I ran ten miles today in 1:33:40, slightly over my goal time. I actually felt pretty good, except that I was really, really thirsty for the last two miles or so. I went out on a limb yesterday at the Claremont VIllage Venture street fair and purchased four packets of energy gel, two from Gu and the other from (I think) HammerEnergy. The book Marathon Training for Dummies quasi-recommended energy gels, and I figured that after feeling totally burnt out last week, I’d give it a try this week. Since there may be others interested in these products, I’ll describe them in detail. The one I took today was Gu Strawberry Banana. It actually tasted pretty good, and the consistency was palatable. I’d say it was only slightly more viscous and sticky than yogurt, although after riding in my pocket for 45 minutes, it was unpleasantly warm. I wasn’t able to just choke it all down at once, as the makers recommend, but over the course of a few minutes, it gave my mind something to do, relieving the monotony of running. I couldn’t say that I got a burst of energy, although I did feel more energetic almost immediately. The fact that I ran faster almost as soon as I swallowed it leads me to believe that this was more of a placebo effect than anything else. I kept an eye on my watch, and after five and then ten minutes, I still had not gotten the expected burst of energy. However, by the end of the run I felt a little more upbeat than after running nine miles last week, which could be a result of the gel. It should be noted that the one I got was caffeine free, since caffeine usually has an adverse effect on my energy stores. I’m going to try a chocolate one next week during my eleven mile long run, so we’ll see if that has a noticeable difference. In conclusion, I liked the product because it tasted all right, it had a placebo effect on my for a while, and it gave me something to do for a few minutes midway through my run. As for its purported ability to increase your energy, I still have no idea if it worked or not.