Originally Posted by
kingston
I've been using
Carbonfiberboy 's bike food recipe for the last five seasons and like it a lot for longer rides. I buy 50 pound bags of
maltodextrin and ON Gold protein from Costco, weigh it out on the kitchen scale into individually sized snack baggies with 84g carb/12g protein which is ~360 calories by my calcs and goes in one big water bottle. I put ~half-strength gatorade powder in the other bottle. I've experimented with different concentrations and like this one the best for the way I ride. I've ridden lots and lots of 200-400k rides on nothing but bike food and Gatorade. I just drink water on anything under 100k.
I might also give
Carbonfiberboy's recipe a try. As long as the calories and carbs are within an acceptable range for cycling (which they seem to be) it may be a good way to get more "food" in the bottle.
As for 1/2 strength Gatorade, that's what I currently use in my water bottle. However, it's primarily for electrolytes and a little bit of sugar/carbs. Most of my calories and carbs are currently obtained primarily from the home made gel and energy balls.
Since I'm trying to "up my game" on the bike in 2021 I think I also need to improve my fueling protocol in order to support that effort. Of all the elements of a smart training plan, food and hydration seem to be hardest to figure out. But I'm making progress!