This spring, Yomif Kejelcha ran the fastest marathon debut ever. Behind that performance was SantaMadre, a Spanish nutrition brand most American athletes have never heard of, and one we think is about to change that.
This past spring, Yomif Kejelcha ran 1:59:41 in his marathon debut, the fastest debut in history and one of only two sub-2:00 marathons ever run.
The brand behind that performance was SantaMadre, a Spanish sports nutrition company most American athletes have never heard of.
We've been watching them closely, and they've quickly become one of the most interesting names in the high-carb space. Their entire approach centers on a single problem, and that's getting athletes to the carb numbers modern racing demands, in formats the gut can actually tolerate over hours of hard effort.
What sets them apart is a refusal to chase trends. Instead, they target the mechanisms most brands overlook: fatigue that originates in the brain before the legs fail, inflammation that stalls nutrient absorption mid-race, and nitrate-loading protocols drawn from cardiovascular research.
Their best-selling products:
Most cherry products are for after your workout. Reset is built for the middle of it. It packs 300mg of tart cherry polyphenols alongside 30g of carbs, engineered to buffer the fatigue signals your brain sends out long before your muscles actually quit. It activates in 17 minutes and holds for 87 minutes. Tour de France and UTMB athletes have made it part of their race-day protocol.
A 30g carb gel that goes down like a liquid. What makes it different is "Refresh" technology, which is a cooling sensation on your palate to help with thermoregulation in hot conditions. Comes uncaffeinated or with 100mg of caffeine.
For athletes who'd rather chew than squeeze a gel. 37g of carbs in a gummy format with absorption similar to a gel. Built on classic candy flavors like cola, strawberry, melon, and orange. Available without caffeine or with 100mg of caffeine.
A gluten-free oatmeal bar with 37g of carbs, positioned as a "real food" option for longer aerobic efforts or between sessions. It's a bit more complex to digest than the gels, so it's better suited to steady, lower-intensity work than hard intervals.
A three-day nitrate loading protocol with 600mg of nitrate per dose (1800mg total) paired with sodium bicarbonate and tart cherry polyphenols. Three actions in one: vasodilation to improve blood flow, a buffer to neutralize lactic acid, and an anti-inflammatory effect to reduce muscle damage. Think of it as carb loading, but for your cardiovascular system.
A recovery mix built around a 3:1 carb-to-protein ratio, with a standardized tart cherry extract delivering 1,500mg of polyphenols and 1,250mg of anthocyanins. Also includes two probiotic strains shown to reduce exercise-induced gut inflammation, since a stressed gut absorbs nutrients worse when you need it most.
Where to Start
This isn't a brand doing one thing well. It's a brand rethinking fueling at every stage. Before, during, and after. If you want to try the lineup without committing to full boxes of everything, that's exactly why we put together a tryout pack.
