Do I need an Energy Drink?

mikeabanks

I started cycling last September and have recently traded in my hybrid for a road bike.
Currently I have a set of rides of between 5 and 20miles.
I only get to ride during the week on a Tuesday lunch (generally the 5mile loop) or at weekends.
As I have my 50th birthday in July I have decided to up my ride mileage to be able to do (at least) a 50mile ride on my Birthday. I am wondering whether I should be looking to start using an energy drink (use just water and jelly babies at the moment) and if anyone has any recommendations if I should?

Bobbinogs

Hi there Mikeabanks,

Best thing to do is type:

food nutrition

into the search box on the top left hand side (Search this forum) as this has come up a few times recently as folks have started upping their mileage with renewed vigour in line with the soaring temperatures!

Basically, you should have enough carbs for ~120 mins of hard cycling so you will need to start thinking about something around the 90 mins mark. My vote is for normal food (flapjacks, bananas, etc.) rather than energy drinks but you should experiment and see what works for you.

napoleond

I just have some weak squash or water and take bananas/flapjack/gels etc with me. If it's a hot day I put some electrolyte powder in my squash -
http://www.myprotein.com/uk/products/electrolyte_powder

You only need a tiny bit, this sachet should last 12 months.

kingrollo

no harm in taking one.

But in my opinion - unless youre hammering it - or doing an all day ride - then theres little benefit over orange squash

simon_e

No need to bother, water+JBs or squash / diluted juice is fine.

mikeabanks

I may try this

http://www.bikeradar.com/road/fitness/a ... rink-25744

I should have searched before :-)

markos1963

I only use squash on rides now, most of the energy drinks/powders give me stomach cramps and I end up not drinking them so defeating the object. Prefer to use real food on longer rides and maybe the odd gel as an emergency get out of jail card. In the summer I add a pinch of salt to my squash to ward off cramp.

nferrar

I pretty much always use energy drink if going out for 90+ minutes, probably don't need it most of the time but prefer it to eating (apart from on very long rides where a mix is best). The High5 4:1 citrus stuff tastes as nice to me as squash and I'm fairly sure the added protein helps with the recovery (I only have a post-ride protein/milk drink if I've been out hours and have another ride within a couple of days).

ineedalager

I have been using these High5 Zero Hydration Electrolyte Drink Tablets Pack 20 just put 2 tablets in a 750ml water bottle a tube of 20 tablets lasts me a month I ride 400miles a month normally 20 to 30 mile rides. For 50 miles a banana flapjack or bounty or mars bar aswell. They are slightly fizzy I use the Cherry and Orange ones and get them on Ebay.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/150641676388? ... 1497.l2649

On a 20 to 30 mile ride I would drink 3/4 of the bottle no food

jordan_217

For sessions under 60-70 mins then water/squash is fine for me. If it's hot then I may add a pinch of salt.

For longer sessions I use high 5 Zero tabs, they taste ok and I can stomach them. You can get them in a neutral flavour and add taste with your fave squash - Vimto is nice

Pop in to your LBS and see if they have any free samples you can try. Most brands will have a £10 variety/taster pack too (normally with a free bottle or similar) There's as much personal preference to energy drinks/gels/bars as there is to finding a comfy saddle.

Bananas, malt loaf and jaffa cakes are good for on the go refuelling too.

mikeabanks

I am hoping to up the mileage to 25 at the weekend, I will probably just go for water again but take more food. When I go up to 30miles I will probably try that home mix above.

Thanks for all the suggestions.
BTW : Just done my 5mile loop quicker than ever - probably down to the fact the wind was very light :-)

jordan_217

mikeabanks wrote:

I am hoping to up the mileage to 25 at the weekend, I will probably just go for water again but take more food. When I go up to 30miles I will probably try that home mix above.

Thanks for all the suggestions.
BTW : Just done my 5mile loop quicker than ever - probably down to the fact the wind was very light :-)

Nice one, good stuff.

