Liquid energy

[Arno]

Not sure this is the right category to ask this question, but I was wondering what you drink during a 200km-or-longer ride. Water? Fruit juice? Sport drinks?  Beer?

[Andrij]

Water? Fruit juice? Sport drinks?  Beer?

Yes.    Don't forget to add chocolate milk to the list.

[Julian]

Ribena.

Cups of tea at controls.

At the end of a 400 or 600 I find myself craving smoothies. 

I'm about to start experimenting with High5 energy drink.  I used to use SisGo but stopped after getting through 4 bottles of it on a warm 400 and getting a seriously runny tum.

[MSeries]

All of the above at one time or another. Last 200 I did which was about 235km I drank mostly water, might have bought a flavoured drink and added to my bidon.  In the past I have used Isostar but don't really want to carry so much for the whole ride. Usually start out with it then switch to water as I go round, or buy a Oasis or similar if I need some taste. But wait all of that is for rehydration not energy. There are no calories in water.  Most of my energy replacement comes from solid food, ordinary food that normal people eat that I can get on the road, so I don't have to carry it.

200km is not such an ordeal, one can usually get round on just about anything including body fat. However if one is intending to go further one needs to use the 200s for training and preparation so one doesn't want to have to use a different strategy for 300, 400, 600, 1200, 1400 km rides.

[mike]

I havent gone much further than 200km, so dont know as much as most, but I use Nuun tablets in my water bottles as a sweat replacement, then rely on eating normal solids to get energy.  Powders and gels upset my guts and powders are a pain to carry around.

Although, as JJ found out on sunday when I had to apologise for my burst of energy after about 150k, these are great! (I like the the orange ones with caffeine)

[roddalitz]

All the above. Actually an important one is tea, or coffee, and hot chocolate for the early morning or late night. A really good restorative is equal parts orange juice and soda water. Beer is sometimes good in strict moderation.

On the bike, I carry SIS Go! made up half recommended strength, and plain water. Sometimes your body just needs plain water, not to mention rinsing that insect out of your eye, or the grit out of your road rash.

[Chris S]

I've been using SisGo for a while - the Lemon & Lime electrolyte one. I'm not sure it makes any difference TBH, so may revert to water.

I get energy from solids, not liquids. Liquids I drink are black coffee (if I need a boost) or Tea. Later in a ride I often have a craving for a pint of milk which goes down well with a Mars Bar if I've not had enough of sweet things by that stage.

I want to find some more neutral (ie not sweet, but not necessarily full-on savoury) nibbles for on-the-bike eats. Oat bars and cereal bars are OK, but too sweet to sustain into a night on a 400/600.

[Jaded]

Mr P introduced me to the delights of a can of coke mixed with water in my water bottle*. Proper Coke with sugar. Energy hit and caffeine hit, but not too gassy and quite refreshing. All the better if you can buy it from Edward and Tubbs.

* A British 'bidon'.

[Julian]

I've been using SisGo for a while - the Lemon & Lime electrolyte one. I'm not sure it makes any difference TBH, so may revert to water.

I get energy from solids, not liquids. Liquids I drink are black coffee (if I need a boost) or Tea. Later in a ride I often have a craving for a pint of milk which goes down well with a Mars Bar if I've not had enough of sweet things by that stage.

I want to find some more neutral (ie not sweet, but not necessarily full-on savoury) nibbles for on-the-bike eats. Oat bars and cereal bars are OK, but too sweet to sustain into a night on a 400/600.

That's why you need cheese and onion flapjacks.  

[MSeries]

sucrose ? Mmm, don't you just love it. HI, boing boing boing, bouncy, bouncy, happy, silly, smiley then bang ! Hyperglycaemia . Grumpy cyclist hitting the wall.

[vorsprung]

Not sure this is the right category to ask this question, but I was wondering what you drink during a 200km-or-longer ride. Water? Fruit juice? Sport drinks?  Beer?

When you are riding a long way your body uses up water.  Some sweat, some lost through exhalation etc etc
Your body also uses up stored energy like fat and glycogen. ( glycogen is energy stuff that is immediately available and is topped up with carbohydrates )

So on the face of it the most sensible thing to do would be to add the lost stuff in one easy bottle of energy drink.

However, this is not what most people do.  The problem is that there is quite a lot of energy required.  If you were to just add the powder at the right level for sustained cycling then the drink you made would be so concentrated it would be difficult to digest.

It seems to be simpler and less prone to difficulties to get your liquid requirements from drink and your energy requirements from other sources.

A few people do apparently use exclusively liquid energy drinks for all their needs on a ride.  But I've never met one on an audax.

