The case for gels built from rice, fruit, and honey—backed by physiology, performance data, and the simple fact that you’ll actually want to keep eating them deep into hour three.

The problem with syrup‑only gels

Most legacy gels hang their hat on maltodextrin- the fast, neutral‑tasting glucose polymer that turns into straight glucose in your gut. This happens at an unwanted pace that usually overwhelms the system, especially when you try to push intake above ~60 grams of carbohydrate per hour. At that point, you start to bottleneck one primary intestinal “gate” (the SGLT1 transporter for glucose). The result is an absorption ceiling that shows up on the bike or in the run as sloshing and nausea, not speed. Experiments over the last two decades made this visible: glucose‑only feeding typically tops out around ~1.0–1.1 g/min of exogenous oxidation (≈60–66 g/h). [1–3]

In practical terms, multiple‑carb fueling enables oxidation rates up to ~1.5–1.75 g/min (≈90–105 g/h) and has repeatedly outperformed glucose‑only strategies in controlled time‑trial settings. [1–3]

Real food: a better carbohydrate matrix by design

“Real‑food” gels—built from ingredients like rice, honey, maple syrup, fruit, and oats—naturally combine several carbohydrate types in one packet. That means they recruit multiple transporters without you needing a chemistry set in your kitchen.

Examples from one real‑food line (Spring Energy): the formulas weave together rice (starch/glucose), honey or maple (glucose + fructose via sucrose), and fruit (fructose + glucose), often with a pinch of sea salt and, in some cases, some amounts of fat, better digestive system performance, texture and satiety. A few illustrative products:

·       Strawberry Smoothie Gel— strawberries, maple syrup, basmati rice, bananas, coconut oil.

·       Awesome Sauce — basmati rice, maple syrup, applesauce, sweet potato, MCT/avocado oil, cinnamon, sea salt.

·       Peach XL (~50 g carbs) — raw honey, peaches, basmati rice, bananas, cashew butter, 

·       Lemon Power Snack (~25 g carbs) — rice, lemon, grapefruit, honey, ~110 mg caffeine.

These labels read like food—because they are food—and they cover a broader set of carbohydrate forms than a simple maltodextrin syrup. 

The performance edge isn’t marketing—it’s measurable

When researchers directly compared glucose‑only drinks to multi-carb mixtures, trained cyclists completed a set amount of work faster with the dual‑carb blend. In a classic randomized crossover trial, adding fructose to glucose improved power output beyond both glucose alone and placebo after a prolonged steady ride plus ~1‑hour time trial. [1] That advantage aligns with the higher oxidation rates observed in lab studies using isotopic tracers. [2–3]

Just as important for anyone who’s ever fought a cramping stomach: multiple‑transportable carbohydrates tend to improve gastrointestinal comfort at higher intakes versus glucose alone. In runners, multi-carb and fat feeding reduced GI symptoms and improved performance relative to glucose‑only feeding. [4] Recent work with modern carbohydrate formats also shows better GI tolerance when glucose and fructose are combined at high intakes. [5]

Comfort isn’t fluff—palatability fuels intake

You can only oxidize what you can swallow. Palate fatigue is a real reason athletes under‑fuel late in events. Real‑food gels bring natural acidity (fruit), gentle spice (cinnamon, ginger), and familiar textures (applesauce, rice) that keep flavors changing. Controlled work on maple‑based sports drinks—a “real‑food” carbohydrate—found they were well‑accepted during prolonged exercise with favorable ratings of taste and appreciation, a small but meaningful lever when intake targets are ambitious. [6]

A gut that can handle your plan

Whether you prefer rice‑and‑fruit gels or lab‑clean syrups, the gut adapts to what you practice. “Training the gut” (progressively increasing carbohydrate during sessions) enhances gastric emptying and intestinal absorption, reducing the likelihood and severity of GI complaints on race day. [7]

Practical fueling: how to use real‑food gels

Target the right intake:

·       >60 minutes of continuous work: Carbohydrate during exercise improves performance; aim for 30–60 g/h.

·       2.5 hours and beyond: With multiple‑transportable carbohydrates and fats, ~90 g/h is a common target; higher is possible for some elite athletes. It is not recommended for most athletes because their ability to metabolize carbs is limited, and energy sources are not solely carbs. 

Build your hour with foods, not syrup:

·       One Peach XL (~50 g CHO) plus one Canaberry (~17 g CHO) ≈ 67 g—squarely in range for many scenarios.

·       Two Awesome Sauce (~28 g each) ≈ 56 g with a familiar apple‑and‑cinnamon profile. 

Mind the extras:

·       Electrolytes & caffeine: Many real‑food gels add sea salt; several options include 30–100 mg caffeine per pack. Use caffeine strategically and within your tolerance.

