Energy Gels

andyeb

To start with I did not like the sensation associated with consuming gels. However they have got me home several times when I've bonked after riding for a couple of hours - they seem to act more quickly than energy bars/flapjack/cereal bars.

I would recommend trying a few to find out which ones you like, but make sure you consume the recommended amount of water at the same time. It's also well worth paying attention to the Best Before dates; I've kept some in my commuting back pack as an emergency measure and been surprised to find them out of date when I came to use them after just a couple of months. Didn't seem to taste any worse for it and I lived to tell the tale .

If you are going on longer more challenging rides, it can be hard to get enough carbs in purely from energy drink alone.

It also helps if you do loads of base training so your body can derive more energy from fat, rather than relying purely on your carb stores (glycogen stored in your muscles and liver) which you want to save for the hills and sprint finishes, as well as carbs you eat on the ride. If you are interested in finding out more about this stuff, any good book on heart rate training should cover this. I'm currently reading "Heart Rate Training" by Roy Benson and Declan Connolly, which has been really interesting and informative - I had no idea the body could be conditioned in this way.

CiB

Gels are the extra boost that you need a long way into a ride. There's no substitute for being well fed (breakfast of Weetabix + porridge + plenty of milk& sugar) and well hydrated before embarking on a long ride, then keep topped up with squash & then isotonic drinks. For long (100+ miles) I take two bottles of rich squash that last a bit over half way then refill them, one with water + powders and the other with water + Zero (or Nuun) tabs. Last one I did I had some High Five powder from a goody bag at a previous sportiv. With all that just a couple of gels near the end plus a coouple of those breakfast bars and a bag of Asda mixed nuts in my back pocket to keep nibbling on did the job without any real issues.

BlakeysFC

Bought some SIS Gels today from Asda (5 for £5) along with some Gatorade Pro Orange Drinks (they looked good in a magazine so I bought a 4 pack to try out).

I'll let you know how I get on with them if/when I have to use them on my Sportive on Sunday.

g00se

I found that gatorade drink stained my bottles.

secretsam

Grill wrote:

Markwb79 wrote:

Grill wrote:

I use gels all the time. Even during my 12hr where I had food prepared, bars, feed stations, etc, I still went through about 15 gels. I use High5 regular and isotonic depending on what I think my hydration situation will be (stay away from Zipvit gels at all costs), but used many others that are good such as SIS and Torq. I like the kick they give me and that I don't have to carry around so much. If you get on with them then use them.

Can you expand on that? I use Zipvit and find them very good.

More specifically the ZV7 in Blackcurrent. I took it 10hrs in to the TT and it's way too viscous and overpowering. More so than the other thicker gels such as Powerbar and GU. Having to neck half a bottle of water just to get it down was absolutely terrible. The size is also an issue for me. Even though it has more carbs, if I'm carrying a gel that size I want it to be isotonic.

LOL the Blackcurrant one is the only gel I've ever had that wasn't disgusting

Others are like hi-cal snot, disgusting. Flapjack, banana, etc.