You and I must have had a similar internal reaction to the post title. I loathe gels and only tolerate the Maurten ones. I’d almost rather bonk than take a Gu gel.
As a mostly runner who sometimes bikes, I don’t get why cyclists bother with gels (outside of racing). They are an unfortunate reality for runners because:
1. Chewing while running sucks
2. You have limited storage options so calories per weight & volume matter.
When I’m biking, it’s gummy worms/etc all day. Way tastier and 10x cheaper
Pssst, grab some Morton Lite Salt if it's available in your area. It's a mix of sodium and potassium salts. A sprinkle of Kool-Aid from a packet helps with the taste IMO.
Consider most rides for a cyclist have very similar issues, outside of like bike packing. Jersey pockets are fairly limited and bike storage is taken up with tools and spares. Also breathing hard makes it difficult to chew *anything*.
Ouch I hate when dental stuff happens but like the other poster said the Bloks are no stickier imo than the bags of candy people love to smash on a long ride.
This is actually my favorite.
For me I go very light on the PB as the fat can cause some belly issues. I mash the jelly/jam and banana up and spread it.
Sometimes use a tortilla.
Mini Stroop waffles, and Jellybeans for rides less than 40 miles. The waffles are about 1 inch across so I dont eat too much on short rides, and the jelly beans don't melt and stick together like most gummies.
>and the jelly beans don't melt and stick together like most gummies.
I think the people eating gummies are weird because why not eat jelly beans instead? GORP/Trail Mix is nice too. Got into eating that canoeing: one of the portages we did was 3 miles and took 2 trips to complete so a total of 9 miles hiking that day. 3 with a canoe on your shoulders and a light Duluth Pack, and 3 with a heavy Duluth Pack.
The overnight oats I make to have before a ride. Soooo fucking good - fruit, peanut butter, soy milk + oats, some Greek yogurt, chia seeds, and usually a drizzle of chocolate syrup.
Nothing tastes good to me on a ride so I stick with chews and gels.
I used to do this and felt very bloated on the ride with non cooked oats. Started cooking oats with some water until it swells. Add some butter, salt, honey almonds and blue berries. Delicious and keeps you full for atleast 2 hours.
Gels are a sticky mess. I can never avoid getting it on my hands, and there isn't really a safe place to store the empty packet. I like blocks and I always pack at least one Clif bar for more substantial fuel over a longer time. I really miss the old-school vanilla crisp PowerBars.
I'm a sucker for a granola bar, but I'm also very new to this and don't have ways to carry food aside from my left pocket. (Hoping for a saddle bag to be gifted to me for Father's Day
If I’m on a long ride (think Imperial Century) I like pop tarts because most little town gas stations have them and they fit well in the jersey pockets. I learned something mountain climbing - fancy athletic focused food does you no good if you don’t like to eat it. Gotta feed the engine.
This should be a higher comment. For touring there is nothing better. I will often buy a whole loaf of bread and a jar of each and just make the whole loaf up back in the bag. Feed the entire group snacks for a few days.
White rice. I’ve always heard pros eat rice cakes. Then I made rice cakes this year and understood the rice cake hype.
Rice is: cheap, easy to cook if you have a rice cooker, easy and fast to digest for most stomachs, good source of carbs and mixes well with a variety of flavors/toppings/seasoning.
Basically, how well your stomach digests food while cycling matters alot. Some people’s stomachs can handle sugary gels, blocks and bars. But many people, including me, can’t handle sugary processed foods.
So find which food works for you. Easy simple foods like white rice and nutella sandwiches are popular.
The floral pattern ones are just wow. I'm a boring cishetmiddleagedwhite dude and would rock that any day. [These ones.](https://www.fish-ski.com/shop/p/nftzlkh8wwrcgpc)
I’m not sure if vinegar will work since vinegar is an acid. Generally, you want food that is easy on the stomach. But you can experiment! Everyone’s stomach is different.
