Anyone tried Hammer Gels for long distance multi-day rides (with emphasis on endurance)? How are they compared to Gu or Cliff shots? Thanks
>Anyone tried Hammer Gels for long distance multi-day rides (with emphasis on endurance)? How are >they compared to Gu or Cliff shots? Thanks > Fine...and a lot less expensive. And flasks are much neater than packets. Might want to consider making your own stuff as an alternative if you're planning to use a qt. or so per quarter...much cheaper than store-bought. PH
"Pete Hausner" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]... > >Anyone tried Hammer Gels for long distance multi-day rides (with emphasis on endurance)? How are > >they compared to Gu or Cliff shots? Thanks > > > > Fine...and a lot less expensive. And flasks are much neater than packets. > > Might want to consider making your own stuff as an alternative if you're planning to use a qt. or > so per quarter...much cheaper than store-bought. > > PH Interesting idea - any recipes or links to such? SB
"Steve Blankenship" <[email protected]> wrote in message > Interesting idea - any recipes or links to such? On the theory that most of these gels are geared to supply a quick rush with simple sugar (looking at the labels of Gu and Cliff Shot; don't know about Hammergel), my stuff consists of equal parts corn syrup, chocolate sauce, and caramel syrup. All of those are pure sugar with a bit of salt, and fat free. As far as I can tell from the Gu label, only thing missing from my mix is potassium, which I don't think is necessary in a gel; Cytomax etc. supplies electrolytes if you are looking for that. I also add a tad of peanut butter to thicken the mix; though the protein is not quickly digestible like the rest of the ingrediants, it has caused me no stomach problems. I find the taste just fine - if you like candy, you can tolerate it. Certainly no worse than commercial product. I store the recipe in the fridge in a water bottle, and before a ride microwave it briefly to soften, then pour into a gel flask. I also have been known to grind up a No-Doz or two (pure caffeine, each pill approx. equal to a cup of coffee) and a few tabs of ibuprofen for long rides. This is all ignorant and amateur, but I can't really tell the difference in effect between my swill and the commercial stuff, but can see a huge difference in the wallet.
Doug Taylor wrote: > On the theory that most of these gels are geared to supply a quick rush with simple sugar (looking > at the labels of Gu and Cliff Shot; don't know about Hammergel)... Hammergel touts the fact that they have no *simple* sugars in their stuff. It's based on maltodextrose. There are also claims about why this is a good thing. > my stuff consists of equal parts corn syrup, chocolate sauce, and caramel syrup. The reason I use Hammer gel is that corn syrup and I don't get along. Wish I did, the damn stuff is in everything! For the OP: The Hammer stuff works very well for me. Try the apple flavor - the orange stuff tastes awful, but of course tasted vary. -- Mark Janeba remove antispam phrase in address to reply
Doug Taylor wrote: > On the theory that most of these gels are geared to supply a quick rush with simple sugar (looking > at the labels of Gu Did you actually *read* the label on the Gu? The label on the Gu I'm looking at has maltodextrin as the first ingredient, water as the second and then a simple sugar as the third. JT -- ******************************************* NB: reply-to address is munged Visit http://www.jt10000.com *******************************************
I'd have to disagree with an earlier post about the flasks being less messy. I've had more than a hand full of times when my jersey pocket had its fair share of gel in it from leaky flasks. Some were my fault when I didn't click the top closed tight and others were from flasks where the gel leaked out through the top's threads. The minute I heard they had single serving packets I ordered those in my favorite flavor, raspberry. Esspresso and vanilla are also good. If you use the flask, you can also combine flavors. Wade "John Forrest Tomlinson" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:WBrta.39420$D%[email protected]... > Doug Taylor wrote: > > On the theory that most of these gels are geared to supply a quick rush with simple sugar > > (looking at the labels of Gu > > Did you actually *read* the label on the Gu? The label on the Gu I'm looking at has maltodextrin > as the first ingredient, water as the second and then a simple sugar as the third. > > JT > > -- > ******************************************* > NB: reply-to address is munged > > Visit http://www.jt10000.com > *******************************************
"Mark Janeba" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]... > Doug Taylor wrote: > > On the theory that most of these gels are geared to supply a quick rush with > > simple sugar (looking at the labels of Gu and Cliff Shot; don't know about > > Hammergel)... > > Hammergel touts the fact that they have no *simple* sugars in their stuff. It's based on > maltodextrose. There are also claims about why this is a good thing. > > > my stuff consists of equal parts corn syrup, chocolate sauce, and caramel syrup. > > The reason I use Hammer gel is that corn syrup and I don't get along. Wish I did, the damn stuff > is in everything! > > For the OP: The Hammer stuff works very well for me. Try the apple flavor - the orange stuff > tastes awful, but of course tasted vary. Here's the ingredient list from that stuff: Long-chain Maltodextrin, Filtered Water, Energy SmartĀ® (Fruit Juice, Natural Grain Dextrins), Banana Puree, Natural Flavor, Amino Acids (L-Leucine, L-Alanine, L-Valine, L-Isoleucine), Ascorbic Acid, Citric Acid, Sodium Chloride, Potassium Sorbate (as a preservative), Potassium Chloride. The following link suggests why they use maltodextrin. http://www.opta-food.com/access/glucose.html What kind of time do you think it takes to get energy benefits from Maltodextrin , which is apparently digested in the small intestine? But I'd like to see something that suggests that all this stuff is better than normal food (for the non-serious-non-competitor). Aside from being convenient forms of nourishment while on the bike, I see no advantage to them over a normal diet. While I'm on it, what are the amino acids supposed to do? I thought they only benefit in post-exercise recovery (anabolic). -- Robin Hubert <[email protected]
Steve Blankenship wrote: > Interesting idea - any recipes or links to such? I make my own out of Karo's corn syrup, honey, and sometimes molassis. You can duplicate the caffeine in Gu and Hammergel by grinding up a NoDoz pill and mixing it in. -- Jerry Gardner [email protected]
Mark Janeba wrote: > Hammergel touts the fact that they have no *simple* sugars in their stuff. It's based on > maltodextrose. There are also claims about why this is a good thing. Maltodextrose is available from health food shops. -- Jerry Gardner [email protected]
"Robin Hubert" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:reuta.56679> But I'd like to see something that suggests that all this stuff is better > than normal food (for the non-serious-non-competitor). Aside from being convenient forms of > nourishment while on the bike, I see no advantage to them over a normal diet. While I'm on it, > what are the amino acids supposed > to do? I thought they only benefit in post-exercise recovery (anabolic). > > -- > Robin Hubert <[email protected]> > Its not better than "real" food, but convenience is the whole point. It can be hard to whoof down real food during a race. The gels are easier both in the physical act of getting the food from your pocket to your mouth and in the digestion. Wade