, and highly recommend the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough flavor. Also comes in Peanut Butter and Chocolate. Each baggy gives you 20 grams of protein, 4.5 grams of fat and 270 calories. Order online and get a ten pack for $29.99.

Another one of my all-time favorites is Wellshire Original turkey Tom Tom Snack Sticks. They're salty and satisfying, with 80 calories, 8 grams of protein and 4.5 grams of fat in each stick. These sticks are gluten, nitrate and nitrite-free. No animal by-products or antibiotics are given to these turkeys. Each package holds six sticks, doesn't need to be kept cold and packs easily. $68.51 for 25 packages of six.

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