ewww, GU

[colby]

The vanilla and chocolate gu gels are a thicker consistency - more like frosting (chocolate is super thick!). The banana/strawberry banana and plain ones seem to have the thinnest consistency. Some of the other flavors fall somewhere inbetween.

I use hammer, a mixture of banana and raspberry, but sometimes when I'm running it seems really strong flavored. They taste the most like fruit and the least like made-up-food (Gu is a good standby). Consistency is fairly thin, but it is sticky on your fingers. Power Bar gels grossed me out. Clif's gels taste like brown rice syrup and fruit, which is exactly what they are... it's more of a woody taste (hard to describe) than the others.

I use a flask during training, but often use single-serve packets during races (that way if I drop something, I'm not screwed - AND I get multiple flavors). I can't handle caffeine (increases GI problems and limits my effort, ironically), though I like the flavor of GU Roctane's blueberry pomegranate (they have that flavor in Chomps which I use when I ride/hike). For anything over 90 minutes, I would definitely use the gel, at least every 45.

Alternatives... bloks/chomps/moons/sharkies (good, but you have to chew - moons and sharkies are smaller, bloks the biggest), sports beans (again with the chewing), sports drink (harder to carry, but maybe use what they have at aid stations if you can stomach it), or thin out the gels and put them in a flask. If you really only need 2 servings, add water and make it thinner. As you get comfortable with it, make it thicker and thicker until you can handle it straight.

When I'm riding on the bike trainer, I like to eat straight fruit. Bananas, grapes, whatever I have. I wish that was easier to do for long distances and more portable.

[Running Mommy]

I cannot do any gel type substance. I love sweets, and even jelly doughnuts. (well they make me sick AFTER I eat them, so I don't anymore. But I do like them). I actually gag on energy gels, and yes I've tried them all. And I vomit everytime. ugh

But we sell quite a variety here at the shop. And like saddles, everyone has a most favorite- and a least fave.
We carry carb boom because they use fruit puree and pretty decent ingredients overall. They also just came out with a cranberry/grapefruit flavor that is not as sweet. So it's proving to be popular w/those that like things a bit less sweet and cloying.
Hammer has very similar ingredients and is very popular. It seems to be a bit thinner consistancy and does well in a flask.
Both carb boom and Hammer come in the envrio + wallet friendly jugs.
Gu tends to be well.. gooeyer. And their roctane scares me. I don't know why? Just the name I guess. And when I read about the "science" behind it I couldn't help but think "would I fail a drug test w/this stuff??". ha ha
It also has fructose, and I don't do well w/fructose during exercise.
But we do serve GU Brew electrolyte drink to our post ride crew. It has a clean taste. Carboom's drink does as well. We serve both.
Power gel also has fructose, and we only have one athlete that requests it.

At Interbike we found a very simple gel that is actually low on the glycemic index, and in testing performed well and got good reviews from all of our testers.
it's called "chocolate #9" and is made with simply Agave nectar and cocoa powder. They are a small company out of the NW (I believe) and I plan on ordering their product as it did so well in testing. Users that have blood sugar stabilization problems did exceptionally well on it. (we have a female xc racer w/diabetes that tested it). And those that are prone to hard sugar crashes loved how they didn't feel the big surge and crash. testers said they had a steady increase in energy that lasted a pretty long time.
For those of you not familiar w/agave nectar, it is VERY sweet, and you need very little of it to sweeten things.
One of our testers made her own agave concoction w/ a bit of berry puree, and said it worked ok, but the natural sugars in the fruit caused a bit of a spike in itself.

We test EVERYTHING before we sell it! Our customers trust our advice, and we want to lead them in the right direction. And there are definitely some dogs out there w/big marketing campaigns. So it's important to pass it all through the BS detector and decide for yourself.

Hope this helps...

Oh- and sport beans changed their formulation. They no longer use refined white sugar. AND their caffiene laced beans are less bitter.

[colby]

We need to clone Running Mommy's store for the whole US. You guys are awesome.

[Susan Otcenas]

I've tried to use GU during my long run, but I absolutely cannot stomach the gel. It's mostly the sticky, thick texture that gets to me. From talking with other runners, I've heard that GU is the best tasting energy gel. How do you all feel? Anyone else who's found something better?

