Nutrition thoughts from Nick Lehecka at Finger Lakes Running & Triathlon Company

[Smura, Robert]

I would like to hear what people prefer for their training and race nutrition. Please e-mail me with your preferences and what, in addition to the 10% off and no shipping charges as with mail order products, we could do to meet your nutritional product needs.

The one fault commonly found with Hammer Nutrition is their low sodium levels. There is research supporting these low levels and there is more research finding that most people need more than is offered in Hammer products, so I brought in Salt Stick products to work hand and hand. I'm interested in EFS, but I'm waiting until their 2010 updated products are released from beta-pro-athlete testing mode. Their existing products uses artificial sweeteners, which build up an alcoholic taste with extensive use. Honestly, though, the only difference I find with EFS and HEED is EFS adding a minuscule amount of simple carbs, citing a study that shows a higher caloric uptake in athletes training at 55% of their max heart rate using a ration of complex and simple carbs. EFS also adds more sodium, uses the same amount of maltodextrin as their main/primary ingredient as HEED, and then charges twice as much. But a lot of people swear by it and since it's basically HEED with a touch of fructose and Salt Stick level sodium added, it sounds like a good product.... once they release the artificial-sweetener-free version. There is also Cytomax, which uses quite a bit more fructose than EFS, to the point of causing acid reflux in some athletes and blood sugar spikes in other athletes, but some people love it and swear by it and with the added fructose, it tastes great. There is also Accelerade, the original carb/protein drink. I like it, have used it extensively, but eventually found the protein levels to be too high for what my stomach could handle. But again, plenty of people love it. Then there is Gatorade Endurance, which has very high fructose and extremely high sodium levels and I honestly feel its only place in the market is that it is the drink mix provided during Ironman events and people want to train with what they'll be provided during the race - not a bad idea, though a lot of elites bring their own nutritional products to avoid the blood sugar level spikes and crashes, but that requires carrying more fluid weight during the race. Aside from just going with Gatorade Endurance and gambling with Type-II diabetes (half-joking), a solution for this is using Carbopro, a maltodextrin energy product that comes in an ultra concentrated bottle. 

While I expressed some of my thoughts from my experience and from what I've read and heard from other athletes, I'm interested in hearing your thoughts, so e-mail me directly to my personal e-mail, not to the list serve, and tell me what you prefer, would like to see on our shelves. Think back to your dietary and stomach distress issues during training or racing and figure out if your nutritional strategy is spot on with what you've been using. Thanks!

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Nick Lehecka
Finger Lakes Running & Triathlon Company
nleh...@gmail.com