Written By: Mica Cruz
Festivals, while a whole shit load of fun, can take a lot out of you. Three days of dancing and walking under the heat of the summer sun while on a drinking spree, functioning on very little sleep because of the cold, hard camping grounds and rubbing elbows (or even more) with thousands of other festival-goers in poor hygiene conditions are just some of the challenges thatcome along with the whole festival experience. Make the most of your festival experience by planning well and taking along these prepackaged snacks, vitamins and drinks.
Vitamin C
Thousands of festival-goers will be crammed together for the weekend, and exchanging sweat will be inevitable. Protect yourself with some vitamin C, which helps boost your immune system. You wouldn’t want to get sick, which would keep you from having the most fun during the festival weekend. Plus, vitamin C can add an extra boost your flagging energy. A study by Mahalakshmi Shankaran, Bryan K. Yamamoto and Gary A. Gudelsky also shows that vitamin C has neuroprotective in effects in mice during the administration of a neurotoxic regimen of MDMA.
RaveBOX
RaveBOX is a company that promotes harm reduction. RaveBOX uses a combination of natural supplements designed to combat the negative effects of MDMA use. According to RaveBOX’s website, “It helps you to restore your energy levels, boost your immune system and sleep better, as well as replenish your serotonin levels and reduce cell damage caused by free radicals.” The box contains 5 packets which contain the suggested supplements to be taken at specific intervals for best results.
Advil
The loud music and lack of drinking water can turn the fun weekend to disaster when you get yourself a throbbing headache. Not even your favorite artist’s set can cure that, and it might even make things worse! Bring a bottle of Advil, just in case. Trust your mom on this one, kids.
Trail Mix
Trail mix is a good, quick snack to help keep your energy and blood sugar content steady, minimizing the chances of crashing in the middle of your favorite artist’s set. Trader Joe’s has a wide variety of trail mix options to choose from, whether you like the ones with different kinds of chocolate or the ones with more nuts and dried fruits or the ones with peanut butter cups. The almost endless combinations of nuts, sweets and dried fruits are great sources of antioxidants, fiber and healthy fats. Our favorite is the Sweet, Savory & Tart Trek Mix from Trader Joe’s because of the nice balance of flavors, the unique addition of golden raisins and three kinds of “drops” (semi-sweet chocolate, white chocolate and peanut butter). If you want to take your trail mix to the next level, Sahale Snacks® offers premium mixes, like Banana Rum Pecans Glazed Mix or Naturally Pomegranate Vanilla Flavored Cashews Glazed Mix. They come in beautiful, resealable 4 oz packaging that’s perfect for light packing and healthy snacking.
Hillshire Snacking
Hillshire Snacking takes things to a whole ’nother level by offering a considerable variety of prepackaged, chef-curated snacks in unique flavor combinations. It uses real ingredients in on-the-go portions, making for more indulgent, healthier and more convenient options for festival snacking. Like a leveled-up version of trail mix, Hillshire Small-Plates have a good balance of meat, cheese, crackers, crisps and nuts that come in beautiful single-serve packaging. They offer interesting pairings, like Italian Dry Salame with Natural Gouda Cheese, which would pair perfectly with a glass of red wine, or Apple Chardonnay Seasoned Pork Cuts and Gouda Cheese. Go one step further, and order their Social Platters so you can conveniently have a fancy snack with buddies.
5-Hour Energy
5-hour Energy is an American-made “energy shot” manufactured by Living Essentials LLC. It uses a unique blend of ingredients to provide users with a feeling of focus and a boost in alertness for hours. They come in small single-serving packaging that is convenient to carry and take to festival grounds. The drinks’ active ingredients are vitamins B3, B6, B9 and B12, which are good for the body’s production of amino acids and play a key role in converting fats, proteins, carbohydrates and starches into usable energy. Unlike most energy drinks, 5-Hour Energy contains zero sugar, so you won’t have to worry about a crash afterward.
KIND® Fruit Bites and Pressed by KIND®
Good-bye, sour tapes and gummy worms–our generation is learning to eat better! But when you’re camping at a festival, mangoes and pineapples are hard to come by, or hard to open and keep without access to refrigeration. KIND® Fruit Bites and Pressed by KIND® are made with 100% real fruit and maybe some unsweetened chocolate–no juices, concentrates, purees or preservatives. With no added sugar, these snacks contain 1 to 2 servings of fruit per pouch, making them a healthier option for festival snacking.
Epic Foods Meat Bar
The original meat, fruit and nut bar, Epic Food’s Meat Bar offers a convenient protein-packed, fiber-rich snack in interesting flavor combinations, like the Venison Sea Salt Pepper Bar or the Turkey Almond Cranberry Bar. These healthy eats are made with whole, unprocessed ingredients and are not loaded with sugars, oils or funky chemicals whose names you can’t pronounce, unlike most of the snacks readily available in the U.S. Other than being a yummy, healthy treat, the meat in this product is grown and sourced responsibly, with the owners of the company preferring to source from producers committed to holistic land-management practices, like rotational grazing, which helps regenerate pastures instead of depleting their nutrients. When your energy and nutrients are depleting, grab a pack of their organic and grass-fed meat bars to help you keep up with the weekend’s festivities!
Enjoy Life Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies
OK, after all that healthy snacking, you deserve a cookie. According to their website(www.enjoylifefoods.com), “These gluten-free crunchy cookies are loaded with dairy-free chocolate chips and pack a delightful crunch.” They also use all-natural ingredients, and no preservatives. We’re seeing a trend here, are you? They also offer a delicious range of non-GMO, vegan, Kosher and Halal-certified products to meet today’s consumers’ discerning needs.
Fruit and Veggie Chips from Bare Snacks
For a crispy snacking treat, fruit and veggie chips are posing to take over. Say good-bye to potato chips, which are full of trans-fat, which can lead to obesity, heart disease, cancer and diabetes. Bare Snacks offer crispy treats that are baked, not fried, with no added oil. They come in fruit and veggie options, like cinnamon apple chips, strawberry banana chips, chia + pineapple chia coconut bites, ranch carrot chips and salt and vinegar beet chips.
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