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Taking gels on long run a good idea? (Read 1137 times)

JakeKnight


    I once tried to take a gel every 4 miles at a marathon. It did not help.
    Uh, were you stuffed by the time you crossed the finish line? How many days until you were, um, regular? Speaking of flying monkeys - are you gonna have that chewable hard candy Jolly Rancher stuff again? Did I make clear how awesome that was in the last few miles?

    E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
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    JakeKnight


      Ditto, though I don't take one before I run
      Try it some time. You may surprised. Fueling up right before a long run, and then doing it again before the hunger strikes, can work wonders. For me at least. Doesn't have to be a gel, of course. I'm headed out for a run in a bit and I'll probably start with a half a peanut butter sandwich. I tried to take the other half with me once, but there all sorts of issues with that ...

      E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
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      derek


        Try it some time. You may surprised. Fueling up right before a long run, and then doing it again before the hunger strikes, can work wonders. For me at least.
        So people take gels for "hunger"? I find that rather odd since it's not a whole lot of "food". I never actually feel hungry on my runs, but I guess that because of how I eat. I do my long runs at about 7am and run for 2 hours, but I don't ever eat breakfast so I pretty much go from about 9pm (my last snack at night) until noon the following day without eating every day. I guess that's good practice so I don't feel hungry in the mornings.

        Derek

          Who is that "favorite writer?" Just curious...
          Kevin Beck

          Runners run

          JakeKnight


            So people take gels for "hunger"?
            Hunger ... weakness ... fatigue ... no energy ... call it what you will. You'll know it when it happens. The point it is that if you wait until you feel it, you'll be sorry. Although for the record, on long trail runs without gels I have indeed felt just about famished a few times. And after a half marathon in February, I'd downed two slices of Domino's by the time Trent showed up ...

            E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
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            Scout7


              Hunger ... weakness ... fatigue ... no energy ... call it what you will. You'll know it when it happens. The point it is that if you wait until you feel it, you'll be sorry. Although for the record, on long trail runs without gels I have indeed felt just about famished a few times. And after a half marathon in February, I'd downed two slices of Domino's by the time Trent showed up ...
              I agree with the monkey man. It's not like traditional hunger, but you'll definitely know it once you experience it. And it's not always a pleasant experience if you ignore it for too long. Oh, and monkye man, what's pizza without beer?
              nemo1


                It's not a physiological issue, either, it's more of a...I hate gels issues.
                Speaking of which, I think gels are disgusting. They taste like snot. SO, I have found that jelly belly makes some "sport" jelly beans that do pretty much the same thing... and (gasp) they taste good. Otherwise I bring along a granola bar and just eat bits of that.
                zoom-zoom


                rectumdamnnearkilledem

                  Speaking of which, I think gels are disgusting. They taste like snot. SO, I have found that jelly belly makes some "sport" jelly beans that do pretty much the same thing... and (gasp) they taste good. Otherwise I bring along a granola bar and just eat bits of that.
                  Regular Jelly Belly beans are good, too. I was eating them all last Fall and used them during my HM, before I tried GUs. GU is just easier to deal with...no jelly beans littering the roads. I hear gummy bears are good, too, and would definitely taste better than those nasty Cliff Shot Bloks. k

                  Getting the wind knocked out of you is the only way to

                  remind your lungs how much they like the taste of air.    

                       ~ Sarah Kay

                    At my slow pace, if I do not eat just before I run I get hungry at the 6 mile mark. Eating before I run or not, by 12 miles I am done! From there it is just gut it out, and not very pleasent. I have been debating trying the gels and I think I have come to the conclusion that I will. The question is when is a good time to eat?
                    Age is not an illusion
                    JakeKnight


                      Speaking of which, I think gels are disgusting. They taste like snot. SO, I have found that jelly belly makes some "sport" jelly beans that do pretty much the same thing... and (gasp) they taste good. Otherwise I bring along a granola bar and just eat bits of that.
                      Interesting. Funny enough, I don't mind the gels - but I absolutely loathe those faux jelly beans. Different strokes and all that, I guess. They are, however, good for throwing at people during the race. And part of my loathing may stem from the fact that the CMM organizers seem to think that those crappy jelly beans are what belong in a goody bag. Apparently to soften the blow of the crappy t-shirt that you paid $100 for. So maybe my hatred of the jelly beans is a Pavlovian response. But I digress. Move on people. Nothing to see here.

                      E-mail: eric.fuller.mail@gmail.com
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                        On all my long runs > 10 mi, I eat a gu 10 - 15 mins before I start, then chase down with 6-8 oz of water. Yep the stuff is pretty nasty, especially the vanilla. I'll be glad when that box is empty. Saturday I ran the longest i've ever ran: 13.1. I made sure I added the .1 at the end. At about 7 1/2 miles, I pulled out another gu and started choking it down. First time i've ever ran and ate; tough!! Took over 1/4 mile to finish it. Chased it with the gatorade mix I had in my camel back, and I almost drained it getting the sticky taste out of my mouth. Well don't know if the GU helped or not, but I was able to run a reverse negative split and finish in just over 2hr. My goal for my hm has been to break 2hr. Now that I have ran the distance, and am only a couple minutes from reaching the time goal, I feel really good about the race. So i'll keep eating the gu and make sure to have some with me on the race.


                        madness baby

                          Hunger ... weakness ... fatigue ... no energy ... call it what you will. You'll know it when it happens. The point it is that if you wait until you feel it, you'll be sorry.
                          I hit this point during a marathon and was just starving. I had been taking gels and just really wished I had a sandwich with me. I was grabbing pretzels and carrying them for a while, trying to get them down and help my hunger pains. It wasn't fun. I learned that gels do not work for real hunger. I eat every 2 hours, so why would I think I could run for 5 without something to replace a full meal?!!
                          deb
                            I use gels on runs over 1.5 hours. After (properly) using them the benefit was worth the sticky fingers and interesting aftertaste. Although I did have a bad experience with gels during a half-marathon last year. When I hit the 6 mile marker I accidentally dropped my ClifSHOT, but thought nothing of it because I knew that the race sponsors were providing gels later in the run. When I reached that point I saw that they were GU packets. I never used the product so I didn't recognize the coloring for the different flavors. I saw the brown packaging and thought CHOCOLATE! But, it was the Espresso with 2 TIMES THE CAFFEINE! Dead This did not go well with my empty stomach. I was light-headed and nauseous by the end of the run... And craving donuts for some reason? Wink
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