If you don鈥檛 have a properly stocked kitchen, finding the time to create training-enhancing meals that don鈥檛 taste like cardboard can be next to impossible. But just a few items can turn the average kitchen into an athlete鈥檚 dream, and these gifts are the perfect place to start.
Big Spoon Nut Butters Pack ($37)
This delivers an instant dose of protein, carbs, and fat when you need a quick pre- or post-workout snack or just a quick pick-me-up on the go. Spread on toast, mix in oatmeal, blend in a smoothie, or smear on a sweet potato. You can also just grab a spoon鈥攏o one鈥檚 judging.
Instant Pot ($98)
罢丑颈蝉听 meets slow cooker with a cultlike following does the job of multiple appliances, cuts cooking time by hours, and eliminates guesswork with preprogrammed buttons. It鈥檚 also tailor-made for healthy meal prep. Use it as a rice cooker or a yogurt maker, cook dried beans without presoaking, perfect the soft- or hard-boiled egg, and create juicy, fall-apart meats. Settings to keep your food warm or delay the start time make it easy to fit cooking into a busy life, so dinner can be on the table when you鈥檙e back from your long run.
鈥楶lantlab鈥 by Matthew Kenney ($40)
Trying to eat more veggies but tired of saut茅ing? Famed vegan and raw-food chef Matthew Kenney鈥檚 is the guide to elevating plant-based eating, with such recipes as a plant burger with sunflower cheddar, carrot ketchup, and a vegan brioche bun; butternut squash gnocchi with farro bolognese; and sweet potato crostini with smoked almond ricotta. The recipes get progressively harder, so advise your giftee to start from the beginning (yes, you roasted a carrot!) and work their way to the end.
Kale & Herb Razor ($15)
Destem leafy greens or herbs in seconds with this . Throw greens into salads, smoothies, saut茅s, and soups for a hit of fiber to maintain healthy digestion, calcium to increase bone density and prevent injury in high-impact activities, and iron to boost endurance.
Dean & DeLuca Spice Tube Racks ($105)
The right seasonings can make or break your meals and keep you from relying on store-bought sauces loaded with fat and sugar. This features the essentials to get you started, like basil, cayenne, cumin, curry powder, lavender, and thyme. The herbs are sourced from all over the world for the freshest, most flavorful blends, so you can brighten up even the simplest dishes (no more boring chicken) and test out easy flavor swaps on your go-to pre- and post-workout dishes.
Fire Wire Flexible Grilling Skewers ($10)
This handy makes it easy to cook up a healthy, no-mess dinner and maximize space on your grill. Marinate your favorite meat, vegetables, and potatoes on the skewers, then toss them on the grill. Pop the skewers in the dishwasher when you鈥檙e done.
Kitchen Aid 5-Speed Hand Blender ($80)
Traditional upright blenders are awesome, but they鈥檙e also cumbersome and annoying to clean. Enter the聽. It鈥檚 like the reverse of a traditional blender鈥攊nstead of adding food to the blender, you add the blender to the food. Creating pureed soups chock-full of vegetables, frothy single-serving smoothies, and fresh dressings and sauces becomes insanely quick, and a hand blender is way easier to clean than a dirtied blender canister. Why do we care? Fewer dishes and less time in the kitchen,聽more time to do epic things.
BottleLoft ($38)
Building a performance plate is all about balance, so go ahead and buy that six-pack. But you can avoid the resulting fridge clutter by lofting your brews. Genius, we know. Affix the to the top of any fridge shelf using the included peel-off adhesive, and the strong bottle-cap-sized magnets will elevate your beers out of the way.