What Energy Drink are you using

ugo.santalucia

jane90 wrote:

ugo.santalucia wrote:

But as long as you're metabolising the monosaccharides, your metabolism doesn't distinguish where it's coming from and doesnt' care what the source is. Whether or not you're also ingesting other nutrients and vitimins isn't relevant as long as you're getting them elsewhere as part of your normal diet.

The body does care where, when and how nutrients come from. Nutrition is not about patching up the nutritional bricks...
If you take the vitamin C in an orange and drink the equivalent in soluble fibre, you still don't get the same effect as eating an orange. We have been designed to eat fruit and nuts and seeds and leaves and the odd meaty catch and that's what we need to eat to stay healthy... a diet of processed food + supplements won't sort the same effect, even if the content in so called nutrients is equivalent.
It works for cattle, it works for human.. as you drift away from the natural food you are supposed to eat, you need to take more and more drugs to stay healthy. Immune system is still largely misunderstood, in this respect.

Supplements are a temporary remedy to fight a condition... some say athletes are effectively sick, if you look at their blood numbers and maybe need supplements to stay healthy. Nobody said competitive sport is healthy...

Iamnot Wiggins

ugo.santalucia wrote:

It's all crap.
It is just full of glorified sugar that gives you insuline spikes and electrolites that most likely you don't need, unless you are planning to ride through the Sahara desert.

Just to be clear, serious athletes don't use that crap... it's all marketing. Best drink is water, in winter I often carry warm tea, that stays warm for 15 minutes or so... :? If you don't like the taste of water in a plastic bottle, add a splash of juice or ribeena to it

Receovery drink are another dodgy area... there is no medical evidence that a recovery drink helps you recover... if you are thirsty drink water... if you want some proteins, drink milk, if you want antioxidants drink beetroot juice and have fun with the pink wee

Eat a balanced diet with plenty of fibre (oat bran, even better than oat meal) and don't spend money on that crap

Being a type 1 diabetic, I have to test my blood sugar with regularity, even more so if I consume these energy products which I do carry and use to prevent the dreaded hypo and a potentially serious accident. Your claim that they're "glorified sugar" is utter shite. If I leave the house with sugar level reading of 7 or 8 (which is quite normal) and test when I return home after consuming said "crap" then I note that my blood sugar is pretty much the same. I don't take insulin whilst riding either. Now, if it was glorified sugar, my reading would be through the roof and would make me quite ill. Perhaps look into things before spouting utter crap, Ugo?

charlie_potatoes

meesterbond wrote:

So, what do you use? Do you make your own?

I use High5 2:1 Summer Fruits for the long rides.
High5 electrolyte tabs for shorter rides.
High5 chocolate recovery (occasionally).

I have done a fair bit of reading up on nutrition so I feel I have made an informed choice.
Clearly opinion is divided on here though so doing your own research is probably a good idea

I'd like to mix my own but I have never got round to it TBH.

ugo.santalucia

Iamnot Wiggins wrote:

Being a type 1 diabetic, I have to test my blood sugar with regularity, even more so if I consume these energy products which I do carry and use to prevent the dreaded hypo and a potentially serious accident. Your claim that they're "glorified sugar" is utter shite. If I leave the house with sugar level reading of 7 or 8 (which is quite normal) and test when I return home after consuming said "crap" then I note that my blood sugar is pretty much the same. I don't take insulin whilst riding either. Now, if it was glorified sugar, my reading would be through the roof and would make me quite ill. Perhaps look into things before spouting utter crap, Ugo?

You don't get a spike in the insulin because you don't produce insulin and take it every day to control your glucose level. I would assume these days you also have a slow release form. Over the years you have probably become good at controlling your sugar intake... you must be, otherwise you would not be here.

Besides, it's about having opinions, I suggest you moderate your tone... if you feel strongly about energy drinks is not my problem... don't have a go at me for saying what I think... if you can't accept others' opinions without being aggressive I suggest you go elsewhere

jane90

There seems to be some confusion of different arguments going on in this thread. The OP wanted an opinion on which sports drink to use as fuel during exercise, not on the efficacy of recovery drinks nor of the benefits of a properly balanced diet.

Tb2121, the uni of Herts may or may not have compared Lucozade to water and orange juice, I wouldn’t know, I wouldn’t use Lucozade anyway, but this study compares different concentrations of fructose-maltodextrin ratios and sweetened water as a placebo to compare exogeneous-CHO oxidisation. The results seem to be conclusive.