·       Fat & fiber: Small amounts (e.g., oils or nut butters) can improve texture/satiety and provide effective energy for longer efforts; if you’re going very hard and short time, prioritize higher‑carb, lower‑fat options. Train this in practice.

“But aren’t modern syrup gels dual‑carb too?”

Some are. If your maltodextrin gel already blends fructose (or sucrose), you’ll get part of the absorption win. The difference is that real‑food gels typically deliver a broader carbohydrate spectrum (starches from rice or oats + honey/maple + fruit sugars), along with naturally varying acidity and flavor compounds that make high‑hour fueling more sustainable—physiologically and psychologically. And the performance data favor the principle (multiple transporters), regardless of format. [1–3]

Summary 

1.     Exploit multiple intestinal transporters to raise the ceiling on usable carbs from ~60 g/h toward ~90–105 g/h. [1–3]

2.     Improve GI comfort when intakes climb, which keeps you eating and your power steady. [4–5]

3.     Reduce palate fatigue, making adherence to your fueling plan more realistic late in events. [6]

4.     Let you fuel with actual foods—rice, fruit, honey, maple—rather than a single, sticky syrup. (See examples above.)

Quick start: a real‑food fueling checklist

·       Pick 2–3 flavors you genuinely enjoy (e.g., apple‑forward, berry‑citrus, or peach‑honey). Rotate them to keep taste buds fresh. Add Energlee drinks to raise carb content, add flavor variety, and provide extra electrolytes. 

·       Build to your goal intake over 2–4 weeks: start at 40–50 g/h, then 60–70, then 80–90 if your race demands it. [7, 9]

·       Practice with caffeine in training if you’ll race with it (30–100 mg per pack is common).

·       Carry water. Even food‑based gels go down—and work—better when washed in. High‑carb plans always assume fluid. [3]

References

5.     Currell K, Jeukendrup AE. Superior endurance performance with ingestion of multiple transportable carbohydrates. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2008;40(2):275–281. doi:10.1249/MSS.0b013e31815adf19. https://europepmc.org/article/MED/18202575

6.     Jentjens RLPG, Jeukendrup AE. High rates of exogenous carbohydrate oxidation from a mixture of glucose and fructose ingested during prolonged cycling exercise. Br J Nutr. 2005;93(4):485–492. https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/5978786559A73EDEFC6DCD272A773E3A/S0007114505000619a.pdf

7.     Jeukendrup AE. A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During Exercise. Sports Med. 2014;44(Suppl 1):S25–S33. https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s40279-014-0148-z.pdf ; see also Jeukendrup AE. Multiple Transportable Carbohydrates and Their Benefits. GSSI Sports Science Exchange #108. https://www.gssiweb.org/docs/default-source/sse-docs/sse-108-jeukendrup.pdf

8.     Wilson PB, Ingraham SJ. Glucose–fructose likely improves gastrointestinal comfort and endurance running performance relative to glucose‑only. Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2015;25(6):e613–e620. doi:10.1111/sms.12386. (preprint/open versions: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/athleticresearch/1/ ; https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/188110239.pdf)

9.     Varela‑Sanz A, O’Hara JP, et al. Glucose and fructose hydrogel enhances running performance, exogenous carbohydrate oxidation and gastrointestinal tolerance. Int J Sports Physiol Perform. 2022;17(9):1321–1331. (author manuscript: https://eprints.gla.ac.uk/248453/2/248453.pdf)

10.  Lavoie L, Tremblay J. Ingestion of maple‑based and other carbohydrate sports drinks: effect on sensory perceptions during prolonged exercise. J Int Soc Sports Nutr. 2020;17:63. https://jissn.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12970-020-00384-3

11.  Jeukendrup AE. Training the Gut for Athletes. Sports Med. 2017;47(Suppl 1):101–110. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40279-017-0690-6

12.  Jeukendrup AE. A Step Towards Personalized Sports Nutrition: Carbohydrate Intake During Exercise. Sports Med. 2014;44(Suppl 1):S25–S33. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40279-014-0148-z ; GSSI summary: https://www.gssiweb.org/sports-science-exchange/article/a-step-towards-personalized-sports-nutrition-carbohydrate-intake-during-exercise-

13.  Smith JW, et al. Curvilinear dose–response relationship of carbohydrate (0–120 g·h⁻¹) ingestion rates and cycling time trial performance. Int J Sport Nutr Exerc Metab. 2013;23(2):115–126. (abstract/info: https://www.scienceopen.com/document?vid=184902bf-a52e-4c0b-8bb4-2cd5260861ba ; summarized in Jeukendrup 2012 review PDF)

14.  Product ingredient and nutrition examples referenced from brand spec sheet: Spring Energy & Energlee product sheet (Nov 2025).