Training & Nutrition - Energy Gels - like "Gu"

Rode my first metric century (100kms) yesterday. During the last 30km I was completely bonked and my legs were on fire to the point where I was almost in tears when I pulled into my driveway.

Nutrition was 2 bottles of water (24oz) and a protien/energy bar.

Obviously not enough, so I've been thinking of getting a case of those gels. LBS carries the "GU" brand. Is this the type of stuff that I would need to prevent the hell I went thru yesterday? Or is it just a matter of drinking more, or throwing gatorade into the mix?

Thanks for your input.

You will need to take in enough calories to get you through the ride. Whether the calories are solid or liquid depends on your personal preference. I prefer Fig Newtons or granola bars and an electrolyte drink like Gatorade.

One word of caution, if you've never had an energy gel before, try it before you go on your ride. They tend to have the consistency of Smucker's caramel sauce and sometimes you need to drink a lot of water to wash them down.

Roughly speaking you need 1 bar, 1 bottle of water/drink per hour of riding. Usually carry water and gatorade and alternate between the two. While doing a self supported metric century, in addition to the 2 bottles on your frame, take another bottle in your rear pocket or stop at some store/gas station to buy one.

Hammer Nutrition sells Hammer Gel, available in pint jugs, which you can decant into their 6 oz. squeeze flasks, which sit in your jersey pocket very nicely. Cheap and convenient. No wrappers or waste, especially no sticky gel wrappers. Hammer Gel is good nutrition for a metric century. If you aren't going to do a mini-mart stop in the middle, bring two flasks.

My regime...For the long rides i like to carb load at least 2 days prior, water load 2 days prior if it's going to be hot. Pre ride morning meal of some complex carb (oatmeal) or at the least pancakes, cereal, etc. If it's hot, during the ride I have 2 bottles with gatorade, camelbak with water, electrolyte pills, GU with caffeine, and energy bars...considering throwing caffeine pills and ibuprofen in the mix...at medical tents i like biofreeze on the knees if they start to bother me...post ride some ice packs on legs or and ice bath and anti-inflammatory foods (pre and post). I'm also considering replacing my ibuprofen pills with cayenne pepper pills for the anti-inflammatory agents, curious if it will work tho...of course I'm not in the best shape, once i asked someone in really good shape how they finished a 100 mile ride so quickly and what they carried, their answer was that they didn't stop at any rest stops and they carried two bottles of gatorade :-s i believe they finished in around 4 hours.

Just eat some stuff that you like, and use a sports drink instead of water. Everyone likes different sports drinks, so you'll have to do a little trial and error to see which one works for you.

The big benefit of products like Gu or Hammer Gel (or Clif Shots or PowerGel etc. etc.) is 1) you can eat them easily while riding hard (in terms of packaging & chewing) and 2) they digest easily and get the sugar into your blood fast. If you aren't riding hard or don't mind stopping, real food (granola bars, newtons, oreos, potato chips, peanut butter & jelly sandwich, etc.) works just fine and is a lot more cost effective per calorie. You can put this stuff in your pockets or buy it at a gas station or grocery store along the way.

The big trick is to start eating / drinking early enough so you never get into a deficit. You'll have to experiment to see what works for you. I usually eat a gel at about 1:20 into the ride, then keep eating, often alternating Gu & granola bars, every hour or so after that. 250 calories/hour is a well-known target number for intake (include solid & liquid nutrition) but your personal metabolism will vary - so start w/250 and see how it is working for you.

Some people have very sensitive digestive systems, and can't process real food while riding, others have no trouble. Again you'll have to experiment with what foods work for you.

I usually eat a gel at about 1:20 into the ride, then keep eating, often alternating Gu & granola bars, every hour or so after that.

Wow, really? I'd be hurting BAD if I waited 80 minutes to start eating and then only once a hour afterwards. Otherwise, I agree with the rest of your advice, especially "start with the guidelines, and tinker until you find what works for you."

