Which drink is best for recovery / energy on rides

andy83 · July 2008

Have just started to step up my distances on my bike to try lose the little bit of weight i want to get to my ideal weight then start on bulking up in the gym. I was a personal trainer so understand light weights high reps does good for toning which is what im doing now to assist with the weight loss. i have a big frame and just want to strip down a bit. god im waffling lol

anyway have got rides to around 15miles in around 50 minutes. my commute to work is 3.5miles so will do 7miles around 4 days a week and then maybe a 15 mile ride once a week.

i have started to notice with the last 5 miles of my ride im starting to lose a bit of energy. now with my commute i can increase it to around 5-6 miles each way if i go the long way round which i would like to do and also would like to increase my longer ride to around 30miles. of course i will do this gradually but my bottle of water is just not seeming enough fluids to get me through some journeys

right now after my waffle come the questions

can anyone recomend some good recovery fluids / foods for after rides, and also any decent things to help give me a kick when im riding so i can keep pushing myself

obviously i wont be going too hard that i will collapse lol. have heart rate monitor to keep eye on things during exercise. I have dodgy knees and muscle fatigue illness (fibromyalgia) but seems cycling helps and why i want to increase my distances as cant run on roads or treadmill etc. want to lose the timber i dont want

im looking to eventually get to a stage where i can cycle around 100 miles for charity so want some good stuff to aid me in my training. cycling specific things im after

sorry if i have waffled

thanks in advance

hastings · July 2008

I use For Goodness Shakes Milkshakes after rides

1340jas · July 2008

Good to see someone with an illness still giving it ago, don't give up.

With regards to your question I was in a similar position to yourself and have found the following has helped.

for a drink after riding I use something called REGO, its made by SIS. www.scienceinsport.com. If you have a Tesco near by they have an offer at the moment where you can by a pack of their products including a water bottle with the correct measures shown on the side. Its about £8. Including the rego, energy gells and bars and energy drink powder for before and during your rides.

The REGO replaces all the stuff ( technical term ) you have used whilst excercising. They also give very good explanations of why and how to use the products. I checked with a Training instructor I know and the stuffs really good and safe to use.

With regards to your fluid intake on longer rides get a camel back or similar type of carrier, and you can take on around a litre an hour, I use less but from what I've been finding out that seems to be an average of what you need

supersonic · July 2008

Andy, sort of know how you feel, I have M.E. and the muscle fatigue can be nasty! Very important to keep fluids topped up. During the ride I would use an isotonic drink - these have electrolytes and simple sugars, but importantly are still absorbed into the body at the same rate as normal water. I also take with me fig rolls and bananas for slow energy release and... jelly babies! I eat these for a sugar kick if I start to hit the wall.

andy83 · July 2008

thanks a lot for that. have got a tesco nearby, might have a cycle there and get some.

is this the stuff that you can get in big massive containers aswell, think the bloke who does the spin classes (dont do them as they seem ridiculous, when do u ever do push ups on the handlebars lol) uses them. i have a litre bottle already and looking to add another to my frame as there is an extra holder, may get some of the bars to throw in my bag and add the bottle onto bike. not too keen on them bags but then have never tried one, might look to get one though, especially as getting back into cycling

what does the stuff taste like?? i know it all depends on taste but remember when i had some protein drinks they tasted horrible

supersonic · July 2008

You not got a hydration pack? Very useful; for long rides and hot wetaher where you should be aiming to drink a litre of fluid per hour.

andy83 · July 2008

supersonic, thanks. mine is easily described as a milder form of ME but i get an added tingling all over body lol. so many people say "if your ill with that you cant ride/exercise etc or ur just faking it" gets soooo annoying. as long as it is controlled and not going mad every day it can be manageble which im sure you understand

have you any recomendations, find things like lucozade too sugary.

