Gels (Read 957 times)

Alright, as my start to running as come a long way in the last 7 months, I think I might be getting to the point in my long runs where it would be good to have a gel. I do not quite understand them, though, I just know they are an energy source for longer runs. I'm getting to the 11 mile range and plan on doing a 12 miler this week. Should I be taking a gel during this run? What kinds of gels does everyone reccomend? How many does one usually take? Should I also bring water now on long runs or does the gel take care of hydration? All sorts of questions. Any information would be great. I've been on different gel brand's sites but they are all sort of confusing. Besides, would rather have the opinions of all of you guys Thanks

It is definitely trial and error. There are a lot of different types and flavors out there. My personal preference is CarbBoom apple cinnamon flavor. To me it tastes the best and is not as thick as other gels I have tried. You do definitely have to have a drink with them (at least I do) otherwise you are risking some stomach issues. Mine tends to cramp up towards the end of a long run if I dont drink enough with the gels. As for duration, the gels will tell you to eat one every half hour to 45 minutes during a long run. Again, that is kind of a personal preference. I typically only take them on runs longer than 2 hours and will take one every hour or so.

You don't really need carbs for runs less than 16-20 miles, but you do need fluids and electrolytes. You might want to take them, if it helps you get a better workout and prepare you for longer runs. In a race I start at about 10k then 200 calories per hour of sports drink. Just try different ones until you find a brand and flavor that you can stomach. I have found that I can't stand the thought of a sweet, gooey gel after about the two-hour mark, that's why I carry a bottle with sports drink (Hammer Perpeturm). Or in an ultra, boiled potatoes dipped in salt. Yum!

Sunday and 20 miles 2 weeks ago without any gels, just Gatorade. Like people said above, it takes playing with to get it right for you. I drink Gatorade all the way through my runs, some water mixed in. You must drink water with your gels to help them be digestible. If not, they actually will de-hydrate you. More info here on all gels and water, not just crank products: http://www.cranksports.com/products/eGel/ I have tried many types of gels and can "stomach" two. GU and Crank eGel is what I use the most. Anything with caffeine in the gel sits like a bomb in my stomach and the cliff gels gave me horrible stomach cramps. Someone said because its brown rice based, who knows, but stomach cramps that make you want to literally double over while you are running, is no darn fun. So definitely try products and see what works for you. I also like the Crank eFuel, you just won't find to many races that hand it out and so I try to be used to Gatorade and Poweraide. As for timing of gels, I work backwards. For my marathon I figure to take 2-3 gels, so I subtract from 26.2 and figure I will take one at 20 miles, one at 14 miles, not sure I will take one at 8 miles or not. The whole thing about hydration and fuel, you must get on it early, once you are behind, it is very difficult to catch up, in very hot weather, you probably can not catch up. It is a science, even for the pro runners. They talked about Brain Sell during the Olympic trials that after one race he felt so bad and did not perform up to his wishes, so they totally revamped his hydration and when he would take gels. Seemed to work with his unbelievable trials effort.

... Besides, would rather have the opinions of all of you guys

You don't *need* gels or any other carbs on training runs until they get longer. For some that would be 18 - 20 miles, for others 30 miles... It just depends on how you train and what you're training for. Remember, *training* runs are to train your body. For races of 15 - 20 miles or more, you will benefit if you have trained the body's fat metabolism so you don't just burn up all your carbs and crash. Ingesting carbs on your long runs just prevents the stimulus to the body which causes it to adapt by developing your fat-burning mechanisms. It defeats the purpose of using the long run to build endurance by training the body to burn fat. For myself, I no longer ingest any carbs on my long runs. It's a good morale booster to finish a 20+ mile run with no carb input. Then in a long race, after the fat metabolism is fully engaged (40 minutes or so?) use whatever agrees with you (in moderation, of course.) Some folks, like "formationflier", routinely run marathons with zero carb input. You do need water replacement and electrolyte replacement, even in training. I use Endurolyte capsules, especially in the summer, for electrolyte replacement. I've heard one coach say that if you start taking gels, etc whenever you get to the 12-13 mile point, they will become a crutch, you will get to depend on them, and your body won't be trained to run without them.

There are stupid questions asked in life, but yours wasn't one of them, not even by a long shot.