Highly Branched Cluster Dextrin - Homemade Drink

Does anyone make a homemade energy/intra ride drink using bulk Highly Branched Cluster Dextrin power? If so, do you have any recipes to share? Thanks!!

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That’s actually what i was thinking of doing… adding an LMNT stick and water to it

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whatever type of glucose you use, the recipes are the same for your calorie and salt needs

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cluster dextrin is a bit different from standard carbs, in that it is not a straight chain carb like maltodextrin, but like maltodextrin it is a macro molecule meaning it has a low osmality and therefore different effects on gastric emptying. The info I have on cluster dextrin (I do product development of sport drinks) is that it is a slower release carb because it has a different branching than say starch or other normal carbs so your body can not break it down as quickly. it is actually often used to mask tastes and odours because of the structure of the molecule is sort of like a cage and traps some molecules inside. So though I do not see a lot of evidence it is better it has some attributes that could make it a choice if you want a slower release carb during exercise with lower stomach upset.

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I get a 30 pack off Amazon for $45… they work though!!

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@Dr_Alex_Harrison id love to get your thoughts

Dextrin, branched dextrin, cyclic dextrin, cluster dextrin, highly branched cluster dextrin etc. etc. are all just fancy lab-created ways to deliver dextrose to your cells with a different name than maltodextrin… and ALL of it functions virtually identically to just straight dextrose, at best, or at worst, sometimes more slowly.

FYI: more “slow-release” also means “more likely to cause GI distress at normal consumption rates during exercise”

Avoid if unsure.

Avoid if more expensive than dextrose or maltodextrin.

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I agree personally with Dr_Alex_Harrison, I use maltodextrin, and dextrose for my fuel drinks, a bit of sea salt, and lemon and or lime juice and I am good to go. Though I do think sodium citrate is a great option, I just don’t use it often.

I assume HB cluster dextrin is nearly identical to HB cyclic dextrin? I’ve used the latter intra-workout since my bodybuilding days, mostly with flavoured BCAA’s back then. It’s hard to work with cycling, I find, as it’s really quite sweet. I use Gatorade powder as the base for my bottles, and adding HBCD makes it pretty gross. Definitely prefer maltodextrin for bottles.

It seems like most people missed the point. Adding cluster dextrin is mainly to bring down the osmolality so that you can have optimal calories without the drink becoming hypertonic.

Here is my formula:

120 g fructose
500 g sucrose
268 g Maltodextrin
258 g cluster dextrin
20 g salt
6 g potassium chloride (from sodium free salt)
10-15 g citric acid.

This is 2:1 glucose to fructose.

You can easily take 100 g per hour in a hypo or isotonic solution.

Up to you to figure out how many carbs per hour you can handle.

I really like my performance when using this.

For longer events I will mix in 10-15 g of MCT powder per hour.

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Also, simple sugar works.

Ride fast enough and you won’t be able to uptake enough to keep up with demand. For most people, that tipping point isn’t very high/fast. So, why make it even slower if it’s already not enough for anything above a chatty canter?

So, I’m done with slow release. Give me the sugar and I’ll use it.

I come back to slow release stuff every so often when thinking of long endurance rides, but in practice it just hasn’t worked out for me. It sounds good, it sounds healthy. However, sugar solves my ride energy problems as good as anything else I’ve tried but without being fussy or expensive. It’s really nice no longer having to think about it.

(I do also add sodium citrate if it’s hot and a drop of whatever Soda Stream natural flavouring I have on hand, so I guess I’m a little fussy)

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I’m starting to migrate from the Skratch Hydration (lemon) whose taste I love so much and the Skratch Superfuel (meh) which I’ve used for years, to making my own “nectar” (water, sucrose, salt or sodium citrate) using the Saturday fueling app. Performance results are good so far, and I’m happy. And the cost is 1/5th of what the Skratch stuff costs, which is nice.

But sugar water has no taste. Other than LMNT sticks, how are people flavoring their homemade drinks? I like intense flavors, and lemon/lime seems to be pretty much my favorite. Maybe Gatorade powder? Straight lime/lemon juice? What are y’all doing?

I use about 10g of Gatorade per 50g of sugar (sometime just sucrose, sometimes sucrose+ maltodextrin). I like Gatorade for flavor because I make about 4 pounds of mix at a time and the Gatorade is easier to get the right amount. You can adjust the quantity to your taste pretty easily.

I’ve also tried a small pinch of citric acid or a squirt of lemon juice in each bottle. Those work but the flavor is inconsistent.

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Im using the old school Kool-Aid packages, the ones that you need to add sugar to the mix. They are dirt cheap on Amazon if you buy a large quantity

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I used Mio or generic equivalents.

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i really don’t care to mess with having to source and mix various things (I did for a bit but I just like a premixed). A buddy of mine does and sells the mix www.geluminati.com and I gotta say I like it. The flavor is pleasant and inoffensive, but you can add citric acid to jazz it up. I used two 750ml bottles with the mix on my recent sub 5hr century and was able to ride tempo the whole time (along with some gels too of course)

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