Training & Nutrition - Which Energy/Protein Bar, which Drink?

Ohhhhhhhhh. My head hurts from reading label after label, recommendation after recommendation. All this work, and I've only tasted a PEAK bar (which I like) and orange gu (which I hate). :(

What am I to do????? HELP, HELP me please. I am going to be doing some serious centuries and more - and as I am increasing my ride length... water isn't quite cutting it on the 50 mile rides.

Everyone has an opinion here - so let me have them! :)

Just try eating something like a banana at the halfway point. Cheaper, tastier and better for you than any energy bar or drink.
There is no magic potion to prepared energy foods, just a lot of hype. The only advantage of energy bars is that they are well wrapped and can survive as emergency rations in the bottom of your bag for months.

(IMHO) I think water is the best thing to drink, all natural and no sugar :)

as for eating something, most types of fruit work for me. I tend to stay away from "power" foods, since I don't see how they can be better then something nature made :rolleyes: but that's just me ;)

There are many studies that show increased performance when using a sports drink in endurance athletes over water. I believe the thing you want to look for is a 3 to 1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein in a on-the-bike drink.

I use SmartFuel (click here) (http://www.smartfuel.com) "Warpaide". It doesn't quite live up to the ratio, but it tastes good, and I like it.

As far as solid food goes, I'd say eat anything with carbohydrates that tastes good to you. There's really no need to buy expensive energy bars when you can get the same thing with some other food (yes, like bananas!).

I agree that water is best, and always carry two bottles on a ride of just water.
I also agree fruits and trail mix make great foods for riding.
But, I will eat a banana or apple before I head out, and if I'm out more than an hour, eat a Power Bar near the mid point.
Power Bars supply about an hours worth of energy, while foods alone do not have the concentrated carb content, and for some rides, I'd need a fruit basket.

It's a personal thing... water and a mix of real foods and engineered foods work well for me. :D

There's nothing wrong with natural foods and water. I always have both on long rides, however, I've had noticeably improved stamina/endurance by imbibing Accelerade during and after a demanding workout. What may be hype to some is informative sports nutrition data to others. Read about it (search Google), try it out and judge for yourself. It's flavor may not suit everyone but this 4:1 ratio drink works for me.

Eddie

It is a personal thing really as one thing works for some but not others. I make my own energy bars at home which are obviously cheaper than buying Power Bars all the time. They also work really well if devoured 30mins or so before I start out so I don't need to take any food with me. I do take a manufactured energy drink with me though. :)

I use plain old filtered H2O in my camelback on long rides,
as well as a sports drink in my water bottle.
I have used gels, can't really say I like the taste of any of em but
for me the vanilla is about the best.
Take some Fig Newtons with you, they taste yummy! :D

Marty

Twinkies and YooHoo.

Readily available at almost any convenience store. The perfect mid-ride energy boost.

Really.

In my opinion, the most important ingredient of sports food & drinks is easily digestible calories.

NutriGrain bars are another good ride food. Inexpensive and easy to carry.

I drink Cytomax, but can't honestly say that I can tell a performance difference from it and any drink with simple carbohydrates, like flat Pepsi or Gatorade.

Also, remember, it's not just what you eat, it's when you eat. I try to anticipate my requirements and eat/drink with that in mind. I usually eat 1/2 to 1 hour before I expect my body will want food, so it will have time to digest and start being metabolized.

On a different, but related note, I do notice difference when I drink Endurox R4 right after (like, within 15 minutes) after a long and/or hard ride. I have more energy the rest of the day and recover faster.

Here it is real quick, Renge Endurance drink, GU, and fruit, and on those grueling centuries Fig Newtons

Anastasia,

I take peanut butter and jelly sandwiches on whole wheat bread. Get the all-natural peanut butter and it's a healthful snack too along with an apple or banana, plenty of filtered H2O, and some Gatorade too.

That's for a one day trip, but on multiple day tours, I'm looking into making my own trail mix, with less sugar than commercial, and I like the sound of Roadbuzz's NutriGrain bar idea.

Personally, I don't like too much simple sugars in my roadsnacks. For me it makes me bonk.

Good Eating!

Thank you all! In previous face to face conversations with people, Endurox R4 was mentioned as well as bananas and fig newtons. I'm finding that recovery is going to be a key for me.

Yesterday I was out (it was maybe 40 degress faurenheit, and sunny) I rode 50 miles. The last 5 miles I felt like getting off the bike and crawling home - but I didn't. i made it home, and took a shower, and then I just couldn't do anything else - I crawled into bed, and slept for about 45 min. then I was able to eat something - - I think I bonked.

I drank about 50 oz of fluid on the ride - my camelback was empty, as was 1/2 of the spare bottle and during the rice at different intervals, I ate an entire PowerBar - so, maybe I have to concentrate on the before ride eating.