I'm running my first half marathon on Nov. 7 and only have one more long run to try something out. On a side note- do you all find that it's imperative to use some sort of nutrition during a run that's lasting more than 60 min?

Personally, I love GU. I use regular & Roctane. In Roctane, I'm a fan of the blueberry pomegranate and the orange vanilla. The new pineapple flavor doesn't do it for me, but it's a good non-caffeine option (BP & OV have caffeine).

In regular GU, I prefer the chocolate and the Gingerbread. The gingerbread is amazing.

I need nutrition for anything longer than 60 minutes. In preparation for my half marathon on 10/18, I was *very* diligent about training my stomach, as much as my legs. My plan, which I stuck to, was 1 gu pre-race, then another at 30, 60, 90 & 110 minutes (basically 3 mi, 6mi, 9mi & 11 mi). I know that's way more than many people consume, but over and over in training, that was the level of nutrition my body needed to sustain my pace, so I stuck with it. Race day I was totally prepared and it worked great!

OTOH, I know many people that don't eat at all even for that distance. It all comes down to learning to read your body's signals.

[ny biker]

I gotta say, I am one who really does not deal well with hot weather, but this summer I felt much better than ever before on long rides. I attribute the improvement to Gu Roctane and De Soto Cool Wings. (Gonna ask for a second pair of Cool Wings for Christmas...)

[OakLeaf]

A little label reading in the pantry this afternoon, getting ready for my long run.

Blackstrap molasses has the same ratio of simple to complex carbs as rice or barley syrup; and calcium, magnesium and potassium out the wazoo. No sodium, so you'd definitely have to add a pinch of salt, but I do that anyway.

I have all this barley malt syrup I need to get rid of, so I mixed them half and half. I'll let you know if I start barfing at mile 6.

[Urlea]

Have you tried drinking your fuel?

Hammer Nutrition's, HEED (105 calories per dose) & Perpetuem (270 Cal. per dose) have worked great for me. I alternate between the two. Perpetuem can also be made into a paste (frosting consistency) if you don't want to drink it.

[OakLeaf]

Molasses/barley malt syrup report:

It actually tastes pretty good. The malt syrup kept the molasses flavor from being overwhelming, and the molasses drowned out the nasty flavor of the malt. (I know I've had better tasting barley malt; this is Eden brand malt and Wholesome brand molasses.)

It didn't sit on my stomach quite as well as other gels. I don't know whether that's because of the mineral content, or whether it's somewhat acidic, or something else, or just what my stomach wanted to do today. It didn't cause me any real problems, just didn't seem to clear my stomach as easily as I'd like.

Bottom line, I'll try it one more time before I give up on the idea.

[tctrek]

The only thing I've been able to tolerate on rides is CLIF Shot Blocks. I like that I can pop them out like Pez from the package and not get my fingers all sticky. I also like that they melt pretty easily in my mouth. My favorite is the Marguerita flavor -- a salt/sweet flavor. And they are so easy on the tummy.

[OakLeaf]

Have you tried drinking your fuel?

Even an absolutely wonderful hydration pack like the Nathan Intensity is heavier than not carrying anything but gels, and relying on aid stations for water...

[ny biker]

Even an absolutely wonderful hydration pack like the Nathan Intensity is heavier than not carrying anything but gels, and relying on aid stations for water...

Also I imagine some runners would have stomach problems with too much fluids.

[OakLeaf]

You could always mix the mix stronger, if you wanted a higher ratio of calories/electrolytes to water.

Honestly, I don't understand how they say some runners over-hydrate on marathons and get hyponatremia. It's just not that easy to drink, let alone eat, and at most there's one aid station per mile - often less.

[papaver]

Why settle for Gu if you can have Gü

http://www.gupuds.com/

[redrhodie]

Why settle for Gu if you can have Gü

http://www.gupuds.com/

Finally, someone's speaking my language!

[colby]

Why settle for Gu if you can have Gü

http://www.gupuds.com/

OMG. Dear Gü, please come to the US.