giveaway wednesday!
I have a very faint memory of trying Gu several years ago, and immediately spewing it on everything within 15 feet of myself. Since then, I've been hesitant to try it again, but with my longer bike rides, I've felt the need to mix up my nutrition a bit. I can only eat so many jelly beans before my stomach tries desperately to punch me in the face (not sure how that would work, hmmm....).
The nice folks over at Gu sent me a mixed box of stuff to try, and I suckered in some Gu-virgins to test it out. The day the box arrived, I was super excited and wanted to try it out right away. This was when Julie was visiting, so we decided that we would suck one down and then head to the gym to run. I know this isn't exactly the intended purpose of Gu, so just hush. We each tried one - I had a "Chocolate Outrage" and she had "Vanilla Bean." She really liked the vanilla, and I was surprised to LOVE the chocolate - it tastes like brownie batter (in a good way).
I'm excited.
...and we headed off to the gym. Before we even got out the door, I had a pretty significant digestive reaction, but that might not be just thanks to the Gu. Once we got to the gym, I felt fine - but started feeling a bit jittery. As soon as I got started on the treadmill, the jitters went away, but came back once I got home. Oops - I gave up caffeine two years ago, and didn't read the small print that said "2x caffeine" before I sucked mine down. But did I ever fly on that treadmill - 3 miles @ 8:42 pace. The heart palpitations and speed-talking lasted for about 2 hours afterwards.
Knowing that I didn't test this under the best circumstances, I decided to give it a try on a few long rides. Now, I'm still figuring out my nutrition on the bike. I've learned that I don't need anything (although I drink nuun, but that's more due to the heat) on rides shorter than 20 miles/90 minutes. I've been taking in nutrition about every 15 miles on the bike on my longer rides, and while this may be more often than I need, it's been working out well for me. On the last two long rides I had, I took a Gu (and the better part of a bottle of water) at about the 30 mile mark. I usually feel some tummy sloshing for a few minutes while everything settles down, but it seems to be a great source of fuel for me and is working really well. The other times I take in nutrition, I take in something a bit more solid, to balance it out. I also don't have crazy heartbeats if I'm on the bike for at least an hour after taking one with caffeine, and then there's no need for the poet to peel me off the ceiling when I get home. Two thumbs-up for Gu.
I also asked (made) the poet try one before he went on a longer run, and now he wants to take one every time, because he thinks it made him faster.
And the exciting part...giveaway time!
Here's how:
1. Become a follower or tell me that you are - leave a comment.
2. Tweet about this - including @thisamazingday in the tweet and I'll add a comment for you when I see it!
3. Tell me what you use to fuel on long runs or rides and how much/how often - leave a comment.
3 super awesome chances to win! I'll pick a winner Monday morning!