Gag me!! Anyone using Maurten gels?

[AngryScientist]

I follow some online running people who seem to like the Maurten gels. Picked up a couple at the LRS (local running shop) and took a couple out on a running workout this afternoon.

OMG

I've never had a gel with a texture like this before. It feels like you need to chew the stuff, I almost gagged and threw up with the completely foreign mouth feel. I got one down because I knew I needed the nutrition or the remainder of my workout would not go well, but they are definitely weird to me!

The good news is my belly seemed fine with them once I got it down.

Anyone use and like these? Are all the gels the same in that regard?

Filed under: unpleasant surprises today!

[Spdntrxi]

long time SIS user who switched to Maurten for gels and on bike fuel. Yes the texture is different for both, but for me they are not a sweet as SIS for example which I like. The fuel is a pain in the arse to mix though.

[JWB475]

All of their gels are like that. I am fine with the texture, but can see how it might not be appealing to some.

I love the fact that they are not insanely sweet, and after a hard ride/race when I have had quite a few gels my teeth don't feel like they are going to rot out of my head.

[dustyrider]

I’m all in with untapped maple syrup or honey sticks. I’m not trying to set any KOMs!

[yarbsr02]

I'm with you, felt like it was somewhere between Vaseline and a gelatin (like one that could stand up on its own). Much better when not so surprised on round 2.

[kppolich]

I'm strongly on the side of eating real food unless you are a sponsored athlete or racing where you need quick calories for performance reasons. Never felt better since I stopped with the gels and drink mixes and took care of my daily nutrition macros first.

[LadyDog]

Originally Posted by kppolich

I'm on the side of eating real food

I'm kind of in this camp.

[Spdntrxi]

Originally Posted by LadyDog

I'm kind of in this camp.

if everyone stops during a race, count me in.

[Cyzemup]

I had the same experience with the Maurten drink mix. Gut did fine, but it was a struggle to not vomit initially.

[flying]

Not to be a wet blanket but.......

Look at the ingredients...
Water
Sugar
Fructose
Calcium Carbonate
(It works by reducing the amount of acid in the stomach. It belongs to a group of medications called antacids.)

Gluconic Acid
(Gluconic acid and its salts have been used for many applications such as in household cleaner, in industrial cleaner, in inks, paints, dyes, for metal finishing, as paper/textile auxiliaries and in water treatment)

Sodium Alginate
(alginate is used as a thickening agent, gelling agent, emulsifier, stabilizer, texture-improver. ) Guess not in this case for Angry

Kidding aside though I have choked down tone of gels & bars over the decades of Tri & Cycling & I wonder if we realize what we hobby/sports folks are doing to our bodies?

I'm older now get things like Calcium Heart scans & Ultrasound carotid scans & see although we look great on the outside some of our insides do not look great & maybe didn't respond well to this much sugar in our blood etc

Just IMO but....Nothing wrong with whole foods for most of us & this gel type merchandised stuff is just over priced over processed sugars we have gotten used to.

Not meaning to preach of offend but just warn others of things I wished I knew when younger

[Clean39T]

Maple syrup in a Gu squeeze pouch with a pinch of salt and squeeze of lemon if you’re fancy does the trick too.. and much less waste. Costco Organic Maple Syrup is quite tasty.

But I don’t mind the Maureen. Reminds me of tapioca pudding.

[flying]

Originally Posted by kppolich

I'm strongly on the side of eating real food unless you are a sponsored athlete or racing where you need quick calories for performance reasons. Never felt better since I stopped with the gels and drink mixes and took care of my daily nutrition macros first.

Exactly
Sorry I didn't see your post before I posted as I would just say +1

[jimoots]

Originally Posted by kppolich

I'm strongly on the side of eating real food unless you are a sponsored athlete or racing where you need quick calories for performance reasons. Never felt better since I stopped with the gels and drink mixes and took care of my daily nutrition macros first.

The physics of consuming 60-100g of sugar in an hour through real food is quite difficult if you're doing more than an hour.

E.g. you get 60g of sugar from 100g of dates. Or 10g of sugar from 100g of banana. So on and so forth. Lot of food to carry.

But more to the point. What even is 'real food'?

At the end of the day a gel is sugar mixed up with some liquid and a flavouring, sometimes a little bit of salt. Seriously, take a look at any gel packet ingredients. Incredibly simple stuff. The high tech packaging makes us think its some future food or something. The margin must be insane.

I'm planning on experimenting making my own gels with a soft flask thingy. Sugar, water, salt. If it works I might buy some malto to try and get the malto/fructose ratio closer to optimum than standard sugar.

The appeal is that you don't have to tear gels open mid race... and when you stuff it back in your pocket with a tiny little bit left it doesn't leak all over you.

[BdaGhisallo]

Originally Posted by jimoots

The physics of consuming 60-100g of sugar in an hour through real food is quite difficult if you're doing more than an hour.

E.g. you get 60g of sugar from 100g of dates. Or 10g of sugar from 100g of banana. So on and so forth. Lot of food to carry.

But more to the point. What even is 'real food'?

At the end of the day a gel is sugar mixed up with some liquid and a flavouring, sometimes a little bit of salt. Seriously, take a look at any gel packet ingredients. Incredibly simple stuff. The high tech packaging makes us think its some future food or something. The margin must be insane.

I'm planning on experimenting making my own gels with a soft flask thingy. Sugar, water, salt. If it works I might buy some malto to try and get the malto/fructose ratio closer to optimum than standard sugar.

The appeal is that you don't have to tear gels open mid race... and when you stuff it back in your pocket with a tiny little bit left it doesn't leak all over you.

Have a look at Dr Alex Harrison's YT channel. You might find something interesting in what he promotes for fueling. He posts a lot over in the Slowtwitch forum.

He's a proponent of using table sugar and sodium citrate to formulate your own energy drink.


https://www.youtube.com/@SaturdayPro...dration/videos

[oldguy00]

If you like untapped and want to save a ton of money, buy a re-usable flask like the one below, and a jug of pure maple syrup from costco. Fill. Holds about 5 'gels' worth. Add a little salt if you like.

https://hammernutrition.ca/products/gel-flask