Originally Posted by
MinnMan
I think most of the responses here are missing the key point from the OP, which begins, "In the midst of a long ride..."
Yes, during a long ride replacing carbohydrates in whatever form will replace the glycogen you have depleted and give you a boost relative to the tired state you would otherwise have at the latter portion of a long ride.
Arguments about which carb/sugar gives you the most immediate boost are interesting, but all of them will give you some energy.
on the other hand, starting out with some sugar before your gym workout may not make that much difference, as your muscles are not beginning in an undepleted glycogen state
What I would like to know is when glycogen stores become depleted, how much they are depleted, how fast they regenerate on sugar compared to being simply left alone.
I'm sure consuming sugar will immediately raise your blood sugar. I also know that your body will release insulin to lower it at some point. I don't know how much actual energy that may make available VS how you may just feel better for a short time by the blood sugar increase.
I am actually more concerned about the detrimental effects of the insulin it takes to lower blood sugar.
What would be the difference in someone who has entered ketosis compared to a high carb burner in replenishing glycogen from body fat compared to X amount of sugar in the carb burner? It does make a difference and they are questions worth exploring.