Because of this, I am going to start a performance review of sponsor (and non sponsor) products that should occur biweekly.
The first edition will be today consisting of some of the PowerBar products that I have raced with this year.
As a member of the PowerBar Team Elite, I have been graciously allotted product from this awesome company. Some of the kit I have received is incredible, including bike clothing, bags, and more, but really the most helpful has been all the nutritional aid from pre workout, during workout, and post workout recovery.
My before workout depends on the time of day, but for a morning workout, I like to try and have a regular PowerBar or some PowerBar Blasts. This gives me the calories (and caffeine in the case of the Cola Blasts) to get through the workout, but not too much so I have to fight my stomach. When digesting food, blood has to rush to your gut to digest, so the more complex the foods, the more blood needs to go there. If you add in working out, then there is a competition for blood between your muscles and your gut, thus creating the stomach ache.
I have found either of these with some PowerBar Perform during the workout are enough to get me through any workout that is 2-hours or less. The workouts lasting longer than 2 hours require additional calories and simple sugars to sustain a good intensity. I choose the PowerBar Double latte gels to get me through a higher intensity workout, or simply some more bars or blasts if I am doing a long and lower intensity bike ride.
After a workout, it's important to combine carbohydrates and protein within 15 minutes of completion to maximize fuel absorption.
I am a big fan of PowerBar restore drink mix as well as the cookies and cream recovery bars (something that I had not seen until I was sponsored by PowerBar,
but now everybody I know has tried them and loves them.
I look foward to another year of racing with PowerBar products and hope you have enjoyed the ones that I use daily in training and recovery. Happy Training.
I read this column right after having a vanilla crisp PowerBar to prepare for my weekly long run. (Been using them for years.) Happy New Year & have a great year of racing!
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