Any cheaper alternatives to Endurolytes pills from Hammer Nutrition?
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Meth and crack can be had pretty cheaply on the street.
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The nutrients are almost negligable. http://www.hammernutrition.com/za/HNT?PAGE=PRODUCT&PROD.ID=4037#info4 I wouldn't think it would be to tough to figure out a alternative. A balanced diet ?
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I was actually looking at their site for the first time yesterday. The first thing I noticed is that most of their stuff is the same as just about any company out there. Except they sell <st1>EMS</st1> machines and everyone else doesn't. haha..
Buying gel packs from one company compared to another.. Hmm.. I think price is the biggest and only real difference, maybe a few % of this or that.
Energy bars.. Matter of preference mostly.. What tastes good to you?
Other additives.. Try putting a little salt in your water bottle and eat a few Tums like mentioned already.
I’m no nutrition professional, but I can read past the marketing hype as well as anyone I’m guessing.<o></o>
I’ve used a little salt in my camelbak a few times with a touch of lemon/lime concentrate. Tastes fine and works well enough. Doesn’t compare to other drink mixes but provides the basics and a slight touch of vitamins.
Buying gel packs from one company compared to another.. Hmm.. I think price is the biggest and only real difference, maybe a few % of this or that.
Energy bars.. Matter of preference mostly.. What tastes good to you?
Other additives.. Try putting a little salt in your water bottle and eat a few Tums like mentioned already.
I’m no nutrition professional, but I can read past the marketing hype as well as anyone I’m guessing.<o></o>
I’ve used a little salt in my camelbak a few times with a touch of lemon/lime concentrate. Tastes fine and works well enough. Doesn’t compare to other drink mixes but provides the basics and a slight touch of vitamins.
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If you are wanting to use the tablets to replace water and electrolytes, a cheaper alternative would be to use Pedialyte or the World Health Organization's oral rehydration solution. Both were designed to prevent dehydration from diarrhea, but also work to replace fluid and electrolytes from sweating. It is easy on the gut and quickly absorbed.
Sweat is primarily water, but also contains, salt (NaCl), potassium, and magnesium. If you are eating a healthy diet that meets potassium and magnesium requirements, I highly doubt that you will lose enough of these elctrolytes through sweat in an average workout to affect performance. (Especially if you're also eating energy bars or gels during the workout.) So likely water with a bit of salt is all that's needed.
Google "WHO oral rehydration formula" and you should get a number of hits on how to mix your own. (Bonus: it's also good for third world travel!)
Sweat is primarily water, but also contains, salt (NaCl), potassium, and magnesium. If you are eating a healthy diet that meets potassium and magnesium requirements, I highly doubt that you will lose enough of these elctrolytes through sweat in an average workout to affect performance. (Especially if you're also eating energy bars or gels during the workout.) So likely water with a bit of salt is all that's needed.
Google "WHO oral rehydration formula" and you should get a number of hits on how to mix your own. (Bonus: it's also good for third world travel!)
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Are you racing, or just riding recreationally? I use more "products" for racing and then endurance/training.
I may use a drink mix of some kind on normal rides and eat primarily trail food, but use less pills, etc.
But, if you are just riding recreationally either cut the dose in half, or just follow what has been said here!
I may use a drink mix of some kind on normal rides and eat primarily trail food, but use less pills, etc.
But, if you are just riding recreationally either cut the dose in half, or just follow what has been said here!
I sweat...a lot. More than anybody I know or have come across. I'll start sweating heavily a quarter mile into my ride. I've tried adding regular salt as well as salt substitute for the potassium (I've tried various amounts). I'm still cramping near the end even though I feel fine. I don't race but my typical rides are 21/2 to 31/2 hrs long. I still carry plain water as well as some type of energy bar/gels for the carb maintenance before/during/after the ride.allison said:
Another problem I have is that I usually get a headache after every ride. Doctor can't find anything wrong and blood work is fine. I notice that I feel "tight" after riding despite maintaining adequate hydration so I'm hoping it's just an electrolyte that's low. So far I've ruled out lack of water, sugar, potassium, and salt. Since there are two kinds of salts and Potassium as well as Magnesium I'm hoping one of three I don't currently get in my own mixtures will be the key or keys I'm missing. I'm taking a Mag. tablet with a multi-vitamin (w/o iron) in the morning but if I sweat it out I still need to replace it.
Electrolytes are probably not the issue as much as lack of water. FWIW, I don't sweat too excessively, yet I go through two 24 oz bottles easily on a 2 hr ride after hydrating well before the ride. Any less and I get cramping, esp in my feet and legs. Only my first bottle might have any kind of salt added.jabpn said:
I have two 32oz bottles that I use. I'll go through one an hour, sometimes 1 1/2 (there are refill points during my ride). I do the same with one bottle (I keep refilling at the points) with a concentrated energy/salt-salt substitute mix.rogerstg said:
I've used it for century rides. It does works. But, it is too expensive to use everyday so I'm back to the original question I posted. I also posted this at MTBR and somebody suggested Nutrabiotic Essential Electrolytes so I'm going to give these a try. There are some differences between Endurolytes but they are very close.HikenBike said:
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Start also taking a calcium pill everyday. Can't hurtjabpn said:
Hubby cramps a lot and I finally made him start taking them and so far so good. We've yet to do an incredibly hard ride (on road or off) in heat, so we'll see when it warms up.You could also check into Elete drops. I use them in my Camelbak/bottles. May or may not be cheaper than the Endurolytes. It's just concentrated sea salt. They stopped me from getting headaches last year, but I'm back to getting headaches again (may be a food deficiency thing, I've yet to diagnose the problem).
