What fuels you? (4 Viewers)

[on the rocks]

So I have been down the rabbit hole of all kinds of toxic supplements you typically get at any store for energy on the trail. Red bull, then even worse sugar free Red bull, Celsius, Ciff Blocks, protein bars(compete junk) and so on. And started getting into Bio Hacking and health eating and started reading the labels on these items and using AI to search what ingredient does outside the loaded sugar, caffeine and toxic natural flavoring which is who knows what and baffled by what we put in our bodies. With the help of a nutritionist and a lot of podcasts on nutrition I started trying new things. I have been riding quite a bit so that is helping but I'm feeling huge gains in strength and seeing time on rides drop quite a bit. Some things I'm using now and seeing great results:
Perfect Amino Amino acid- I keep it simple and do 5 tabs an hour before rides. One of my favorite sups and help a lot with recovery and muscle building. Game changer for multiple day rides.
Perfect Amino power meal protein- Not my favorite and will drop but it seems to be help bulking up and keeping weight since riding so much.
LMNT- Orange and lemon are pretty good, a hit of sodium, potassium and magnesium.
Potassium Citrate- Stacking more potassium not sure what else it may do.
Thiamin- not sure what this does lol. Maybe converts food into energy
simple filtered water...
No sugars, no caffeine, no toxic garbage! I'm coming up on my high school weight and feeling better than ever. Damn, I love riding bikes...

So what do you use??

 

[ravewoofer]

So I have been down the rabbit hole of all kinds of toxic supplements you typically get at any store for energy on the trail. Red bull, then even worse sugar free Red bull, Celsius, Ciff Blocks, protein bars(compete junk) and so on. And started getting into Bio Hacking and health eating and started reading the labels on these items and using AI to search what ingredient does outside the loaded sugar, caffeine and toxic natural flavoring which is who knows what and baffled by what we put in our bodies. With the help of a nutritionist and a lot of podcasts on nutrition I started trying new things. I have been riding quite a bit so that is helping but I'm feeling huge gains in strength and seeing time on rides drop quite a bit. Some things I'm using now and seeing great results:
Perfect Amino Amino acid- I keep it simple and do 5 tabs an hour before rides. One of my favorite sups and help a lot with recovery and muscle building. Game changer for multiple day rides.
Perfect Amino power meal protein- Not my favorite and will drop but it seems to be help bulking up and keeping weight since riding so much.
LMNT- Orange and lemon are pretty good, a hit of sodium, potassium and magnesium.
Potassium Citrate- Stacking more potassium not sure what else it may do.
Thiamin- not sure what this does lol. Maybe converts food into energy
simple filtered water...
No sugars, no caffeine, no toxic garbage! I'm coming up on my high school weight and feeling better than ever. Damn, I love riding bikes...

So what do you use??

Well, I start with a breakfast of cereal, yogurt, banana and toast. At the trailhead, I’ll swig some gatoraid and half a clif bar.

In order to keep a strong, speedy pace, I eat some banana and more Gatorade every half hour. I ride solo deep in the woods, so I don’t want to bonk. Long way out that way.

That’s it! In my 30’s I would swill Cytomax and some Metabolol, but no more.

Aside from the physical fueling, what really fuels me is feeling good. I ride hard and when done, I enjoy my fitness high for days. So I do it again and again.

Like a lab rat hitting the button for his reward.

 

[1FZj80]

eat real food: a sandwich, apple, dates, trail mix, etc. When I eat bars they have no more than four or five ingredients and no chemicals.
I skip the hydration stuff and make my own. Quarter of bottle is juice the rest water and added 500-1000mg of table salt does it for me.
hopefully it gets me another 10-years before I have to buy an ebike

 

[Tennessee Jed]

Dates and cashews are great trail food, along with banannas. I cut orange juice 1/2 with water to avoid GERD. I eat at a lot of truck stops - have to admit that V8 juice and Chef Boyardee and tater logs and pizza are loaded with bicycle fuel. I always carry some Alka Seltzer. Truck stop food isn't good for normal people but it's perfect for bikepackers.

 

[jembourbe]

The in-ride nutrition options are amazing right now. If you need efficient carbs, you got 'em. Fuel, but not food. And as much as I hate them (especially compared to water) I've never cramped on a ride while choking down nasty electrolyte mixes.

However, imo recovery should be food. Real food. Beer. Stuff you have to chew and that gives you a little first trimester food baby before you have to s***-out the leftovers later.

 

[OGBeno]

Gels and junk like that on rides. Beef jerky. Honey Stingers (love these). Chewy Starbursts. Gummi bears. LSD.

 

[SmoothLC]

Depends on the ride (distance, difficulty, weather, elevation gain, etc.) and with whom I'm riding (easy, hard or a mash). It took me a few years to find out what worked for me, especially for long rides (80+ miles).

I typically use EFS for hydration and mix up the flavors on different days just for variety. For two bottle rides I usually fill the second one full of ice/water and switch between stops. For longer rides I like oatmeal and a banana pre-ride. I HATE dry-tasting energy bars with a passion. I've only found a few I can stomach like the lemon Luna bars or Built's Mint Chip Puff bars. Jelly Belly Sport Beans, Honey Stingers, Bobo's PB&Js, trail mix, banana, home made PBJ, all round out my choices.

Best advice I can give - do what works best for you and your body. On my first 120 mile ride, we stopped at mile 80 or so. One of the guy's I was riding with said, let's pull over there (a Burger King no less). He bought a burger and I thought, "well, since he's done this before I'll get the same thing." Big mistake. I bought one too and after one bite I got nauseas. And that was the end of my ride. Totally bonked. After riding with him for literally tens of thousands of miles, I swear that guy had an ironclad stomach. Nothing bothered him. He used to love stopping at gas stations to pick up a "roller dog." You know, the hot dogs that sit on the rollers to keep warm/hot for hours on end. Crazy. At least I learned my lesson.