What do you keep in your bottles and bring for a snack on longer rides? I'm a mountain biker and buying a road bike in the coming weeks that I'd like to eventually start racing with. When I go on longer(2-3hrs) rides I generally fill my Camelback with 60oz water and bring a Cliff bar. For road biking I Was thinking of going with 1 water, 1 Gatorade, a cliff bar, and maybe some raisins. I was wondering what everyone else carries and if what I'm planning to bring is sufficient? Are the powder mixes any good? Should I drink one bottle before the other?
What do you eat and drink?
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Though depends on weather, usually 1 bottle of water, HEED, or Secret Drink Mix per hour. Raisins are good for snacks. I also might have granola bars, rice cakes, GU gel, or other stuff.
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Yoghurt and ice lollies
maybe a cheese chorizo sandwich.
maybe a cheese chorizo sandwich.
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7,161 Posts
For ride longer than 1.5-2 hrs, the rule of thumb is to eat ~100 calories every 1/2 hour starting 1/2 hour into the ride. Calories in drinks count. Bananas are good; small or 1/2 energy bars, gels, fig newtons, Twizzlers, Snickers, dried fruit....all OK. At four+ hours consider some small/moderate amount of protein and fats such as nuts, mini sandwiches, hard boiled egg, etc...
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I typically ride from 2-3 hours and I like to go out early in the morning, so the first thing that I do is have a substantial breakfast about an hour before I start riding. I drink Gatorade at half strength (full strength is too sweet IMO) during the ride and will have a Clif bar midway through the ride. That gets me through the ride just fine, and then after the ride I make sure that I keep hydrating.
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507 Posts
Don't forget the EPO!
Seriously, it depends on what your stomach can tolerate. Myself and a lot of other people I've talked to have very sensitive stomachs on longer rides, and the higher the intensity the more sensitive they become.
For that reason, I go with a mostly liquid nutrition (my own version of Perpetueum) along with some of Alan Lim's rice cakes. For the Perpetueum, I mix a 3 hour bottle and take a swig every 15 minutes. Plain water in my other bottle. And, the rice cakes (biker sushi) work for me if I want some real food.
Experiment and see what works for you personally, but complex carbs are better than simple carbs along some protien during the ride. Simple carbs with protein from whey or eggs for recovery.
Oh yeah, and I always carry a flask of gel--just in case I need a lil pick-me-up. Hammer huckleberry!
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697 Posts
I pop one stick of Trident Spearmint or Orange flavor chewing gum. And fill my water bottle with roughly a 60/40 mix of Water and Cranberry Juice. My rides these days are short, seldom more than 20 miles, so I never bring food.
In case you didn't know the sugar in those energy drinks, like Gatorade taken long term do rot your teeth. They should be diluted if you drink them.
In case you didn't know the sugar in those energy drinks, like Gatorade taken long term do rot your teeth. They should be diluted if you drink them.
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335 Posts
Up to 2 hrs usually water. I always take a package or two of shot blocks with me just in case I go a bit longer. Over two hours at a fast pace I will use perpeteum 3-4 hour bottle with other being water. If it is a long endurance paced ride, I might stop for a triple cheese buger along the way.
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908 Posts
Two hours or more and I do a bottle of CR333 every hour. I can take nothing but that and ride all day.
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21,725 Posts
I used to put energy drinks in my bottles but found multiple problems with that approach and now use only "food taken by mouth." Energy drinks inevitably get sticky gunk all over your frame, tend to make your bottles go moldy, make it impossible to pour water over your head when it's really hot or otherwise rinse the sweat off, make it hard to balance hydration and calorie intake when the weather is drastically different, and leave you without anything to clean road rash or wash your hands after fixing a flat.
If you're going slow enough and are properly fueld before the ride starts you might be able to make it to 3 hours without any food but most people are going to need some calories after about 90 minutes. Anything you like to eat is fine. Energy bars, gels, etc. are just expensive calories but many people like the convenience. Don't forget electrolytes in warmer weather. For me I'll take a short break on a 3 hour ride and have a Coke and some salted nuts. If I'm going some distance I'll be eating salted fig bars every 40 minutes or so and then taking in some more serious calories at a mid-ride break. You have to figure out what works for you and what works for you might not work for somebody else.
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Wow, people still eat those gawd awful things. The only thing good about them is that they will stick to your top tube.
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If it isn't meal time.... I don't eat.
If I ever get down to one or two percent body fat like the pros... I may reconsider my dependence on using my own fat reserves. I used to be obese.... I am now well within normal weight limits. I have cycled and eaten (for energy replacement of course) in the past and actually gained weight.
The normal four or five hours between meals isn't much of a stress for my body. I understand the fear of bonking out.... but haven't found that to be an issue.
Mostly I just drink water. But on really warm days I often take a flavored drink to make easier to chug down. I select the drink flavor.... based on my jersey color.
If I ever get down to one or two percent body fat like the pros... I may reconsider my dependence on using my own fat reserves. I used to be obese.... I am now well within normal weight limits. I have cycled and eaten (for energy replacement of course) in the past and actually gained weight.
The normal four or five hours between meals isn't much of a stress for my body. I understand the fear of bonking out.... but haven't found that to be an issue.
Mostly I just drink water. But on really warm days I often take a flavored drink to make easier to chug down. I select the drink flavor.... based on my jersey color.
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3,890 Posts
Yep, my routine exactly. Well, TBH, I have been known to go on that two-hour ride in the morning, forgetting my water bottle, and deciding it's not worth it to turn around to get it. I was o.k., but I'd still advise against that...
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Assuming you have 1500 calories stored in your muscle glycogen and that you burn 600 calories per hour riding and you get 200 calories per hour from fat metabolism then theoretically you can go 5 hours before you completely delet your glycogen stores. In practice most riders will see performance start to drop off after 90 minutes and bonk well before 5 hours. Once you are burning only fat (bonked) you can go about 12 mph.
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