Nutrition and interval training

As my training increases I have been thinking more and more about nutrition - on the bike and off. This has lead me to experiment with gels, and I have come up with my own recipe that is a close facimile of the Clif Shot apple pie. The main ingredient in Clif Shot gel is brown rice syrup which is an excellent base for gels - it has a good mix of complex and simple carbohydrates and electrolytes. The combination of high and low glycemic index sugars means that you get immediate and sustained energy. The electrolytes help with water absorption and prevents cramping. Clif Shot also has additional electrolytes and flavoring.

The brown rice syrup I had already had more potassium and sodium than the Clif Shot so I figured I could go without any addition electrolytes. All I had to do was figure out the flavoring. A combination of apple juice, lemon juice, cinnamon and allspice came pretty close to replicating the Clif Shot. It was a little less tart but still quite palatable (for a gel anyway).

Anyway, here's the recipe:

* 8 tablespoons of brown rice syrup
* 1 tablespoon of apple juice
* 1/2 teaspoon of lemon juice
* 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
* a touch of allspice

Stir all the ingredients together in a sauce pan over low heat until combined.

I had planned to do some interval training last night, so after I finished making the gel I poured it into a flask and headed to the park. I figured that using the gel during an hour of interval training would be a good test - if it was bad I wouldn't need it to continue my training and if it was good it certainly wouldn't hurt to use it.

It turned out that it worked pretty well. I'd take a shot of gel during each rest interval followed by some water. It tasted alright and I never felt like I was running out of energy. The only problem was that it was a bit thick. It was rather cool last night and by the end of my ride it was getting pretty hard to squeeze it out of the flask.