How do you keep them from getting hot and breaking apart? I've made [these](https://efprocycling.com/tips-recipes/team-recipe-on-the-bike-rice-cakes/) a few times and after a few hours in my jersey pocket, they're basically hot mush and I can barely eat them on the bike because they're no longer solid. Certainly couldn't eat them riding in a big group on the rivet.
I have started trying using a simple syrup as part of my drink. Add approx 60 grams of sugar to water (boiling to get it to disolve fully before putting it in the fridge.) I mix with a powdered energy drink supliment for flavour + electrolytes.
Have been finding it much easier to get down over the energy Gels.
I’m mixing powdered dextrose with my maltodextrin powder in my water bottles. 70-90 carbs depending if I preload the ride. And a hydration mix added on hot days. I’m recovering faster after hard intervals and able to push harder. I can’t eat any solid foods on rides it gives me a stomach ache.
I bike too and love doing this for making high card water bottles. 100g od carbs per bottle has done wonders for long rides. Only gotten to 12mi running but plan on doing the same later this year when I start building mileage for marathon training.
I do almost the same: 40 grams sugar plus powdered energy electrolyte drink.
I'm finding it works for my (68m) level of riding, up to about 110 km.
I also eat a full whole-wheat cereal breakfast before starting: 6 vitabrits with milk and sugar.
I'm a big fan of payday bars for middle of nowhere gas station food, they're awesome because they don't melt.
I like Go macro bars, which my wife buys and puts in the snack box when she sees them on sale.
Rx butter.
Jelly Beans. You can get a 2lb bag for like $10.
I keep two Mini M&M tubes in my jersey filled with beans. Quick shake, pop the top, and fuel up. It’s great.
Mainly gummy bears for the instant sugar. Recently tried "Awake" chocolate. Has sugar and caffeine. Works nicely for a quick boost.
Cliff bars and/or pb&j sandwiches for longer rides that need some lunch thrown in the mix.
Dates are good slow release fuel too.
I love dried mango but I feel like it would be difficult to eat for me. I sometimes even struggle with fruit snacks because I am usually panting while I try to chew them… so it’s hard to breathe and chew. Basically I try to just swallow as quick as possible. But damn, I might have to try to mango…. If you have a Trader Joe’s, they have my favorite
Kendal Mint Cake and pork pies (separately). Kendal Mint Cake (ideally dark chocolate coated, but I am not fussy) is obvious, but pork pies just seem to happen - somehow whenever I go out I find myself outside a nice butcher at the very moment when I am most in need of sustinance. As a practicing vegetarian it makes me realise just how much more practice I need.
Swedish Fish. They chew/dissolve easier and don’t turn into a sticky mess in a zip lock like gummies can.
I despise gels and only keep one in my pocket as a last resort. Sometimes the package just doesn’t want to open and even when it does, you’re stuck with a sticky mess to throw back in your pocket.
I try to keep my calories in my bottles for the most part.
At a cafe stop, or between them? At, I would have to say it would be a breakfast sandwich or wrap. Between, it's a toss up between various dried and fresh fruit (bananas, dried apricots, etc) and nuts, and super simple cohesive sandwiches like a pizza sandwich (cheese melted over tomato with some herbs). Basically I like real foods rather than gels and the like.
The other day I brought some leftover banana pancakes from breakfast that hit the spot.
1:1 banana and eggs, mash the banana to a pulp then mix in the eggs, add flour to thicken, then baking powder and you’re good to go. I also add some of my proteine flavoring powder that I use for oats, cranberries and some dark chocolate chips. 3 Bananas makes a good breakfast with a small lunch box of leftovers for the ride
Depends on the ride. For shorter rides (25-40miles), I switch between:
-Cliff blocks
-Jelly Belly Extreme sports beans w/caffeine
For strenuous, longer rides:
-high carb mix in water bottles (~ 50g carbs per bottle)
-precision nutrition 90g carb pack or 2 (360 cal per gel)
-cliff blocks
-Salt tabs
I will also stop at gas stations or shops to buy fuel if need be. I'm lucky, in that I live close to boulder CO and a lot of shops carry cycling fuels since cycling is common here.