Ugo, I’m not quite sure what your argument is. First, you say serious athletes won’t use sports drinks at all, then you make a separate point that MAMILS drink too much sports products relative to their levels of exertion and now you’re arguing in favour of a balanced diet that delivers all your macronutrients in the right quantities from, as much as possible, natural food sources - all of which misses my point and, anyway, neither of your last two arguments is anything that I disagree with. I was specifically talking about high intensity exercise, when your body is metabolising all the carbohydrate you’re feeding it and it’s got nothing to do with processed food, supplements or anything else you eat before or after exercise.

To answer the OP’s question, if he Is riding the multi-day event at high intensity and wants to use a sports drink as part of his nutrition plan alongside whatever food he wants (from organic rice cakes to jelly babies or anything in between) in the right ocerall quantity (food and drink) to replace his glycogen store then I don’t see what’s wrong with that. Personally, I’d take Buckle’s advice, buy maltodextrin and fructose from myprotein.com, mix it in a 5:4 ratio, add bcca powder, then squeeze the juice of one lemon per 750ml bottle. It tastes just like the homemade (flat) lemonade your mum used to make on those endless days of the summer holidays.

ugo.santalucia

jane90 wrote:

There seems to be some confusion of different arguments going on in this thread. The OP wanted an opinion on which sports drink to use as fuel during exercise, not on the efficacy of recovery drinks nor of the benefits of a properly balanced diet.

Tb2121, the uni of Herts may or may not have compared Lucozade to water and orange juice, I wouldn’t know, I wouldn’t use Lucozade anyway, but this study compares different concentrations of fructose-maltodextrin ratios and sweetened water as a placebo to compare exogeneous-CHO oxidisation. The results seem to be conclusive.

Ugo, I’m not quite sure what your argument is. First, you say serious athletes won’t use sports drinks at all, then you make a separate point that MAMILS drink too much sports products relative to their levels of exertion and now you’re arguing in favour of a balanced diet that delivers all your macronutrients in the right quantities from, as much as possible, natural food sources - all of which misses my point and, anyway, neither of your last two arguments is anything that I disagree with. I was specifically talking about high intensity exercise, when your body is metabolising all the carbohydrate you’re feeding it and it’s got nothing to do with processed food, supplements or anything else you eat before or after exercise.

To answer the OP’s question, if he Is riding the multi-day event at high intensity and wants to use a sports drink as part of his nutrition plan alongside whatever food he wants (from organic rice cakes to jelly babies or anything in between) in the right ocerall quantity (food and drink) to replace his glycogen store then I don’t see what’s wrong with that. Personally, I’d take Buckle’s advice, buy maltodextrin and fructose from myprotein.com, mix it in a 5:4 ratio, add bcca powder, then squeeze the juice of one lemon per 750ml bottle. It tastes just like the homemade (flat) lemonade your mum used to make on those endless days of the summer holidays.

Basically I dispute the need for such products... my experience of high sugar electrolytes is that they upset the stomach and are un-necessary in all but the most extreme conditions. A constant supply of sugar is simply not necessary... racers cannot stop to have a meal, hence they use gels and all that crap... they mostly drink water though... occasionally coca cola. I would assume the OP has all the time to stop for some solid food or eat cereal bars on the run... that, combined with a good breakfast should be more than enough even in a Raid (it was for me... it was too much food in fact).
Basically we are not designed to run on sugars

petemadoc

What Energy Drink are you using...

I usually use cloudy fresh apple juice mixed with water. If it's hot or I'll be out for more than 3 hours I'll drop a nunn tablet in which appears to help prevent cramp (nothing scientific here, just trial and error)

I quite like the torq stuff too, bit pricey but I can't be ar5ed to research the mixes of maltodextrin an all that so it's just easier.

http://www.wiggle.co.uk/torq-energy-drink-powder-15kg/

Rides of less than 3 hours, I usually just take water, maybe some apple juice mixed in.

jane90

If that's your argument, you haven't been clear about it, Ugo. The whole premise of my original point is that there is a place for sports products and that serious athletes do indeed use them, as I have said several times, to replace glycogen during high intensity physical exercise for durations of longer than 90 minutes. We may not be designed to run on sugar but nobody is suggesting you base your entire diet off the bike on sugar, and that different combinations of monosaccharides does deliver benefits in certain situation.