that rego looks good, might get some of that for recovery stuff. i will start throwing in a mars bar, but have found i keep stopping to get a banana or summin, although for energy boost bruised bananas are best for giving energy (i dont like them like that but its true)

most i have done this week is a 15mile ride with 20min stop at shops in the middle. i want to get a 15mile ride straight soon. done 60 miles this week. want to reach 100 in a week by the end of july

now just thinking whether i need a road bike for my fitness rides. Only thing is i prefer a heavier frame and dont like racing position. have put road tyres on my OLD frame but just something i like about having a mtb for some reason, although dont go off road

built up my bike and am really proud managed to do it, plus aint got room for 2 bikes so this is my baby http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/2079035/

would there be any major benefits in getting a road bike or not really. im 6ft and currently 15stone12 but am a big build, hence me prefering a heavier frame, anyone any reasons to get a road bike please say

andy83 · July 2008

think i will invest in one, although is my birthday in august so might put it on my list lol

supersonic · July 2008

andycraddock wrote:

supersonic, thanks. mine is easily described as a milder form of ME but i get an added tingling all over body lol. so many people say "if your ill with that you cant ride/exercise etc or ur just faking it" gets soooo annoying. as long as it is controlled and not going mad every day it can be manageble which im sure you understand

have you any recomendations, find things like lucozade too sugary.

I don't get all the pain of FM sufferers though, just the extreme tiredness! Yes it is VERY annoying when people say these things, people who have absolutely no idea how the illness manifests itself - infact on some forums I have been pretty much bullied about it.

I tend to avoid the full fat lucozade - but if I have plain water in a hydropack, I may take a bottle with me. Normal lucozade is hypertonic, ie too sugary so will not hydrate you on its own. My rides tend to be vey short nowadays, so often just take a bottle of lucozade sport (the isotonic version) or make up some fruit squash. Powerade is good too.

As for a road bike, sure, if doing a lot of riding on the road they will be more efficinet and lighter than a MTB.

andy83 · July 2008

thats a shame but i can understand as even some of my own family dont understand. luckily i have some decent medication i take now which seems to help a fair bit, but do find popping pain killers before and after rides lol. i feel for you as i know someone with it and it aint nice. i had 4 years of so called professionals telling me there was nothing wrong til i got diagnosed in february. it seems the lesser of two evils, after a ride i can be in pain and tired, but without exercise prob put on weight and get depressed!! i find a hot bath or shower helps me after, plus i am still wearing winter gloves and cant wear shorts without knee warmers etc as cold just knackers me

cant really afford to get a decent road bike and as i say im not giving up my baby will just add to that as got no more room to store bike and not allowed in the house

as for the efficiency, kind of like having the option if i want to be a bit more ruggid with bike ie throwing off curbs or jumping over speed bumps, dont think my riding style will suit one lol.

i take it you mean the still lucozade??

supersonic · July 2008

Seems you have a good positive attitude to it all! I am a lot better than I was too.

Yeah, the still stuff. Actually says lucozade 'sport' rather than lucozade 'energy'. You can sort of make your own - half a litre of squeezed orange juice, half a litre of water, splash of orange cordial and half a teaspoon of salt. Is an old roadie recipe for a isotonic drink!

andy83 · July 2008

thanks for that, best to stay positive i spose, especially when i used to be a pt training all the time and really miss playing football

this weather is shocking, will end up looking for more winter clothing soon lol

1340jas · July 2008

Andy,
The product I spoke about in my first reply is a powder which you mix with water, it has lots of ingredients which help replace losts salts etc when you train. It also allows water to absorbed back into the body at a higher rate.
I have a camel back which I fill with water and use the energy gells whilst training / riding. I have about half a litre of the energy drink 20 minutes before a ride I then drink about a litre of water every hour or so and if i am on a 3 hour ride I will have one energy gell. After the ride I have half a litre of Rego. The advice on the web site would appear to be one gell or drink every hour but I find i don,t need it. If my ride is less than three hours I don't bother with the enery gell. I just have the before and after drinks.

You can buy the products in large plastc jars or individually wrapped. Tesco are doing the offer with a bottle and then a selection of powders, energy bars and gells. I bought a few of these to try the different flavours. They all seem ok.
I don't put the powder in my camel as they become hard to clean.

andy83 · July 2008

thanks a lot for your help

looks like i need a camel back soonish then lol. how much stuff can you get in a camel back apart from the water obviously, just wondered if can fit a few emergency tools and a lock if i need to pop in somewhere etc. does it depend on which bag

was looking at
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/ProductDetail.a ... n%20System
but doesnt look to have much room and obviously isnt that expensive

which would you recomend of this page http://www.wiggle.co.uk/CategoryProduct ... &cat=cycle

might pop to tesco in the week to get some of that stuff you mentioned

thanks again for help, although with our lovely british weather when i get on a ride on a sunny day again is a mystery lol