Otherwise the OP's simple problem was not enough calories. 60 miles, call it 5 hours with breaks? 5 hours x 200-250 cal/hr = 1000-1250 calories. That's 4 or 5 ClifBars. Plus water, 0.5-1.5 bottles/hour, depending on temperature and level of exertion.

And remember to eat something as soon as you get home! After you park your bike, before you take a shower. Your muscles really want nutrition during those first 30-60 minutes after exercising. It helped me to set something out before leaving on the ride.

When I helped people train for AIDS/Lifecycle, convincing everybody to eat before they're hungry and drink before they're thirsty was among the first hurdles. It usually took and experience like the OP's for the concept to truly click.

For recreational rides, I like PB&J or granola bars. My technique is to tear it open before I leave, take a big bite every 15 minutes and follow it with a drink of water. If there's a coffee stop, I'll grab a banana or a pastry. I use Hammer products (Hammer Gel, Perpetum) for races and long training rides. They're expensive, but the convenience in those situations is worth it. The re-useable flask is great, because I can water down the gel. Full-strength gels make me gag.

Rode my first metric century (100kms) yesterday. During the last 30km I was completely bonked and my legs were on fire to the point where I was almost in tears when I pulled into my driveway.

Nutrition was 2 bottles of water (24oz) and a protien/energy bar.

Obviously not enough, so I've been thinking of getting a case of those gels. LBS carries the "GU" brand. Is this the type of stuff that I would need to prevent the hell I went thru yesterday? Or is it just a matter of drinking more, or throwing gatorade into the mix?

Thanks for your input.That doesn't sound like a bonk. More like you rode further than you're used to. Eating more calories isn't going to help sore legs. If you think you need to eat more bring more food. GUs are about the most expensive calories you can take. They're convenient for racing but provide zero benefit over food as far as energy is concerned.

I used a gel for the first time last weekend on a long ride and i was amazed at how quickly it worked. from the edge of bonking having difficulty turning the cranks at all to normal pedalling was about 5 mins after i swallowed a gel. I didn't like it though. It was really sweet and sticky and uncomfortable in the mouth. I think I will use them more in the future as a last minute measure for when I get the food wrong. I'll try to time the normal food eating better but the gel will be great when all else fails.

I used a gel for the first time last weekend on a long ride and i was amazed at how quickly it worked. from the edge of bonking having difficulty turning the cranks at all to normal pedalling was about 5 mins after i swallowed a gel. I didn't like it though. It was really sweet and sticky and uncomfortable in the mouth. I think I will use them more in the future as a last minute measure for when I get the food wrong. I'll try to time the normal food eating better but the gel will be great when all else fails.


When you've bonked, they do work quickly and you definitely feel it happen (I call it flipping the happy switch), but they also fade pretty fast, too.

That doesn't sound like a bonk. More like you rode further than you're used to. Eating more calories isn't going to help sore legs. If you think you need to eat more bring more food. GUs are about the most expensive calories you can take. They're convenient for racing but provide zero benefit over food as far as energy is concerned.

that's true, bonking isn't really about fire or pain in my experience, when i've done it i just have no energy at all and can't turn the cranks, no motivation, and dizziness...it basically just sucks

There's this new gel out there called "Pu", it's chunkier than Gu and smells real bad, but it's cheap.

Hi From Dubai, as you can imagine the heat here in the summer is full on were regular in the 100s so we cycle early in the morn but still in the 90s even at 5am,
i was on a ride in Far north Queensland it was around 130Ks for the day and i messed up my food intake and the last few Ks OMG did i feel it in my Quads cramping so bad that i couldnt get off my bike when i got to the end i had 2 cans Red Bull plus Magnesem Tabs and a coke now iknow it dont sound the best but did it work ........oh yes within a period of around 10 mins i was ready to rock..........
so for an after ride try the red Bull thing it worked for me.:thumb:

OP, how long were you on the bicycle?