With all the yoga and running that goes on around the office and at our neighbourhood stores, we get mighty hungry. Snacks that are natural, portable and delicious are always in high demand. Ever get hungry for a little healthy competition? We do.

we love bliss in ball-shaped treats

Many people here are either kitchen-savvy or have goals to be. What better way to encourage everyone in the pursuit of their goals than to host an energy ball cook-off? We scouted around for people's favourite recipes and hosted a taste test after an afternoon yoga class led by Tedi Martin.

the contenders

Bev nominated The Four o'Clock Bar, courtesy of Baker's Balance.

Tedi nominated the Chocolate Earth Ball recipe by Whole Foods.

Pam suggested the Energy Ball recipe from Shelley Adam's Whitewater Cooks At Home cookbook.

I submitted an original recipe inspired by my hearty oatmeal breakfasts.

We had a healthy turnout of very qualified judges. (Just so you know, hungry and opinionated equals qualified.) The ballots were cast. The people have spoken. Whole Foods' Chocolate Earth Balls win.

here's the thing

Each recipe was uniquely delicious. Depending on what you crave, you probably would choose one recipe over another.  Here's what we learned:

If you love peanut butter, you'll probably love the winning recipe. The consensus was that most people wouldn't reach for it before a workout but it was definitely the perfect reward after their afternoon yoga class.

If you're a chocoholic, the Whitewater Cooks Energy Ball recipe has the cocoa fix you're looking for. This runner-up is loaded with other tasty ingredients like sunflower seeds, rolled oats and raisins, so it's a balanced treat.

If you like eating breakfast on the go, you'll enjoy the original recipe from yours truly. It's basically a spin-off of my favourite oatmeal breakfast: oats, dates, ground flax, almonds, coconut, sesame and sunflower seeds and real maple syrup.

If you like simple recipes with minimal ingredients, grab a food processor and whip up the Four o'Clock Bar. All you need is dates, almonds, peanuts, peanut butter and sea salt.

the recipes

First place: Whole Foods' Chocolate Earth Balls (below)

Second place: Shelley Adam's Energy Balls, from the beautiful Whitewater Cooks At Home cookbook. (below)

Third place: Elissa's Portable Breakfast Balls (recipe below)

Elissa's Portable Breakfast Balls

• 1 cup each: oats, coconut, sesame and sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, all toasted
• 1 cup ground flax
• 2.5 cups chopped dried dates
• 2 cups almond butter
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 1 additional cup toasted coconut, for coating
• love

Preheat your oven to 350F. Soak the dates in warm water to soften them. Spread the first five ingredients on a large cookie sheet. Toast them in the oven for ten minutes. Remove and cool. Drain the dates. Squeeze them to remove excess water. Put dates, toasty ingredients, flax, syrup and almond butter in a large bowl and combine well with your hands. Roll into balls (you choose the size) and roll in coconut.

Fourth place: Baker's Balance's Four o'Clock Bar (below)

lessons from our kitchens

We seize every opportunity to learn, whether we're on our yoga mats or in our kitchens. The big one? Making delicious energy snacks from scratch is ridiculously simple - and fun. We recommend you store your creations in an air-tight container in the freezer to prolong the enjoyment of your time in the kitchen.

Here are some of the other lessons we learned along the way.

Use organic ingredients wherever possible.

Get the most flavour out of your ingredients and toast them in the oven.

If you're getting creative and making your own recipe, write it down as you go.

want more?

• Pull out your blender. Make some of our favourite smoothie recipes.
• Celebrate your personal best in style. Try your hand at this simple pavlova recipe.
• Set some goals for your culinary pursuits. Get tips on our goal setting page.

Special thanks to Alana & Ali for prepping the feast and everyone who helped make our taste test a success! What are you busy making?

I'm a runner, not a yogi, so I never thought I would feel a void for my yoga practice. I brought yoga into my life when I started training for my first triathlon in 2007, and it became a vital addition to my exercise regime when I was training for my first half marathon later that year.

Since then, I have practiced once every other week to four times a week. Running, cycling and strength training have always taken precedence.

Now, I miss yoga.

Yoga represents to me an inner centered energy, peace, calm...until pigeon pose. Yoga is recovery at that point. Since it's said we hold emotion in certain parts of our body, I wonder what I am holding in my hips. I subconsciously - or consciously - have a hard time letting go there. Certainly the runner in me craves the hip opener pigeon offers after a long run that tightens up the hip flexors.

I'm competitive by nature and am thankful one of the first pieces of advice my instructor gave me was to not worry about what/how my fellow students were doing. And to never compete with myself or push my body further than it is willing to go.

Since I pushed through triathlon training at the start of this season, both to be prepared for Encinitas and to win the Carlsbad store's Triathlon/Yoga Bingo Challenge (I tied for first place and won a new pair of Reverse Groove Shorts to wear to hot yoga) I am feeling minor burn-out, and am craving the steady flow and grounding yoga offers me.

I want to let go. Power Yoga 1 by Candlelight at Sculpt Fusion Yoga tonight at 7:30 couldn't come sooner. My hips are tight.