A Canadian cyclist discovered a $5 homemade energy gel recipe that delivers 70 g of carbs per serving and saves him $300 a month. Here’s how you can make it too.
One Canadian endurance athlete has found a clever way to fuel his rides without draining his wallet.
By making his own energy gels, he’s cut his weekly nutrition costs by more than $70 and the recipe is simple enough for anyone to try at home.
Oliver Dowd, a long-distance rider, says the idea came to him after realizing that the number of gels he needed each week made buying commercial products unsustainable.
“I wanted the convenience of gels while training,” he explains, “but the amount I was going through made it impossible to afford.”
Dowd consumes between 25 and 30 gels every week. At store prices, that would set him back close to $80. Instead, with a DIY approach, he’s reduced the cost to just about $5 a week.
Each serving provides around 70g of carbohydrate, putting it right on par with many commercial gels.
“That’s the number everyone looks for,” Dowd explains in a video he shared on Instagram.
The recipe was first developed when Dowd was preparing for a cross-Canada cycling record attempt.
His plan was cut short after a crash left him injured, but the gel formula stuck.
“I needed a method to make gels in a hotel room without a stove,” he recalls. A friend introduced him to sodium alginate as a replacement for cooking, and it turned out to be the key ingredient. Interestingly, sodium alginate is the same substance used by big-name brands like Maurten to achieve that gel-like consistency.
Before the accident, Dowd tested the formula on back-to-back long rides, taking as many as 15 gels a day with no stomach problems.
Although another record attempt isn’t off the table, Dowd admits it’s a huge commitment for his support team.
For now, these homemade gels remain his go-to fueling strategy. “After countless long rides relying on them,” he says, “I can confirm they work.”
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