How long do energy drinks take to take effect?.

Charlotte_Newbie · June 2007

I mostly only use Lucozade Sport, as i feel sick if i eat solid food while exercising. but im confused as to how long the drinks take to kick in! [:I]. as ive been told that it takes 1 & half hours for it to actually take effect [:0]. or is that just nonsense please?.

Many thanks for any opinions[:)]

freddered · June 2007

I used to drink it (or Tesco equivalent). I think you can definitely feel it after 30 minutes.

After a while though I learned not to wait until I was that low.

Keeping 'topped up' is the best technique. Drink it 30 minutes before you absolutely need it.

monty_dogcp · June 2007

Lucozade sport is probably too strong - suggest you water it down to about 50% to make it less sweet/sickly. If you feel you need an energy boost, then it's probably too late i.e. you should be keeping your energy/fluid levels topped up regularlyby taking a few mouthfuls every 15 minutes or so.

Charlotte_Newbie · June 2007

So its definitely wrong to say it only works after an hour & half?. as thought it didn`t sound right!.[:p]

Thanks again everyone for the advice [:)]

Cunobelin · June 2007

I am not a nutritionist, nor a performance cyclist, however I have always though that a reular intake is wiser and more comfortable than trying to compensate at the last minute with an "energy boost".

I know how I feel doing 20 miles, and what I need to intake from experience and then "scale" this.

He that buys land buys many stones.
He that buys flesh buys many bones.
He that buys eggs buys many shells,
But he that buys good beer buys nothing else.
(Unattributed Trad.)

BentMikey · June 2007

Something like Lucozade will be raising your blood sugars within 5 minutes or less. I should know, I'm diabetic.

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My skates

If I had a baby elephant, I'd teach it to skate.

walkercp · June 2007

Although Am I right in saying that Lucozade will only give you an instant rush as it is glucose based and not elecrolyte Based?

Rhino's are the new Elephant

Tony666 · June 2007

I don't use the fizzy lucozade but do us an isotonic drink which I sip when I feel thirsty. For me it does make a difference over plain water.

gbb · June 2007

Not really a direct answer (or a scientific one )Charlotte, but when i used to start flagging a bit, i used to buy a mars bar...and its amazing how quickly you could feel the benefit...15 to 20 minutes maximum.
I would guess Lucozade has a 'similar' effect.
Nowadays...i tend to eat better in the morning and consequently dont flag much at all now during the ride. A banana just before leaving seems to help as well.

Chill out, fer Christsakes....

Cunobelin · June 2007

I once met Graeme Obree at a bike event.

Someone asked him which energy drinks and bars he used...

His rely was .....a Jam Sandwich!

Carbohydrates for longer energy supply in the bread and glucose in the jam for a quicker burst.

There was also a discussion at another event on Bananas.......

Apparently a green banana has long sugar chains which take time to break down, and mushy brown ones have short chains which require less breaking down and offer a quicker boost.

I can imagine someone opening a box and revealing a range of bananas before deciding which one is appropriate!

.

He that buys land buys many stones.
He that buys flesh buys many bones.
He that buys eggs buys many shells,
But he that buys good beer buys nothing else.
(Unattributed Trad.)

paulorg · June 2007

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by BentMikey

Something like Lucozade will be raising your blood sugars within 5 minutes or less. I should know, I'm diabetic.
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

Ditto, works within a minute for me as far as raising blood sugar, don't know how quickly it becomes available as energy but I wouldn't imagine it would take much longer.

If you buy it, they will come...

...upto to you and say, you didn't want to buy one of them, you should 'ave bought an elephant!!!

Charlotte_Newbie · June 2007

Really appriciate all the advice!.

its been a big help! [:)]

xio · June 2007

using SIS powdered stuff at the minute and would say 5-10 minutes to notice the difference at the most. Being off the road for 3 months, I'm on the turbo and it's a bit more scientific without the hills or traffic (hey, got to do something to stave off the boredom). I used to think that water was good enough most of the time, but if I do an hour with water at a given rpm and aimed hr, then compare it to the same with energy drink (1 litre in both cases) the difference is quite noticeable. On water I definitely feel hungry before the end, and my hr drifts upwards but with the energy drink I tend to find I stay pretty level for the full hour.

giant_man · June 2007

I find it hard to believe that something as trivial as Lucozade would give you a boost at all. As already stated, it's glucose based and doesn't include electrolytes. Isn't it just fizzy pop?

I have always taken SIS and improved performance comes quite quickly after taking it. But there again everyone's metabolism is different. The energy bars always seem to aid recovery too.

SIZE IS EVERYTHING! or at least that's what my LBS tells me.

sloboy · June 2007

Electrolytes have nothing to do with energy release, so its the glucose bit that does that bit. Speed of the "sugar hit" is down to glycaemic index - which is a scale of how fast carbs are processed, often set relative to glucose as 100.

Some examples here

http://www.bupa.co.uk/health_informatio ... table.html

Which illustrates how the nature of the sugars makes a big difference. Maltodextrin being super-quick, with a GI of 105 and complex fruit sugar Fructose being quite low at 23

knedlicky · June 2007

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Charlotte_Newbie

I mostly only use Lucozade Sport, as i feel sick if i eat solid food while exercising. but im confused as to how long the drinks take to kick in! [:I]. as ive been told that it takes 1 & half hours for it to actually take effect [:0]. or is that just nonsense please?.

Many thanks for any opinions[:)]
<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">
You absorb 1 ml of plain water per cm length of small intestine per hour. If the water, however, has in it both sodium and a sugar type (glucose, saccharose, fructose or maltodextrine), absorption is 3-4 times faster, because the sodium and sugar bind the water in a sort of osmosis process which aids absorption.
Your small intestine is about 500-700 cm long, so you can absorb about « litre of plain water per hour, or 1«-2 litres per hour of a suitable sodium/sugar enhanced drink.

This is the idea behind the composition of isotonic drinks. Thus you should have absorbed a 500 ml bottle of isotonic drink within about 20 mins, after it has reached the intestine (add a few mins for it to pass through the stomach after drinking).

I've never had Lucozade Sport but the product specification sheet for it suggests it's a proper isontonic drink, not an over-sweet shot of glucose, but as such it also won't provide enough energy for a long or intensive ride. Some carbo-loading days in advance and a good breakfast should see you through 30-50 miles but then you'll need more than a rehydration drink.

If you can't eat solid food while exercising, try something semi-solid, like a power gel, perhaps one of the type which you dissolve in 100 ml of water and carry in an appropriate small bottle in your pocket.

You can offset the cost of buying the gels by making your own suitable hydration drink instead of buying Luco Sp - something like equal thirds plain water, mineral water and a 100% fruit juice, or 2/3 plain water 1/3 fruit juice, with ¬ teaspoon of salt per litre liquid.

walkercp · June 2007

<blockquote id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by sloboy

Electrolytes have nothing to do with energy release, so its the glucose bit that does that bit. Speed of the "sugar hit" is down to glycaemic index - which is a scale of how fast carbs are processed, often set relative to glucose as 100.

Some examples here

http://www.bupa.co.uk/health_informatio ... table.html

Which illustrates how the nature of the sugars makes a big difference. Maltodextrin being super-quick, with a GI of 105 and complex fruit sugar Fructose being quite low at 23

<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote">

I think I got my own sciences mixed up a bit here, I was meant to compare the difference in glucose and fructose

Baby Elephants - free from artificial flavourings, colourings and preservatives

How long do energy drinks take to take effect?.

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