><i>"Riders are able to eat so many carbohydrates on the bike now, almost twice as much as before."</i><p>><i>“But what has changed is the way riders get their glycogen fix.
New formulations from nutrition brands like Maurten, Precision Fuel and Hydration, and Science in Sport means the age-old carb “ceiling” of 60-90 grams per hour has been blown into another orbit.”
“Consumption thresholds have been shifted thanks to “hydrogel” delivery models and new glucose-fructose ratios that ensure what goes down, stays down.”</i><p>I would have liked to see some actual details about the carbohydrate changes that have made the increased tolerance so much larger.<p>I looked at the three brands mentioned and the actual carbohydrate sources listed were tried and true things like maltodextrin [1], maltodextrin/fructose [2], and glucose/fructose [3].<p>I thought I might see something like highly branched cyclic dextrin. Since it doesn't seem to be any new form of carbohydrate, I'm curious what ancillary ingredients and/or ratios are proving to be the difference maker(s).<p>[1] <a href="https://www.scienceinsport.com/eu/go-isotonic-energy-gels-sis" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.scienceinsport.com/eu/go-isotonic-energy-gels-si...</a>
[2] <a href="https://www.precisionhydration.com/us/en/products/pf-30-gel/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.precisionhydration.com/us/en/products/pf-30-gel/</a>
[3] <a href="https://www.maurten.com/products/gel-160-us" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://www.maurten.com/products/gel-160-us</a>
Drugs are a big part of the "how are people going faster for longer" equation, of course.<p>But in an endurance context, adequate fuelling is likely even more important than a new magic drug, because it doesn't matter how many drugs you take if you don't replenish your energy reserves. You can have the biggest engine in the world, or the most efficient, but once you run out of fuel, it's not going anywhere.<p>For those nearing the pointy end of strength sports, drugs are generally seen as a 10-15% boost for high intermediate level lifters, and single digit for advanced/expert.<p>When the difference between first place and not ending up on the board is sometimes 1-3%, the drugs are mandatory.<p>But everything else has to be there as well. Drugs don't replace hard work, dedication, and proper nutrition - they augment it.<p>If you safely can consume 10% more calories hourly than your competitors in a long endurance race, that means you can burn more calories and put out more average power than everyone else who is likely on a very similar drug cocktail.
> How has the peloton gotten so fast?<p>This question in the article is almost comically naive. In the most drug-filled sport in history, with its most famous athlete a known drug cheat, the answer to this isn’t “carbohydrates”, it’s almost assuredly “drugs not being tested for”.
'This season saw 7w/kg become the new norm for grand tour contending climbers. Classics champions pushed 5.5w/kg for hours on end.' Armstrong and co were doing 7w/kg. Hint hint