Most people will put some sugars or other concentrated carbohydrates in their drinks but primarily for flavouring- the food value is a side effect.  The food value of drinks is also useful for a "quick fix" if you feel hungry but cannot stop immediately to eat

[tiermat]

The problem most energy drinks have is that they contain aspartame, which can cause the reaction some have mentioned (otherwise known as anal leakage in the trade )

There are a few companies that guarantee their energy drinks to be aspartame free, but unfortunately all those mentioned so far are not in that list....

One word of warning, if you do have a delicate tummy, AVOID Hi5 Xtreme... Ask not how I know of it's properties

[Jethro]

I used SIS products last year, but began to experience a little upset tummy at times.

This year I hav been using Torq products and prefer them (so far) and also Coke-cola in between.

I have noticed that Sheila Simpson uses Coke-cola all the time!

[geraldc]

I used powders and gels when I first started. Then I realised it was too much faffing for little or no benefit over standard drinks.  I had a bag of SIS unseal itself in my bag, so everything was covered in fine sugary dust. Then I just moved onto pots of tea at controls, cans of coke, water etc. One bidon with watered down soft drink or fruit juice and one of water.

Coffee/redbull/relentless when the dozies strike.

[MSeries]

The problem most energy drinks have is that they contain aspartame, which can cause the reaction some have mentioned (otherwise known as anal leakage in the trade )

There are a few companies that guarantee their energy drinks to be aspartame free, but unfortunately all those mentioned so far are not in that list....

...

there are allegedly some other 'issues' with aspartame Aspartame Side Effects

[Arno]

Am considering trying a DIY powder mix (I guess allowing to do away with aspartame) .... ( Carbohydrates - Bulk powders  | myprotein.co.uk )
From what I understand a lot of commercial drinks are a mix of one or more of the following: Maltodextrin (quick absorption) / Fructose / Palatinose (slow absorption).

[Mr Larrington]

Diluted Lucozade Sport, tea, Coke, BEER.

[Noodley]

Pomegreat Acai

Diluted with water, 50/50.

 

..and Coke or Irn Bru at controls

[Manotea]

There are times when a 2ltr bottle of supermarket cheapoid ownbrand coke is the stuff to go for. Cheaper than water!

I tend to get my calories from real food where possible. Its about morale as much as nutrition.

[Charlotte]

For TRAT last year I ran almost exclusively on Real Food^TM and gloopy thick Ribena.  I can gulp down bottles of the stuff and it doesn't have any ill-effects.  I think I got through in excess of 3 x 2l bottles that week.

On audaxes, I'll drink tea at the controls (coffee if I fancy it) and I'll have water in one bottle and cola/water in the other.  If I can get sports drinks at shops, I may have those as well.  Caffeine comes in pill form and makes me go "wheeeeee!"

SiS Go, Hi5, etc. are all foul, chemical potions of evil and more than a few bottles of any of them give me horrendous twistyguts and runnybum.

[Tiger]

I start with something healthy in the bottle and add stuff from controls as I go - whatever looks good - those Oasis drinks are good. I think theyt are essentially the same as the SIS type products. A can of coke or two gets guzzled. Later ion a ride I pop a can or two of Red Bull in as well - it really does give one wings when a bit low on energy.  Strong expresso coffee is also on the list for me.

[MSeries]

Its about morale as much as nutrition.

agreed, but less so on a 200 which is what he asked about. A little bit of what you fancy.

[frere yacker]

AUK means not having to concern myself about the science stuff relating to isotonic and various other words I don't understand without looking it up in a dictionary.

Food and drink is basically what I would normally consume, although in greater quantities.

[citoyen]

I used powders and gels when I first started. Then I realised it was too much faffing for little or no benefit over standard drinks.  I had a bag of SIS unseal itself in my bag, so everything was covered in fine sugary dust. Then I just moved onto pots of tea at controls, cans of coke, water etc. One bidon with watered down soft drink or fruit juice and one of water.

Coffee/redbull/relentless when the dozies strike.

Same here. I used to use Maxim powder, which is what my local health food store stocked (the owner was a former endurance motorcyclist and recommended it to me, along with all manner of other pills and potions - blech!). These days I just use a 50:50 mix of pure orange juice and water, which is both highly palatable and easily digestible.

Like others, I aim to get most of my energy from proper solid food from cafes, but I do also tend to carry a few SIS energy gel sachets, which I find quite effective if you need a bit of a turbo boost while between controls.

d.

[urban_biker]

I stick mainly with water, but occasionaly I get a craving for bitter shandy. Which works fairly well providing a little alcohol cushion and and a nice sugar injection all in one drink.

I really cannot stomach energy drinks and have also had a very bad reaction from drinking a Red Bull causing an almost immediate high then bonk!

The only thing I somtimes miss by sticking to water is salt and I sometimes find I'm craving that during a ride. Crisps or a bag of salty chips often do the trick.

Top tip: Listen to you food/drink fantasies while you are riding. That's your body telling you what it needs that is.