What to you consume while riding?

Usually just water, but on a longer ride jam sarnies or a granola type bar. I'm planning to try gatorade on a long ride this week - as I was beginning to cramp on my last 3hour plus ride.

 

LOL good source of protein huh.

 

I find that baked potatos with salt are easy to carry around for a quick snack (I just have to remember to make some up ahead of time). I also sometimes pack pasta (mixed with olive oil to keep it soft).

 

On longer rides I take one bottle of water and one bottle of diluted Gatorade. I use the powder Gataorade and only use about 1/3 of the amount they say.

I also take a gel or 2 and maybe a cliff bar or odwalla bar (sp?)

 

i eat bar ones (generally 1 or 2)
and i have 2 bottles filled with powerad (i vary the flavours)

 

I drink water, sometime propell if I am desperate, gatorade(both of the aboce are really to sugary should start making it with the powdered stuff) and everyone once in a while a ride home ,and grab a piece of cakee... dam I love cake they should make portable cake bars, damn I would buy a few thousand of those lol

 

I almost always just drink water. If it's a really long ride I'll drink Gatorade. I almost never eat anything even if I should because sometimes it just doesn't sit right. So usually I'll just do a gel instead. When I do eat it's usually part of a Powerbar. Like Kate and some others here have mentioned, I've also eaten my fair share of insects. Some aren't bad.

 

i really like powerade, it gives me a good boost when i'm cycling but i would suggest eating BEFORE you cycle, i normally have toast, pronutro and some tea and then you see my catapult when i cycle.

I've noticed that when i dont eat before a cycle (or eat good cycling food) then i battle a bit.

 

I think Powerade taste better than Gatorade
and it's cheeper

 

actually that sounds good and easy. I wonder if they sell it in the United States.

 

Water, Water, and more Water

 

water and clif bars

 

I agree... Gatorade is too damn sweet. If you can get the mix, it's WAY cheaper than the premixed variety, and you can add half what the directions tell you. It's getting harder to find, though, and I"m not sure if they still distribute it.

 

Check out the ingredients Powerade uses a cheeper sweetener (high fructose corn syrup) while gatorade uses alternate sweeteners (sucrose I believe) which is suposed to not slow gastric emptying as much as the fruit juice based drinks.

 

Where does one get a Gel? Do you have to get them at a nutritional food store? How are they packaged?

just curious

 

You can get 'em at bike shops, nutritional food stores (like GNC and the like), sporting goods stores, etc... They come in a little foil packet that you tear the end off of and then squeeze the contents into your waiting pie-hole. Just don't throw the foil packet on the road (or trail) when you're done. There are a lot of different brands Clif Shot, Gu, Power Gel, etc...

 

many grocery stores carry the gels, that is where I buy most of mine. Often at a better price then the LBS or health food stores.

You can get them pretty cheap by ordering them online in bulk.

 

Powerbars, GU gels, cookies, nuts, gatorade, etc to prevent "hitting the wall".