Cliff Shot Bloks

mclarent

Ok, they taste nice, but aren't they just Jelly?

Omar Little

I think they are vegan so must be something different

Quite effective i find - not as quick working as a gel but a good way to keep topped up.

mclarent

I like em too and saved me from bonking this morning(!), but I found myself wondering if I couldn't have just bought jelly (and maybe added some crushed caffeine tabs)...

brettjmcc

mclarent wrote:

Ok, they taste nice, but aren't they just Jelly?

Orange ones have Caffeine in them, at least the ones I have do. Taste a lot nicer than some caffeine gels IMO, and also you can take over a period of time rather than in one hit.

cougie

Slightly different consistency to jelly blocks - easier to eat. I've used them on adventure races and you can eat them whilst running - and you cant do that with a lot of things or you end up choking.

On a bike you;re usually not breathing as hard so you should be able to eat more normal things. Pros manage to eat batches and stuff ?

colinsmith123

Love 'em. I do two with about 12 miles / 30 mins ride time remaining. I get a real energy boost and the caffeine really works for me, to the point it feels like I am cheating!

Can't do Gels.

cougie

Even gels should take about 20 mins to kick in - so you're probably getting the benefit just from the fact you're taking something in ? Placebo ?

mclarent

Somebody told me once (allegedly from his sports science degree) that chewed stuff absorbs quicker than swallowed stuff? How much quicker I don't recall... Bet Alex knows.

Velonutter

Been using these for a year now.

As a diabetic gels give me a sugar spike whereas these don't, I give them about 10-15 mins to kick in.

The strawberry are delicious. :-)

McBain_v1

They have caffeine in them though, so that's a guaranteed upset stomach and thunderous farting for me if I ate one Going to stick to the tasty bars and accept that chewing whilst cycling furiously just doesn't suit my digestive system. I do quite like the Torq stuff though.

Herbsman

mclarent wrote:

Somebody told me once (allegedly from his sports science degree) that chewed stuff absorbs quicker than swallowed stuff? How much quicker I don't recall... Bet Alex knows.

Of course, if you chew a shot blok it will be digested at a higher rate than a shot blok swallowed whole. That's the whole point of chewing - it breaks items down into smaller pieces, hugely increasing the surface area (and surface area to volume ratio) of those items, thus allowing more of the item to come into contact with the acid and enzymes in your stomach. It's a basic principle really - the same as cutting potatoes up into eighths to make them cook more quickly, as opposed to cooking them whole.

mclarent

That makes sense, but wasn't what I meant. The chap was on about comparson between gels and bloks though, and that the faster absorbtion was due to the fact you were holding it in your mouth longer (i.e. chewing) as opposed to just swallowing as you do with a gel.

Herbsman

mclarent wrote:

That makes sense, but wasn't what I meant. The chap was on about comparson between gels and bloks though, and that the faster absorbtion was due to the fact you were holding it in your mouth longer (i.e. chewing) as opposed to just swallowing as you do with a gel.

I doubt a shot blok would be absorbed faster for that reason.

You do absorb some sugar through your mouth and your saliva contains amylase which starts to break down starch while the food is still in your mouth (probably starting to breakin down any maltodextrin contained in a shot blok, if there is any), but I think the effect would be minimal compared to how quickly the carbs in a gel would get absorbed through the gut.

simon_e

If you're riding hard for an extended period the stomach will be less able to absorb carbs so fluid or a gel may work better, but that's not an issue on a steady training ride. There were bananas, nutella and brownies alongside CNP bars on Sky's Mallorca training ride this week: http://www.teamsky.com/gallery/0,27401, ... 59,00.html

Products like these blocks are a convenient (but not better) sources of carbs during exercise. Jelly babies are a lot cheaper. I prefer dried fruit and fruit bars... and occasionally a Snickers.

Herbsman wrote:

You do absorb some sugar through your mouth and your saliva contains amylase which starts to break down starch while the food is still in your mouth (probably starting to breakin down any maltodextrin contained in a shot blok, if there is any), but I think the effect would be minimal compared to how quickly the carbs in a gel would get absorbed through the gut.

Apparently swill-and-spit works to an extent, so some of it is the brain and not merely the arrival of carbs:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/ ... ance-brain
http://running.competitor.com/2010/05/f ... drink_9869
http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/sports- ... orts-42171

http://sweatscience.com/ has some useful posts but that site seems to be down at the moment.

mclarent

Wow, great article, thanks for that.

Herbsman

Simon E wrote:

Herbsman wrote:

You do absorb some sugar through your mouth and your saliva contains amylase which starts to break down starch while the food is still in your mouth (probably starting to breakin down any maltodextrin contained in a shot blok, if there is any), but I think the effect would be minimal compared to how quickly the carbs in a gel would get absorbed through the gut.

Apparently swill-and-spit works to an extent, so some of it is the brain and not merely the arrival of carbs:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/ ... ance-brain
http://running.competitor.com/2010/05/f ... drink_9869
http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/sports- ... orts-42171

http://sweatscience.com/ has some useful posts but that site seems to be down at the moment.

That's a real eye-opener - thanks for that. Can't believe I've never heard anyone mention it though.