Energy drinks

Tc1993

Hi guys

My rides up until now have been sub 1 hour but now as my rides get longer and the weather gets warmer I'm looking for a decent energy drink to give me a boost and keep me hydrated.

I've just added a second bottle cage to my bike so I was thinking 1 bottle of water and 1 energy supplement.

I sweat A LOT so I guess hydration will be key.

The last few rides I've been making my own of sugar, salt and orange cordial with water

So, what's best?

Holland and Barrett currently have their penny sale on so can get 2 of these for £8. 40p a drink

http://www.hollandandbarrett.com/pages/product_detail.asp?pid=550&MCatID=5&prodid=567&cid=201[url]

Thoughts?

Thanks [/url]

Tc1993

Okay so the link didn't work but you get the idea!

jscl

Anything up to two hours, you don't need energy drinks. 2ish hours and I'd be using juice or plain water, or at the most some electrolyte tabs. You really don't need to bother with "energy" products at that level.

jouxplan

It varies from person to person, in terms of what works best and what is actually needed. For me, I find that I can happily go for 1 hour 45 mins without an energy gel / drink etc, but as soon as it gets to the two hour mark, I suddenly run on 'empty', and blow up.

I use energy gels, and put water in my bottles. This works best for me. I don't like energy drinks, as they are fiddly to make, and are as sticky as hell, with splashes all over the bike, your face, your bars, your hands, your shorts........! Gels are also sticky, but they don't seem to get everywhere.

Since changing to Zipvit gels a couple years ago (the only ones with 50 mg carb - all the others are nearer 25 mg), I have not once blown up. I love 'em, and take one every hour on any ride of two hours or more. For me, 25 mg of carbs per hour was never quite enough - and I was damned if I was going to have two gels per hour!

All you can do is experiment, and find what works best for you.

hatch87

Personally use the Nuun tablets, just pop one or two in during hotter temps when cycling for 90 mins. Over two hours I use Nectar, its much easier than the powder drinks as its just a high concentrate squash. It works by pumping to give you the required measurement, 1 - 3 are the recommendations depending on what your ride will consist of. I find it tastes better than the powdered variety.

But to be honest, a banana in the back pocket or a peanut butter sandwich will do the job, if your starting to run low

Calpol

hatch87 wrote:

Personally use the Nuun tablets, just pop one or two in during hotter temps when cycling for 90 mins.

But to be honest, a banana in the back pocket or a peanut butter sandwich will do the job, if your starting to run low

One slight word of warning about the Nuun tabs. For me they are good at preventing cramp but they tend to dry your mouth out (well they do with me) and unless you keep drinking it can affect your breathing slightly. I have found the Zero tabs to be much better in this regard.

skinnypunter

I have always used some form of mix for hydration - was using Lucozade Fuel until recently, which for me worked well with the rest of their range. My experience has been that any well structured sports drink is better for me (in terms of not getting tired / dehydrated so quickly) compared to simply using water.

The more you ride, the more important it is to develop a fueling strategy that works for you - even if that is mixing your own drink. As jouxplan has mentioned, you may find that water + gels is best for you.

I'd suggest that you sample as many different brands as possible before buying any quantities. You may find that some products don't agree with you. Most companies produce sample packs at reasonable prices.

However, I'm now trying High5 because they supply a daft ride I'm doing - London2Paris24 - , and you can buy a test pack from Chain Reaction - http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/Models.aspx?ModelID=106300 - which has a good selection to try. I did 76 miles on Sunday, and 55 on Monday using High5, and it definitely worked as well - if not better - than Lucozade.

I have also had good experiences with Clif and Torq products.

HTH
Ed

drlodge

+1 High5 Isotonic for me - good mix of hydration and carbs.

ianbar

high5 tabs for me