A cheeky pint of milk is good post ride too. Much cheaper and more palatable than some recovery drinks (unless you're lactose intolerant).

MartinB2444

What ever you go for it's important that you find it easy to drink/eat and everyone will vary on that.

If you just have a big dollop of sweet stuff you can end up going a little hypoglycaemic. During longer periods of exertion its best to mix with more slowly absorbed carbohydrates. For me a honey sandwich is spot on, along with plenty of orange squash. Plenty of starchy carbs beforehand as well, when you are working hard on a bike your rate of absorption of starchy food is reduced so that bowl of pasta will keep topping you up for a couple of hours. Soup also stays in your stomach longer than the component parts eaten seperately from the water.

alihisgreat

kingrollo wrote:

no harm in taking one.

But in my opinion - unless youre hammering it - or doing an all day ride - then theres little benefit over orange squash

probably worth mentioning that a lot of squashes these days have practically no sugar in them.. eg my Robinsons orange has 0.6g of sugar and 8 calories per 100ml of CONCENTRATE.. so that would be if you were drinking it un-diluted

in a 1L bottle filled with the robinsons recommended ratio of 1 part squash with 4 parts of water... that means a whopping 1.2g of carbs and 16 calories! I will stick to water i think as it makes my bottles easier to clean.



You shouldn't need anything apart from water for under 30miles or 1.5hours of hard work -> although in the summer i sweat a lot so like to use electrolyte drinks -> although I find that if I drink too much electrolyte drink it upsets my stomach for a few days

petemadoc

markos1963 wrote:

In the summer I add a pinch of salt to my squash to ward off cramp.

I've always done this myself but I recently read an article saying it was a myth?

Do electrolyte tablets or a pinch of salt really help prevent cramp?

alihisgreat

PeteMadoc wrote:

markos1963 wrote:

In the summer I add a pinch of salt to my squash to ward off cramp.

I've always done this myself but I recently read an article saying it was a myth?

Do electrolyte tablets or a pinch of salt really help prevent cramp?

electrolytes -> yes

salt -> no.


I thought the myth came about because you loose 'salt' when you sweat.. but its not quite as simple as ingesting table salt.. as the salts required by the body are different.

hence electrolyte drinks were developed.

markos1963

ALIHISGREAT wrote:

PeteMadoc wrote:

markos1963 wrote:

In the summer I add a pinch of salt to my squash to ward off cramp.

I've always done this myself but I recently read an article saying it was a myth?

Do electrolyte tablets or a pinch of salt really help prevent cramp?

electrolytes -> yes

salt -> no.


I thought the myth came about because you loose 'salt' when you sweat.. but its not quite as simple as ingesting table salt.. as the salts required by the body are different.

hence electrolyte drinks were developed.

You may well be right but it works for me.

simon_e

The link between electrolytes and cramp is contradictory. Table salt only replaces 1 of the multiple types of salts lost through sweating. However, you only need to do anything about this on long, hard rides on hot, sunny days (or perhaps if you've had bad Diarrhoea for several days and not eaten). Otherwise you won't lose anything that can't be replaced by normal food.

http://runningtimes.com/Print.aspx?articleID=18090
http://www.cptips.com/nutmyt.htm
http://sweatscience.com/muscle-cramps-r ... nd-pacing/
http://sweatscience.com/electrolytes-an ... -gatorade/
http://www.sportsscientists.com/2007/10 ... e-and.html

Thebigbee

You could just take a banana and stick it in one of these in the back of your jersey and take some water

http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Mode ... elID=15095

They are only 12" long and 6" in circumference so doesn't look too much like a dildo with Peyronie's.

Has the added benefit of making you HAVE to ride faster just so no one spots it in your jersey.

HTH

CYCLESPORT1

Some years ago I used to sell http://www.isostar.uk.com/5-23194-Home.php to shops etc. wholesale.
At the time I think it was one of the best products you could buy, I still rate it even though I have not raced for years.