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| Same number of carbohydrate-derived calories. One is a real food (about 3.5 oz sweet potato); the other comes in a packet. Are they the same? |
A fancy packet of Hammer Gel for my morning bike ride is the same amount of calories as half of a small, steamed sweet potato. (About 90.) The sweet potato has fiber, and vitamins and phytochemicals and other good stuff. The Hammer Gel has some electrolytes and sodium added.
(The coffee with half & half would be equally consumed along with either.)
My bike ride this morning (about 1hr 15 minutes, including stretching by the Pacific Ocean) wasn't as amped up as it has been on these supercharged energy gels -- but that could also be due to other factors, like less sleep, and a high-intensity weight training workout that left me sore, just the day before.
More testing is needed before I can definitively confirm whether or not Hammer Gel calories is the same as a piece of tuber.
I'd be curious as to know what other people have found.
Hi Julie. as far as I know, there is no difference between chemically formulated and natural energy. after all, they are all the same calories, measured by how much heat such and such food can produce. one difference is though, eating carbs store ready-to-go energy in your body so if you consumed high carb diet the night before, that energy can be easily transferred to physical energy during exercise in the following day, while energy from those ride food(gel, bar so on) can be used only during exercise, otherwise they just remain in your body as fat, which is not the best way to store energy. I'm no expert at this matter, but one thing my teammates and our coach stressed is not to under-eat because it will do more damage to your muscle if you're on 5hr rides with lots of climbing. that's when you need to have ride food(cliff bar) once in every hour or so, to maintain the optimal level of performance. one thing i noticed in this article is that you're using power gel as a primary food source, which is not a smart move since electrolyte gel, as its name says, contains electrolytes and sugars. you need solid food(carb) during +3hrs ride. it's the only way not to bonk after 3hr mark.
ReplyDeleteJack
Thanks for the comment, Jack! I definitely agree to eat solid carb food during a 3 or more hour ride. But my morning ride is only about an hour, so the Hammer Gel works just fine. I do feel pretty tired after my workouts, though. So maybe I have not eaten fast enough when I get home?
ReplyDeleteI agree, energy from sugar is easily stored as fat - which isn't the best way to store energy, that is, on your body, as fat -- I'd rather leave it on the shelf at the grocery store and let them store it for me! I only want to carry around as much fat as looks good over my bones, ha ha.
What is the glycemic index of both? It feels like the new paradigm is to maintain constant levels of food energy (as from low glycemic foods), rather than bursts of food energy (as from high glycemic foods). I think that sweet potato is a medium GI food. Would a handful of nuts be even better?
ReplyDeleteHey Calorie Rebel - We miss you and your great recipes and tips! Put up your reipe for the skilet fritata!
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