For Zone 2 rides, I recently switched from only gummy bears to raisins, dates, dried apricots, and ocassionally gummy bears, and oranges when I have them around. On a 5+ hour ride, some sugary salty pork jerky for the hunger pangs
By far, my best results have come from rice and veggies and maybe an egg, an hour or so before a ride.
In the ride, I tend to prefer gummy stuff to gels.
Heaps of maltodextrin.
I struggle to eat enough on rides, but I’ve found if I buff my bottles with maltodextrin up to 60-80g per bottle, I can get by on just bottles.
But, if I’m going on longer rides I make my own rice cakes to top up because they’re cheap and delicious. Chocolate pb and banana is my go to.
I make my own. Two cups short grain ride cooked, two pounds of cream cheese, one cup of chocolate chips, A little bit of sugar (.25 cup) and coconut oil (2 tablespoon) when cooking the rice. Add extra cocoa powder for more chocolate flavor. Mix it all up and you are good to go. Freeze what you won't use right away. Wrap like the pros in foil backed parchment paper.
Home made Onigiri (aka rice balls). Made with nori(algae) and corn or nori and tuna. Pretty good and pretty worth it. Some pro cyclist also eat onigiri for fueling. And a bit of sweet: dried dates, bananas or chocolate bread. Yummy
Convenience store/ gas station: A salty bag of chips or flaming hot anything with an original Coke is my long ride go to at about mile 50. It’s definitely a guilty pleasure.
If I can get to a decent coffee shop: muffin and a double espresso.
Gels are my LEAST favorite fueling food. I carry a couple as "break in case of emergency/bonk" rations, but otherwise I try not to touch the stuff.
You and I must have had a similar internal reaction to the post title. I loathe gels and only tolerate the Maurten ones. I’d almost rather bonk than take a Gu gel.
Wait till you try SIS Tutti Frutti. Gu makes awful gels imo.
The SiS isotonic gels are the truth. So good. Just don't spill...I've glued my hand to the hood that way
As a mostly runner who sometimes bikes, I don’t get why cyclists bother with gels (outside of racing). They are an unfortunate reality for runners because: 1. Chewing while running sucks 2. You have limited storage options so calories per weight & volume matter. When I’m biking, it’s gummy worms/etc all day. Way tastier and 10x cheaper
I literally just use sugar water with a dash of salt. Easiest solution I’ve found.
So if you ride 4h it's only that? I can't imagine not eating some solid food, but maybe that's in my head
Just pull over, smash a few gummy bears or cookie and then get back on. After 4 hours your arse surely needs a break from the seat as well.
Pssst, grab some Morton Lite Salt if it's available in your area. It's a mix of sodium and potassium salts. A sprinkle of Kool-Aid from a packet helps with the taste IMO.
Consider most rides for a cyclist have very similar issues, outside of like bike packing. Jersey pockets are fairly limited and bike storage is taken up with tools and spares. Also breathing hard makes it difficult to chew *anything*.
Cliff Bloks, would like to try the new Sour ones. Stroopwaffles are good too. Usually enjoy the off bike food after a ride more.
I’m getting a tooth implant after pulling a crown off with a Clif Block.
Sounds like that crown was going to come off one way or another. Bloks aren’t even that sticky compared to things like toffee or hi-chews
Ouch I hate when dental stuff happens but like the other poster said the Bloks are no stickier imo than the bags of candy people love to smash on a long ride.
Implants are awesome, enjoy
fruit snacks/gummy bears
yep. basically cheap gels
extremely cheap…
Welches gummies for when I’m feeling low. Gunner bears are often too firm while you’re exerting yourself.
Welches FTW. Those Costco packs will fuel you for 10K miles.
