Fitness Fatale

Marathon Nutrition for Female Runners

Huma gels for marathon training

Long Run Fuel That Won’t Upset Your Stomach

Run for the bathroom after you take a gel? Worried you’ll have to stop during your marathon to use the bathroom? Or maybe you’re just looking for a gel or chew or electrolytes to use during marathon or half marathon training that are more natural? 

huma gels

Why You Should Look at Ingredients of Endurance Gels

Gels can be made up of a VARIETY of ingredients. And your body will react differently to different things.

Why Maltodextrin May Upset Your Stomach


No shade to any certain brand, but I realized after many years of using a particular gel that my stomach doesn’t like maltodextrin (maltodextrin is a carbohydrate that’s often made from corn – it DOES break down to glucose, but I think my stomach prefers fuel that is closer to the natural source). 

Another thing to consider -your body actually can be trained to take in more carbs. So GI issues on the run can also be curbed with practice. I also like to sip on my gels over a full mile vs. shoving it all down my throat like I used to. 

3 Natural Long Run Gels & Electrolyte Sources

If you want to try more natural brand long run fuel, here’s 3 to consider that I love:

  1. Tailwind. Tailwind is actually a powder that you can put in your water bottle and it has a combination of both carbs AND electrolytes. I like to put a scoop in my water bottle (or 2 if I’m doing a trail run) and start with it on my long runs so I know that I’m getting in extra carbs. They see these in packets too that you can carry & use to re-fuel if needed. (I recently became a Tailwind Ambassador because I love it so much!)
  2. Huma Gels: Made from natural foods and ingredients (fruit, brown rice syrup), including small amounts of chia seed which helps reduce sugar spikes and provides steady energy. I like the + gels that have electrolytes in.
  3. BPN “Go Gels” : A new favorite replacement for my Spring Energy gels.  These are made from brown rice, apple juice, and sea salt.

All 3 of these contain a combination of both fructose and glucose, which is ideal.

What works for me may not work for you. Every body is unique and you MUST experiment and practice with your gels on your long runs. Plus, taking in adequate fuel on your long runs will improve your performance & recovery in training.

Pro tip – you can get samples of gels on TheFeed.com if you don’t want to commit to a whole box. 

What brand of gels do you use?!