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Endurolytes suck. They have very little sodium. For example, one capsule of Endurloytes has 40 mg of sodium. One capsule of Saltstick has 215 mg. Succeed! S caps have 344 mg. Elete water has 125 mg. Endurolytes have 25 mg of potassium per capsule. Saltstick has 63 mg. I forget what Succeed! has. Elete has 45 mg.
The end result is that you need to consume a small handfull of Endurolytes for every one capsule of other providers. When you can get away with one Succeed! capsule per hour, you have to choke down seven or eight Endurolyte capsules. Gagging down a capsule every ten minutes is not my idea of fun.
This might not be too bad if Endurolytes were priced reasonably, but they are not. They are a rip off. You pay a lot more for them than the alternatives. Saltstick costs about the same as Endurloytes, but since you have to take four or five times as many Endurolytes, you are actually paying four or five times as much. Succeed! S caps cost almost half as much as Endurolytes; since you need to take five to eight times as many Endurolytes, you are paying ten to sixteen times more.
Succeed! S Caps cost $10.50 for a hundred capsules. They are probably the most reasonably priced of the various capsules. I personally use a combination of Saltstick and Elete water. Saltstick because they claim their formulation is derived from empirical data about the make up of sweat, and it seems to work for me. Elete because it is very convenient way to add some electrolytes to plain water, which gives a nice baseline of electrolyte intake before even having to think about choking down pills. Saltstick is about $17.50 for a hundred capsules, although I have seen six capsule packages for $0.99, which would come out to less than $20 for 120. I always buy the starter packs of Elete and I cannot remember how much they cost; they include 16 oz. of Elete along with a bunch of smaller packages.
I don't use Endurolytes because I think it is an overpriced crap product and their labelling is mildly deceptive. Every other vendor lists the contents of a single capsule on their bottles. Endurolytes lists the contents of three capsules, making it seem like they contain more than they do. I don't know about their current labels, but the one bottle I still have does not even list the amount of sodium, making it difficult to compare to other products. This misleading labelling destroyed a race of mine once, and I hold a grudge because of it.
As mentioned above, if you don't want to buy one of the specific electrolyte solutions then Morton Lite Salt is cheap, cheap, cheap. Sometimes it is not as convenient, which is pretty much the story of all the alternatives for "high-tech" sports nutrition.
The end result is that you need to consume a small handfull of Endurolytes for every one capsule of other providers. When you can get away with one Succeed! capsule per hour, you have to choke down seven or eight Endurolyte capsules. Gagging down a capsule every ten minutes is not my idea of fun.
This might not be too bad if Endurolytes were priced reasonably, but they are not. They are a rip off. You pay a lot more for them than the alternatives. Saltstick costs about the same as Endurloytes, but since you have to take four or five times as many Endurolytes, you are actually paying four or five times as much. Succeed! S caps cost almost half as much as Endurolytes; since you need to take five to eight times as many Endurolytes, you are paying ten to sixteen times more.
Succeed! S Caps cost $10.50 for a hundred capsules. They are probably the most reasonably priced of the various capsules. I personally use a combination of Saltstick and Elete water. Saltstick because they claim their formulation is derived from empirical data about the make up of sweat, and it seems to work for me. Elete because it is very convenient way to add some electrolytes to plain water, which gives a nice baseline of electrolyte intake before even having to think about choking down pills. Saltstick is about $17.50 for a hundred capsules, although I have seen six capsule packages for $0.99, which would come out to less than $20 for 120. I always buy the starter packs of Elete and I cannot remember how much they cost; they include 16 oz. of Elete along with a bunch of smaller packages.
I don't use Endurolytes because I think it is an overpriced crap product and their labelling is mildly deceptive. Every other vendor lists the contents of a single capsule on their bottles. Endurolytes lists the contents of three capsules, making it seem like they contain more than they do. I don't know about their current labels, but the one bottle I still have does not even list the amount of sodium, making it difficult to compare to other products. This misleading labelling destroyed a race of mine once, and I hold a grudge because of it.
As mentioned above, if you don't want to buy one of the specific electrolyte solutions then Morton Lite Salt is cheap, cheap, cheap. Sometimes it is not as convenient, which is pretty much the story of all the alternatives for "high-tech" sports nutrition.
But Endurolytes are the only ones with the hidden goodness:
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=features/2008/neben_court_case08
http://www.cyclingnews.com/news.php?id=features/2008/neben_court_case08
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