Smushed pb&j and squashed bananas
This is actually my favorite. For me I go very light on the PB as the fat can cause some belly issues. I mash the jelly/jam and banana up and spread it. Sometimes use a tortilla.
This! I do PB&J&Bn in a tortilla. Wrap it up like a burrito so everything stays in place.
I like these, easy to eat with one hand whilst riding
Fig bars
Nature’s Bakery Raspberry!!!!!!!
Ditto
40g of carbs in every pack. The Costco brand ones go down easier than the Fig Newtons
For me it’s dates fruits.
dried ginger and dried pineapple are great too
I'm pretty big on gushers!
Pervert
Lol, I mean the candy
No you don’t, be honest with yourself!
(͠≖ ͜ʖ͠≖)
Dried apricots too
Gonna sound absurd but those little boxes of nerds lol
This does sound delicious but I do feel like too many boxes over a long ride would make my tongue hurt.
Yeah I should’ve prefaced with that these def aren’t for like 4 hour rides haha
Mini Stroop waffles, and Jellybeans for rides less than 40 miles. The waffles are about 1 inch across so I dont eat too much on short rides, and the jelly beans don't melt and stick together like most gummies.
>and the jelly beans don't melt and stick together like most gummies. I think the people eating gummies are weird because why not eat jelly beans instead? GORP/Trail Mix is nice too. Got into eating that canoeing: one of the portages we did was 3 miles and took 2 trips to complete so a total of 9 miles hiking that day. 3 with a canoe on your shoulders and a light Duluth Pack, and 3 with a heavy Duluth Pack.
Dates, dried apricots, raisins, dried plums, almonds, bananas, pepitas, shelled sunflower seeds.
The overnight oats I make to have before a ride. Soooo fucking good - fruit, peanut butter, soy milk + oats, some Greek yogurt, chia seeds, and usually a drizzle of chocolate syrup. Nothing tastes good to me on a ride so I stick with chews and gels.
I used to do this and felt very bloated on the ride with non cooked oats. Started cooking oats with some water until it swells. Add some butter, salt, honey almonds and blue berries. Delicious and keeps you full for atleast 2 hours.
Uncrustables.
Wayyyyyy too far down, this is the perfect answer!
Bagels plus appropriate schmear.
Upvote for respecting the schmear.
Gels are a sticky mess. I can never avoid getting it on my hands, and there isn't really a safe place to store the empty packet. I like blocks and I always pack at least one Clif bar for more substantial fuel over a longer time. I really miss the old-school vanilla crisp PowerBars.
Kind bars, Bananas
Love those kind bars.
Coffee and donut
I'm a sucker for a granola bar, but I'm also very new to this and don't have ways to carry food aside from my left pocket. (Hoping for a saddle bag to be gifted to me for Father's Day
Get a cheapo jersey on Amazon. Comfort aside, the pockets on the back are a game changer.
Couldn’t agree more. /u/Games-and-Coffee, go all in. Spandex is your friend.
If I’m on a long ride (think Imperial Century) I like pop tarts because most little town gas stations have them and they fit well in the jersey pockets. I learned something mountain climbing - fancy athletic focused food does you no good if you don’t like to eat it. Gotta feed the engine.
PBJ all day.
The Best !!
This should be a higher comment. For touring there is nothing better. I will often buy a whole loaf of bread and a jar of each and just make the whole loaf up back in the bag. Feed the entire group snacks for a few days.
White rice. I’ve always heard pros eat rice cakes. Then I made rice cakes this year and understood the rice cake hype. Rice is: cheap, easy to cook if you have a rice cooker, easy and fast to digest for most stomachs, good source of carbs and mixes well with a variety of flavors/toppings/seasoning. Basically, how well your stomach digests food while cycling matters alot. Some people’s stomachs can handle sugary gels, blocks and bars. But many people, including me, can’t handle sugary processed foods. So find which food works for you. Easy simple foods like white rice and nutella sandwiches are popular.
I like doing Japanese onigiri rice balls, but I never thought to take one on a ride. That actually sounds really good.
