masi61

This is my new on-road nutrition solution. I bought a 2 pack of re-usable ziplock bags from Target for $3 and having been cutting up fruit and collecting it up in a stainless steel bowl before I ride. I carry a Teaspoon inside the bag and take a snack break at certain milestones during my ride. I can’t eat this on the fly but it is OK.

I got started on this practice as an experiment initially since I was having issues with ripe bananas turning to mush and the banana juice causing stain problems with my jerseys.

So l had been “spicing” my fruit by grating fresh nutmeg, grating fresh ginger, putting orange zest, allspice for flavor. And it is working really well. It tastes good and the strong spice flavors give me something else to think about while I’m out in the heat getting my miles.

so last week while preparing my pouch full of fruit I remembered having a container of vegan (pea, artichoke) protein powder in my lazy Susan needing to be used. So I sprinkled the protein powder in the bowl and stirred it into the fruit. The surface area of the precut pink lady apples, Cara Cara oranges, the banana, the cut up whole dates all accepted the protein powder well.

Now my fruit in the bowl got transferred to the pouch. Excess moisture sort of got dried up from the dusting of the protein powder. On the road, the dryness of the fruit if anything makes me getting my snack bites a tidier proposition with my teaspoon. It does need washed down with some water but that is OK.

I have a theory that this protein powder is well matched to the fruit and that the nutrition is delivered well to the gut for sustained energy and prevention of bonking. Also the dryness of the mix and the fact that it has protein in it seem to satisfy me with fewer bites. So my pouch of fruit can provide nutrition for longer rides.

This whole method has been improved even further (I think) by combining small fruit chunks with small grated shreds of the apple, ginger, and orange peel. These shreds have a real affinity for the protein powder and they stick together enough on the spoon to not blow away in the wind.

My riding companions think I am an odd duck but more than a little curious about my snack bag when they see me chowing down when we regroup at country stop signs or church parking lots.

Just thought I would share. Feel free to critique my theory about the protein, appetite control, smaller serving sizes to power longer rides, etc…