Well, it's been a month and I've had 4 long runs in which to test these energy gels that I bought from Runners Need. As I've said before, I'm not a massive fan of energy gels, but I recognise they work and all I need to do now is decide on what I'll be taking with me when I run the Virgin London Marathon.
Power Bar are made by Nestle, so they are out, which is okay by me because they're not unmissable. Shotz seemed to give me a stitch every time I tried them, so I've discounted those, and Torq had the worst consistency and taste of the lot, like a midway point between congealed sports drink and a science lab. Ick.
I really do like the Gu consistency and will definitely use them because they seem the most effective at giving me that burst of energy (am thinking my last 45 minute of the Marathon), but I must say that Clif Shot Bloks are also great. They come in packs of 6 and you chew 3 to 6 every hour, and I say chew, because they are like cubes of jelly from the packet, with slightly less give. Unlike gels, you don't end up with sticky fingers and I know it sound stupid, but they give you something 'do', because chewing them takes a while. They only sell Mountain Berry, Strawberry and Orange in Runners Need, but as I hate hate hate orange and strawberry when they're not in their original forms (jams, ice cream, cordial drinks) I'm stuck with Mountain Berry. Their website shows more flavours...perhaps I make use of my parent's trip to NY next week? Another bonus about Shot Bloks is they also actually taste like human food too. As in something that might consume if you weren't running non stop in the rain on a Sunday morning. Which can only be a good thing in my book. The Limehouse 'loop' is where I expect I'll need these, as it's the one area of the course I know less well than any other, and when I don't know where I'm going I tend to perceive distance as much longer than it actually is...anything to keep me going.
