I think with the heat I usually ride in the volume I go through ends up making the carb and sodium/hr about right for me after I supplement with some gummies. I think they must have nailed the osmolarity and carb:NA ratio.
So I just went and checked the nutirtion specs for Gatorade Endurance powder…1.5 scoops gives you 22g of carbs for 12oz. So for a Large WB, that would be 3 scoops and you get 44g of carbs.
By comparison, I race with Flow Formulas and I get 90g of carbs for a Large WB (also 3 scoops, but different size scoops).
In order to get the same carbs / WB as FLow, I would need to do 6 scoops of Gatorade Endurance adn I can’t imagine what that would taste like.,likely sickeningly sweet. 
But like I said, I will almost certainly go back to this later this fall when I get back on the trainer and I am mostly just plugging away at endurance miles.
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That’s why so many people do 1 scoop of Gatorade and supplement it with additional sugars.
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I max out around 90g of Gatorade in a larger podium bottle. It is a bit sweet and more than 90g is pretty unbearable to drink once it’s warm. Mostly I do 60-70g of Gatorade mix per bottle.
Exactly. Been using gatorade powder for 20 years and it’s never served me wrong. Probably saved enough money to justify my new bike (that’s what I’m going to tell myself anyway). As said above you can overscoop and make it more concentrated too, with no issues. I add a touch of sodium citrate vs buying the more expensive endurance powder. I generally use 1 full scoop (58g cho) with 3oz maple syrup for 112g cho per hour. Works great for bike races and in Ironman for me (although fit better when gatorade was also provided from them).
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I was a long time Gatorade drinker. Got tired of the taste and the additives. Switched to Skratch and have really enjoyed it. I tried a couple of the more recent competitors but kept coming back to Skratch.
I’ll drink Gatorade if I’m buying it retail. By comparison, I’d rather go thirsty than drink PowerAde — yuck!
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Yeah, I love orange gatorade, and I have a sweet tooth but if I add more sugar to it, I don’t really want to drink it.
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I prefer Staminade over Gatorade as it has magnesium, I just add a few small scoops of maltodextrin. I also make my own mix with 2:1 Malto/Fructose with a pinch of salt and lemon juice to taste. Both work well for me.
Need to add sodium citrate to cut the sweet. I can’t stomach 2 scoops of Gatorade alone. However, 2 scoops of Gatorade + 140g of sugar + 1000mg of sodium citrate and it’s fine for a 2 hour bottle. The most I’ve done for a 5:30 race in a single 34oz bottle: 3 scoops of Gatorade + 500g of sugar and 3000mg of sodium citrate. Then had another 34oz bottle and a 2.5 liter hydration pack of plain water to chase.
Nothing wrong with using Gatorade at all. For those who want more carbs but not too much sweetness, you can save money by making the first two scoops Gatorade and then adding your maltodextrin product of choice.
I add sodium citrate, I can sip on it a bit but I don’t enjoy drinking it at all. Gatorade and sodium citrate is what I keep in my bottle most of the time and that’s fine. But I just don’t find the added sugar to be palatable, and I consider myself to have quite the sweet tooth.
I’ve done Beta Fuel for longer events in the past and it works, but I can’t say I want or like to drink much of anything like that. Even if I’m willing to admit it works.
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What’s the glucose/fructose ratio of Gatorade to ensure that when I add maltodextrin and fructose, I know my final count and ratio?
I use orange Gatorade as the basis for my mix. I mix it with extra maltodextrin because a little orange taste goes a long way and I often want more grams of sugar but not more orange taste.
And I will occasionally add a little sodium citrate if it’s a long, hot day.
I make my own drink mix at home but if I’m on a ride that requires a refill then there’s an 80% chance that I’m filling my carb bottle with Gatorade. Sometimes I’ll throw in a single serving of Skratch to the same bottle for 50% more carb and 200% more sodium. I’ve never had any issues with gut problems but sometimes the sweet, strong flavors can start to get a little unpalatable and I start to wish for something more savory. I don’t get that feeling with my DIY Malto/Fruct/Citric Acid mix since it’s more mildly flavored.
I love Gatorade! I often use the one with extra electrolytes but for short and medium rides I usually bring a bottle of it along with a bottle of water. I’ve also been playing with a Malto/Fructose mix along with a Nun or SiS tablet. I love that, too, but when I want 60-90g of carbs. Every now and again I use an expensive mix but between Gatorade and the home brew I’m pretty set.
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That’s exactly what I do too. Adds flavor and electrolytes. When it’s extra hot, I use Precision Hydration tabs for the added sodium, but I prefer the NUUN and SIS ones because they taste (and are) less salty.
Others have noted though that adding the tab does add to the per serving cost when comparing prices, so if people can tolerate Gatorade for the flavoring, it is a better option cost wise.
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A little Gatorade and some of this. Very cheap. I like that the Carbo gain is nearly tasteless and not as sweet as sugar when concentrated.
Some how though, they can sell Gatorade powder cheaper than anything. Making it up in volume!
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I typically mix 60g of Maltodextrin, then add the remaining carb content with Gatorade mix. Works great for me up to 100g total in a bottle. If you buy Maltodextrin on its own in 4-5lb quantities. It’s even cheaper than Gatorade and doesn’t add much sweetness.
I use 1/3 Gatorade mix and 2/3 table sugar for a lot of my training.
Additionally, I am a big fan of Formula 369.
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The powdered stuff lists sugar (sucrose) as the first ingredient, which breaks down to half and half glucose and fructose. But dextrose is the second ingredient, which is all glucose. But no indication how much of each. So, it’s somewhere between 1:1 and 3:1 glucose and fructose.
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