Coke and Water

Bleah.. too much sugar for me but I can see the appeal.

You can get Coke during the run at an ironman...I understand it has incredible pick me up powers. It is, after all, the nectar of the gods.

I prefer Gatorade with dextrose (corn sugar) mixed in for "rocket fuel".

Are they mixing carbonated coke, or just the syrup? I have a friend who does ultra's and mixes coke syrup with water in gel flasks.

I've had flat coke during the marathon of my IM's and a couple of 1/2's. If I'm really struggling on a long ride I'll down a can of coke as a pick-me-up. It's the only time I drink the stuff. It's been at least five years since I had any kind of soda/pop outside of an endurance event.

scott

Straight Coke during the latter stages of a long ride (i.e. Ironman bike, century, etc) can be a great pick me up. However this only works (for me anyway) when I go cold turkey off of caffiene for a while. Last year during IMLP I was hurting on the last 10k of the bike, at the last aid station before T2 I stopped and an angel of a volunteer got me a cold Coke. The caffeine and sugar rush propelled me to T2 and the first few miles of the marathon. It is good stuff when used in moderation.

The coke as been open for a while, so it has flattened out a little.. otherwise.. slooshy stomach. BURP

I don't drink soda either...that is why this was so interesting to me when I read it.

I am under the old high school sports rule of thumb that soda robs you of your "wind."

I was also told by my ortho-surgeon that soda depletes much needed calcium deposits on the surface of the bone, thus weakening and perhaps setting one up for possible injury.

I may test it out on a century ride I'm doing in a couple of weeks.

Cheers.
-j