Mid ride nutrition - energy

I try not to eat anything before or mid-ride containing lots of fat as it seems to slow down my digestion. In no particular order, I eat jam & banana sandwiches, Soreen, Clif Bloks (These were the fiver a box PSA ones), Jelly Babies, Haribo Starmix/Goldbears & lastly my wifes cycle cake. If Im desperate all bets are off and anything is fair game :o)

There’s a very interesting recipe in the GCN cookbook for a very high energy “drink” (so thick it’s more like a gel). I’ve only used it a couple of times but really like it.

For intense rides I want sugar. I tend to buy what ever jelly sweets that are on special at Tesco and rotate them with bits of fruit so things like bananas, dates etc. I also buy pouches of stewed fruit, they normally marketed for kids, as they have a longer shelf life than real fruit so are useful for unplanned rides.

I'm normally a bit of a chocoholic but avoid it when riding - anything chocolaty in my pockets turns into a gooey mess that's neither appetising nor pleasant to eat. Stuff like clif bars, flapjack and trail mix keep me going, with the occasional cake stop if there's a convenient cafe.

It's hard to beat a banana.

Depends how hard the ride is an how long.

If the ride is long I will try to start on something a bit more solid. Bars and things. As a long ride goes on I get less able to stomach this stuff so I move onto things like energy blocks, chews and things. As a last hurrah I'll move onto gels for when I lose the ability to chew anything other than the stem. Would normally also use energy drink, concentration based on how much I'm likely to drink - weaker if its hot and I'll get through a lot.

On something around an hour (25m TT, CX) I'll have a bottle of energy drink during warmup. A bar a couple of minutes before the start.

XC races of 90minutes I went for full strength energy juice and a couple of gels. 30 and 60 minutes. Bar before the start.

Road races of a couple of hours and similar mtb stuff I'd normally go on full strength juice and gels. Not as bothered about an upset stomach so it's fine. I also found that when I tried bars I'd always be trying to chew when someone attacked. Gels etc. were easier to handle full gas.

Sweets and stuff work but I don't find that easy to open and eat in a race (hard ride not so much of a problem as you can ease off a bit). I like clif bloks when I find them on offer. Lucho Dillitos are probably a favourite but I bought loads when they were on sports pursuit. less keen at full price.

Bars I just get from the supermarket. I have some chiacharge flapjacks and veloforte bars as well because they are really nice, if a little expensive.

Chocolate is a no for me. Mostly because it leaves me thirsty and would be hard to eat.

I've found when doing multi day rides I eat a lot of chocolate bars. They're easy to obtain and very calorific.
Normal mtb rides, cliff bars are great.
Racing; gels, drinks and bananas.

Maltloaf. Waterproof packet, cheap, loads of carbs. Fits in a pocket and squashable.

Haribo loose in baggy shorts pockets. Stuff a couple in your mouth whenever you're spinning up a hill, keeps you going forever

Carbohydrate powder in bottles for me. It's very cheap, cheaper than sweets, easily digestible, no tummy issues if I mix it a bit weaker than max strength. Easier than eating sweets too and I say that as someone who can eat a lot of sweets.

Chocolate is a bit rubbish because whilst delicious it's got a lot of fat which makes it harder and slower to digest, and takes more energy from your legs. I have chocolate at garage stops though if I am on a long ride.

I never use gels though as they are way too expensive and you need loads to keep yourself fully topped up.