TORQenergy ~ Endurance Fuel

I visited the lads in the shop to stock up on my winter fuel for when I start putting in my big rides.  I need to be up to two five hour rides a week by Christmas, so need some energy dense food to keep me going.  This product I bought with my own money.  Here's what I think with some added technical information for those interested in such stuff.

I've been using the Pink Grapefruit version and I think that at last I've found a product that I can drink all day that doesn't leave me wishing it wasn't sweet and sickly.  Because it's neither.  It's really refreshing, different and it works, for me at least.

What is it?
TORQenergy is made from an ingredient called maltodextrin, often referred to as a glucose polymer. A glucose polymer's molecular profile optimises the long-term energy properties of complex carbohydrates, without the need to consume bulky starch-rich foods.

Bulky foods take longer to digest because they contain fibre, an important, but sport-enhancing useless nutrient.  They also fill and bloat your stomach making movement and sport in particular more difficult.

TORQenergy, when diluted with the correct amount of water, delivers a sustained supply of glucose to the working muscle.  It contains no colouring, artificial sweeteners, flavouring or preservatives.  It's lightly flavoured, refreshing and more importantly these days, natural.  It comes in Natural flavour (nothing) or Grapefruit, Lime & Lemon, and Orange.

When should I use TORQenergy?
Use it as a supplement to your regular nutrition during heavy training/racing periods.  Sometimes it is just impossible to get enough calories from a regular diet to fuel your performance. 4 level scoops of TORQenergy dissolved in 750ml of water is equivalent in energy to a medium sized bowl of pasta.

TORQenergy can also be added to all sorts of regular food; preffrebally the Natural flavour!  Sprinkle it onto your breakfast cereal, or add to your favourite sweet or savoury recipes.  You are unlikely to notice that it has been added; yet it will enhance the carbohydrate content of the food significantly.  If you do use it in this way, ensure that you drink plenty of extra water as this is necessary for effective glycogen storage.

Recovery Supplement
Within 15 minutes of finishing exercise,  while enzyme activity is elevated, is the best time to get carbohydrate into your system.  Solid  food isn't always appealing at this time so why not use a recovery supplement or use TORQenergy. 

For optimal recovery, aim to consume 1gram of TORQenergy per kilogram body weight, or between 60 and 80g (4-5 level scoops (the scoops aren't that big)) immediately after exercise and repeat this procedure every 2 hours for the next 4-6 hours.  However, after the initial recovery period, and you've had your shower, in my opinion solid food may be a better and cheaper alternative.

Carbo Loading
Research has shown that if you elevate your carbohydrate intake for the days leading up to an event, you will super-charge your muscles with glycogen.  Obviously, if you've done everything else right you will enhance your performance and extend your time to exhaustion.

There are a variety of carbohydrate loading methods, but as a guide, aim to consume 8-10g of carbohydrate per kg bodyweight per day for the 3 days leading up to your key event.  During this time, every effort should be made to keep fat intake as low as possible and exercise volume should be light.  

Please note that these figures represent the recommended amount of total carbohydrate, so use supplements such as TORQenergy to help you achieve these levels.  And don't do it for every event every weekend!

Nutritional Info
Ingredients:

Maltodextrin (Polysaccharide 94%,
Maltose 5%, Dextrose 1%)

Nutritional Information (per 100grams):

Energy (Kcal) 384
Energy (Kj) 1605
Carbohydrate 96g
Fat 0g
Protein 0g

Where can I get some?
Pedal Power £9 a 500 gram tub but mention flamme rouge and get a discount.