I have been making my own energy gels this season.
I have tried in the past without much success but I persevered this year experimenting with a variety of ingredients. Finally, I have come up with a recipe that I like, and sustains my energy.
These are the ingredients:
- Juice of 1 medium Lemon
- Juice of 1 Lime
- 4 larges Dates
- Large handful of Raisons
- A tablespoon of Peanut Butter
- A tablespoon of Salt
- 1 cup of Water (the water used to soak the dates and raisons)
- 1/4 cup of filtered, black Coffee
I soak the dates and raisons in water, usually overnight, add the juice from a medium lemon and lime, add a tablespoon of peanut butter and salt, some coffee, blend until smooth, and then pour into 2-3 squeeze tubes.
They work. They are easy to consume, and considering I’m on the bike most days, save me a lot of money on packaged gels and Cliff Bars.
I consume one tube every 1-2 hours along with 1/2 – 3/4 of a bottle of water depending on my effort and the weather.
Today they weren’t enough.
I just returned from a 4 hour, hilly ride in the heat. It is 27 degrees Celsius here with a light SW 10 km/hr wind. I took 2 gel tubes and 2 homemade rice squares (that’s a story for another time) and needed more. I felt like I was “bonking” after 90 minutes but after stopping to devour a rice square I felt much better, at least for the next 90 minutes. I consumed everything I had including 2 bottles of water but definitely needed more. The difference today was the wind, frequent hills, and the heat.
Next time, I’ll pack more. Better to have too much on hand than not enough.
If you have a recipe you are happy with, I would love to hear about it.
PedalWORKS 
They sound good Gary. Might give them a go 👌🏼
Oh, sounds good, will try that out
Definitely 😉
Great tip. I am going to have to try that! 🙂
They work. Do give it a try and let me know what you think.
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