I didn't realise the gels took so long to work (20 mins)! I've always eaten haribo or jelly babies on a long run, much tastier and seem to give me the sugar boost faster.
I wouldn't recomment Lucozade, although I know many of you will. I'm a biologist and studies carried out by my students showed that recovery time only improved marginally with Lucozade compared with water. The drink that improved performance the most was milk - due to the combination of sugars and protein. However, I can't imagine taking a bottle of milk on a run so I'd recommend drinking milk after the run instead! This might be good for Emmalou if you're not keen on eating soon after you finish your run. I'd love to hear what you think if you try the idea!
