{"id":13050,"date":"2011-03-03T10:27:54","date_gmt":"2011-03-03T15:27:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nomeatathlete.com\/?p=13050"},"modified":"2020-04-13T16:11:08","modified_gmt":"2020-04-13T20:11:08","slug":"homemade-energy-gel-chia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.nomeatathlete.com\/homemade-energy-gel-chia\/","title":{"rendered":"Make Your Own Energy Gel (With Chia Seeds!)"},"content":{"rendered":"

This is a guest post from Tim Woodbury, who writes at MidpackRunner.com<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

This post started with a challenge, when Doug from TheHaySay.com<\/a> fired a shot across my bow.<\/p>\n

\"ChiaAt issue: The question of whether we could create an inexpensive, wholesome, homemade energy gel incorporating chia seeds<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Homemade energy gels<\/a> are particularly difficult to get right, even without the added complexity of having to add chia<\/a>, the seed that has so famously (thanks, Born to Run<\/em>) been trusted by both ancient warriors and modern ultrarunners to keep them going. I wasn’t sure it could really be done. But, as always happens with runners, my naturally competitive spirit won out.<\/p>\n

Thus, I traded my running shoes for a chef’s hat and set to work destroying the kitchen<\/span> creating my masterpiece.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

A sticky wicket<\/h3>\n

I suppose I should start by admitting that I don’t really care much for energy gel. In that, I agree with Matt’s aversion<\/a>.<\/p>\n

I find the texture somewhat unpleasant. And don’t get me started on the ingredients — have you ever read one of those packets? Let’s just say I’ve taken to calling gels “chemical slurry,” and giving them wide berth.<\/p>\n

It was in the spirit of detoxifying these gels that I chose which ingredients would be allowed into my recipe.<\/p>\n

I began with real, honest-to-goodness fruit. Since gel is predominantly sugar, it seemed like a good place to start. However, fructose takes longer to digest<\/a>, and can be harder on the GI tract than other sugars. That’s why most commercial gels are predominantly maltodextrin.\u00a0 To overcome the limitations of the fructose, I added brown rice syrup, which is mostly maltose and glucose, and fruit pectin for dextrose.<\/p>\n

Beyond that, the only other major components of commercial gels are electrolytes.\u00a0 Here’s what we’ll be using to cover that.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Electrolyte Mix:<\/em><\/p>\n