Thank you all again -

I'm now going grocery shopping and will pick up bannanas, and fig newtons, and will order Endurox from Performance or Nashbar.

Anastasia

Just to add my two cents (they're Eurocents, by the way, so their only worth about 1.8 U.S. cents)

Bananas, bread, and apple juice mixed with water (about 2 parts water 1 apple juice, otherwise it's too sticky).

Cheers,
Jamie

Okay, I give up what are fig newtons?

Are they what we'd call fig rolls - fig paste wrapped in a cake like biscuit?

Richard

Fig Newtons probably are what you, Richard, call Fig rolls: fig paste in a rather cake-like cookie sort of dough.

So this raises the interesting question: Whence the "Newton" part? Anything to do with Mr. Gravity, Isaac N.? I am coming up with all sorts of jokes about conservation of energy that take us back to why the make good biking food. But, I'll hold them back.

Cheers,
Jamie

Originally posted by Anastasia
will order Endurox from Performance or Nashbar.


Performance puts Endurox on sale all the time, and hang on to your receipt for an additional rebate:
http://www.endurox.com/common-rebate.asp

I have no connection to Performance or Endurox, just a satisfied customer.

Originally posted by Richard D
Okay, I give up what are fig newtons?

Are they what we'd call fig rolls - fig paste wrapped in a cake like biscuit?

Richard

Fig Newtons are Nabisco's brand name for a cookie that is generically called a Fig Bar. It sounds like your Fig Roll.

http://www.nabiscoworld.com/Newtons/default.htm

They were named for the town of Newton Massachussetts

http://www.duke.edu/~stevego/Newton.html

I like orange juice. Also, nutritious, easily-digested foods are important, since you need to eat but can't load up on food that bogs you down.

Fruits and nuts?

Originally posted by RegularGuy


Fig Newtons are Nabisco's brand name for a cookie that is generically called a Fig Bar. It sounds like your Fig Roll.

http://www.nabiscoworld.com/Newtons/default.htm

They were named for the town of Newton Massachussetts

http://www.duke.edu/~stevego/Newton.html

Thanks :D One and the same.

Richard

Hey, RegularGuy! I thought I was the only one who had Twinkies and YooHoos!!

;)

Check out www.mtbinsot.co.uk for info on a presentation, q & a session and also some freebies from SIS.:D

Richard, Fig Newtons do come real close to your description of a fig roll.
:beer:
:rolleyes:

Favorites; energy bar- Kashi Vanilla Yogurt; Gel- Power Bar vanilla; and drink Red Bull. Whenever climbing a really rugged climb; I assure you, my starting drink is a Red Bull. Since I climbed my first real mountain- I keep up that tradition. Really work, not sure? But a pyschiological boost.!

there are many possibilities and usually something basic like a bannana or basic granola bar works well and is a lot cheaper ... but special bars and mixes can be smaller and easier to carry and transport (i.e. bannana can get squished) and maybe work a little better (but for $$) for maximum performance

for doing long distance ride, and especially where speed is important there are 3 basic issues::
1) water - duh
2) calories for energy - fast and easy to digest
3) recovery nutrition

basically almost all of the bars sold are decent - mostly it's a matter of finding what you like AND WHAT YOUR STOMACH CAN HANLDE WHILE RIDING --- most people cannot eat PB&J while on the bike in the middle of the race w/o puking or having really bad indigestion...

if you eat something heavy, it takes energy away from your riding for your stomach to digest it and you won't gain from the food until later - probably after the race --- so quick, easy to digest is important for max performance

as someone else said, putting mix in your water helps by
1) you don't have to explicitly eat a bar - get one out of your pocket or bag - but just drink which you have to do anyway --- no slowing down, no thinking
2) it's easy to digest b/c it's already in liquid form
3) most of these are almost all sugar/carbs and quick to convert to energy

i have had good luck with CytoMax and Endurox Accelerade, but other stuff like the PowerBar mix also works well for me... i thought Revenge tasted so bad i couldn't drink it and gave it away to a friend

Gu or PowerGel is good b/c it's really fast and easy to digest - originally designed for running where it's even harder to digest b/c of the constant shaking from the running motion...

for bars, i personally like Balance Bars (good taste) -- i use bananas for training and after a race

#1 is find something you like and your body can handle - try it out on training rides to see if it works for you

for rides and races longer than 2 hours, i really felt an energy difference with the mixes -- although for me with really low body fat (something like 4% when fit for racing - higher now :() it's really important b/c i have almost no fat reserves to draw on and i will completely 'wall' w/o steady flow of energy...

