These alpine-born trail vests fit everything, and then some

Introduction to Instinct

Instinct is a brand born in the French Alps. For those who don’t frequent the European running scene, the brand might not sound familiar. Don’t feel left out if you aren’t a world-traveling trail runner (I’m not, either). More brands mean more choices, regardless of where you run. Small brands are taking over the running scene lately, and runners are noticing. So are we.

We reviewed Instinct’s foundational product, the Reflex Belt, along with a few vest options, from minimal to ultra-ready.

ALEX: The Reflex has a simple, intuitive design, and it holds a lot without feeling unbalanced or bulky around your waist. The belt is equipped with six pockets: a secure front pocket for smaller items, two large pockets that can accommodate a jacket or up to a 600mL flask, and one tubular pocket with silicone bands for poles. I don't love this design, as I feel like it's a high hassle getting my poles in and out given the silicone on each end of the pocket. I do love it for a jacket, however.

The overall design of the belt is well thought out. It is made of a stretch breathable mesh — think less structured than the Raide UL 2L or Ultraspire Mtn Racer — and has a wider band design so it does not roll down and stays put.

They encourage you to size up if you are between sizes. I received three sizes and ended up sizing up twice. Cause you know, hips.

Other small details include an integrated race bib holder — things like this become important when you are doing something like a multi-day event. The last thing you want is having to transfer your race number when you change clothes or another thing around your waist. I really appreciate this detail.

This belt is comfortable and rides bounce-free with just a phone or fully loaded. I find the pocket design simple and intuitive. Some of the more recent belt designs are wonderful but a little complex for my tired mind when I am searching for that one thing I put in that one pocket in the middle of the night.

RENEE: Alex covers the details, and I agree with her on everything. For females, I suggest sizing up from whatever size you measure using their size guide. I reviewed the size where my measurements were right in the middle of the recommended range. Getting the belt over my hips is a chore. Once the belt is on, it does stay in place, albeit with a tight fit over my stomach.

As Alex wrote, the belt has some structure. I have the CompressSport belt, which is basically one big open pocket. And I’ve been wearing the Raide W LF 2L belt. The Raide belt is by far much easier to get on and is not at all compressing or uncomfortable. The storage is limited, though. The Instinct belt has an in-between structure as compared to those belts. I can shove a lot into the front two pockets along with a flask in the back. The compartments offer good organization as compared to the CompressSport belt. The belt doesn’t bounce, although I had some shifting given that the belt sits at my natural waist.

At $45, the belt is very well priced as compared to other options. I rank the Reflex as a number-one recommendation for runners looking at their first belt, mostly because of the price.

Shop Instinct Reflex Belt 

ALEX: The Instinct Eklipse is the Toyota Land Cruiser of packs, fully loaded and able to accommodate all of your gear and then some. The pack is weatherproof, adjustable, light, breathable, and really comfortable partially or fully loaded. All of this makes it extremely versatile and capable.

While I was initially impressed with all of the pockets, it was also a little overwhelming to start to identify what pocket to use for what piece of gear. When I'm presented with too many options, I tend to freeze. Think opossum when a light is suddenly shone on them. That's also me with options.

After I was able to right myself and dig in to explore the pockets, I quickly began to really appreciate the intuitive and smart design and layout. For long adventures or races, I want to have a designated spot for everything and for the pack to not feel like it's a basketball-shaped and sized package strapped to my back. This pack feels larger capacity-wise than some 15L packs I have tried. That can be attributed to a very intentional and well-executed design.

Similar to the Evolution 7L pack, I also really appreciate the adjustability of the elastic side lacing system. Not only will this accommodate more body types, but it is also great for when you are carrying different-sized loads and wearing different layers underneath the pack. Combined with the front adjustable sternum straps, there are endless ways to adjust this one.

The front pockets are well positioned and are a nice mix of drop-in and secured pockets. The back of the pack, however, is where this one really stands out. It is comprised of a 360-degree water-resistant flexible shell with a wide-angled “door” that allows for quick access to the main compartment without having to unload everything. There is also a pocket that sits at the top of your back for quick-grab items like rain gear that you can reach back and access without taking the pack off.

