Taking gels on long run a good idea? (Read 1132 times)

Trent will probably weigh in at some point and discuss the physiology side of things.... In the meantime...I generally won't take any gels or sports drink on runs shorter than about 15 miles. But that's me, I know what I can handle. It's not a physiological issue, either, it's more of a...I hate gels issues. If it helps ya, I did an entire marathon without a gel (wait....I had one right before the start, but that was it, I relied on the Gatorade on the course). From what I've read, you CAN get your body to burn more fat than normal. It requires a high-fat diet, and about 6 weeks or so of training. However, the effects of this training start to diminish to the point where there's no real difference between the high-fat and normal diets. The real goal of the long runs is about preparing you both mentally and physically to run those distances. I don't think the ingesting of gels is going to affect the efficiency of your muscles in terms of burning more fat. That comes from training.

With your 12-milers approaching the 2-hour mark, you are getting close to the edge of your fuel window, so it's probably not a bad idea to take a gel or two during your runs to help you stay strong at the end--especially if you plan to start including some faster paced running during your long runs. This will be, as you mentioned, good practice for the marathon itself when you will definitely need to take on some fuel to avoid bonking. For runs shorter than 2 hours there is no need to take gels but if you want to go ahead--you're not doing yourself any harm. While it may be true that your body becomes more efficient at burning fat with training, this is the result of the training itself, not starving yourself of carbs. The notion that muscles become more efficient at burning fats if starved of carbs is popular, but I don't believe it is well supported nor is the benefit significant enough to risk the consequences. The point of doing the run is to get the training benefits. If you need to take on some fuel to complete the run strongly then by all means do so. Bonking and staggering home will do much more harm than good both physically and psychologically. To quote one of my favorite writers on the subject: Trying to hammer along with nothing to draw on is like a biological grinding of gears, and the "sparks" that fly take the form of proteins and stray muscle enzymes glutting the bloodstream in unwelcome amounts. Bottom line: for optimum performance its always a good idea to keep your glycogen stores topped off.

Trying to hammer along with nothing to draw on is like a biological grinding of gears, and the "sparks" that fly take the form of proteins and stray muscle enzymes glutting the bloodstream in unwelcome amounts.

I'd say that quote about sums it up. My car can supposedly go 10,000 miles between oil changes. But I choose not to test that claim. Adding fuel to a long run seems the same, in my rarely humble opinion. I don't think it can hurt. Using gels on runs longer than 1.5-2 hours or so has made a significant difference in my training. If anything, I'm starting to suspect that the opposite of the conventional wisdom is true: I think that by using gels regularly on long runs, I'm now seeing my body respond more efficiently on days when I'm not able to use gels. It's just a theory. Don't quote me. That said, I'm not sure you need to be taking them 3 miles apart. If I were you, I'd take one before leaving the house and one at the halfway point. One key for me was learning how to time the gel so that I took it before actually feeling hungry. The directions on the box work pretty well for me (something like 15 minutes before a run, and every 45-60 minutes after).

Using gels on runs longer than 1.5-2 hours or so has made a significant difference in my training. If anything, I'm starting to suspect that the opposite of the conventional wisdom is true: I think that by using gels regularly on long runs, I'm now seeing my body respond more efficiently on days when I'm not able to use gels. That said, I'm not sure you need to be taking them 3 miles apart. If I were you, I'd take one before leaving the house and one at the halfway point. One key for me was learning how to time the gel so that I took it before actually feeling hungry. The directions on the box work pretty well for me (something like 15 minutes before a run, and every 45-60 minutes after).

Ditto, though I don't take one before I run (though I may do this on a race day), but generally will take the first one at about the 50 minute mark, then another one at 100 minutes if I'm out for 2.5 hours. That was my longest run, so far, so I think as I get closer to a 3 hour run (plan to do that a few weeks before my 25k) I will likely do a third to help me not die in that last half hour. k

To quote one of my favorite writers on the subject: Trying to hammer along with nothing to draw on is like a biological grinding of gears, and the "sparks" that fly take the form of proteins and stray muscle enzymes glutting the bloodstream in unwelcome amounts. Bottom line: for optimum performance its always a good idea to keep your glycogen stores topped off.

Who is that "favorite writer?" Just curious... Also Derek, find out what brand of gel the marathon will be handing out and give it a try. I found that some gels didn't sit in my stomach as well as others and decided to carry my own on a few half-marathons. From what I have read about the Chicago Marathon, they offer PowerGels.

Also Derek, find out what brand of gel the marathon will be handing out and give it a try. I found that some gels didn't sit in my stomach as well as others and decided to carry my own on a few half-marathons. From what I have read about the Chicago Marathon, they offer PowerGels.

I plan to carry whatever gels I'll need so I'm not too concerned about what Chicago would have.

i took gels and use gatorade when i was training for my first and only marathon so far...it definitely helps with training, it probably would have helped me more during the marathon if i'd remember to actually use it that said, now i run up to 12 miles with only water, some days i feel awful, some days i feel great.. i think that its good to run dry some times to see what your body can handle and mentally train yourself to run when you're tired...