Energy gels & race nutrition

THE DEFAULT

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GU Energy Gel

Best for: runners who want the proven, boring, everywhere option

The gel everyone starts with and half the field still uses at kilometre 35. Thick, sweet, and available in more flavours than anyone asked for, some with caffeine and some without. If you have ever picked up a gel at a Canadian race expo, it was probably one of these.

THE FANCY ONE

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Maurten Gel 160

Best for: runners chasing a PB who have decided their stomach is worth the money

The hydrogel that elite marathoners made famous, with a texture closer to unflavoured Jell-O than syrup. There is basically no taste, which sounds like a flaw until you are 30K in and the thought of another fruit-punch gel makes you gag. You pay a premium for the minimalism.

NO WATER NEEDED

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SIS GO Isotonic Energy Gel

Best for: runners who hate timing their gels around water stations

Noticeably thinner and larger than a standard gel, designed to be taken without chasing it with water. That makes it handy between aid stations, though the bigger packet takes a few extra seconds to get down. A long-time favourite of triathletes, who love nothing more than eating while moving.

TASTES LIKE FOOD

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Honey Stinger Organic Energy Gel

Best for: runners who want their fuel to taste like actual food

Honey-based, so it tastes like something that exists in nature rather than a lab. The texture is classic honey, which means it can get thick in cold weather, worth knowing for those March races where the start line is minus five. A good gateway gel for people suspicious of the whole category.

PRE-RACE BREAKFAST

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Honey Stinger Waffle

Best for: the pre-race window and long slow days, not mid-race fueling

A stroopwafel with a sports nutrition label, and honestly one of the better snacks in running. Too crumbly and chewy to eat at race pace for most people, but excellent an hour before the gun or on an easy long run. Also dangerous to keep in the pantry, because they disappear.

FOR GEL HATERS

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Clif Bloks Energy Chews

Best for: runners who would rather chew their carbs than shoot them

Big gummy cubes you can portion out instead of committing to a whole gel at once, which is nice when your stomach is on the fence. The margarita flavour has extra sodium and a cult following. Downside: chewing at threshold pace is a skill, and the cubes firm up in the cold.

SUBTLE FLAVOUR

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Skratch Labs Sport Hydration Drink Mix

Best for: runners who find regular sports drinks aggressively sweet

A drink mix that tastes lightly of real fruit instead of neon sports-drink concentrate, with sodium and a modest amount of carbohydrate. It is deliberately not a full meal in a bottle, more of a hydration base you fuel alongside. The lemon lime is the safe pick.

ALL-IN-ONE BOTTLE

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Skratch Labs Super High-Carb Drink Mix

Best for: long-haul runners who want to drink their calories and be done with it

The opposite philosophy from a gel plan: put all your calories in the bottle and skip solid fuel entirely. Popular with ultrarunners and anyone whose stomach rejects gels outright, since sipping steadily is gentler than a gel bolus. Requires actually drinking on schedule, which is harder than it sounds.

THE SALT SHAKER

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SaltStick Caps

Best for: heavy sweaters and hot-weather racers dialing in sodium

Electrolyte capsules that many runners use to top up sodium on hot days or long efforts when sweat losses outpace what their drink covers. Tiny, flavourless, easy to carry in a pill flask. Not fuel, just minerals, so they complement gels rather than replace them.

THE CANADIAN ONE

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Näak Ultra Energy Bars

Best for: runners who want real-food fueling without eating a full granola bar

Real-food endurance bars from a Quebec company that fuels half the Canadian ultra scene. Soft enough to chew mid-run, and there is something satisfying about fueling a Canadian race with Canadian fuel. Better on trails and long slow days than at 10K pace, when chewing anything is ambitious.

EVERYDAY HYDRATION

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Nuun Sport Electrolyte Tablets

Best for: day-to-day hydration and pre-race prep, not race-day calories

Fizzy tablets you drop in a bottle for electrolytes with barely any calories, so this is hydration support rather than fuel. Great for hot training days, travel, and the day before a race when you are drinking more water than usual. The tube format survives a gym bag indefinitely.