I’m experimenting with making my own energy gel as part of my marathon training. I need something to prevent me from hitting the wall (aka bonking) on my long runs. The commercial gels contain maltodextrin, fructose, and a bunch of chemicals that are hard to pronounce. I wanted something healthier that doesn’t make me want to gag.

I’m taking inspiration from the Thrive Diet and trying to make my own. I found a few recipes online (here and here), but I’ve been creating my own version.

Here’s V2 of my recipe.

Ingredients

• 5 medjool dates
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup dulse
• 1/2 banana
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 tbsp agave
• 1 tsp molasses
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp lemon zest
• 2 tbsp papaya
• 1 tsp maca powder

Steps

1. Soak the dates in water for a few hours.
2. Mix the soaked dates with the other ingredients in a food processor until smooth.
3. Add the energy gel into two large (3 oz) GoToobs.
4. Consume the gels on your workout. 6 oz was more than enough for a 3 hour run.

Reasoning

• The dates, honey, agave, molasses, and fruit provide clean burning carbohydrates with varying glycemic index (GI) values between 15 and 62.
• The dulse provides sodium and the banana provides potassium, to replace the electrolytes I sweat out. The papaya is there to aid digestion.
• The lemon juice is mostly for flavour, but it also helps to clear out lactic acid.
• The maca gives an additional energy boost.
• The coconut oil is for taste and energy.

The coconut oil is the most confusing ingredient. I put 1/4 cup in my first batch and only 1 tbsp in my second. I added it because Brendan Brazier uses it in his energy gels, but I couldn’t figure out why. The fat you burn running is already stored in your body, not recently consumed. Then I read this on the Thrive Staple Foods List:

Medium-chain triglycerides in coconut burn like a carbohydrate, offering immediate energy.