Ok, imagine this. You are out on a ride and all of a sudden you start getting weak. You feel off-balance, dizzy, and your legs just can’t push up the slight hills. Soon you start feeling hungry and off-balance feeling just gets worse. Next thing you know you are laid out on the grass next to the road sucking air and staring aimlessly at the clouds.
This is commonly known as bonking in the cycling and multisport world. In the simplest terms I can use, it means that you are out of energy and your brain has started shutting down your muscles. It is a pretty crappy feeling and every cyclist can suffer from it. Even Lance Armstrong fell victim to it during the 2000 Tour de France.
Bonking can be prevented during a workout or a ride by taking a small snack along with you. It can be something made for cycling, like an energy gel or goo, or even something as simple as a bagel.
Here is a list of some of my favorite mid-ride snacks. Just toss one in the back pocket of your jersey next time you are on a long ride and go with it.
- Beef Jerky – Small and easy to pack, delicious.
- Mini-Bagels – toss one in a Ziploc bag and you are set
- Energy Gel or Goo – My goo of choice is a Clif Shot with cafeine .
- Energy Bars – My bar of choice is a Banana Nut Bread Clif Bar
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- Bananas – It’s like a candy bar in an all natural wrapper. It gives both long and short term energy.
The typical rule of thumb is to always eat before your hungry. This is especially important on very long rides. I have done several 100 mile road bike rides in my past and it is crucial that you eat roughly every half hour to forty five minutes on those kind of rides. Same goes for drinking water, drink before your thirsty.
I hope this quick tip helps. I want to hear your favorite mid-ride snacks. Let me know in the comments what I’m missing out on!
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
I have so been there. It usually happens at the beginning of the season when I am not as organized as I am by the end of the season. This year it happened on a hill while riding with a rider who was much faster than I. We hit the hill, he went up and I couldn’t keep moving forward. Luckily he had some clif shots to get me through.
Thanks Ann, I find that it usually happens toward the beginning of a training season as well. I last hit that wall about 3 months ago. I hadn’t been riding much at that time and I pushed harder than I intended to on the ride. About a mile from finishing the trail I had to get off my bike and sit in the shade to just breathe for about 5 minutes before I could finish. I had beef jerky in the car, nothing on me though.