Fueling for a long ride or fun w/ diet restrictions

[indysteel]

Larabars might be a good choice, too. They're gluten free and while I don't know their GI number, given the ingredients, I'd be surprised if they were high GI.

ETA: I tried to find some GI information about Larabars. It would appear that they use a fair amount of dates as a sweetener. Dates have a high GI number. So, I'm not sure they'd work for you.

[OakLeaf]

I'd really talk to the nutritionist about the glycemic index. Generally you want your calories to be immediately available when you're fueling a long exertion.

[Becky]

Have you looked into using very small amounts of carb throughout your workout, rather than a big slug of something every 30-45 minutes? As someone with Type 1 diabetes, I have the best results keeping my blood glucose stable by using small sips of sports drink every 5-10 minutes, rather than slurping down a gel and then dealing with ensuing spike. My drink preference is Vitalyte, as it's fairly low in carbs compared to many out there, but still provides some necessary carbs and is easy on the stomach.

Can you experiment a little between now and then?

Good luck!

[GLC1968]

Generally, any simple sugars you consume during exercise will be burned during said exercise and not cause the problems and distress that they cause during normal daily activity.

You might check out the Paleo Diet for Athletes (a book by Loren Cordain and Joe Friel) for more info/ideas. They suggest bananas, sweet potatoes and other such typically higher GI foods to fuel exercise (apple juice too, if I remember correctly). The Paleo diet is grain and dairy free, so in general, their suggestions would probably work well for your diet restrictions.

[KnottedYet]

And for off the bike, be sure to check out this website: http://glutenfreegirl.com/

[Melalvai]

Way to go on the low GI and all. It sounds like a lot of restrictions but I've learned there are still so many more foods than you CAN eat than that you can't. I don't have any restrictions exactly, no celiac or food allergies, I just quit sugar on a whim a year ago and it's awesome. I'm trying for lower GI foods in general. A friend of mine though, has tons of allergies plus trying for low GI AND she is vegetarian besides. And yet she still has more foods she CAN than can't eat.

[dinabean]

Thanks all. I ended up using Larabars (2 of them) just to get me over the hump -- ate them at 1:30/4 and 2:30/4 and drank about 4 bottles of water and 4 bottles of nuun (2 bottles of fluid per hour). It worked well and I felt great afterwards. I know the Larabars aren't low glycemic, but they at least combine protein with sugars and from real-food sources.