Finally, there are four different options for carrying your poles on this one, my favorite being the Ergo Quiver I and II. I love the separate quivers for each pole. I find myself fiddling with traditional quivers, trying to get both poles in and out smoothly never goes that smoothly.

This is a fantastic, incredibly well-designed pack. If I ever do another multi-day thing, this is coming along on that journey!

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ALEX: I've been loving 7-10L packs lately. They're a sweet spot that allows you to carry race-required or personally desired gear effectively without overpacking, which I have a natural tendency to do.

The Evolution pack is very intentionally and intuitively designed and holds a lot of gear. There are three stretch pockets, two flask pockets that accommodate 600mL flasks, two zippered pockets, a bladder sleeve, an upper and lower mesh pocket, and a pole sleeve with silicone loops. There are several ways to carry poles and it is compatible with Ergo Quiver I and II. The quiver is my preference, all of the other options get in the way, or feel cumbersome when it comes to stowing and deploying them. This is not unique to this pack, this is just personal preference in general.

It took me a bit to get the fit dialed in but once I did I didn't have to think about it again. There are a lot of adjustment points which I really appreciate but definitely takes some time on the front end.

Another thing that stands out for me is the separate upper and lower pockets. This is a detail I didn't know I needed until Instinct presented it in the form of this pack. The convenience and organization that is allows is fantastic - no more digging to the bottom of one large back pocket to find things. I use these large pack pockets by putting upper body things in the top — headlamp, jacket, hat, sunglasses, gloves — and lower body things in the bottom — socks, rain pants, etc. 

When you are deep into a long race or even a long run, the last thing you want to be doing is emptying the content of your pack on the trail trying to find something. The one thing that could have made this even better was a more secure way to close each of the upper and lower pockets, or an internal zip within each of those larger pockets for more secure storage of things like batteries, etc.

Overall this is a fantastic pack. The adjustability, the breathable material, the pockets, it is well-thought out and very intentionally designed, like all of their products. They think of everything.

Shop Instinct Evolution Pack 

Renee: The Ambition 4.5L is well named. Sure, it’s a 4.5L storage vest, but you can pack a lot into the pockets if you plan well and if you are, you know, ambitious. Instinct places the vest as an option for the 10K to 70k distance, and that’s a fair range.

The vest is one size fits most with two adjustable, vertically sliding chest straps and two elastic cross-lacing straps on each side. I normally wear a women’s size small top, so a “one-size” fit vest isn't usually my preference. I did have a good fit considering the adjustability.

Probably the most distinct quality of the vest is the high sitting front hydration. Many hydration vests have the front storage pockets sitting over the hydration/flask storage. The Ambition places the storage below the flask pockets. If you’ve ever had comfort issues with fitting fuel and other items over the front flasks, the Ambition gives you another option. 

You can purchase the vest with the front 600mL flasks for an added cost. I recommend doing so as the flask pockets are shaped particularly for those 600mL flasks. I have several of the Hydraflask 500mL long, thin flasks, and those do not fit at all. Both flask pockets have a bungee cord and a strap, so the 600mL flasks stay put.

Under the front flask storage, both sides have two pockets. The right side has two, overlapping open pockets for fuel. The left side has one open pocket that overlaps a zipped pocket. Instinct labels this as a phone pocket, but it’s a tight fit for my phone; I have to angle and shove my phone to fit there, like Ross in that scene from Friends when he yells “Pivot! Pivot!” as they try to move a couch down a flight of stairs.

Moving to the back, I used the top, open pocket for a jacket. The lower back has one pass through pocket with grips. I had a hard time placing a jacket in that pocket while running, but it could hold a jacket or pants if you take the time to stop to insert/remove those items. A 700mL, open pocket sits over that pass through pocket, which could probably fit gloves, a hat, and maybe a headlamp, although I hesitate to store anything with weight in that pocket in the fear it’d fling out while running. 

The vest has multiple bungee cords for pole storage, either horizontally across the lower back or diagonally from lower back to shoulder. You can store poles vertically on either side as well.

In short, if you prefer adjustable fit vests and high sitting front flasks, the Ambition 4.5L offers a lot more than its storage capacity suggests.

Shop Instinct Ambition Pack