Using energy drinks and bars

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Should energy drinks be used during all training? Or perhaps just
longer runs/rides?

The rule of thumb is using energy drinks for your longer trainings,
which lasts more than 1 hour. Less than that, water should be enough.

Quoted message said:

If one of the benefits of training is getting the body used to using
energy and increasing ones stores of glycogen (am I right here?) then
does the use of energy drinks negate this effect to some extent?

No, you are not right. The aim is to train the body to use the glycogen
stores efficiently. So, your glycogen stores will be heavily used in
your trainings. When your training or competition lasts longer than an
hour your glycogen stores are sure to be finished, in which case your
body will start using only the fat system. And this system is no nearly
as efficient, so your performance will suffer. This is called "bonking"
or "hitting the wall". The energy drinks' (of course, I do not mean Red
Bull or such, you should use a commercial or home made isotonic drink)
whole purpose is preventing these bonks.

Quoted message said:

Secondly, same question for 'recovery' drinks full of carbohydrates to
replace those used during training.

The isotonic drinks use a carb ratio of 6-7 percent plus some
electrolytes. This is the optimal amount for fastest absorption from
stomach. More than that, the digestion will take too long, less than
that, the carbs will not be enough. So, they are not full of carbs.

HTH
--
Burak
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