Move over, wine-of-the month clubs — subscription boxes filled with healthy goodies and products are the hot new gift for health-minded friends and family on your holiday list. Plus, you’ll avoid those hectic mall crowds! From customized energy bars to workout gear to gluten-free treats and more, we’ve got you covered with eight subscription box gifts that are sure to please.
1. For the Holistic Health Nut
If your favorite smoothie shop and FreshDirect had a baby, it would look something like Green Blender. Launched in June 2014, this service sends out a bounty of nutritious, whole foods to mix into scrumptious creations that have no added sugar or preservatives. Your pals will be thrilled to sip on concoctions like Avocado Apple Pie and Pomegranate Orange Creamsicle! Each week’s offerings are new and inventive, so you’ll never fall into a smoothie rut. What’s Inside: Five smoothie recipes and prepackaged ingredients for ten smoothies. ($49 a week; greenblender.com)
2. For the Gluten-Free Foodie
Anyone unable to eat wheat hungering for tasty snacks will appreciate opening a box filled with full-sized allergy-approved treats each month. CuisineCube takes the hassle out of searching for gluten-free food by bringing it right to your door. Each box comes with five to seven products, including one dessert item. What’s Inside: Crackers, pastas, baked goods, snack foods, gluten-free mixes and more. ($30 per month; cuisinecube.com,)3. For the Habitual Snacker
Give them a guilt-free way to battle the 3 o’clock munchies with Graze, a snack subscription service that has over 90 delightful options. Dips, popcorn, trail mixes, dried fruit, nuts and seeds — we bet your pals will want to try them all! Sent to a home or office, each box contains four pouches that are packaged for perfect portion control, meaning there’s no way to over indulge. What’s Inside: Dried fruit, nuts, rice crackers, edamame, cheesy crisps, seed clusters, pretzel and granola bites, seasoned chickpeas, flax chips and more. ($6.99 for each box of four snacks; graze.com/us)4. For the Fitness Fashionista
Stylish meets sporty with Fabletics, a new line of women’s active wear that's the brainchild of JustFab and Kate Hudson. Purchase a gift card for one to 12 outfits and your friend who receives the card will redeem it online by first taking a lifestyle quiz to create a style profile. Then, she’ll be able to choose between several personalized outfit options, and be sent two to three pieces of clothing a month for however many months you picked! What’s Inside: Technical workout gear for yoga, running, cycling or the gym. ($50 per month for a VIP membership; fabletics.com)5. For the Pavement Pounder
Perfect for the marathon maven or friends that just lace up their sneakers on the regular, RunnerBox has what’s needed for training runs, races and recovery. It’s a great way for runners to enjoy classic products from familiar brands as well as new treats from up-and-coming businesses. What’s Inside: Nutritional supplements, energy bars and gels, hydration tablets, skincare, technical gear and more. ($20 every two months; therunnerbox.com)6. For the Always On-the-Go Friend
Thanks to YouBar, the lucky gift recipient of this service can create one-of-a-kind portable energy bars from an impressive variety of high-quality ingredients, such as cashew butter, hemp protein, flaxseeds, figs and more. Or, opt for the “Bar of the Month” club, which mails a box of seasonally flavored favorites to the person of your choice. What’s Inside: Customized bars with nut butters, protein powders, seeds, nuts, dried fruits, grains and more. ($47 for a box of customized bars, $38 per month for “Bar of the Month” club; YouBars.com)7. For the Performance Nutrition Pal
Help them fuel up for their latest adventure with an assortment of snack-sized nutritional products. Select The Feed starter kit and they will mail a package with five or ten healthy, natural treats that any athlete will love to chow down on. Best of all, The Feed makes it easy to reorder favorites for delivery every month. What’s Inside: Protein bars, energy gels, trail mix, organic energy shots, gourmet jerky and more. ($10 for five products, $20 for 10 products; thefeed.com)8. For the Gym Beauty
Curated by Giuliana Rancic, the FabFitFun, box contains up to $180 worth of glam beauty products. But you’ll have to be patient: A subscription package gets sent out once every season, meaning the gift recipient will get fashionable fitness gear and other wellness goodies at the start of spring, summer and fall. What’s Inside: Clothing, jewelry, beauty products, workout DVDs, nutritional products and more. ($50 per season; vip.fabfitfun.com,)
Originally posted December 16, 2013. Updated December 2014.