Homebrew drink mix

Performance Nutrition
1

Now that I’m about to finish the last of my store-bought drink mix, I’ve decided to try making my own. I ordered some bulk ingredients from a baking supplier and have yet to decide on the glucose:fructose ratio between 2:1 and 1:0.8. Does anyone here have some experiences to share? My ingredient list:

  • Maltodextrin powder
  • Fructose powder
  • Salt
  • Fruit powder (listed as 1:1 glucose:fructose)

I elected to try salt over sodium citrate to cut down on the cost. Hopefully the salt dissolves fairly easily.

So far my cost is about $9 CAD/kg, made better by the fact that bulk supplies like this count as basic grocery items which aren’t taxed. Skratch retails here for at least $72 CAD/kg and Skratch high carb is $93 CAD/kg, after tax.

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2

I’ve been making my home-brew for a few years now (a separate “fuel” mix and “hydration” mix, mostly to solve cramping issues and of course save some $). Regarding 2:1 vs. 1:0.8, I have run the 1:0.8 for the last few years, but I think it’s personal preference. If fructose upsets your stomach (as it does some people), then run the 2:1, I don’t think the performance difference is huge unless you’re a pro. I do use the sodium citrate, as the sodium chloride does upset my stomach on long (6hr+) rides. For flavoring, I like using lemon and/or lime crystals. I get there here, but I’m sure there are other sources: https://nuts.com/driedfruit/fruit-powders/lemon-crystals.html

The maltodextrin I think requires some experimentation to find one that dissolves well. This one worked well for me (Amazon.com: Pure Glucose Powder Vegan Gluten-Free OU Kosher Certified - 1kg/2.2lbs/36oz : Grocery & Gourmet Food), but www.bulksupplements.com is a good source for different kinds of ingredients. I tested them out by lining up a few glasses of water and them putting the same amount of different maltodextrin/glucose in them and stirring it to see which dissolved the best.

I also put citric acid powder in mine, but to be honest I can’t remember why, but many of them seem to have it in there. I would start with the proportions based on a commercial mix (I like Skratch), and then adjust to suit (I increase the salt significantly because I’m a very salty sweater, so I have sodium citrate and magnesium citrate in mine).

No affiliation with any of the links above, I hope that’s helpful. Good luck!

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3

I follow this process

Basically uses the ingredients you’ve listed

Adding citric acid both acts as a preservative and also adds a little tang to balance out any sweetness

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4

Interesting, I might have to try this. I just make the powder and have a scoop that I know the volume of, so I just mix the power in my bottles. However, with the latest PerformanceProcess with the dentist I have been thinking of doing just water in the bottles and separating the fuel. Thanks!

5

I basically run low carb electrolyte in bottles and carry the super saturated flask in my pocket, either 140g in a 150ml flask or 240g in 250ml depending on the ride, or whatever I have in the fridge

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6

My teeth are rubbish and it’s always a concern for me. When bikepacking I try to always wash out my mouth with clean water, usually in a camelbak. That was a great podcast.

Google Cameron Jones does his own mix. How many calories did he down per hour in Unbound?

7

Excellent point about the salty sweat - I stain my kit regularly so will look into sodium citrate instead of table salt to up the proportion without stomach issues

8

I’d recommend the Saturday App. It makes mixing your own carb mix simple and cheap ingredients.

9

I’ve been doing 2:1 Glucose / Fructose mix this summer….buy in bulk and it becomes dirt cheap. I’ll then add in a healthy pinch of pink Himalayan salt to cut down on the sweetness and add some electrolytes.

Very neutral flavor, not overly sweet, even when doing 120g in a large bottle or 90g in a small bottle. Really easy to do the math, also. 80g of Glucose / 40g of fructose gets you 120g total carbs. 60 / 30 gets you 90, etc.

10

I can second the Saturday app.

granulated sugar and table salt are all you need. I add maltodextrin when I go above 100g/hr and decent intensity. I was able to handle 120g/hr no problem (1:0.8) after a bit of training during a marathon build.

adding a squirt of lemon juice is nice…my boys are always trying to steal it :rofl:

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11

Table sugar. 1:1.

Add maltodextrin if you want to flex the ratio out, for example for longer less intense days, use more malto. Very cheap.

Add sodium citrate for electrolytes and flavouring. Lemon juice is probably the cheapest to take the edge off the sweetness, but I use kool-aid blue raspberry as it’s more fun.

The great thing with this approach is that you can mix huge volumes of carbs in to a single bottle if you want, and then use another bottle for just water or electrolytes which is a refreshing break from the sugar.