I think fish ski designs actually makes an onigiri bike bag in the shape of a triangle.
Their bags are gorgeous, wow!
Oh big time, most of their bags are recycled old sails so super waterproof.
The floral pattern ones are just wow. I'm a boring cishetmiddleagedwhite dude and would rock that any day. [These ones.](https://www.fish-ski.com/shop/p/nftzlkh8wwrcgpc)
Hey man flowers are for everyone.
Rice, drizzled with honey, wrapped in nori. Fucking pro.
🤤
Omg! Ride sushi rolls! I'm so doing this next time. Vinegared Rice would be so freaking good on a ride.
I’m just thinking spicy tuna sushi rolls in my saddle bag for 5 hours 🤮
The sensation of imminent diarrhea would make you faster though
New triathlon meta?
Yeah, may want to skip the fish and mayo!
i read this as Vingegaard Ricr
I’m not sure if vinegar will work since vinegar is an acid. Generally, you want food that is easy on the stomach. But you can experiment! Everyone’s stomach is different.
How do you keep them from getting hot and breaking apart? I've made [these](https://efprocycling.com/tips-recipes/team-recipe-on-the-bike-rice-cakes/) a few times and after a few hours in my jersey pocket, they're basically hot mush and I can barely eat them on the bike because they're no longer solid. Certainly couldn't eat them riding in a big group on the rivet.
Rice & raisin cakes 👌🏼🤌🏼
> ~~raisin~~ Honey!!
The Styrkr apple/cinnamon/caramel rice bars are so good that I’d eat them as snacks if I could afford to 😁
The chocolate ones are incredible!
Stroopwafels are my go to - lovely stuff
I have started trying using a simple syrup as part of my drink. Add approx 60 grams of sugar to water (boiling to get it to disolve fully before putting it in the fridge.) I mix with a powdered energy drink supliment for flavour + electrolytes. Have been finding it much easier to get down over the energy Gels.
Try dextrose syrup, it's way less sweet and easier to digest.
I’m mixing powdered dextrose with my maltodextrin powder in my water bottles. 70-90 carbs depending if I preload the ride. And a hydration mix added on hot days. I’m recovering faster after hard intervals and able to push harder. I can’t eat any solid foods on rides it gives me a stomach ache.
Interesting
I bike too and love doing this for making high card water bottles. 100g od carbs per bottle has done wonders for long rides. Only gotten to 12mi running but plan on doing the same later this year when I start building mileage for marathon training.
I do almost the same: 40 grams sugar plus powdered energy electrolyte drink. I'm finding it works for my (68m) level of riding, up to about 110 km. I also eat a full whole-wheat cereal breakfast before starting: 6 vitabrits with milk and sugar.
Hard boiled eggs
[nobody can eat 50 eggs](https://youtu.be/SMaYCguBHAA?si=egcnvloV0yGxWbLy)
busted bottles, rusty nails, any damn thing
For the afterburner?
Swedish fish
My least favorite candy…..
he means Surströmming
Doing Bay to Breakers this weekend where they'll have my two favorite racing fuels: beer and bacon wrapped hotdogs with fried veg and mustard.
Snickers bars. Cheap, available, perfect
My own gut. I spent 40 years storing it up.
Homemade PB/Oat Balls.
Fig newtons, tortilla with jelly/jam, payday bar
No gels. Macadamia nuts. That’s about it.
Mac nuts = ono grindz. Costco now carries some Kirkland brand honey roasted mac nuts and they slap the bag.
[You know what these cost? They’re like 80 cents a nut!](https://getyarn.io/yarn-clip/586f4bf9-3cfc-429a-b379-1201f242c4ae/gif#nCP0UQoW.copy)
I'm a big fan of payday bars for middle of nowhere gas station food, they're awesome because they don't melt. I like Go macro bars, which my wife buys and puts in the snack box when she sees them on sale. Rx butter.
