AcornMan

By the end of a long ride, even if I'm thirsty, the thought of plain old water just doesn't appeal to me. Instead, I find myself craving soda or Gatorade or something else sweet. I don't drink soda very often, and I almost never drink Gatorade, so I'm not sure where this is coming from. Is my body telling me my blood sugar is low? From what I've read, consuming simple carbohydrates like sugar before and during a ride is a bad idea, and complex carbohydrates should be consumed instead. But all I can think about by the time I'm done with a long ride is finding a Sonic so I can get a Route 44 Cherry Limeade!

Machka 

During your long ride (more than 2 hours) you should have a bottle of some sort of sports drink on the bicycle and be drinking from it regularly. Maltodextrin is a complex sugar, so look for a sports drink with maltodextrin in it ... like HEED. And I think some Powerades have maltodextrin. Or make your own.

Carbonfiberboy 

Sugar works just fine. Sports drink manufacturers tout their "complex carbohydrates," but what they are usually talking about is maltodextrin, which is in no way a complex carb. It has a glycemic index of 130, compared to sugar at 100, so yeah it's better because it's even faster than sugar, which is not what one associates with the term "complex carbohydrate." Yeah, sugar after a ride is great.

However, you might want to try beer instead of soda. Much better for you. Or better yet, a carb/protein recovery drink, then a beer. You're shorting yourself with the soda.

benajah

You don't keep a flask of bourbon in the jersey pocket?
Seriously your body is craving sugar, and after a long ride actually needs it. Treat yourself to a coke. The sports drinks are better for while you are actually riding, they are designed mainly to avoid giving you an upset stomache in the middle of training, and to get into your system as quickly as possible. A coke is really just as good.

momof4greatkids

when I rode a particularly long,, one-day ride this season (160 miles across Indiana) the nectar of the gods for me was a small bottle of pepsi every couple of hours. I don't know what it was, it just refreshed me in a way no other drink could. Really was incredibly satisfying and tasty in those circumstances, and i don't drink pop any other time.

Roody

Because you're thirsty, and soda is what you're accustomed to. I quit drinking soda, replaced it with water, and after a couple months I craved only water after a sweaty ride.

You also might be addicted to the caffeine in the soda.

rmwun54

Because it taste so good. Water quenches your thirst, soda hits the taste buds spot like no other. I don't drink soda anymore except for twice or less a year, just for the fun of it. That's life in the modern world for you.

127.0.0.1

both blood sugar low, and need for sodium

rumrunn6

because you are a soda drinker

wolfchild

When I get home after a long ride , all I can think of is beer. I don't know what it is about beer but I just crave it , there must be some nutrients in it that my body needs. As for soda, I hate it , I never buy any type of soda pop drinks... GROSS ! .

benajah

I only drink soda on long rides (60 or more miles) and it really is a pick me up, the combination of sugar, caffeine, taste, "comfort food effect" all that really helps out, and the only bad thing in soda is the sugar, and at those moments you need the sugar anyway so treat yourself.
Don't know, Im Buddhist and we dont believe in indulging or depriving, everything in moderation and reason.

mrz80

Why crave a soda? Because you've been conditioned by the psychologists of Madison Avenue (tm) to believe that malted battery acid is a fun and refreshing beverage! For long suger-depleting rides my formula for success was always a couple of Chips Ahoy chased by a small bottle of orange juice from the KwikStop. Oh, and PowerBars and bananas. It's a shame for a UF alum to admit it, but Gatorade always tasted too much like a mix of the less desirable aspects of turpentine and sweat to me.

hemprider

https://www.mindconnection.com/librar...softdrinks.htm

Try to stay away from carbonated drinks if you can , nothing but trouble

Willbrewer

1 part each of 2% milk and orange juice, mixed well to prevent the milk from curdling. It's got carbs, protein, fat, calcium, vitamin C, and satisfies me like nothing else after a long ride.

Dubbayoo

I really crave cold orange juice, but soda is what's usually around.

Sixty Fiver

Beer is an excellent post ride beverage... it replaces electrolytes and the hops balance blood sugars.

De-alcoholized beer is fine too.

Woodyg3

Lots of runners use chocolate milk as a recovery drink. It has been my drink of choice after long workouts lately. I'll have to try this OJ/Milk recipe.

kindablue

...not really

It could be the case, but don't project your own history onto the OP. Soda has sugar & sugar is a quick(ish) carb. During exercise we burn energy and we like to replace that energy with carbs. So soda works out to be a quick carb (& tasty too if thats what you are accustomed to drinking). Drinking water is great, but doesn't give you anything (besides the water).

Soda isn't the best recovery drink, but whatever tastes good works for me. FWIW I believe I have seen pro cyclists take down 8 oz of soda on the bike during tours. Personally I enjoy a cola (Whole Foods brand made with sugar, not corn syrup) or chocolate milk after a long ride.

To the soda haters, don't give me this crap about how soda is killing your body. In moderation it doesn't hurt anything. Anything can lead to a health condition if you abuse it.

That being said, if I am running a race I usually go a week or two w/o soda or alcohol (for hydration purposes, or thats what I hope).

hemprider

Read the article i posted the problem with soda is the carbonation, its essentially poison to your body.

gregf83 

Just because an idiot writes an article on the internet doesn't make it true. Try citing a real study showing that carbonated beverages are poison. Here's one which refutes one of the nonsense claims in the article you pointed to:
https://jnci.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/full/98/1/72

hemprider

The only nonsense claim it refutes is that these drinks cause Esophageal cancer, which by the way the study doesn't prove without a shadow of a doubt, soda is highly acidic and the carbonation adds to the problem. Its demineralizes bones and can harm your stomach lining. Just because some idiots at yale did a study doesn't make it true...

gregf83 

Correct. The difference in this case is that the paper describing the study was subjected to review by a panel of experts in the field. Internet articles are not subject to review, hence, the author is free to make unsubstantiated claims. Believe what you want.

Willbrewer

Well, I believe it's time for another carbonated beer...