This may or may not apply to the OP in this situation, I have no idea how he intends to ride this event but I'm sure he can make up his own mind.

buckles

SloppySchleckonds wrote:

Buckles wrote:

5kg maltodextrin + 2kg fructose from Myprotein , £20 ish + postage

Lemon or orange juice for flavouring

How long would that little stash last?

If I only used it for racing and took one bottle per race (in addition to 1 bottle of water), 45g carb mix per bottle it would last 156 races, I do about 20 races a year so about 8 years.

jane90 wrote:

Personally, I’d take Buckle’s advice, buy maltodextrin and fructose from myprotein.com, mix it in a 5:4 ratio...

5:4?! you cannot be serious, that would be way too sweet... I mix it 2:1 and even that is too sweet, but just about bearable.

spin_city

Iamnot Wiggins wrote:
Being a type 1 diabetic, I have to test my blood sugar with regularity, even more so if I consume these energy products which I do carry and use to prevent the dreaded hypo and a potentially serious accident. Your claim that they're "glorified sugar" is utter shite. If I leave the house with sugar level reading of 7 or 8 (which is quite normal) and test when I return home after consuming said "crap" then I note that my blood sugar is pretty much the same. I don't take insulin whilst riding either. Now, if it was glorified sugar, my reading would be through the roof and would make me quite ill. Perhaps look into things before spouting utter crap, Ugo?

Iamnot Wiggins, I am also Type 1 but I don't think you need to use any particular 'energy products' to keep your Blood Sugars at an appropriate level. I do, however, agree with Ugo that other, more natural, food and drink can be eaten/drunk instead.

For rides longer than an hour or so I use a combination of fast acting and slow acting sugar/starch to my keep my Sugars up. I drink Ribena and Hi-Juice and eat things such as Malt Loaf, Banana Bread, Flapjacks, Tea Bread, Fruit Cake, etc.

I appreciate this post is a bit removed from the OP's initial question at the start of this thread but you might like to try this alternative approach when cycling especially when spending a longer time in the saddle.

Iamnot Wiggins

ugo.santalucia wrote:

Iamnot Wiggins wrote:

Being a type 1 diabetic, I have to test my blood sugar with regularity, even more so if I consume these energy products which I do carry and use to prevent the dreaded hypo and a potentially serious accident. Your claim that they're "glorified sugar" is utter shite. If I leave the house with sugar level reading of 7 or 8 (which is quite normal) and test when I return home after consuming said "crap" then I note that my blood sugar is pretty much the same. I don't take insulin whilst riding either. Now, if it was glorified sugar, my reading would be through the roof and would make me quite ill. Perhaps look into things before spouting utter crap, Ugo?

You don't get a spike in the insulin because you don't produce insulin and take it every day to control your glucose level. I would assume these days you also have a slow release form. Over the years you have probably become good at controlling your sugar intake... you must be, otherwise you would not be here.

Whilst you are correct in saying that I would not produce an insulin spike, and I cannot fault that, I would however experience a glucose spike due not producing insulin myself. Yes, long term slow release insulin is used & works in the background but that will not stop aforementioned glucose spike that would be caused by the energy products that you have written off. As I do not get the glucose spike and the blood sugar level remains constant, your comment is flawed.

@ Spin City; hello, fellow member of our little club! Whilst I take on board you comments regarding cake, and I do like & enjoy the products you've listed, I have found in the past that they do cause the glucose spike as I mentioned above so for this reason I do tend to avoid them. I found that having a high blood sugar on the bike is not a pleasant experience!

spin_city

Hi Iamnot Wiggins

It looks like we're having a conversation of our own but I'm quite happy to carry on. I don't know how long you usually cycle for and at what intensity but I guess you've got a good idea of your glucose requirements during and after exercise.

Personally, I find a mixture of low and high GI food/drink a good balance for cycling. So I will consume at least 500ml of drink per hour that contains between 5% and 7% of sugars i.e. an isotonic drink. As well as this I will eat a small handful piece of food after each hour. If I'm on a long ride such as an all day Audax I will also eat a meal and take a very small amount of insulin. If riding a Sportive then I probably wouldn't get the opportunity to stop for a meal with insulin.

Of course, I don't know the type of cycling you do so I won't try to advise you one way or the other. I just thought it would be useful to say what works for me. I do agree with you though that high Blood Sugars and cycling aren't a good mix.