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is there a cheap alternative to the likes of torq, hi5, sis etc etc??
looking for a tub that i can put spoonfuls into a bladder etc?
is there anything cheaper non branded and not awful tasting out there compared to the above?
Boots does their own range of powdered Energy/Isotonic/Recovery drinks that on the face of it appear to be cheaper per litre than SIS etc.
It's orange flavour, not a taste sensation but not completely horribly either IMO.
Last time I looked it was about £6.50 a tub whereas the equivalent SIS was £8 or £9 from my LBS. HTH
Make your own
50/50 water & fresh orange juice, plus 1/2 tsp salt per litre
(unless you believe all the hype & you're convinced it's really worth paying £££'s for the poncy scientifically formulated stuff designed for proper finely tuned athletes at their physical peak)
You can make your own for a fraction of the price of the commercial stuff. Myprotein.co.uk has everything you need. Maltodextrin, fructose, electrolytes are the important ingredients. Mix 2:1 malto:fruc. You can also add some whey protein powder which is meant to be beneficial for endurance riding (4:1 where 1 is the whey, 4 is the other stuff)...although I find whey just bloats me out massively in a drink mix. Flavour with a dash of fruit juice or whatever if you like.
Myprotein.co.uk
You need/want:
Some maltodextrin (which is about 20 sugar molecules bonded together) which breaks down as quickly as sucrose but doesn't taste anywhere near as sweet and doesnt give stomach cramps to most people/
Fructose, add this in protortion about 25% fructose, 75% maltodextrin to make up a 1.5% solution (15g in total per litre of water). By using a mixture you can get away with less without your body noticing, using just maltodextrin on its own requires a 4% solution which obviously has many more claories.
Some people add 1 part whey protein as well to 4 parts carbs which gives it a higher insulin response, good for absorbing the carbs quickly, not so great for burning fat as insulin promotes carb burning.
No idea what happens if you used fructose and protein in a mixture, I suspect you'd have a lot of energy quickly, but then bonk as you run out of carbs.
5% off with code MP200391
Make your own50/50 water & fresh orange juice, plus 1/2 tsp salt per litre
(unless you're convinced it's really worth paying £££'s for the poncy scientifically formulated stuff)
Well, my recipie is cheeper than tesco value OJ, and IME works better, a win win really.
cheers for the ideas folks - id like to think i could make my own, but in reality i probably make a shit job of it, and waste money doing it wrong etc....then have to buy some more anyways 🙁
is there any pre-made cheaper ones on my protein??
thisisnotaspoon - what exacly would i need to buy then? do you have a breakdown of bits to buy as i have no idea what those things are you are talking about 😆
maltodextrin (1kg bag)
fructose (250g bag)
Whey protein (unflavoured, 1kg)
Electrolyte (they only do small bags)
Some digital kitchen scales.
2 recipies:
High calorie:
40g maltodextrin, 10g whey protein, tiny ammount of elelectrlyte (tip of a teaspoon, less than you'd put on your chips) per litre.
Low calorie:
10g maltodextrin, 5g fructose, same electrolyte, per litre.
Add orange squash etc to taste.
It can give some people stomach cramps, if it does, dilute it by 10% each ride untill they stop.
5% off with code MP200391
cheers thisisnotaspoon!
ill have a lookinto it!
+1 on MyProtein maltodextrin. Definitely the cheapest way to go especially if you use a lot (like I do). The simplest energy mixture is 15-20g per 250ml of water (6-8% recommended carb concentration), with a pinch of salt and some fruit squash to your own taste.
Fructose and whey protein are used in some commercial energy drinks like High 5 but they don't make any appreciable difference unless you are entering endurance events over several hours.
I use the whey protein before and after a long ride for recovery because it makes the drink too creamy for on the ride.
Definitely the cheapest way to go especially if you use a lot (like I do). The simplest energy mixture is 15-20g per 250ml of water (6-8% recommended carb concentration), with a pinch of salt and some fruit squash to your own taste.
Should have said, if you have no stomach problems with 4% you can add more of the ingredients untill you do, those ammounts I gave are just what works for me, I found 6% gave me cramps.
make your own... there is no magic going on in the expensive stuff.
I had a chap come in the shop, in a lycra skinsuit and asked where the powerbars were? I laughed and offered him a custard cream.... apparently its not the same.
Should have said, if you have no stomach problems with 4% you can add more of the ingredients untill you do, those ammounts I gave are just what works for me, I found 6% gave me cramps.
Good advice thisisnotaspoon and obviously you need to watch other things you eat when considering the percentage of carbohydrate to fluid to prevent stomach cramps. I don't seem to suffer from this and am probably consuming around 10% on rides including solids.
I just aim for 350-400calories/hour* on a long ride, if it's hot that generaly means more drink/less solids, over the winter it'll be pretty much all solids.
*unless I'm being healthy and trying to lose weigh in which case the low calorie version with fructose has the off effect of giving the feeling of having loads of energy without actualy consuming much at all (about 50calories in a 750ml bottle).
Have a look here:
I should point out I havent tried any of these, their on my ever expanding "get round to that at some point" list lol.
Maybe next payday though if nothing else crops up in between
You only need plain maltodextrin really. It's cheaper than orange juice, Haribo, pork pies and just about any real foodstuff I reckon.
5kg £15 should last you a while 🙂
That's all there is to it really. Carbs is what you need. The other stuff helps *a bit* but nothing like as much as being well fuelled.
5kg of maltodextrin is only £12.49 from MyProtein and even with £3.95 postage that is cheap. You won't pay any postage at the moment if the order value is over £50.
http://www.myprotein.com/uk/products/maltodextrin#
I usually club together with my mates when I put in an order to avoid the postage.