Energy gels and other quick sources of energy

[Rehan]

Has anyone here tried energy gels such as Power Gel and Carb-BOOM? The reviews for them seem pretty good at first glance...

Suppose I haven't eaten for a few hours and have 10 mins to munch on something before I start playing for up to 3 hours in a volleyball tournament. Would an energy gel be a good choice for some short term energy? What else would be useful to have that will last me for the 3 hours?

[B40]

A spoonful of honey....I'm not joking

[chatbox]

The honey and gel work rather well. If you want something a bit long laster..hum...have a bowl of rice about 3-4 hours before hand. There's also bananas and take some salt with you as well.

[Rehan]

A spoonful of honey....I'm not joking
Thanks for the suggestion; I may try it out. :)
http://www.honey.com/pressrm/research/enrgy-expbio.html

[Rehan]

The honey and gel work rather well. If you want something a bit long laster..hum...have a bowl of rice about 3-4 hours before hand. There's also bananas and take some salt with you as well.
Unfortunately, rice beforehand isn't an option because I won't be able to eat until volleyball starts (just after the first 15-min game, actually)...but I should have a chance to get a very quick bite in between games.

[B40]

A sports gel is $2-3, honey will be $0.05, a no brainer if you ask me.

[Rehan]

I need it for only 1 or 2 nights...cost is not an issue.

[B40]

The honey and gel work rather well. If you want something a bit long laster..hum...have a bowl of rice about 3-4 hours before hand. There's also bananas and take some salt with you as well.

Bananas work well too. My pre workout meal is usually oatmeal with slices of banana, a spoonful of honey and a coffee...thinking of getting caffeine pills though.

[B40]

I need it for only 1 or 2 nights...cost is not an issue.

I'm just pointing out the differences in cost. Say avg 1.5 nights a week, that's about 75 nights a year. With a sports gel, you're looking at around $150-225 a year, whereas a bottle or two of honey for $5-10 will last you the entire year. Even if cost is not an issue, I don't see why you should pay for sports gel when the product is priced at a premium to begin with. Although there may be a certain psychological effect on you that you'll perform better with the sports gel vs. the cheaper alternative of honey.

[xanatos]

Yeh definitely placebo plays a HUGE role here.

Keep in mind, the food agencies for US and Canada have NO criteria for what qualify as an "energy bar" or "energy gel".

For me this is my cheap solution:

-make own trail mix
a) sugar sources - raisins, craisins
b) protein sources - roasted soy nuts, peanuts, almonds
c) various carb/other vitamin - sunflower seeds, punpkin seeds, walnuts, cashews, macademia nuts

Im' usually on the go (bike or run), so I bought mini m&ms, and use their containers, sorta like shotgun energy cartridges ;) Bring a few with me and I'll be good for a multihour high intensity bike ride

But yeah I don't think those energy things are worth the money for you... volleyball is considerably less intense than endurance sports.. I've read many articles that unless you are doing like 2 hours or more HIGH intensity sports straight, you won't see much (if any) advantages from powerbar/gels, etc. Haha well other than placebo effect ;)

Just my 2 cents,
-xan-