Many athletes
overestimate the value of meal replacement drinks and energy supplements, while
underestimating the essence and importance of real food. Particularly in
endurance sports such as cycling and triathlon, the participants often use
their excessive training and racing volumes as an excuse to eat badly.
The sports
nutrition industry is partly to blame for this phenomenon, seducing the
consumer with endless marketing hype giving a distorted perspective of their
products. Many of these products have extremely high contents of simple sugars,
together with a disturbing number of preservatives. This adversely affects the
user’s digestive system, often resulting in constipation or, conversely,
diarrhea. The evidence of upset stomachs and desperate need for probiotics from day three
of the annual ABSA Cape Epic certainly validates the observation.
In recent
years, several long distance mountain bike events have begun to embrace the
notion of proper food and sustenance being supplied before, during and after
competition. This is a refreshing change from the plethora of energy drinks and
bars found at many other endurance events. Using the 2012 ASPEN Trans Karoo MTB
Enduro as an example, the refreshment points provided competitors with
sustenance such as mealies (corn on the cob), home-made vegetable wraps and potjiekos (South African-style stew). This was an
absolute hit with the participants, many of whom commented afterwards at how
good they felt post event.
