Tanking up, for a cyclist, is about keeping enough fuel coming in. Of course we don’t need the fuel that an army tank would, but we want to avoid The Bonk.

How much fuel is needed? What kind? This depends on myriad factors; individual taste preference and any special dietary needs among them.

For instance, I’m working at watching the carbs. But how do I manage that when I’m out riding for several hours?

For example, take an RX Bar. The Mixed Berry flavor has 24 grams of total carbs. I need to eat one of these bars per hour if I want to avoid bonking. If I ride for 3-4 hours, that’s 72-96 grams of carbs!

We haven’t gotten to post-ride tanking up yet, and that’s as important as on-bike food. My go-to recovery drink has long been a cup of skim milk (or unsweetened almond milk), with a scoop of chocolate whey protein powder in it.

They say that the body is best able to use carbs within 20 minutes of completing a long ride. How many carbs here are too many? I have to include them in my day’s carb count.

Yesterday I bought a small canister of vegan protein powder. I compared carb content of that and the whey powder; and guess what? They both have the same carb count per serving.

Thus it will amount to, Which one tastes better? Yesterday evening I took three jars, and put a cup of almond milk into each one. Then one jar got whey powder; one got vegan powder; and one got 50/50. I put them in the fridge to chill.

Post-ride taste test: I liked the 50/50 mix best. I put the others in the freezer for another time. I don’t need to toss back 30 grams of carbs.