Grandma’s Marathon – Gels I tested this cycle (Huma, Spring Energy, SiS Review) + Video!
For the last couple years, I’ve been training with two different gels during my marathon - Huma gels and PowerBar Simple Fruit gels. I found that alternating gels with different types of sugars resulted in less GI distress for me. I’m pretty sure I read this in one of Matt Fitzgerald’s books on nutrition (either The Endurance Diet or The New Rules of Marathon and Half-Marathon Nutrition). Ever since, it’s allowed me to consume the 5 gels I need during a marathon (versus 3 when I was using just one type of gel).
When I came back to the marathon this Spring after a season off, I had a bit of a dilemma with my gels - PowerBar discontinued the Simple Fruit gels! I took to Instagram and polled folks to see what other gels were out there for people with sensitive stomachs like me. I got a lot of responses! Outside of Huma gel, I received tons of recommendations for Spring Energy gels and Science in Sport. So, I tested both this training cycle and I put together a quick video detailing the following:
Flavor
Consistency
Did they cause GI Distress?
Overall Opinion
Check it out and let me know what you think!
For quick reference, I’ve included links to the 3 gels I’ve used this cycle and some more details on the types of sugar in each:
Huma Gels - https://humagel.com/
Huma has 21-22g of carbs per gel. Primary sugar source is cane sugar and brown rice syrup.
Spring Energy gels - https://myspringenergy.com/
Spring Energy gels have 12-20g of carbs per gel. Primary sugar source is honey, maple syrup, and molasses depending on gel choice.
Science in Sport - https://www.scienceinsport.com/us/
Science is sport gels have 22g of carbs per gel. Primary sugar source is maltodextrin.
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