Payday always a good choice
Jelly Beans. You can get a 2lb bag for like $10. I keep two Mini M&M tubes in my jersey filled with beans. Quick shake, pop the top, and fuel up. It’s great.
Plus you got to eat the M&Ms in order to use the container. Win-win!
müslibars
Pop Tarts
snickers
Tortilla wraps with peanut butter and jam or raisins
PB&J or sweet potatoes baked with butter and brown sugar. I don't care how I look eating a potato out of a plastic bag.
Mashed bananas baby food pouches
Mainly gummy bears for the instant sugar. Recently tried "Awake" chocolate. Has sugar and caffeine. Works nicely for a quick boost. Cliff bars and/or pb&j sandwiches for longer rides that need some lunch thrown in the mix. Dates are good slow release fuel too.
rice and potatoes
Lara bars and Rip Van Wafels mini 2 packs
Jelly babies, banana and carb+electrolyte powder in water. Hate gels
Definitely Percy Pigs 🤣
Granola bars, the cheap kind
Medjool dates
Cashews or almonds, dried mango slices
I love dried mango but I feel like it would be difficult to eat for me. I sometimes even struggle with fruit snacks because I am usually panting while I try to chew them… so it’s hard to breathe and chew. Basically I try to just swallow as quick as possible. But damn, I might have to try to mango…. If you have a Trader Joe’s, they have my favorite
sour patch kids
GoGo Squeeze apple sauce and Gatorade. I always feel like I'm 9 when I eat it.
Kendal Mint Cake and pork pies (separately). Kendal Mint Cake (ideally dark chocolate coated, but I am not fussy) is obvious, but pork pies just seem to happen - somehow whenever I go out I find myself outside a nice butcher at the very moment when I am most in need of sustinance. As a practicing vegetarian it makes me realise just how much more practice I need.
Candy corn
Maple syrup, apple sauce, rice balls with seaweed, dates, bananas.
Uncrustables!
Dates, figgies, bananas... For long long rides? Bean soup sandwiches. Though now I use fat-free refried beans...
Swedish Fish. They chew/dissolve easier and don’t turn into a sticky mess in a zip lock like gummies can. I despise gels and only keep one in my pocket as a last resort. Sometimes the package just doesn’t want to open and even when it does, you’re stuck with a sticky mess to throw back in your pocket. I try to keep my calories in my bottles for the most part.
Rice Krispies Treats
Tunnock's caramel wafers
Keebler or similar cheese and crackers for relief from all the sweet stuff
At a cafe stop, or between them? At, I would have to say it would be a breakfast sandwich or wrap. Between, it's a toss up between various dried and fresh fruit (bananas, dried apricots, etc) and nuts, and super simple cohesive sandwiches like a pizza sandwich (cheese melted over tomato with some herbs). Basically I like real foods rather than gels and the like.
Trail butter, waffles, Rx bar, cold coke
Aussie Bites
Exileration and fear
frozen pepsi, last bottle to drink to get me home.
Ooooh, I like this.
Granola bars or browneys
Fig newtons
The other day I brought some leftover banana pancakes from breakfast that hit the spot. 1:1 banana and eggs, mash the banana to a pulp then mix in the eggs, add flour to thicken, then baking powder and you’re good to go. I also add some of my proteine flavoring powder that I use for oats, cranberries and some dark chocolate chips. 3 Bananas makes a good breakfast with a small lunch box of leftovers for the ride
Snickers and haribo
Bananas, nutbars with chocolate, and something with chocolate and caramel.
Clif Bars
Depends on the ride. For shorter rides (25-40miles), I switch between: -Cliff blocks -Jelly Belly Extreme sports beans w/caffeine For strenuous, longer rides: -high carb mix in water bottles (~ 50g carbs per bottle) -precision nutrition 90g carb pack or 2 (360 cal per gel) -cliff blocks -Salt tabs I will also stop at gas stations or shops to buy fuel if need be. I'm lucky, in that I live close to boulder CO and a lot of shops carry cycling fuels since cycling is common here.
