Source of Maltodextrin

[BobCochran]

Where can I buy maltodextrin? I understand it is good fuel for long rides.

Thanks

Bob

Topic

[Vicegrip]

Might be a good idea to be sure you are in need of a recovery in the first place too. Why suffer through dish soap, packets of goop and the green bug juice trots when not called for? I suspect many of us overestimate exercise amount and intensity. We read what the TdF level folks do and emulate all but the work out part. I think modern metric tracking gear helps some when used properly.

[BobCochran]

@Harry Meatmotor 146682 wrote:

Seriously, Bob, this stuff tastes truly awful (and I’ve tried every flavor). Try some (12-20oz) protein fortified chocolate milk (available at most 7-Elevens) to get a good 3-4:1 carb to protein mix. Or, just mix a scoop of maltodextrin with 16oz chocolate milk and a tablespoon of cane sugar and a pinch of salt. It’s important you get any recovery drink into your belly within 60 minutes of the end of a ride; within 30 minutes is preferable. Then, another snack sized serving of complex carbs and protein in solid food within another 1-1.5 hours. E.g., a 1/4 cup of salted, boiled red skinned potatoes and an egg or 2. Maybe add an 8oz banana-and-milk smoothie or some cherry juice and seltzer water in for some additional micronutrients. Then back to your normal feed schedule.

Thank you! I had not thought about that!

Bob

[Harry Meatmotor]

@Vicegrip 146697 wrote:

I suspect many of us overestimate exercise amount and intensity.

I blame Bicycling Magazine: “EVERYONE MUST TO EAT 250kCal/hr TO NOT DIE ON EPIC BIKE RIDING”

(never mind you’re only averaging 10.7 mph…)

(oh, and make sure you do coffee and scones things before and after riding!!!)

Fear of bonking is over stressed.

[hozn]

Yeah, fear is booking is probably overdone. I don’t bother bringing food unless it is a > 2hr hammerfest or > 4hr more casual ride. But bonking certainly happens and it sucks when it does; one tends to not want to let that happen again. On the endurance rides I try to eat a few hundred calories per hour. Ensure (or Boost or generic brand) works well for me; easy to drink while riding and quick to process. Real food is nice on long rides too. Actually my favorite thing to eat toward the end of long rides are poptarts. Not sure that would count as a “real food”, thougb.

[Kitty]

Somewhere in the backroads of Virginia in the middle of the RVA2DC ride this past July, I came to the realization of why someone who never got into athletics has come to love distance cycling. It simply combines three things I really enjoy: traveling to interesting places, riding my bike, and eating a bunch of food! 😎

As a small woman, the daily caloric needs aren’t much (lame) so I’d been in the habit of working out in order to eat, not eat in order to work out. Once I started training for distance, one of the biggest things I needed to learn was that I actually needed to eat on rides–and not just an apple! The second thing I needed to learn was while protein and fiber were what I usually looked for in foods for my general diet, I now need carbs in a big way.

Overtime I’ve built up a pattern based around portable food:

• Under an hour/15 miles: bottle of water
• 1st hour break: small/med apple
• 2nd hour break: granola/cereal/energy bar (usually something that was given out at an event–like KIND bars)
• 3rd hour break: raisins/another bar
• 4+ hours: lunch/special treat stop, additional snacks like above
• Final break: GU or similar gel for ease of digestion and caffeine shot

The above applies to my “self supported” training rides and is partially limited by what I can carry. I do train with my commuter gear, which includes a rack, so sometimes I will back a bento or a sandwhich lunch.

The important thing is I try walk the balance between refueling to keep going, but not eating too much. I haven’t experimented much with the fancy things (I just bought NUUN tabs for the first time this summer). If the body needs sugar though, I’d rather eat something like a snack than a supplement. But then again, being able to eat more than I otherwise would is part of the fun for me.

[huskerdont]

@hozn 146731 wrote:

Yeah, fear is booking is probably overdone. I don’t bother bringing food unless it is a > 2hr hammerfest or > 4hr more casual ride. But bonking certainly happens and it sucks when it does; one tends to not want to let that happen again.

This is spot on for me. I can ride, say, from Purcellville to Arlington without a problem almost every time. Almost. Every now and then I’ll get surprised. My arms will get all weak and shaky and I’ll get woozy. The legs, for some reason, just sort of keep going on their own though in in a reduced capacity. Happened to a minor extent at Monster Cross when my Cytomax bottle flew out on the first lap. So it’s good to be prepared with some solid food, just in case, even though I hardly ever eat it. (When they open French fry stands along my routes, that will change.)

