The funny thing about OSMO is that theyve barely changed since their launch in 2012. Through the years, and perhaps because they didnt keep dropping flashy new flavors and seasonal editions, their business and the attention they garnered has ebbed and flowed.But their quality and performance has remained a constant, which is why its one of my go-to products when I have something big planned.The latest such adventure was 2+ weeks of cycling in Japan, first on an organized tour with Ride & Seek (read about that here), then on a loosely organized bikepacking trip with my son where plans changed hourly. For that, I packed a suitcase full of OSMOs catalog, hauled it halfway around the world, and proceeded to crush it with zero bonks and zero cramps for the entire trip.If youre looking for solid ride nutrition and recovery, heres what you need to know about OSMOOSMO Rapid RecoveryI dont start rides with a recovery drink, but Im starting this review with Rapid Recovery because its one of my favorite products. Heres why: Their Vanilla recovery mix is hands down the best thing to add to iced coffee with a little milk for a killer hot-weather recovery drink. (watch me make it here)Each serving has 17g-18g of protein from whey protein isolate, and thats important. Whey Isolate is a much higher quality version than Whey Concentrate, which is common in a lot of other products (not all, to be fair, but a lot) because its cheaper. But, Isolate digests cleaner with fewer issues (less bloating, fewer farts). Despite guzzling down 1-2 servings after each days ride, I never had any bloating or gastrointestinal stress.The chocolate flavor blends in more Micellar Casein, which I dont have a problem with, but I prefer the vanilla by a large margin.Actually, some days I did start my rides with a recovery drink and mixed it with instant coffee packetsperfect for just getting rolling when youve got to ride to your first meal.For the bikepacking segment, I dumped a couple tins of it into a Gallon Ziploc and shoved it in our trunk bag. Japan has lots of spots to get water, so it was easy to mix after each days ride. And, Rapid Recovery rinses clean, so it didnt build up any film in my shaker cup over two weeks of just rinsing it with water after each useno scrubbing necessary.I finished every days ride with 1-2 servings (and sometimes a half to full serving again before bed). This strategy worked as I felt surprisingly strong and fresh each day for the entire duration, and wasnt completely wrecked after 16 days of hard riding.OSMO Hydration & Power FuelOSMOs original message was simple drink to hydrate, eat to fuel. So, if theres been one big change for the brand over the years, its that theyve finally introduced a drink mix thats designed to fuel you, too. Sort of.Their original Hydration mix is the same as it ever was, and both berry flavors are awesome. Highly recommend. Orange is pretty good, too, and Lemon Lime is among the better Lemon Limes out there, but its still just a Lemon Lime. All of the flavors do an excellent job of keeping me (and, presumably, you) hydrated. We hammered day after day, and once bikepacking, were doing it with loaded bikes up lots and lots of long climbs. Sooo many climbs.Yet we never cramped, and Steve (my partner on the Ride & Seek tour) decided it would be fun to not shift into the little ring for the entire week, so he was definitely pushing big gears on the climbs. No cramps or bonks for him either.It comes in 20 serving canisters, which we used for the cycling tour while they shepherded our bags around for us. Then we switched to their single-serve packets for the bikepacking leg since theyve take up less and less space as we used them. I like bags and pouches of product for that reasonthey pack down smaller, and keep getting smaller throughout a trip. Im guessing they also use less plastic?Some days we added OSMOs newer Power Fuel mix to the Hydration mix, which is how you use it. Its an additive if youre looking to get more carbs in your carbs. Its a Cluster Dextrin (highly branched cyclic dextrin) blended with Fructose and Sodium Citrate, with no flavor. Its designed to add a meaningful dose of carbs (39g) to your current sports drink mix, but remain easily digestible. It makes the drink a bit sweeter, and its a little sticky, but seems to work well. Available in 16-serving pouches and single-serve packets, with or without caffeine.OSMO PreloadWe drank the OSMO Preload alongside Japanese green teanot with it.OSMOs Preload pre-sport hydration mix is one of my favorite things and I dont think it gets the love it deserves. It has a very slight pool water taste, as does anything with a lot of sodium bicarbonate, but the pineapple margarita flavor makes the most of it. I actually kinda like it. Theres also potassium (83mg) and magnesium (14mg), but the main thing is pumping 1,430g to 1,850mg of sodium in you to help you hold water before heading out to ride.If it aint brokeWould I like to see more flavors from OSMO? Sure. But theres something to be said for consistency and predictability. I know that OSMOs products work well for me, the flavors are palatable all day, every day, for weeks at a time, and that they do what they say they will. Recently, theyve added single-serve packaging for all of their products, which is great for travel. If you havent found what youre looking for in a sports nutrition product, Id say give these a try. Theyre relatively simple, without any gimmicky ingredients or promises, but they taste great and they work.Full disclosure: OSMO provided a small travel stipend to support our trip to Japan. In no way did that influence this review or my opinion their products I liked them before, and I like them now.The post Review: OSMO Nutrition Keeps Us Keepin On appeared first on Bikerumor.