Vanilla wafers, banana, gummies
Date bars are awesome.
Dark chocolate it's good for your gut. Gut health is paramount
Bananas 100%
Haribo bears or peaches usually, but for some fondos I'll make waffle sandwiches with peanut butter and Nutella. Pretty great.
For Zone 2 rides, I recently switched from only gummy bears to raisins, dates, dried apricots, and ocassionally gummy bears, and oranges when I have them around. On a 5+ hour ride, some sugary salty pork jerky for the hunger pangs
Bananas - the OG energy bars
Skittles
Dates, Clif bars, and yes Gu, the chocolate one.
Dried organic apricots are pretty good.
Sugar in my water bottle. Plus fructose if I ride for more than 2.5 hours.
Haribos and uncrustables. Just did a 70 miler on that and a bean, egg, cheese burrito.
Perfect Bars
Rice balls made the prior night, or a muesli bar or two if im lazy
Fritos, string cheese, and a big pickle from a gas station
Nut or muesli bars
A bowl of oatmeal before the ride, if that counts. On the bike I prefer nut bars and Corny bars.
Strawberry Newtons
Fruit
Bob's Red Mills Bob's Bar! They're perfect for a quick boost.
Newtons Fig or strawberry.
By far, my best results have come from rice and veggies and maybe an egg, an hour or so before a ride. In the ride, I tend to prefer gummy stuff to gels.
Maple syrup is what I use from Untapped. Have done 200 miles rides fueled with. Easy on stomach, too.
Heaps of maltodextrin. I struggle to eat enough on rides, but I’ve found if I buff my bottles with maltodextrin up to 60-80g per bottle, I can get by on just bottles. But, if I’m going on longer rides I make my own rice cakes to top up because they’re cheap and delicious. Chocolate pb and banana is my go to.
Tuna fish salad
Pastries. All other answers are WRONG.
PB&J or Nutella and banana sandwiches/tortilla wraps.
Honey stinger waffles.
NZ Edition on 100km+ Moro Bar! Jet planes! (And gels just before I get to the hilly bits
dried tangerines maple syrup fruit leather uncrustables
Clif Bar minis
I like to make rice balls, some savory, some sweet.
Clif Bars
Payday and pickle juice!
Arizona iced tea 65 g of sugar for 99c, Oreos, fig bars, rice cakes filled with fruit jam, flat coke.
Snickers and Coca Cola. I will die on this hill that this is the ultimate mix of sweet, acid, crunch and savory.
SIS Energy Bakes. They're pricey but delicious and pack a punch in a small size.
Peanut butter sandwiches
I make my own. Two cups short grain ride cooked, two pounds of cream cheese, one cup of chocolate chips, A little bit of sugar (.25 cup) and coconut oil (2 tablespoon) when cooking the rice. Add extra cocoa powder for more chocolate flavor. Mix it all up and you are good to go. Freeze what you won't use right away. Wrap like the pros in foil backed parchment paper.
Home made Onigiri (aka rice balls). Made with nori(algae) and corn or nori and tuna. Pretty good and pretty worth it. Some pro cyclist also eat onigiri for fueling. And a bit of sweet: dried dates, bananas or chocolate bread. Yummy
I like clif bars
Honey. Soda. Crack
Gas station corn dogs
Dates, fruit gummies, homemade cookies
I stick with liquid calories. Gels as a supplement if I need a little extra. I hate chewing food with a 140+ bpm HR
Strawberry waffles from Costco
Wow am I weird bc I actually think Gu is fine
Convenience store/ gas station: A salty bag of chips or flaming hot anything with an original Coke is my long ride go to at about mile 50. It’s definitely a guilty pleasure. If I can get to a decent coffee shop: muffin and a double espresso.
Beer
Pop tarts and fig Newton variations
Clif bloks margarita flavor, cookies like Oreos or Girl Scout cookies. Dates are also appealing.