How often to use energy gel?

My two cents..
I'd use two, the first one in T1 or on the beginning of the bike, and the second one near the end of the bike.
The strategy with this is that I don't like to use them when running.... But if you're fine with that, by all means, go for it.
Calorie wise, I used one (and a couple of endurance sports drinks) for an oly tri. I was ok, next time I will probably use two. Remember to wash them down with water!

I used 5 in a Olympic distance.  T1, on the bike, right before T2 and then 2 during the run.  The second one in the run was unnecessary; I was looking for anything to help.  And 3 on the bike only because it was going uphill for a good portion of the course.  Lottsa water

Grabbed one in both Transition areas with water. I did not take the whole thing so I lobbed the leftovers at my husband on the other side of the fence.

I did two sprints and carried two gels in the pockets on the back of my bike shirt. I had one near the beginning of the bike and one near the end (22.8 mi. and 18.5 mi.) along with some gatorade.

I'm glad you asked this.

More than 2 per hour and you'll start asking for GI problems.  There's a limit to how much your body can digest while doing work, and while it varies for each person, a good rule of thumb is no more than 2 per hour.

For an olympic distance, I take:

1 gel about 15 min before swim start
1 gel about 15 min into bike
1 gel about 15 min before the end of the bike
1 gel on the run about midway, if I feel I need it

1 gel for "backup" in case I drop one, etc.

I just do water on the ride, if I'm gelling, as I had stomach problems when I mixed gels and sports drink. 

See, two per hour. For a normal sprint tri that's what I consume. Gosh I'm slow.

what chris said. i usually do one further out than 15 mins before the swim. more like 30 mins. last race i ate a power bar 45-60 minutes before hand and didn't use a gel until i was 5 miles or more into the bike (for an olympic distance). again right before the end of the bike, and one w/ me on the run just in case (but have yet to use one)

What happens if you don't wash them down with water?

You'll have a gooey lump of gel stuck in the back of your throat.  Unless you use the Energice ones, those are like slightly watery Jello...

During an Oly, I shoot for 3 on the bike, and one 1/2 through the run.  For a sprint, I typically take one on the bike...

Edited by joeinco 2005-07-26 4:28 PM

You have a high concentration of carbohydrates in your stomach, higher than you can absorb. Prevents the fuel from getting into your system.

You have to chase them down with water or you are asking for problems. I actually quit taking gels and have gone to purely Gatoraide/Gu2O combo for my nutrition. I can take gels with no problems, but I definately want to take whatever is easiest for my stomach to absorb.

Mike

It's amazing what you can find when you read. I was just reading some of the stuff that they put right there on the package and it says "For Optimum Performance consume every 30-45 minutes with water.

The main reason I asked this is because my last race I took 2 gel right before the swim (I figured 2 is twice as good as one) and by the time I got out of the water I really thought I was going to puke.... I had put the blame squarely on the Red Bull I decided to try race morning but maybe it as the gels.... I never recovered and fought that nausea until the end of the race...... which was pure misery.


Oh, and I didn't drink any water at all


Edited by Biseman 2005-07-26 5:35 PM

This is called "learning a lesson the hard way" We all do it at some time or another, ignore advice or think that if a little is good then more is better. Don't worry there are people reading this thread that only got to "took two instead of one" and clicked the page closed and never got to your tale of woe Next time you will drink water and have only one and you will wonder why you feel so great.

I love a red bull and Honey Stinger about 20 minutes before the start of a time trial, super sprint, sprint or Olympic. If it's a 1/2 iron I eat a power bar, honey stiner and red bull....water is essential, of course. After that I eat 1 get every 1/2 hour with water.

I just completed IMLP and ate every 15 minutes with Hammer Nutrition products. This worked well because you don't have to eat as much as if you were on every 1/2 hour or hour schedule. I will use this in my next 1/2 Iron (Timberman).
Good Luck with your updomming race! Don't forget the importance of replacing your electrolytes!

And yes, Athena's ROCK!

you broke the cardinal rule for one (never consume something new on race day) when you drank the red bull. I would never drink a red bull because the stuff is loaded with caffiene and for endurance races that much caffeine is going to realy dehydrate you. You also took two at a time which is obviously to much for you. The thing with nutrition stuff like gels is that you have to work out whats best for you and how much you can and cannot ingest at one time. For example someone posted that they get digestion problems when mixing sports drinks with gels while I know a guy who downs two to three gels with a highly conscentrated drink mix and never has a problem. It's all aobut what your bodies capable of doing and you have to figure it out.

As you can tell above, everyone has their specific preferences. Why not just tape a few onto your top tube just in case?

Good luck!