1340jas · July 2008

andy
I like the look of the mayhem 3 on the second link, looks to be enough room for everything for an all day ride.
You can tighten the load straps to close everything up if its not full.
Colours good as the mud won't show up.
They are all washable, jsut remove the bladder and tube.
they are amongst the best on the market and that looks like a real good price.
Try a couple of searches on the model to find who's doing the best price on the web in the UK.

batch78 · July 2008

I also use some SIS products, the Rego is good and actually tastes ok, I didn't get on too well with the PSP22 though, everybodys different I guess, well worth buying the starter kit though from Tescos, means you can try the whole range, except their coffee stuff, and then buy larger quantities of what you like.

Have also tried Squeezy gels, very artificial tasting, Jelly Belly beans, odd texture and no apparent benefit, Frutina Real fruit snack, bit like chewing beef jerky but made of fruit, I like them for a quick rush, and have just got some High5 gel, not tried it yet but feels runier than the others, either that or they use thinner plastic packaging.

Hope this helps but reading it back probably not!

On short rides I take water in my Camelbak and as many gels, chews, beans, cereal bars as I fancy, usually one an hour. On longer rides, over 3 hours, I take an energy drink aswell but in a bottle, this keeps your hydration pack clean, and stops it tasting of energy drink for weeks!

Surf-Matt · July 2008

Same here (ish) - diluted Lucozade Sport in the bottle, water in the Camelbak.

But I just stick to more natural snacks like muesli bars and fig rolls.

andy83 · July 2008

thanks for all your replies and will start loading up on stuff. will get the starter kit from tescos to give it a try, or better still nick bits of my mate who uses it to see if i like it lol

Spinner28 · July 2008

batch78 wrote:

I also use some SIS products, the Rego is good and actually tastes ok, I didn't get on too well with the PSP22 though, everybodys different I guess, well worth buying the starter kit though from Tescos, means you can try the whole range, except their coffee stuff, and then buy larger quantities of what you like.

Have also tried Squeezy gels, very artificial tasting, Jelly Belly beans, odd texture and no apparent benefit, Frutina Real fruit snack, bit like chewing beef jerky but made of fruit, I like them for a quick rush, and have just got some High5 gel, not tried it yet but feels runier than the others, either that or they use thinner plastic packaging.

Hope this helps but reading it back probably not!

On short rides I take water in my Camelbak and as many gels, chews, beans, cereal bars as I fancy, usually one an hour. On longer rides, over 3 hours, I take an energy drink aswell but in a bottle, this keeps your hydration pack clean, and stops it tasting of energy drink for weeks!

Forget REGO, you want REGO Rapid, which for the most part you can only buy from the SIS website http://www.scienceinsport.com/. REGO Rapid contains Whey protein which is much better for recovery. It also has creatine, which is good when just taken for recovery purposes, rather than loading on the stuff like bodybuilders do.(You'd have to drink a lot of Rapid to do this.) Rapid is more expensive than standard REGO, but it does work well. I didn't find standard REGO rally did much at all!
I find GO better than the PSP22. Go contains a carbo complex as well as electrolytes to help prevent cramps.

andy83 · July 2008

Still havent got round to buying any drinks yet as waiting til payday, but getting long rides going and feeling great. done a 27 mile ride the other day, admittidly had a stop half way through and found the old isotonic drink works wonders, cheers supersonic

finding things really hard today, fibromyalgia has kicked in bad and aching like hell, which is a pain as want to exercise but body is telling me in no uncertain terms NO lol

its not good having a bad flare up but still. really pleased with how fitness is coming on, and commutes to work are getting quicker when im not aching, rides are getting faster average speed so all is good.

hopefully some recovery drinks will help, and getting camelback soon.

hows things with you supersonic? do you find at times when the weather is nice you want to train loads but then end up making yourself bad, catch 22 really

hope all is good

woody-som · July 2008

I use the SIS products.

PSP 11 or 22 in original flavour, great all rounder, but for hot weather then Go is best as it contains the electrolites lost through sweat. Revovery as above Rego.

Which drink is best for recovery / energy on rides

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