I thought i’d look up how they compared to good old rice Krispy squares.
Per 100g they are basically the same except the sports version has slightly more fat, higher fibre, and lower calories, all things that aren’t particularly welcome during exercise?
The only difference is the Rice Krispies come in half the size bar, even considering this for the same calories it’s 60p Vs £2.50.
Am I missing anything? Any other sports products that are just rebranded supermarket staples?
Edit:
I actually just found a similar recipe to make your own and the ingredients come out as £0.17 so pretty cheap compared to the £2.50.
Yes, sports products are pretty much just rebranded staples. Sports bars are expensive Rice Krispies. Drink mix is expensive sugar water. Electrolyte tablets are expensive salts. Obviously this is not entirely true, and if we’re splitting hairs, the sport specific products likely have some benefits that the supermarket equivalent don’t have. However, I would argue that the vast majority of people will perform just as well on Rice Krispies and sugar water as they would on Maurten gels and carb mix.
And if anyone wants to make Veloforte bars here is an alternative recipe:
I reduce the nuts by skipping the walnuts. It’s more faff to make than rice crispies and you need to measure the temperature of the sugar but they taste good and survive super well in a back pocket and last for ages. I’ve fed mountain expeditions and some long rides with this recipe.
Sports nutrition is the ultimate ‘marginal gains.’
They offer nothing you can’t make yourself, probably with stuff you already have in your cabinets for nearly free. I mean it is literally just different combination of salts, water, sugars. This stuff is not hard to come by…
Is sports.nutrition ‘better?’ Maybe…probably. But you’re paying 10-20x or more for something that offers a likely measurable, but insignificant benefit.
Sports nutrition is the oversized pully wheels of the food world.
anyone aware of some good sites on natural foods as sports nutrition statistics.
ie carbs/glycemic index (or some kind of time for absorption), things like that?
Yesterday I got a laugh out of my riding group on a 3.5 hr ride cuz my nutrition was 2 baked potatoes.
Turns out there was a pretty good looking study that says they work just as good as energy gels and somewhere around 10% of the cost (or less).
Not great for climbing though if you have lots haha!!
Further along those same lines you’ll find maple syrup which has many fans, including myself.
Energy-wise, it’s mostly made up of sucrose, so its 1:1 glucose:fructose ratio is close enough to the expensive sports fuels that use a 1:0.8 ratio for most applications. At least close enough for the cost savings.
However, because it’s a natural syrup and not just granulated sugar, it also has water in it.
Per 100g weight of maple syrup, you only get 58g of carbs. Per 100g of sugar, you get 100g of carbs.
These are small weight differences for training and maybe even for flatter competitive rides. Those extra grams do weigh your jersey pockets down more, though.
One benefit maple syrup has over sugar is that it can be dumped into your water bottle or you can drink it directly from your small flask, e.g. Hammer 5oz flask. It’s more adaptable to changing needs.
