Ep 48: Demystifying Energy Gels

Not long ago, endurance athletes fuelled long efforts with familiar foods — jaggery, dates and bananas. Those foods still have their place, but sports nutrition has become far more specialised. Energy gels and carbohydrate drinks now let runners carry and consume measured amounts of fuel without having to chew, swallow bulky food or slow down at aid stations.

At the elite level, fuelling is now planned as carefully as training and pacing. Before Sebastian Sawe’s world-record run at the 2026 London Marathon, Maurten’s nutrition team spent months testing and refining a personalised strategy that allowed him to take in roughly 115 grams of carbohydrate per hour.

Recreational runners face a more basic set of questions. What makes a gel effective? Does the glucose-to-fructose ratio matter? Should it be taken with water? And how can a runner push carbohydrate intake higher without upsetting the stomach?

In this episode, host Aditi Pandya speaks with Vikas Malik — endurance runner, researcher and co-founder of LEAP Nutrition — about what actually goes into an energy gel and how runners can choose, practise and use them more effectively.

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What’s covered in this episode:

• What is inside an energy gel: the roles of glucose, fructose, sucrose and maltodextrin, and the supporting ingredients used to control flavour, consistency and shelf life.
• Why gels combine different carbohydrates: how multiple carbohydrate sources let the body absorb and use more energy than glucose alone, and whether the familiar 2:1 glucose-to-fructose ratio is still the standard.
• Understanding different gel formats: the practical differences between concentrated, isotonic, hydrogel and high-carbohydrate gels, and how consistency and serving size affect their use on the run.
• How much carbohydrate runners need: why the traditional limit of about 60 grams per hour has moved to 90 grams and beyond, and whether larger gels or more frequent smaller servings work better.
• Timing gels during a marathon: why fuelling should begin before fatigue appears, and why taking several gels late in the race cannot make up for under-fuelling earlier.
• Gels, water and electrolytes: when water is needed with a gel, what an “isotonic” claim really means, and whether the sodium in a gel meaningfully contributes to hydration.
• Training the gut: how runners can progressively become comfortable taking on carbohydrate and fluid at race intensity, rather than testing flavours on an occasional long run.
• Using caffeine strategically: whether caffeinated gels should be saved for the second half of a race, and how caffeine may affect runners prone to nausea, anxiety or gastrointestinal discomfort.
• Cramps and added ingredients: whether sodium, potassium or magnesium can stop cramps once they have started, and what the evidence really says about amino acids and creatine during a marathon.
• Choosing the right gel: what to check on the label, and how to test carbohydrate quantity, texture, flavour and intake schedule long before race day.
• A simple first-marathon strategy: how a new marathoner can pick a gel, build a sensible fuelling schedule and rehearse it repeatedly in training.

Host: Aditi Pandya

Aditi is a seasoned endurance runner and the host of The World of Running podcast. She has qualified for the Boston Marathon multiple times and holds several podium finishes at Indian races, including first runner-up in the half marathon at TMM 2025. She ran a personal best of 3:22:35 at the 2026 Boston Marathon. Learn more about her at aditipandya.com.

Guest: Vikas Malik

Vikas holds a PhD in physics and has extensive professional experience in food and pharmaceutical research. He is an accomplished marathon and ultramarathon runner with a marathon personal best of 2:47. In 2017, he recorded what was then reported as the fastest 100-mile performance by an Indian runner, completing the distance in approximately 18 hours and 20 minutes. Vikas is the co-founder of LEAP Nutrition, where he has been involved in developing sports-nutrition products for endurance athletes.

References & resources discussed:

• RunStrong Online training platform

• Vikas Malik: @leap_and_strides on Instagram

• LEAP Nutrition Sports nutrition products for endurance athletes
• Sebastian Sawe’s world-record fuelling Maurten’s testing and race-fuelling report
• Maurten Hydrogel-based energy gels and drink mixes
• Runners' Guide to Energy Gels