12

This is what I made up with some back of napkin math for osmolarity (aimed for isotonic), it may have errors, but good results so far and no tummy issues for me. Na Citrate is pretty cheap from food suppliers, apparently it is used to make cheese melty? I also guesstimated for the Maltodextrin chain length (DE10). Normally I carry additional 1-bottle aliquots of drink mix in old electrolyte tablet tubes in my pockets too for long rides, or at least a spare empty bidon in Jersey with drink mix only

Nutrition summary

44 g carbs per bottle - 29.3 g glucose (maltodextrin), 14.7 g fructose

2:1 glucose:fructose ratio

802 mg sodium (Na+) per bottle

Max absorption is ~ 60 g/hr glucose, ~30g/hr fructose

Maltodextrin and fructose each have 4 cal/g

44 g x 4 cal/g = 176 cal per bottle = 704 kJ

For lower intensity rides

2h or so - 40 g to 60 g in total, eat carbs night before or morning of

Endurance rides - 40g/hr for hour 1 (1 bottle), 60g/hr for hours 2-3 (1 bottle + 1 gel), 80 g/hr carbs for hour 4+ (1 bottle + 2 gels or 2 bottles)

Usage

500 mL final volume of solution

47 g powder mix per bottle (2 scoops, 23.5 g each)

Per 47 g powder:

29.3 g maltodextrin (DE 10)

14.7 g fructose

3 g sodium citrate

Per 50 x 47g servings:

Add dry ingredients in bulk, shake it like a Polaroid picture to mix well

Osmolarity - isotonic

Maltodextrin

29.3 g maltodextrin x 1 mol/1625 g x 1000 mmol/mol = 18.03 mmol maltodextrin = 18.03 mmol solute

18.03 mmol solute / 0.5 L solvent = 36.06 mmol/L solute

Fructose

14.7 g fructose x 1 mol/180.16 g x 1000 mmol/mol = 81.59 mmol fructose = 81.59 mmol solute

81.59 mmol solute / 0.5 L solvent = 163.19 mmol/L solute

Sodium citrate (Na3 Citrate)

3 g sodium citrate x 1 mol/258.06 g x 1000 mmol/mol = 11.63 mmol sodium citrate

Sodium

11.63 mmol sodium citrate x 3 mmol Na+ / 1 mmol Na3 Citrate = 34.88 mmol Na+ = 34.88 mmol solute

34.88 mmol solute / 0.5 L solvent = 69.75 mmol/L solute

Citrate

11.63 mmol sodium citrate = 11.63 mmol solute

11.63 mmol solute / 0.5 L solvent = 23.26 mmol/L solute

Osmolarity calculation

Maltodextrin 36.06 mmol/L solute

Fructose 163.19 mmol/L solute

Na+ 69.75 mmol/L solute

Citrate 23.26 mmol/L solute

Total mmol/L solute = 292.26 mOsm

In reality, probably a tiny bit higher because less than 500 mL water in bottles

13

I use the same bulk ingredients and have got along well with the 1:0.8 ratio, no flavorings. I don’t add salt to the mix so I can customize sodium levels straight in the bottle based on the ride.

I’ve experienced using salt vs sodium citrate and much prefer sodium citrate. Far less salty tasting, especially at higher sodium levels. While it’s more expensive than straight table salt, over the long term it’s negligible additional cost since I don’t always add electrolytes to all my bottles (eg for shorter rides in cooler days I tend to skip it).

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Blimey. That’s a lot of work but I tend to carry about 80g-140g carbs per bottle…

15

There was an extremely useful ratio spreadsheet shared on the EC discord some time ago that I’ve been using since to make my drink mixes and saving the expensive stuff for event days when I might need to carry it with me.

Sharing here in case it’s useful to anyone:

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16

If anyone has experience bulk mixing a big batch, are there any recommendations for how to mix it all. I’m concerned the salt and sugars will separate and I won’t get an even mixture in every bottle.

17

I tried more concentrated, and ended up struggling because I was starting to get dehydrated and very thirsty and my wee was very yellow, so I had to stop! Topping up with gels instead has helped feel less crap

18

Yeah, either ratio is fine unless you have either a gastric issue or are on the WT. I use a large tub-like Carbogain or Protein powder, and mix bulk malto and fructose and then roll it around. I usually blend w/ water in a bullet type blender, add some TruLemon or TruGrapefruit, and go.

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29.3 g maltodextrin x 1 mol/1625 g x 1000 mmol/mol = 18.03 mmol maltodextrin = 18.03 mmol solute

Terribly minor, but that MW figure is approximately* correct for a maltodextrin with a chain length of 10 and thus a Dextrose Equivalence of 11. The maltodextrins used in brewing are commonly shorter chain (DE ~ 20, so DP around 6 and MW around 990) and I think the one you’re buying is likely in this range. If you chose it for solubility it is almost certainly a short chain.

  • It would be 1638 for a ten unit chain. 180 * n - 18 * (n-1). Commercial maltodextrins are always mixtures of different chain lengths since they are made by hydrolysing starch.
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Thank you for spotting that! Technically correct is the best kind of correct :relieved_face:. I think that bumps up the osmolarity slightly but not too much?