there are also special recovery drinks (like Endurox R4) to help AFTER riding -- these are basic on research to try and flush out stuff, get blood flowing and start the rebuilt phase sooner --- i have tried them and they seemed to work (i would only use if you are REALLY training hard like riding hard 4+ days a week)... but of course, if you don't mind spending the money, it probably won't hurt...

if you're really concerned about performance, i really do suggest trying a mix - try CytoMax or Endurox Accelerade or compare the nutrution labels and try something similar that's cheaper

Originally posted by Weasel
I make my own energy bars at home

What's your recipe???? Love that homemade stuff.

nathank -

Thanks for the imput re: the digestibility factor - I have a feeling that will weigh heavily on my decision as far as the mix of gels, liquids, and powerbars. If I think about eating a peanut butter and jelly sandwich on a ride, the mere thought of it makes my stomach squirm.

Hey Joe Gardner -

This is a most excellent site. In the short time that i have been a member, I have gotten some really excellent info. Thank you for your perspiration and dedication to making this forum what it is.

Found this on Joe Friel's web-site, UltraFit (http://www.ultrafit.com/index.html).
Snippet duplicated w/out permission...

"There are many commercial recovery drinks available. [deletia] A simple and inexpensive alternative is to make your own recovery drink by blending five tablespoons of sugar with 16 ounces of skim milk. The sugar in the "homebrew" recovery drink quickly replaces the spent carbohydrate while the protein in the milk stops further muscle breakdown to free-up protein for rebuilding tissues damaged by the exercise."

The full article is in April, 2002 e-Tips (http://www.ultrafit.com/newsletter/april02.html).

Which drink? Water. Plain and simple. Buying 10 litres of sports drink would be quite expensive and might be harder to find in some of the places I ride.

Originally posted by roadbuzz
A simple and inexpensive alternative is to make your own recovery drink by blending five tablespoons of sugar with 16 ounces of skim milk. The sugar in the "homebrew" recovery drink quickly replaces the spent carbohydrate while the protein in the milk stops further muscle breakdown to free-up protein for rebuilding tissues damaged by the exercise."
In spite of all the hype surrounding the evils of milk and sugar, I would buy this info, except I would reduce the sugar.

Just don't drink lots of this stuff if you sit on your a$$.

Don't use regular surgar it spikes your bood sugar giving you quick energy then drops off really quickly causing you to feel terrible. What you want is a complex sugar that does not have the quick drop off. I have settled on Hammer gel which works well for me but you will have to try it an see if it works for you. If you want to read about all this stuff a good place to go is to the ultra cycling website. These are the people that run RAAM or Race Across AMrica http://www.ultracycling.com/ They have loads of information about what works and why.

Another consideration I was reminded of on a ride today... At least with energy bars, sometimes the consistency of the bar itself is a factor.

PowerBars: kind of tough and chewy. I find that I have to be completely aerobic (can't be breathing hard at all) to eat them. And because they're kind of tough, you can't just stuff 'em in your mouth and choke them down a bit at a time.

Gatorade Bars: too brittle and crumbly. Open the wrapper and take a bite, and while you're holding it and riding, a piece breaks off and hits the pavement. 'Come back here.... I need that!'

It was an aha-experience for me when I realized how much performance is connected to what you eat before the ride. Now I always stuff myself with a meal of slow carbohydrates, like pasta or oatmeal porridge.

With this start I don’t have to eat for almost the whole ride (when they are about 50 km), because I can almost feel how the carbohydrates keep transforming themselves into glucose. When I know I have some 10 km left I eat a chocolate bar – fast carbohydrates – and swooosh, the effect is immediate.

I have yet to discover the bars you recommend here though.

I always drink pure water.

For me i am like some of you. Eat some fruit before i go out, but wht i do bring are this powergels!!! very good and easy to eat quick (plus some other things like figs and trail mix). as for drink i bring pedialight (not sure if thats how you spell it) it is a baby drink that is inriched wiht electrolights! works very nice for me! while most sport drinks have the electrolights this has much much more than most of them.

Hehe just some of the stuff i bring :)

Jared

I hven't tried Gatorade bars, but I find PowerBars are like plasticene, ewww.

I like balance bars, and Luna Bars are very good- great crispy texture and the flavors don't hve that fake taste. Particualr fave- Nuts over Chocolate, Lemon Zest, Key lime. And of course, water. If I don't have bars, I'll pack some fig or date newtons. Bananas are great to eat before going out- I'm not keen on taking one with me since I like them sort of ripe and worry about them getting all mushed. Sometimes, on a very warm day, we'll stop at a convenience store and get a Nestea diet iced tea or a snapple and a little package of cheddar cheese.

My name is roadbuzz and I'm an ice-tea-holic.

Well, not really, but for long rides on hot days, when you stop at at the kwiky-mart to grab a drink... Lipton ice tea, sweetened w/lemon flavoring.