The only time I find I need a recovery drink is after a long, hard ride in the summer; I’m not completely certain I need it, but blended berries and bananas with some rum added has become an evening tradition after summer rides. I recently picked up some Skratch (to replace the Cytomax) thanks to recommendations here. The summer is gone, but I’ll probably try it soon anyway. It’s in packets so should hopefully survive until next year.

Bit of a hijacked thread, yes, but Bob doesn’t seem to be the type of person to mind that sort of thing.

[Vicegrip]

@huskerdont 146762 wrote:

This is spot on for me. I can ride, say, from Purcellville to Arlington without a problem almost every time. Almost. Every now and then I’ll get surprised. My arms will get all weak and shaky and I’ll get woozy. The legs, for some reason, just sort of keep going on their own though in in a reduced capacity. Happened to a minor extent at Monster Cross when my Cytomax bottle flew out on the first lap. So it’s good to be prepared with some solid food, just in case, even though I hardly ever eat it. (When they open French fry stands along my routes, that will change.)

The only time I find I need a recovery drink is after a long, hard ride in the summer; I’m not completely certain I need it, but blended berries and bananas with some rum added has become an evening tradition after summer rides. I recently picked up some Skratch (to replace the Cytomax) thanks to recommendations here. The summer is gone, but I’ll probably try it soon anyway. It’s in packets so should hopefully survive until next year.

Bit of a hijacked thread, yes, but Bob doesn’t seem to be the type of person to mind that sort of thing.

I have experienced this After stopping to eat during a longer ride a time or two.
Feel like I am bonking out but I regain after a while of just riding along easy. I wonder if it has something to do with shifting back and forth between glycogen and fat burn.

[BobCochran]

Thanks so much everyone! I feel rather like Tania and Kitty do: if I don’t eat on a long ride, I will not do well. I’ve had that reality kicked into me my last 2 long rides. I definitely was not eating enough and I was rapidly wilting. I need to experiment and organize a feeding schedule/feeding regimen that works for me.

So far no one has mentioned buying freeze-dried meals like chicken and rice in those sealed baggies. Of course they require carrying water and one needs some way to boil the water. And the freeze dried meal options seem really high in sodium. Perhaps they are a good idea?

I really appreciate all the viewpoints. Now if only I can organize better and discipline myself into buying foods and actually eating them at the right time, in the right amounts.

Bob

[UnknownCyclist]

The ultimate recovery drink is 40 ounces of malt liquor, two if necessary.

[Judd]

@UnknownCyclist 146816 wrote:

The ultimate recovery drink is 40 ounces of malt liquor, two if necessary.

I’m going to need bigger bottle cages.

[Vicegrip]

@BobCochran 146815 wrote:

Thanks so much everyone! I feel rather like Tania and Kitty do: if I don’t eat on a long ride, I will not do well. I’ve had that reality kicked into me my last 2 long rides. I definitely was not eating enough and I was rapidly wilting. I need to experiment and organize a feeding schedule/feeding regimen that works for me.

So far no one has mentioned buying freeze-dried meals like chicken and rice in those sealed baggies. Of course they require carrying water and one needs some way to boil the water. And the freeze dried meal options seem really high in sodium. Perhaps they are a good idea?

I really appreciate all the viewpoints. Now if only I can organize better and discipline myself into buying foods and actually eating them at the right time, in the right amounts.

Bob

Freeze dried packaged foods are better suited for backpacking where volume and weight of many days worth of food adds up. Much of the weight of many foods is water and water can be obtained along the way. You would have to stop and prepare the food using bulky equipment like a cook pot. Most do not re-hydrate well in cold water. Green beans do OK in cold but it takes hours.

For a ride that is completed within a single day in developed areas I bet you can find common foods that are compact and have the right “fuel blend” I might tend to more focus on being sure to drink enough water for the conditions and activity level. Speaking of my personal experience I suspect most of the bonks I have handed to myself were water based rather than food based. YMMV.

[Tim Kelley]

@Judd 146818 wrote:

I’m going to need bigger bottle cages.

http://www.arundelbike.com/product/looney-bin/

[UnknownCyclist]

@Judd 146818 wrote:

I’m going to need bigger bottle cages.

RECOVERY drink, Judd. R.E.C.O.V.E.R.Y.
You do not need cages for recovery drinks.

[Author]

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